Summary of EC (ES/SI) Negotiations November 13 and 14, 2003
November 21, 2003
The full EC Collective Bargaining Committee met on November 12 to confirm travel time and pay proposals. The next day, the smaller Negotiating Team met with the Treasury Board negotiators (the Employer).
At this second negotiation meeting with the Employer, the Association presented proposals on travel time and pay, including a pay grid. Following this the Employer provided a first response on the Associations’s non-monetary proposals made in the September 30 - October 1 negotiating session.
"We are beginning to make progress and the employer is demonstrating sensitivity towards EC issues - encouraging, but much hard work remains," said Association President Bill Krause.
The EC proposal on travel time is based on the work of the joint committee established as part of the previous collective agreement. The proposals recognize the work/life imbalance created when employees are required to travel and attempt to address this imbalance.
The responsible and well reasoned pay proposal represents our desire to address one of the top priorities of the membership. Our goal is to achieve pay increases that are in line with recent settlements for professional groups in the federal public service and that take into account cost of living increases. We have also not lost sight of the fact that other groups which are currently in negotiations will be receiving pay increases as well. We also seek to address relativity problems with specific groups (eg. PM, CR) and to correct inequities in the pay scales (e.g. ES/SI 1 and 2 levels, SI-3 level).
Some progress was made on non-monetary issues as the Employer did indicate a willingness to be somewhat flexible on issues relating to the EC bargaining unit. While this development is encouraging, we are still in the early stages of negotiations. We can expect only slow progress in the current bargaining environment where most collective agreements in the federal public service are under negotiation, including the largest units.
The Employer will look at our new proposals and respond at a later date. The Employer has also said they will respond later to other Association proposals with cost implications, including Association leave proposals.
We have now tabled all proposals with the Employer except those which derive from the recently passed Bill C-25. The Association will be making proposals based on C-25 in areas where it is possible to do so, especially regarding labour relations. There are aspects of C-25 we are unfortunately not in a position to bargain, notably changes which dramatically weaken the merit principle.
The next bargaining session is scheduled for December 9, 10 and 11.
November 21, 2003
The full EC Collective Bargaining Committee met on November 12 to confirm travel time and pay proposals. The next day, the smaller Negotiating Team met with the Treasury Board negotiators (the Employer).
At this second negotiation meeting with the Employer, the Association presented proposals on travel time and pay, including a pay grid. Following this the Employer provided a first response on the Associations’s non-monetary proposals made in the September 30 - October 1 negotiating session.
"We are beginning to make progress and the employer is demonstrating sensitivity towards EC issues - encouraging, but much hard work remains," said Association President Bill Krause.
The EC proposal on travel time is based on the work of the joint committee established as part of the previous collective agreement. The proposals recognize the work/life imbalance created when employees are required to travel and attempt to address this imbalance.
The responsible and well reasoned pay proposal represents our desire to address one of the top priorities of the membership. Our goal is to achieve pay increases that are in line with recent settlements for professional groups in the federal public service and that take into account cost of living increases. We have also not lost sight of the fact that other groups which are currently in negotiations will be receiving pay increases as well. We also seek to address relativity problems with specific groups (eg. PM, CR) and to correct inequities in the pay scales (e.g. ES/SI 1 and 2 levels, SI-3 level).
Some progress was made on non-monetary issues as the Employer did indicate a willingness to be somewhat flexible on issues relating to the EC bargaining unit. While this development is encouraging, we are still in the early stages of negotiations. We can expect only slow progress in the current bargaining environment where most collective agreements in the federal public service are under negotiation, including the largest units.
The Employer will look at our new proposals and respond at a later date. The Employer has also said they will respond later to other Association proposals with cost implications, including Association leave proposals.
We have now tabled all proposals with the Employer except those which derive from the recently passed Bill C-25. The Association will be making proposals based on C-25 in areas where it is possible to do so, especially regarding labour relations. There are aspects of C-25 we are unfortunately not in a position to bargain, notably changes which dramatically weaken the merit principle.
The next bargaining session is scheduled for December 9, 10 and 11.