CUPE 4070 Newsletter - January 2024

Topics in this Newsletter:
President's Update
Interested in Joining the Union
Menstrual Hygiene Products
Anti-Scab Legislation
Transportation Requests for Guests on Your Layover
Seniority Merger Types Information
Reminder
Sick/Personal Time
The Grievance Process
Save the Dates
Galley Gossip

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President's Update
 

Galley Conversations: when discussing seniority-related topics, it's crucial to approach the conversation with sensitivity and adhere to WS Respect in the Workplace policy. Seniority can be a nuanced subject, and while sharing perspectives, it's vital to maintain a respectful dialogue that honors diverse viewpoints and experiences.

The policy underscores the importance of treating everyone with dignity, regardless of their position or tenure. Let's ensure our discussions on seniority are conducted in a manner that upholds these principles and fosters a workplace environment that values mutual respect and understanding. We can always disagree and do so respectfully.  

Interested in Joining the Union?
 

If you are interested in joining the Union in a role, please reach out to your Base Vice President here for more information and details. There are several open roles. 

Menstrual Hygiene Products

In recognition of the additional, and sometimes restrictive, costs associated with menstruation, a resolution was passed at the CUPE National Convention that menstrual hygiene products be made available in all Union spaces.  A small amount of these  products is now available in all 4070 offices (YVR, YYC, YYZ.) 

Anti-Scab Legislation
 

Please read the Anti-Scab Legislation Memo from National CUPE here.

Transportation Requests for Guests on Your Layover

Any time a guest is being brought on an overnight, and if you plan to request them to travel in the crew shuttle with you, please ensure to fill out the request form. Keeping in mind, due to logistics, it could be denied.

The current approval rate sits around 80%. Some cities, due to the transportation company’s vehicle size, may not be able to accommodate more than the crew. As example YHZ sits around 50% approval and YVR is another city that can be difficult to get approval in.

Please feel free to reach out to the Company with any questions or concerns you may have with your transportation request for bringing a guest on a layover. 

Seniority Merger Types Information

As seniority merging process has been underway, and is still a long ways away from being determined, we wanted to explain the different types of seniority merging types that exist.
 

Dove Tailing- Is a method of interlocking two seniority lists. This can be done multiple ways. As example you could dovetail 3 to 1, meaning 3 employees of the buying company and then one employee of the bought company, 3 more employees of the buying company and then one more employee of the bought company. It does not have to be 3 to 1, it could be any variation. 

End Tailing- Is when all the employees at the bought company are put at the end of the seniority list of the buying company. 

Relative Seniority- This means that regardless of the number of years of seniority at each company. The top senior people would be equal, the middle senior people would be equal and the bottom senior equal people would be equal. Keeping it “relative to their position within their list, and not their actual number of years of seniority”. Example the company who is buying the other company has been around 30 years. The company who was bought has been around 10 years. A 30 year employee at the buying company and a 10 year employee at the bought company would have equal seniority. A 15 year employee at the buying company and a 5 year employee at the bought company would have equal seniority.  

DOH (Date of Hire)-This means the company merging in would keep their full seniority based off of their date of hire at their original company. A 10 year employee would have 10 years seniority at the new company.  

Burckett-Was an arbitrator and arbitrated the decision on the Air Canada and Canadian airline merger. This arbitrator used a combination of relative and dovetailing when determining how the merged seniority lists would be combined.  

Percent of Seniority- This would be the company merging it, their seniority would be a percent of their full seniority. This can be any percent. Example if 75% was determined, that would be mean a merging in employee who had 10 years at their company would count as 7.5 years in the new company.   

Or any combination of the above could be used. 

Reminder - Contacting the Union

When contacting the Union via email, please use your personal email address and send it to the Union Representative's CUPE email address.

Please do not use your company email address, or the company's email address of the Union Representative.  Executive and Committee email addresses can be found behind the member portal on the 4070 website, or you can use the contact form. 

Please do not contact the Union using their personal social media or the Unions social media.  The Union's social media inboxes are not monitored. 

Sick/Personal Time
 

On January 1st, all active members will have their 2024 sick leave entitlements front-loaded and their personal leave entitlements reset, as per the Sick/Personal Time MOAs. 

We’ve received a number of questions about Personal Time, what qualifies and how to access it.  Please take a moment to familiarize yourself with the appropriate MOA, which can be found on the 4070 Website. 

Additional information can also be found in Section III, Article 206.6 of the Canada Labour Code, or the IPG (Interpretation, Policy and Guidelines) here: Personal leave – IPG-117 - Canada.ca 

The Grievance Process

When the Collective Agreement has been violated, the grievance process is used to address it. We have both an individual responsibility and collective responsibility to uphold our CA.  

 
When we fail to grieve, we are giving the Company the evidence that the language in the Collective Agreement is not necessary. This is dangerous as it sets a precedent that we are okay with the violation and weakens our position at the bargaining table. 

The grievance process begins with the informal discussion between you and your DPM. It is beneficial to include your Base VP so they can advise and represent you when trying to resolve the issue. It is important to note that you cannot negotiate with the Company on your own as the Collective Agreement identifies the Union as the sole bargaining agent. This responsibility rests with the Executive Team.  

Save the Dates
All events can be found under "Events" after you log into the website

General Membership Meeting (GMM) 
May 8th, 2024 1100PT/1200MT/1400ET - Sign Up Here
Open only to Members in Good Standing or to those who have completed the application process.

If you are unsure if you are a Member in Good Standing, please reach out to anyone on the Executive Team here.

If you are not a Member in Good Standing, to apply, Sign a Card Here and pay the $5 Membership fee (if you haven't already).  The final step is approval at the next GMM, which occurs every May and November. 

When you sign into the meeting the day of, please ensure your first and last name, and your employee number is showing.  Otherwise you cannot be verified and will be denied entry into the meeting.  

**DO NOT USE YOUR WORK EMAIL ADDRESS**

Galley Gossip

(Visit the Galley Gossip Wall on our website to see previous submissions and answers)
 

Galley Gossip: Has the Swoop Seniority been finalized there is a lot of rumours on the line some are very sure that our place is set in the list while others are very sure we are not done talking about it yet. Could we get clarity on what is happening?

Answer:  As of now, the Swoop Seniority has not been finalized. There have been various rumors circulating, some indicating that their place in the seniority list is set, while others suggest that discussions are still ongoing. However, the reality is that the seniority has not been concluded, and this matter will be addressed during the upcoming merger committee discussions. 

Clarity regarding the finalization of the seniority list will be sought and deliberated upon, during the merger committee discussions.