Contract Corner
Article 1.07
Regular part-time employee means an employee who has been hired to fill a regular part-time position of fewer than thirty-five (35) hours per week, for an indefinite period of time. A new regular part-time employee serves a probationary period of six (6) months commencing from the date of employment.
Article 1.08
Substitute employee means an employee who has been hired to work on an on-call basis, for an indefinite period of time. A new substitute employee serves a probationary period of six (6) months commencing from the date of employment.
What does this mean?
According to these definitions, a substitute employee cannot be regularly scheduled. Regular part-time employees have regular part-time shifts and a substitute employee is on call. For example, substitute employees cover shifts for employee illness and vacation.
Article 6.03 (b) New Employees
In order to acquaint new in-scope employees with the business and duties of Union membership, within the first six (6) months of employment, an employee designated by the Union for each location may meet for one-half (1/2) hour with each new employee from that location. The Union shall provide the employer with a list of the designates.
What does this mean?
As a new employee, you are entitled to meet with a Union representative and/or Communicator for thirty minutes (paid) to explain what your union does for you and to review key clauses in the Collective Agreement.
Article 7.12: Warnings and Discipline
(b) When an employee is to receive a verbal warning (or when an employee is being disciplined and given a written letter of discipline which will be placed on the employee’s personnel file) the employee shall have the right to have a union representative present.
Daunine Rachert, notes that these rights are called “substantive rights” which are significant rights for both employees and Unions. Recent labour arbitration cases in Alberta and other provinces have awarded monetary damages to both employees and Unions when the arbitrators have found that these substantive rights were breached by the employer. By awarding damages the cases recognized that the employer’s rights were protected.
What does this mean?
If a supervisor or manager requests a meeting with you which appears disciplinary in nature, you have the right to have a steward or union representative with you.
Article 10 Hours of Work
10.04 Overtime authorized by the appropriate Section, Branch or Department Manager, will be paid at the rate of time and a half (x1.5) for all hours worked in excess of the regular hours of work.
10.06 Instead of cash payment for overtime, an employee may choose to receive time off at the appropriate overtime rate. The employee must designate at the time of working her choice of cash or lieu time. The taking of lieu time off is to be mutually agreed between the employee and the applicable Section, Branch or Department Manager. An employee will not be permitted to accumulate more than ten (10) working days of time off. Any unused time will be paid out prior to December 31 of that year.
What does this mean?
This means if you work more than 35 hours per week you are entitled to either 1.5 overtime pay or 1.5 hours off in lieu time. For example, if you work 36 hours which is one hour overtime, you receive either 1.5 in overtime pay or 1.5 hours off in lieu time.
Article 10.01 (e) Hours of Work, Change of Schedule
Except in emergency situations, written notice of any on-going change in hours of work or work schedule shall be given to each affected employee. The designated supervisor will provide as much notice as possible, but at least two (2) weeks' written notice.
What does this mean?
You must be given two weeks written notice for a change in your schedule unless it is an emergency situation.
Article 10.02 Hours of Work, Rest Periods
All employees shall be allowed an unpaid meal break, normally of one (1) hour, during each shift of not less than seven (7) hours, at which time they shall not be required to remain on the premises.
(b) All employees shall be permitted a paid rest period as follows:
i) 15 minutes in each shift of up to 3 1/2 hours; or
ii) 25 minutes in each shift of more than 3 1/2 and up to 5 hours; or
iii) 30 minutes in each shift of more than 5 hours.
It is understood that service to the public shall be maintained.
What does this mean?
It means that if you are working a 7 hour shift, you are entitled to an hour break for lunch/dinner. You are not paid for this break. You can leave the building as this is your own time.
(b) It means that you are entitled to a break during your shift for the purposes of resting. Different lengths of shifts get different lengths of breaks.
i) If you are working a shift 3 to 3 ½ hrs, you are entitled to a 15 minute paid break. If you are working 7 hours this is essentially two 3 ½ hour shifts. You are entitled to two 15 minute paid breaks.
ii) If you work a shift between 3 ½ to 5 hrs, you are entitled to a 25 minute paid rest break.
iii) If you work between 5 and 7 hrs, you are entitled to a 30 minute paid rest break, generally taken as two 15 minute breaks which can be scheduled.
Rest periods are paid breaks. This means you are still working for the employer and are not to leave the premises without expressed permission. If you must leave the building for a smoke break you are require to be a minimum of 5 metres away from any access doors (so approximately 10 feet). Please be courteous to your colleagues and do NOT block access to staff entrances. Rest periods are not intended to extend lunch/dinner breaks or to allow the employee to leave their shift early. You cannot accumulate or save your rest periods.
It is understood that service to the public shall be maintained. This means that in the event that taking a rest period would prevent optimum service to the public, you might not get your break at the time normally scheduled , however you are still entitled to a break during your shift. Flexibility, communication and common sense should always be applied.
Employees are entitled to their rest periods regardless of staffing issues. Management cannot refuse a rest period or add it onto another shift. Rest periods have been negotiated and are timed for optimum health and safety for the employees.
For clarification you cannot be scheduled for a 2 or 2.5 hour shift. A minimum you can be scheduled for is 3 hours and as such you are entitled to a 15 minute rest period. Also staff cannot be directed or compelled to stay beyond their paid shift for any reason. Leaving “together” for safety reasons is NOT mandatory and unless there is assigned staff parking, pointless. At the end of a shift your time is your own and you may freely leave the work site.
Article 11.01 - Holidays
(a) The following shall be considered paid holidays: New Year’s Day, Alberta Family Day, Good Friday, Victoria Day, Canada Day, 1st Monday in August, Labour Day, Thanksgiving Day, Remembrance Day, Christmas Day, Boxing Day and all general holidays proclaimed by the City of Calgary, the Province of Alberta and/or the Government of Canada.
(b) In addition to the foregoing "Paid Holidays" Full-time Employees who are in the employ of the Employer on April 1st of each year shall be granted an additional "floater" holiday. The "floater" holiday shall be taken at a time to be mutually agreed upon by the Employer and the Employee between April 1st and March 31st of the entitlement year. Any floater holidays not taken within the entitlement year will be paid out.
(c) Although not to be considered as legal holidays, the Board shall continue the existing policy and practice as reflected hereunder: on both Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve the library shall close at 4:00p.m.
What does this mean?
With the previous contract, Easter Monday was considered a paid holiday. With the current collective agreement, Easter Monday is no longer considered a paid holiday and the library will be open as usual. Full-time employees will work and be paid their regular rate of pay on Easter Monday AND be given an additional paid day off. This "floater" day will be mutually agreed upon by the employee and their manager. If the full-time employee does not take the "floater" day within the year, they will be paid out for that day at their regular pay rate. All regular part-time and substitute employees please refer to Article 16.03.
On Christmas Eve (December 24) and on New Year’s Eve (December 31) all employees will be scheduled to work from 9 – 4 pm if they are full time and if they are part-time, will put in the number of hours they would have worked before 4 pm.
Articles 14.01(a) & 14.02 Leaves of Absence
Procedure - All applications for leave of absence pursuant to clauses 14.02 and 14.03 shall be submitted in writing by the employee to her Section, Branch or Department
Manager. The Manager will forward the application through her Manager or
Head to the Human Resources Department, who will forward the request to the
Director (or designate).
General Leave - The Director, or designate may grant leave of absence to an employee should application for such leave be made. Should an employee be granted leave of absence during any period of probation, such probationary period shall be suspended during the leave and shall resume when the employee returns to work.
What does this mean?
This means that any employee who wishes to apply for a leave of absence MUST FIRST put the request in writing and MUST FIRST, receive the approval of their unit Manager, before doing anything else. Do not assume that the request will automatically be approved. Until such time as the employee receives the CEO’s decision they should not make any arrangements to take such leave, as such arrangements may need to be cancelled (at the employee’s expense).
Other things to consider if you are thinking of applying for a leave of absence are; one, remember probation is based on hours worked, so time away while on leave will impact on the accumulation of hours needed to end probation and two, during a short leave of absence the employee will be required to pay their share of any benefits' premiums. If the leave of absence is more than 30 days the employee will pay both the employer’s share and their own share of the benefit premiums.
Article 15.08 Pre-retirement Counselling
Prior to normal or planned retirement, the Board shall make a one-time contribution of up to one hundred dollars ($100) towards the reasonable expense which an employee incurs for an authorized pre-retirement counseling programme.
What does this mean?
Before retiring an employee can book a session with a retirement counselor. The library will pay up to $100 for this session.
Article 16.04 (d) Sick Leave Extension
An employee with more than one (1) year of service who has exhausted her sick leave credits shall be allowed an extension of her sick leave to a maximum of ten (10) working days. Upon return to duty, the employee shall repay the extension of sick leave in full at the rate of one day per month. No employee shall have her services terminated by virtue of having exhausted her sick leave credits. An employee shall not remain in a deficit position with respect to sick leave credits for longer than twelve (12) consecutive months. In such instances, the un-repaid days will be deducted as leave without pay. The deduction will be spread over a maximum of five (5) pay periods.
What does this mean?
When an employee uses all of their sick leave, then the library will grant them up to ten days paid extension. However, these ten days must be paid back. In order to minimize financial hardship on the employee, the pay back can be spread out as described. When an employee has used all of their sick leave, including the Sick Leave Extension, then they can apply to the Sick Leave Bank (see Article 16.05). The Sick Leave Bank is available to all full-time employees who have completed their probationary period and have been approved by the Sick Leave Bank Committee. An employee who has applied for benefits from the Sick Leave Bank can withdraw days from the Bank up to a maximum of twenty-five working days at a time. If the employee needs more time, then subsequent applications may be made, to a total maximum of eighty-five working days for the same or related causes.