This bulletin has been written in response to a document currently being circulated by Brother Pat Bertrand entitled “Christmas Overtime for MSC’s At The Pacific Processing Plant (PPC) and Hub (sic)”. It is our hope that this bulletin will shed light on the recent changes (and rumours) regarding the administration of RDO overtime to MSCs.
Background:
For many years, RDO overtime was offered equally to full-time and part-time Mail Service Couriers (MSC) at the VMPP and VPDC on the basis of a combined overtime list. In other words, RDO overtime was offered to all MSCs equally regardless of their installation. The use of a combined overtime list was a carry-over from the days when all MSCs worked out of the downtown Transportation office.
The Separation of the RDO Overtime Lists
On December 3, 2013, Brother Bertrand and several co-workers met with management and took the position that RDO overtime lists for full-time MSCs should be separated between the VMPP and VPDC. It is of note that Brother Bertrand declined to inform the Vancouver Local that he intended to change the practice that had been in effect for many years. While convincing management to separate the overtime lists by installation, Brother Bertrand also insisted that RDO overtime should be offered to full-time MSCs at both installations before any part-time MSCs at either installation would be offered the opportunity to work overtime. Brother Bertrand’s agreement to separate the overtime lists effectively ended a longstanding practice whereby Canada Post would offer RDO overtime equally to all MSCs and it resulted in a violation of the Collective Agreement, which requires overtime to be administered to full-time and part-time MSCs by installation.
Brother Bertrand’s proposal to separate the overtime lists has met with much approval from management. By separating the overtime lists, management was relieved of its obligation to offer overtime equally to all MSCs at both facilities on the basis of a combined list. CPC is now in a position to choose the list from which overtime will be administered. In other words, management could offer RDO overtime to full-time and part-time MSCs at the Hub without being required to offer any overtime to the MSCs at the PPC.
Effective June 16, 2014, management formally designated the PPC as a separate installation in the Transportation Post Office. As of this date, management has insisted that it will continue to operate on the basis of two lists and two installations (i.e. the Hub and PPC) in the future.
The Collective Agreement
For the purpose of equalizing the opportunity to work overtime, Article 15.04 of the Collective Agreement requires Canada Post to post and maintain equal opportunity lists for that purpose, by installation:
(a) For the purpose of equalizing opportunity to perform required overtime work, the Corporation shall post and maintain appropriate lists of employees in order of seniority, applicable to each postal installation. Such lists shall indicate the overtime opportunities offered each employee.
(b) Notwithstanding paragraph 15.04(a), for the purpose of equalizing opportunity to perform required overtime work in a particular classification in Group 2, the Corporation agrees to post and maintain appropriate lists of employees in order of seniority applicable to each postal installation, by classification.
In accordance with Article 15.04, full-time and part-time MSCs will be offered the opportunity to work overtime in their own installation before full-time and part-time MSCs can be brought in from another installation. While in the past the parties maintained a combined list, Brother Bertrand convinced management to separate the list for full-time MSCs. This changed the playing field in terms of the administration of overtime.
The requirement to offer overtime by installation applies to all Group 2 employees. In the case of Letter Carriers, RDO overtime would be offered to full-time and part-time Letter Carriers within their installation before going to other installations. For example, RDO overtime at Station F would be offered to Station F employees before employees from other installations could be brought in to work overtime at Station F. This manner of overtime administration has been consistently applied to Letter Carriers since the amalgamation of CUPW and LCUC and now finds the same application for MSCs because of the separation of overtime lists between the Hub and PPC installations.
2014 MSC Consultations
In his bulletin, Brother Bertrand has claimed, “I personally did not take place in any consultation this year as I was off on injury (sic)”. This claim is untrue. Throughout the course of 2014, Brother Bertrand was present at various consultations involving MSCs. On each occasion, the issue of MSC overtime was discussed:
On February 17, 2014, Brother Bertrand and several other co-workers, including our Local President and our 1st Vice President, took part in a consultation regarding the transition from VPDC to the PPC. During that meeting, President Kim Evans and 1st Vice President Chris Zukowsky requested that that Canada Post return to the combined overtime list.
On March 26, 2014, Brother Bertrand and several other co-workers including the undersigned and our Local President took part in a consultation to follow up on the issues discussed on February 17, 2014. During that meeting, Brother Evans reiterated that the Union’s position that the Corporation should go back to the combined overtime list
On April 9, 2014, Brother Bertrand and several other co-workers met with management without including or informing Local Officers, and again proposed that the two separate overtime lists be maintained going forward. Minutes of the consultation were provided to the Local office confirming the meeting.
On May 14, 2014, Brothers Evans and Zukowsky were in attendance at consultation along with Pat Bertrand. During that meeting, Brother Zukowsky informed Canada Post that numerous MSCs had been complaining about the separation of overtime lists. The Corporation refused to return to the combined overtime list.
On July 7, 2014, following numerous attempts by this office to convince the Employer to re-combine the lists, Brother Bertrand offered to repair the problem that he created on December 3, 2013 by providing a system by which to administer overtime from one combined list. This was to be undertaken following discussions with the work floor. To date, we have never received any proposal from Brother Bertrand.
On August 21, 2014, Brother Zukowsky requested that Canada Post combine the overtime lists between the Hub and PPC. The Employer responded swiftly, “We aren’t changing it”. For the record, Brother Evans stated, “We never agreed to the split”.
The “Local Agreement”
Contrary to Brother Bertrand’s representations, no local agreement was ever in effect either at the time of the signing of the Collective Agreement or at any time after. Nor does Appendix C of the Collective Agreement contain any reference to the agreement that Brother Bertrand claims to be in effect. Lastly, local agreements cannot contradict the terms of the Collective Agreement.
Where do Temporary Employees fit in?
Temporary employees are an important part of this Union. Brother Bertrand has suggested that temporary employees should not be allowed to work RDO overtime but we are cognizant of Arbitrator Guy Dulude’s 1997 ruling regarding the use of temporary employees:
Once again, the principle is decisively upheld that a temporary employee performing the function of a regular employee on an acting basis enjoys all the benefits and privileges attached to that function throughout the period of assignment, unless a specific provision of the collective agreement specifically states otherwise, either explicitly or implicitly.
Temporary employees who are backfilling MSC absences may be offered overtime by seniority after Canada Post has exhausted the full-time and part-time MSCs in an installation. This is consistent with the jurisprudence and the direction that has been provided by our National Office.
In Solidarity,
The Fulltime Officers of the Vancouver Local 846
ck/CUPE-3338