Voting continues!

We noticed you haven't voted for your tentative agreement yet. The deadline to get your vote in is 5 p.m. (PDT) on Monday, March 27th. Can you go vote and remind 3 other co-workers to vote today?

Your credentials will have the following sender address: [email protected]. If you have not received your voting credentials, please check your spam or junk folder. 

Your voting credentials will include your unique Elector ID (which is your BCGEU membership number) and a password. These voting credentials are unique to you and can only be used once. Once you have submitted your ballot using your credentials, you will not be able to reuse them. You can cast your ballot using any computer (desktop or laptop), tablet or smart phone. 

Click here for the FAQs about voting, including:

• What do I do if I don't receive my voting credentials?
• How does the vote get counted?
• Will there be scrutineers for the count?

If you haven't received your voting credentials, click here to complete, and submit a form for voting credentials.

If you still have questions about the tentative agreement or the vote, you can email [email protected]

Please post this on your union bulletin board and forward this email to anyone you know who has not been receiving emails on the vote!

This is your agreement and your vote. Make it count!

In solidarity,

Your Community Social Services Bargaining Committee

The community social services tentative agreement that members are currently voting on includes wage protections to adjust the April 1, 2023 wage increases according to the impact of inflation in the previous 12 months.

Based on inflation figures released this week, we can confirm that if the agreement is ratified, members will receive the full 6.75% wage increase starting the first full pay period after April 1, 2023.
This brings the total general wage increases for the first two years of the agreement to well over 10% for most members, on top of additional increases related to low wage redress and wage comparability.
 
The tentative agreement also includes wage protections for the April 1, 2024 wage increases, which would be calculated around this time next year. You can find more information about the wage increases and other improvements in your collective agreement on the ratification page.
 
Voting is open until 5 p.m. PDT on March 27, 2023. If you haven't already cast your ballot, make sure to do so before the deadline. You can find information on the ratification vote here.
 
In solidarity,
 
Your Community Social Services Bargaining Committee

UWU/MoveUP

As promised, here is a document containing the highlights of the tentative agreement. You can also access the full comprehensive report here.

A wage calculator that can show you how your wages would change over the length of this tentative agreement will be available in the coming days. Keep an eye on your inbox as we will inform you as soon as it is available online.

Member education

• In person information sessions are happening in your community. Find out details here. Virtual meetings are also scheduled across the province, for members that are not able to go to a meeting space in person.
• Events for this week are listed at the bottom of this email. There are also changes for meetings next week in Campbell River on March 6 and confirmation of virtual meetings for members in 305, 307, 308 and 309 on March 7. Please check the website for the meetings scheduled for next week, which is the final week before voting begins. 
• You can view the ratification webinar here, in case you missed any of them.
• If you have a question about the tentative agreement or the ratification process, email [email protected].

Voting on the tentative agreement opens at 8 a.m. (PST) on Monday, March 13th and closes at 5 p.m. (PST) on Monday, March 27th. This will be your collective agreement, and the ratification vote is your opportunity to have your say! Make sure you have the information you need to make an informed decision. Information about voting will be shared soon, stay tuned for details.

REMINDER:It is important that your bargaining committee can contact members to communicate important information about the ratification process. Log in to update your contact information here. Please note: If you are adding an address that was previously unsubscribed from BCGEU emails, you must also resubscribe by filling out the form here. 

In solidarity,

Your Community Social Services Bargaining Committee


This week's information sessions:

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 1 – IN PERSON AND VIRTUAL

THURSDAY, MARCH 2 – IN PERSON AND VIRTUAL

FRIDAY, MARCH 3 – IN PERSON AND VIRTUAL

Important updates for next week's meetings:

MONDAY, MARCH 6 – IN PERSON MEETINGS IN CAMPBELL RIVER

Meeting location is at the Comfort Inn and Suites – 1351 Shoppers Row
Drop-in times: 12 PM to 3 PM and 5 PM to 8 PM

TUESDAY, MARCH 7 – ZOOM MEETINGS FOR Locals 305, 307 , 308 and 309 (Kamloops, Okanagan, and Kootenays)

There three meeting times: 9 AM, 12 PM and 5 PM
Click here for zoom link.

** We encourage questions to be sent in advance of all Zoom meetings to [email protected]

UWU/MoveUP

All 305 Members in Salmon Arm

COMPONENT:  COMMUNITY SOCIAL SERVICES
LOCAL:           305
DATE:            THURSDAY, MARCH 9, 2023
TIME(S):        12:00 p.m. OR 5:00 p.m.
PLACE:           Yan’s Restaurant - 880 21^st Street NE, Salmon Arm, BC 
 

As food will be provided, please rsvp attendance and dietary restrictions to [email protected]
 

AGENDA

• Ratification Meeting – Discuss Tentative Agreement
• Information Session Only – No Voting will take place at this meeting

Details of the proposed settlement and information on voting has been emailed to all members and is available online at: https://www.bargainingbc.ca/css_ratification Keep checking this link for updates.         


Download PDF of notice here   

UWU/MoveUP

UWU/MoveUP

Please rsvp your attendance [email protected]

Download PDF of notice here

UWU/MoveUP

UWU/MoveUP

Now that we've reached a tentative agreement with your employer, the ratification process begins. This is where you'll have your say. Ratification of a tentative agreement involves two steps: member education and voting. 
 
Member education
During the education process your bargaining committee will be working hard to make sure every member of the bargaining unit understands how the agreement will impact their working lives. We want to ensure that members have the information they need to make an informed decision. 
 
This will involve planning a series of member education sessions in your area - in person meetings and Zoom webinars-where members will be able to ask questions about their agreement. These member education sessions will be held in the coming weeks. Timing is being finalized and details of dates and times will follow. 
 
Provincial town hall meetings have been scheduled for Thursday, February 16 and Tuesday, February 21. These are open to all members across the province. Each date will have two meeting times: 12:00 pm and 6:30 pm.
Links and instructions on how to participate will be sent next week.

Highlights for Community Social Services collective agreement (including Community Living Services, General Services and Indigenous Services) will be available early next week, as will a comprehensive report. The comprehensive report will explain the full details of the tentative agreement and how those changes will impact you and your co-workers. In addition, you will have access to an online wage calculator and the full text of changes to the collective agreement. Keep an eye on your inbox.

Voting
Voting for your tentative agreement will be conducted electronically through an independent, secure, third-party, online voting platform called Simply Voting. You will receive your voting credentials by email as well by regular mail. 
 
Voting on the tentative agreement opens at 8 a.m. on Monday, March 13th and closes at 5 p.m. on Monday, March 27th.  

Check in with your coworkers: are they receiving these updates?

Do you have co-workers who aren't getting these emails? Please tell them to sign up for the BCGEU Member Portal as soon as possible and make sure their personal email address is on file so we can email them their voting credentials.
 
If you have any questions about the ratification process, email [email protected].
 
This is your agreement: your vote, your voice.
 
In solidarity,
Your Community Social Service Bargaining Committee

UWU/MoveUP

The Community Social Services Bargaining Association (CSSBA) is pleased to announce a tentative agreement has been reached with the Community Social Services Employers Association (CSSEA). This includes agreements for workers in the Community Living Services, General Services and Indigenous Services sub-sectors.

The tentative agreement was negotiated with nine other unions who represent members in the agreement: CUPE, HEU, HSA, CSWU Local 1611, CLAC, USW 1-417, UFCW and BCNU.

Our union – which represents you and about 19,000 other members covered by this agreement – has been at the bargaining table since February 2022, working hard to bring forward the priorities you identified. These priorities include fair and equitable wages to address rising costs of living, meaningful recognition and rights for Indigenous workers and the ability to address your own health needs, including mental health supports.

The tentative agreement has a three-year term and includes the following highlights:

• Low-wage redress* increases, retroactive for all employees (past and present) to April 1, 2022
• $0.25/hour increase to all wage grids, retroactive for all employees (past and present) to April 1, 2022
• 3.24% increase to all wage grids, retroactive for all employees (past and present) to April 1, 2022
• At least a 5.5% general wage increase, effective the first pay period after April 1, 2023
• At least a 2% general wage increase, effective the first pay period after April 1, 2024
• Additional wage comparability increases for all classifications
• Increase to transportation allowance, effective date of ratification
• 100% paid sick leave, effective April 1, 2024
• Improvements to health and welfare benefits, leave provisions, safety and health, layoff and recall, bullying and harassment language.

In addition, the following are highlights on the gains achieved specifically for Indigenous Services:

• Wage parity for all classifications with Main Public Service collective agreement
• Retention incentive payment for all classifications
• Commitment to continue discussions on parity with Main Public Service agreement for recruitment and retention, compensatory recognition for cultural competency and further Indigenization of the collective agreement 

* Low-wage redress (LWR) refers to funds that are meant to help reduce long-term inequalities in compensation in both community social services and health care sectors.

Your bargaining committee unanimously supports the tentative agreement and is encouraging all members to vote in favour of ratification.
In the coming days, your bargaining committee will share full details of the tentative agreement. You will also receive invitations to upcoming information sessions and information on how and when you can vote.
Thank you for your patience and ongoing support of your bargaining committee through this difficult round of bargaining. We believe we have secured an agreement members will want to support. 

Member Portal In order to stay informed about important ratification information, we're asking all members to update your contact information in the Member Portal. If you don't yet have a Member Portal account, click here to sign up today.

Already have a Member Portal account? You can log in here. If you've forgotten your password, you can reset it here. It's more important than ever to make sure that our union has your up-to-date contact information including your personal email and phone number.

Please check with your coworkers to make sure they are also receiving these email updates and share this bulletin with them.

In solidarity,

Your Community Social Services Bargaining Association (CSSBA) Negotiating Committee

UWU/MoveUP