Management Team Bargaining Update Friday September 17, 2021

September 17, 2021

Formal offer of settlement presented to OPSEU CAAT-Academic Employees

Management Team Bargaining Update Friday September 17, 2021

The current academic collective agreement expires on September 30, 2021. The Colleges, represented by the College Employer Council (CEC), want labour stability to ensure continuity of learning for our students and a positive work environment for faculty and staff.

The CEC management bargaining team has been meeting with the OPSEU CAAT-A bargaining team representing Ontario College faculty, librarians, and counsellors since July 2021. Negotiations started with the Union tabling comprehensive demands touching almost every article of the current agreement. For more than two months, we have reviewed the language in the Union’s proposals and compared them to previous rounds of bargaining. We have not dismissed the Union’s demands out of hand. We have calculated how the proposed changes would affect College operations, and asked questions to understand the Union's rationale. To date, they have refused to engage in such discussion.

We had hoped to have a discussion based on interests with the CAAT-A team in order to find common ground. They have refused and repeatedly asked instead that we table a full set of demands. We have done as the CAAT-A team has asked and have tabled a full set of management proposals. Our concern remains that with both the Union’s and management’s full demands on the table, bargaining will be long, difficult, and likely unsuccessful.

In an effort to secure a collective agreement renewal by September 30^th, we have now tabled a without prejudice settlement offer that puts our full set of proposals aside and asks the CAAT-A bargaining team to do the same so that we may reach a collective agreement that addresses our shared areas of interest. Back in February 2021, in order to secure labour stability amidst the pandemic, we proposed a two-year collective agreement extension with an immediate maximum allowable wage increase. The CAAT-A bargaining team declined the extension in favour of formal bargaining. Our current proposal (summary below) is a significant enhancement on the original extension offer.

We hope that the CAAT-A team will unanimously recommend acceptance of this settlement offer to conclude a collective agreement by September 30^th.

Settlement Proposal Highlights

We have proposed changes to the collective agreement that address concerns that both parties share so that we can provide stability for all members of the College community, particularly students. We have proposed that both parties set their contentious demands aside and agree to some meaningful changes that can be made now.

We summarize the proposed changes to the collective agreement below. To review the full settlement offer, click here. To review CEC’s rationale for the settlement offer, click here.

Monetary Proposals	Details
Wages – 1%	NEW Maximum increase allowed under Bill 124. One per cent, each year over the next three years effective October 1, 2021.
Bill 124 Discussion	NEW Agreement that should Bill 124 be overturned or amended, the CEC will meet with OPSEU to discuss potential further wage increases.
Benefits – Medical Cannabis	NEW Medical Cannabis. The extended health insurance plan to cover medical cannabis prescribed by a licensed physician to a maximum of $4,000 per year as set out in the policy.

Non-monetary Proposals	Details
Retroactive Accommodation- Full-time	NEW A teacher assigned to provide a retroactive accommodation to students may discuss the impact of the accommodation on their workload with their supervisor and have the ability to take it to WMG.
Retroactive Accommodation- Partial Load	NEW A partial-load employee assigned to provide a retroactive accommodation to students after the conclusion of the teaching period may discuss the impact of the accommodation on their workload with their supervisor, who will consider the provision of additional compensation.
Pandemic Emergency Conversion	NEW The Colleges have proposed limitations on the Colleges’ unilateral use of pandemic e-materials. (Materials developed by teachers during the pandemic to pivot from face-to-face learning to remote learning.)
Partial Load Employee Service for Public Holidays	NEW Partial-load employees will have holidays counted for the purposes of service accrual.
Partial Load Priority	NEW Ensure that partial load priority works on the basis of an academic year instead of the calendar year. New deadline is April 30.
Counsellor Class Definition	*REVISED* Modernized definition of the Counsellor class. Full definition available in the settlement offer.

Advisory Groups	Details
EDI	*NEW* A Joint Advisory Group to gather workforce composition data and analyze the collective agreement through an EDI lens. Responsible for making recommendations to OPSEU and CEC by February 1, 2023.
Truth and Reconciliation	*NEW* A Joint Round Table with regional representation to advise the EERC on Truth and Reconciliation. Will consult broadly with local Indigenous communities and examine ongoing College initiatives. Responsible for making recommendations regarding changes to the collective agreement by February 1, 2023.
Workload	*NEW* A specialized Joint Task Force on Workload chaired by a neutral party. The Task Force will study the impact of mode of delivery, time on administrative tasks, evaluation factors, application of article 11.04 to counsellors and librarians, and any other matters deemed appropriate by the taskforce. Work to be completed by February 1, 2023. For complete details please see Offer of Settlement.