This is an important pre-bargaining update from your bargaining committees for Fleetwood Villa and Whitecliff.

December Delays

Due to committee member unavailability, your bargaining committees had to postpone their preparatory meetings scheduled for December2023, and consequentially postponed the bargaining sessions that had been scheduled for later this month.

Unfair Labour Practices Complaint

In the meantime, the Union filed an unfair labour practices (ULP) complaint with the Labour Relations Board. The Union alleged that the Employers interfered with the administration of the union and failed to bargain in good faith by refusing to disclose employee contact information, job descriptions, and work schedules. We said disclosure of this information is central to the Union's ability to bargain for members and that the Employers' refusal to provide it violated two sections of the Labour Relations Code. We are pleased to report that the ULP complaint was resolved in mediation last week, with the Employers agreeing to disclose the information as requested by the Union.

Employer Changes Mean No Common Bargaining Table

On the eve of mediation, we were notified of a substantial change in the ownership of the Employers that will almost certainly impact the upcoming round of negotiations. Specifically, we were advised that the "HCN-Revera" entities that comprise your current Employers-joint venture partnerships of Welltower and Revera-would be dissolved on or around February 1, 2024. As of then, ownership and control of Whitecliff would transfer to Revera Retirement LP, while Fleetwood Villa would transfer to WC Operating (British Columbia-1) LP which is an entity of Welltower.

As you may know, Revera is a wholly owned subsidiary o fPublic Service Pension Investment Board (PSPIB) Investments, while Welltower is a publicly traded, US-based real estate investment trust. Based on representations from counsel from Revera, which we are seeking to confirm, the dissolution of the Welltower and Revera joint venture partnerships will leave no relationship between the two new Employers, and Whitecliff and Fleetwood Villa will no longer be under common control. As a result, there will be no basis to require the new Employers to bargain together at a common table.

Assuming the Union is satisfied the new Employers will not be under common control, renewal negotiations for your collective agreements will be conducted separately, as they have been in the past, only with the two new successor Employers. Aside from this technical change in employers and its impact on bargaining, we do not anticipate any changes at the worksite level in the short-term.

The Role of Cogir

You may notice we have resumed referring to your Employers as "HCN-Revera" instead of "Cogir". While Cogir has been contracted by the Employers to manage the sites, including bargaining and other labour relations, the "HCN-Revera" entities remain the legal Employers until the transfers take place next month. Even after the transfers of ownership, we understand that the new Employers will maintain their management contracts with Cogir, at least for now.

Committee Preparation and Changes

Despite these pending changes, your bargaining committees met together on Tuesday, January 16th, for initial bargaining training and preparation. We will keep you informed as things progress, though future updates will be separate and specific to Fleetwood Villa and Whitecliff since we will not be bargaining at a common table.

With the return to separate bargaining tables, each committee may now have up to three regular members. As a result, your Component Vice-President has designated alternate members Elizabeth Duarte and Prabjit Khaira as regular committee members for Fleetwood Villa and Whitecliff, respectively.

Please speak with a worksite member of your bargaining committee if you have any questions or concerns.

In solidarity,

Lani Tayag, Bargaining Committee Chair (Fleetwood Villa)
Elizabeth Duarte, Bargaining Committee Member (Fleetwood Villa)
Tammy Edgar, Bargaining Committee Member (Fleetwood Villa)
Tony Jillings, Bargaining Committee Chair (Whitecliff)
Prabjit Khaira, Bargaining Committee Member (Whitecliff)
Roseanne Parsons, Bargaining Committee Member (Whitecliff)
Ryan Stewart, Staff Representative, Negotiations Department

Download PDF of notice here

UWU/MoveUP