UPCOMING OPEN ASSIGNMENT BID
CUPW proposed an assignment bid procedure to fill assignments at the new plant (PPC) at consultations last week. We proposed a one-step bid. There will be no need to bid twice (first for a section and then for a shift). Instead, everybody will bid for a section and shift at the same time. Management has insisted that the bidding begin on October 3, 2013. More details of the bid will come out in the near future.
What are the benefits of one-step bidding?
First, employees will have more control in bidding for the shift of their choice. Rather than bidding for a section and then hoping that they would have the seniority to obtain their preferred shift in that section, employees will be able to directly bid for those assignments on the shift of their choice. Second, employees who want to make sure that they are doing a specific type of work can bid for that type of work in different sections and on different shifts. This bid will require a more detailed bid sheet than you have seen before. Management has agreed to make CUPW representatives available from the work-floor to assist anyone who needs help.
When will the bidding take place?
The bidding will begin on October 3, 2013.
Because of the large number of Full-time PO4s, we have proposed that their bidding take place in three waves. The top one-third of the FT PO4s on the seniority list will bid first over a ten (10) day period. The results will then be posted so that the next group of FT PO4s will know which assignments are left. The second third of the seniority list will then bid. Again, the results will be posted and the bottom third will know which assignments are left when they bid. FT PO4s will be told in advance which group they belong to.
Part-time PO4s and PO5s will each bid in one wave.
The exact schedule for bidding will be posted soon.
What will we be able to bid for?
Full-time PO4s will bid for FT PO4 assignments, Part-time PO4s will bid for PT PO4 assignments and PO5s will bid for PO5 assignments.
Management has also divided some sections into separate duty rosters. Each duty roster will have its own rotation of duties, vacation leave schedule and RDOs. For example, management has divided the Vancouver Exchange Office (VEO) into two (2) duty rosters: Inbound International and Outbound International. The Parcels & Packets Section has been divided into three (3) duty rosters: Parcels South, Parcels North and Packets. S/L Manual will continue to be separated into Finals and Manual Prime. S/L Mechanized will be divided into S/L Mech [MLOs] and Mail Prep [EFM]. Each of the duty rosters will be separate choices on the bid sheet.
Some sections or duty rosters are all Full-time and some are all Part-time. You will not necessarily be able to bid for your preferred section or duty roster or shift.
Will we also bid on our RDOs?
Management is planning to close the PPC on Saturdays so nobody will be scheduled to work from 8am on Saturday to 8am on Sunday. They have also eliminated all RDOs on Monday through Thursday, on days and afternoons.
Most employees on graveyards will be working in sections that are only scheduled for five (5) days of work and where everybody will have Sunday and Monday RDOs. In those sections where work is scheduled for six (6) days, we will continue the practice of bidding for RDOs because of the health and safety importance of having consistent schedules on graveyard shift.
On days and afternoons, some sections or duty rosters are only scheduled to work from Sunday through Thursday or Monday to Friday. All employees on these duty rosters or sections will have the same RDOs.
There are other sections or duty rosters where management says that they need people from Sunday through Friday. We would like to know if employees on days and afternoons would like to return to the old practice of rotating RDOs. People on the same duty roster would take turns working Sunday to Thursday or Monday to Friday. The schedules would change every three (3) weeks. The number of times you would change RDOs depends on the number of Saturday/Sunday RDOs compared to Friday/Saturday RDOs on the schedule.
What are the reasons for rotating RDOs?
- Everybody on the schedule would be scheduled to have a Sunday off. And that means that everybody would also be scheduled for a long weekend. It is a matter of fairness and equality for everybody.
- Some shifts or duty rosters will have high seniority staff. In that situation, you could end up having a lot of seniority but not be scheduled for a Sunday or long weekend off.
- Part-timers in the Parcels section are scheduled to work eight (8) hours on Sunday. Management is planning to delete Full-Time positions so those Part-timers who want more hours will only be able to get twenty-eight (28) hours if they work on Sundays. By rotating RDOs, all of the Part-timers will have the opportunity to be scheduled for twenty-eight (28) hours.
- We have always been able to trade RDOs so that employees who want Sundays or Fridays off are able to trade with employees who would like to work on Sundays or Fridays. But, even if you can’t find somebody to trade with you, with rotating RDOs everybody is scheduled to have their preferred RDO off for part of the year.
How many bid choices will we have?
The number of choices on the assignment sheet will depend on whether the bid sheet includes fixed or rotating RDOs. On the bid sheet you will be able to rank the order of your choices. We recommend that you bid the maximum number of choices. That is, rank your preferred section/duty roster/shift by #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6 and so on until you exhaust all of the possible choices.
We want to know what you think. If you
have an opinion on fixed or rotating RDOs
or anything else about the assignment bid,
please contact CUPW at
OR
OR phone the Union Hall at
(604) 685-6581.
ck/CUPE-3338