University of Ottawa Support Staff Collective Agreement

The 3-year agreement applies retroactively to May 1, 2019 and expires on April 30, 2022. 2.24 Essential position: The University shall ensure that students, its staff and the university community have access to basic services in the event of a strike and emergency closure of the University. Essential services are: the services, facilities or activities of the University that are or will be necessary for the safety of the public and the University community as a whole or part of it. In other words, there must be reasonable grounds to recognise the likelihood, if not the possibility, that human or animal life or public safety would be in danger if a stoppage of work interrupted the work of the workers concerned. The Parties agree on the list of elements identified as important and they are listed in an Annex to the Agreement. A worker who is on annual leave and who is granted bereavement leave in accordance with section 25.5(a) during the annual leave may convert the annual leave to bereavement leave as mentioned above. Deferred annual leave may be resumed later after consultation with the immediate supervisor. 23.5 If, due to a disability or at the request of the university, an employee is unable to take an annual leave already approved by his or her supervisor before the start of the planned annual leave, the employee may postpone his or her annual leave to a later date with the consent of his or her supervisor. 23.3 If there are disputes between employees in a unit over the vacation plan and employees cannot agree on who should have priority, the length of service of the collective bargaining unit will be used as a last resort to determine priority. 2.4 Liaison Officer: the Director of Industrial Relations, the Lead Negotiator or their delegates, who alone are empowered to deal with issues related to industrial relations, discussions or negotiations and agreements with the bargaining unit or union.

“I fully understand that the current round of negotiations on work stoppages has been difficult. I would like to thank the negotiating teams on both sides for the efforts they have made over the past few weeks. Our support staff are at the heart of the University of Ottawa`s successes and their contribution is greatly appreciated,” said Jacques Frémont, President and Vice-Chancellor of the University. The Executive Committee of the Board of Governors approved the agreement on behalf of the Board on 10 November, and SSUO members voted in favour of the agreement by electronic vote which took place between Thursday, 12 November and Monday, 16 November. OTTAWA, Nov. 16 Toronto, Dec. 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — The University of Ottawa is pleased to announce that a new collective agreement has been approved by the university and ratified by members of the SSUO-OSSTF, the union that represents its 1,300 auxiliaries. 2.9 Bargaining Unit: means all members of the University of Ottawa support staff for whom the CSST has bargaining rights in accordance with Certificate of Accreditation number 3629-06-R, represented by the University of Ottawa Support Staff (UOHS). The APUO is in close contact with the UOHS.

We will continue to keep you informed of developments and support that can be provided to our support staff. Members, yesterday we provided an update on the state of collective bargaining between University of Ottawa support staff (UOHS) and Headquarters. The two parties participated in mediation, which unfortunately did not result in a provisional agreement. Our 1,300 colleagues will go on strike from Monday morning, 19 October, unless an agreement is reached by then. For the time being, however, no new hearing date is scheduled between the two parties. Simply put, APUO members should be prepared for work disruptions next week. The contempt of President Frémont, Vice President Bourgeois and Provost, and Vice President Scott for the massive vote on the SSUO strike last fall and the equally overwhelming rejection by aid workers of the final offer they made last June will have serious consequences for the quality of the student experience starting next week. Like APUO members, our friends and colleagues have done everything they can to fend off the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic. The attempts by headquarters to capitalize on an already difficult context to get employees to accept salary and benefit cuts, an orphan clause and ongoing vacancies in their bargaining unit mark a low point in the history of our university. The central government`s intransigent stance does not bode well for the APUO`s upcoming collective bargaining, which is due to begin in a few months. Rarely has solidarity between unions been as important as this year. In the event of a work disruption, Headquarters may ask you to take on tasks that are typically performed by support staff.

In solidarity with our colleagues at UOHS, we call on APUO members to exercise their right to refuse to take on support staff duties in the event of a work disruption. We also recommend that you forward all work requests, which are usually made by support staff, to your dean`s office, as well as to the offices of the President and Vice-President. As a reminder, here are some activities for which support staff are responsible: 23.8 Leave is spread over two (2) consecutive weeks or is equivalent to two (2) one (1) week, unless the employee makes a written request for shortening the deadlines and the immediate supervisor agrees that the shorter minimum periods be used after receiving the employee`s written request. 2.11 Union Representative: a person who is a member of the Bargaining Unit Executive Committee or an external representative working for the Ontario Secondary School Teachers` Federation (OSSTF). Employees on unpaid maternity, parental, maternity or parental leave as well as employees who are on long-term disability leave due to an occupational disease or an accident at work retain their bank leave. Upon their return to work, the immediate supervisor and the employee shall establish a schedule to use the additional days of annual leave as soon as possible beyond what is authorized under section 23.10, taking into account operational requirements. 2.18 Regular part-time worker: any employee who holds a regular and indefinite position that is part of the collective bargaining unit and for which the weekly working time specified in the job description is greater than twenty-four (24) hours per week, but less than thirty-five (35) hours per week. The number of hours worked in similar positions in the same unit is used as a criterion to determine the percentage of hours worked compared to a full-time position; In the absence of comparable positions, the number of hours is equal to a percentage of a work week of thirty-five (35) hours.

. 2.5 Financial year: the period corresponding to the employer`s financial year, i.e. from 1 May of the current year to 30 April of the following year. 23.4 Before taking annual leave, an employee must have obtained the approval of his or her supervisor and have completed his or her application using the university`s electronic leave management system […].