Author Archives: Grain and General Services Union

Should employers be exempt from giving employees at least 24 hours’ notice of change to their work shifts? A copy of GSU’s submission to government officials is available here.

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A copy of GSU’s submission is available here.

Should employers be exempt from giving employees at least 24 hours’ notice of change to their work shifts? GSU doesn’t think so.

 GSU has submitted a brief opposing exemption of grain handling and milling companies from the application of section 173.1 of Part III of the Canada Labour Code. 

Section 173.1 of the Code requires employers to give employees at least 24 hours’ notice of a change to their work shift. Since the improvement to federal labour standards came into effect in September 2019 the grain industry has been lobbying to be exempted from most of the employee-friendly improvements to the law.

“GSU, along with other unions in federal jurisdiction, has vigorously opposed any exemptions for employers,” said GSU general secretary Hugh Wagner. “We’ve succeeded in backing the industry off on most of the exemptions they were seeking, but now it’s come down to section 173.1.” 

“Requiring employers to give at least 24 hours’ notice of a shift change is just common decency, “ Wagner said. “Why should workers do all the bending and twisting to make good on the lucrative contracts their employers make with their business partners, such as the railways? It seems that all of the giving is done by the workers and all of the taking is done by their employers.”

GSU’s brief was filed on Feb. 3 with officials of the the Labour Program of Employment and Social Development Canada which administers the Canada Labour Code. A copy of the brief is available here.

Local 5 (Western Producer), Local 6 (Wild West Steelhead) collective agreements now available online

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You can find these and all GSU agreements by hovering your mouse over the COLLECTIVE AGREEMENTS tab in the menu at the top of this page. 

Direct links to these agreements are available here:

The terms of recent tentative agreements have been incorporated in both these draft versions of new collective agreements. Both agreements are being shared with employer representatives for review and signature and, once the agreements have been signed, GSU will make collective agreement booklets for distribution to members.

All GSU agreements are available on our web page. If you have questions about your collective agreement, contact your GSU staff representative.

GSU Defense Fund ends year with new h­­­­igh

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The Defense Fund is an important component of union members’ resources. The primary purposes of the GSU Defense Fund is to ensure and provide for the continued operation of GSU and to provide strike/lockout pay to members of GSU in the event they strike or are locked out.

The market value of GSU Defense Fund investments reached a new high-water mark of $5.2 million at the end of December 2020.

The overwhelming amount of the Fund is invested with RBC Dominion Securities. A cash account with Affinity Credit Union is also maintained to receive dues revenues.

The overall 2020 return on the investments with RBC was 5.36%. US investments far outpaced Canadian investments in 2020 at a 14.01% return compared to 3.54%.

At their most recent meeting in December, the Board of Directors authorized shifting the RBC asset mix from an approximately 60/40 split in favour of fixed income securities to 60/40 in favour of equities.

In March, GSU convention delegates will elect the directors of the GSU Defense Fund for two-year terms of office.

Would you like to be a director on the Defense Fund Board?

Learn more here.

If you are interested in applying or learning more about what the position entails, contact GSU general secretary Hugh Wagner at Hugh@gsu.ca.

Is there something you would like to see GSU doing differently? Submit your recommendation as a resolution to the GSU convention

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GSU’s biennial convention is where important policies, plans, and changes are discussed, debated and implemented. If you have a suggestion or see something you would like implemented or done differently within GSU, let us know. Contact your GSU staff rep and they can assist you in preparing a resolution to submit to convention.

You don’t need to attend convention in order to submit a resolution.

Send your resolutions to us at gsu@gsu.ca.

ANOTHER PROBLEM SOLVED: Access to personal family leave to attend to emergent situation

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Bitterly cold weather created unanticipated furnace issues for a GSU member.

GSU staff rep Donna Driediger assisted a member who thought they were required to take a vacation day or use banked time off to deal with their furnace when it stopped working overnight. The already stressful situation was made worse when the member realized they had nothing left in their vacation bank and no banked time.

Donna directed the member to Article 13.9 of the Local 1 (Viterra) collective agreement which gives members access to personal family leave to attend to emergent situations requiring their immediate attention. This time is charged to the employee’s sick bank and allows them to prepare a plan or tend to the situation.

The member was obviously relieved to hear that when their furnace died, they were not also going to be out a day’s wages.

“Personal family leave can cover issues that are health related, family related, or anything of an urgent nature that you have to deal with,” Donna advises. “In this case it was a broken furnace. Another example could be learning you had a serious health issue and wanting to attend a session with a nurse practitioner to learn more or receive instructions.”

If you have questions about personal family leave or what may qualify, contact your GSU staff rep. 

Contacting GSU doesn’t mean you are obligated to file a grievance. We will work with you to answer your questions, recommend what course of action is best to follow, and find the solutions that work best for you.

These services are provided to you as part of your union dues. There is no additional charge for assisting you.

Local 1 (Viterra) delegates, Local 2 (Viterra Office) executive members meet, approve salary schedule changes, and elect officers

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GSU Local 1 (Viterra Operations/Maintenance) delegates and the Local 2 (Viterra head office) executive committee members have agreed to a proposal from Viterra management to make modest increases to most of the minimums and maximums of the salary structures in the collective agreements covering country operations and maintenance and Regina head office employees.

The increases to the minimum salaries in the Local 1 collective agreement range from 1.17% to 2.46% while the increases to maximums range from zero to 2.51%. In the Local 2 collective agreement, increases to the minimum rates of pay range from 1.06% to 2.16% and increases to the maximum rates of pay range from zero to 2.16%. The changes, effective Jan. 1, 2021, were proposed by Viterra following a market survey conducted by their HR department.

“GSU is not about to say no to improvements to rates of pay no matter how modest, but at the same time we urged Viterra to give every employee a wage increase of at least 2.0% effective January 1,“ said GSU general secretary Hugh Wagner. “It was pointed out to management that the current so-called pay for performance system is grossly unfair and undervalues employees.”

“While making arguments for better pay in this situation, we are also aware that the collective agreement is not open for bargaining until the autumn of 2022,” Wagner said. “An examination of rates of pay shows there is a lot of work to do at the bargaining table and it will take a very strong push by GSU members to get rid of or reform the current pay system at the next round of bargaining.”

When the Local 1 delegates met on Jan.20 to discuss Viterra’s proposals, they also elected Jim Brown (Balgonie) and Gaylyn Kennedy (North Battleford) to be Local 1’s president and vice-president. Glenn Outram (Moose Jaw), Matt Denomie (Kindersley), and David Barrett (Gull Lake) were elected to the Local 1 executive committee.

GSU Local 2’s executive committee is comprised of Sheila Tran, Howard Wilson and Kaylee Kruger. They met and approved the changes to the salary ranges on Jan. 22.

If you have questions, contact your GSU staff representative.

WE’RE WORKING ON IT: New hire gets higher rate of pay than those already working in the position

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GSU staff rep Dale Markling is assisting GSU members who filed grievances after a new employee was hired into the same position as the grievors, but at a higher rate of pay than existing employees at the location.

If you have a question about a workplace issue, call GSU

Contacting GSU doesn’t mean you are obligated to file a grievance. We will work with you to answer your questions, recommend what course of action is best to follow, and find the solutions that work for you.

These services are provided to you as part of your union dues. There is no additional charge for assisting you.

Local 6 (Wild West Steelhead) members vote to accept memorandum of settlement

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Monday evening’s stormy weather made the journey to vote difficult, but Local 6 members came out in force to cast their ballots and ultimately vote to accept the terms of the Jan. 12 memorandum of settlement.

GSU staff rep Dale Markling has notified the employer of the results of the vote and he is preparing the new collective agreement booklet for distribution to members.

Thank you to bargaining committee members Amber Pearson, Pasha Mughal, Amanda Pearson, and Dale Markling for their hard work in reaching a settlement with the employer.

Get the health care you need without leaving home

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A trip to the doctor just got easier. You can see a doctor virtually from the comfort of your home.

Lumeca’s Saskatchewan-based care providers are licensed to practice family and emergency medicine, and they are trained to assist you by video or over the phone. This service is free to Saskatchewan residents who have a valid Saskatchewan Health Card and are currently located in the province.

Doctors and Care Coordinators will assess your concerns, help out with follow-up questions, online prescription refills, or even just navigating the health care system. While Lumeca doctors are licensed to practice emergency care, the system isn’t set up to assist with medical emergencies. In the event of a medical emergency you need to call 911.

Learn more by visiting Lumeca.com

This article has been printed for entertainment purposes. The views and opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those of GSU, its members, officers, or staff.

Local 8 (Advance): Local 8 (AEA/Advance) bargaining committee serves Notice of Impasse

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A copy of Local 8’s bargaining proposals is available here.

GSU Local 8 bargaining committee members are Doug Murray, Steve Holliday, Dion Elliott, Doug Kampman and spokesperson Hugh Wagner.

TMM – Dec. 21, 2021

Bargaining grinds to a halt, Local 8 (Advance) bargaining committee serves Notice of Impasse

Agreement renewal bargaining between AEA/GSU Local 8 and Advance Tank Production Ltd. /Advance Tank Centre Ltd. is headed to conciliation as the union has served notice of a bargaining impasse.

The notice of impasse was sent on behalf of AEA/GSU Local 8 to Saskatchewan’s Minister of Labour Relations and Workplace Safety on Jan. 14. It is anticipated the Minister will appoint a conciliation officer who will have 60 days to meet with the union and company bargaining committees in an effort to settle the bargaining impasse.

If the 60-day conciliation process doesn’t produce a settlement, and the conciliator reports out of the process, the parties enter a further seven- to 14-day cooling-off period following which strike or lockout action can legally occur.

Updates will be shared as they are available.

TMM – Dec. 21, 2021

Continue bargaining or declare impasse? Local 8 (Advance) committee to meet management committee in early January

AEA/GSU Local 8’s bargaining committee met with their counterparts from Advance Tank Production/Tank Centres Ltd on Dec. 16 as both sides presented revised positions on unresolved issues.

“While we can see a path forward in relation to most of the issues under consideration, there is a significant gap on the matter of wage increases as the union committee continues to propose across-the-board increases of five percent per year compared to the employer’s current position of 1.25 percent per year,” said GSU general secretary Hugh Wagner.

“While the parties agree that a three-year agreement is on the table, we differ on retroactivity with respect to wage increases,” Wagner said. “The union committee is proposing that the first year increase should be retroactive to Nov. 1, 2021 while the employer proposes the first year increase take effect on the first day of the next pay period following ratification of a settlement by union members.”

When the Dec. 16 bargaining meeting ended, the two sides agreed to touch base in the first week of the new year to determine whether there is merit in meeting again, or whether the bargaining is at an impasse and will enter the conciliation process provided in the Saskatchewan Employment Act.

“With the support of members, the union committee is determined to press for wage increases that reflect and protect against the rising cost of living,” said Wagner.

An update will be released following consultations with the employer in the first week of January.

 

TMM – Nov. 2, 2021

Local 8 (Advance) bargaining resumes Nov. 5 in Regina

Agreement renewal bargaining between AEA/GSU Local 8 and Advance Manufacturing/Trailer Centres will resume Friday [Nov. 5] when union and employer representatives return to address the substance of bargaining issues.

The parties held their initial meeting on Oct. 20 when they exchanged bargaining proposals. The collective agreement with Advance expired on Oct. 31, 2021.

TMM – Oct. 26, 2021

Agreement renewal bargaining between AEA/GSU Local 8 and Advance Manufacturing/Trailer Centres will resume on Oct. 28 when union and employer representatives meet to get into the substance of bargaining issues.

The parties held their initial meeting on Oct. 20 when they exchanged bargaining proposals. The collective agreement with Advance expires on Oct. 31, 2021.

More reports will be released as bargaining proceeds.

GSU Local 8 (Advance) bargaining begins

TMM – Oct. 19, 2021

Agreement renewal bargaining between AEA/GSU Local 8 and Advance Manufacturing/Trailer Centres begins tomorrow in Regina. The meeting will focus on an exchange of bargaining proposals and initial dialogue around the various issues raised.

The collective agreement with Advance expires on Oct. 31, 2021.
The primary subjects in Local 8’s bargaining proposals are wage increases and wage-related issues. Local 8’s bargaining proposals will be posted on GSU’s website once the bargaining process gets underway and bargaining reports will be released as the process unfolds.

GSU Local 8 bargaining committee members are Doug Murray, Steve Holliday, Dion Elliott, Doug Kampman and spokesperson Hugh Wagner.

Severance pay in the event of an employee’s death

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GSU’s collective agreements with several employers including Nutrien, Richardson Pioneer and Viterra have position elimination articles providing income protection measures to employees who find themselves without a job as a result of their position being eliminated.

There might be subtle differences in the language of each collective agreement, but one thing all have in common is the ability of affected employees to defer employment termination and receipt of severance pay for six months after the initial 120-day notice of position elimination.

Recently a GSU member in Local 2 (Viterra Regina Head Office) received a notice of job elimination and asked whether severance pay was guaranteed to be paid to the employee’s beneficiary or estate in the event of death during the six-month deferral of employment termination and severance pay.

GSU wrote to Viterra management on the union member’s behalf to confirm payment of severance pay to the beneficiary or estate of an employee who has received notice of position elimination and happens to pass away while on a six-month deferral of their employment termination date.

In response to GSU’s inquiry, Viterra confirmed that in this type of circumstance payment of deferred severance pay will be made to a deceased employee’s beneficiary or estate.

In the meantime, GSU has written to Nutrien and Richardson Pioneer to confirm the same guarantee.

Need advice? Call GSU

Contacting GSU doesn’t mean you are obligated to file a grievance. We will work with you to find answers to your questions, recommend what course of action is best to follow, and work with you to find the solutions that work for you.

These services are provided to you as part of your union dues. There is no additional charge for assisting you.

Local 5 (Western Producer) members vote to accept tentative settlement

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On Jan. 5, the members of GSU Local 5 (Western Producer Publications) voted to accept the terms of the memorandum of settlement that was reached shortly before Christmas.

The settlement provides for salary increases of 1%, 1%, and 1.25% in the first, second and third years of the collective agreement, respectively. The bargaining committee acknowledges the increases are slightly below the cost of living.

“This has been a tough set of negotiations with the print industry hurting and COVID-19 hitting on top of that,” said Sharlene Tetrault, union bargaining committee member and president of GSU Local 5. “Our preference would have been higher salary increases, but we were able to convince the company that their most regressive proposals for new employees were not going to be accepted by our membership.”

“I’m proud of the way my fellow members stood together for future members. We were able to reach a settlement both parties could live with in the end, and we look forward to seeing the Company implement changes discussed at the table.”

Work is underway to incorporate the terms of the memorandum of settlement into the new collective agreement and have it reviewed and signed by union and company representatives. Agreement booklets will then be printed and distributed to Local 5 members.

GSU Local 5 bargaining committee members are Sharlene Tetrault, Michelle Houlden, and GSU staff rep Dale Markling.

Draft version of new collective agreement available online to Local 15 (Nutrien) members

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The draft version of the new Local 15 (Nutrien) collective agreement is now available on GSU’s web page at GSU.ca  under the Collective Agreements
 tab. It incorporates the provisions from the Memorandum of Settlement that GSU Local 15 (Nutrien) members voted to accept this past fall.  

This draft has been sent to company representatives for review, approval and signature. Once the final agreed-upon version of the new agreement has been signed by both parties, GSU will print collective agreement booklets and deliver them to members. In the meantime, GSU members have access to a copy to review and work with.

“We appreciate your patience as we finalize your collective agreement and commit to getting this done as soon as practicably possible,” union bargaining spokesperson and GSU staff rep Dale Markling said in his Jan. 11 email to Local 15 members. “As always, if members have any questions about their new collective agreement, they shouldn’t hesitate to contact a GSU staff representative.” 

What will a GSU convention look like during a pandemic? We’re working toward figuring that out

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The beginning of 2021 finds us all attempting to keep our heads above the so-called second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. This is no less the case at GSU where plans are underway to hold the union’s 2021 policy convention currently scheduled for March 18 to 20.

GSU’s options are limited. It’s important to hold our policy conventions before the end of March so members who are engaged in ag retail and related jobs are available to participate before they face the annual spring rush to get new crops planted.

It seems unlikely that health restrictions on gatherings will be lifted or loosened much by mid-March. Taking everything into account, GSU’s Executive Committee will meet on Jan. 6 to consider a recommendation to proceed with the 2021 policy convention from March 18 to 20 under pandemic restrictions. The committee will discuss a format that involves a core gathering of up to 25 delegates/officers in Regina (if gatherings of that size are still allowed) plus remote participation by an additional 25 to 35 delegates.

“A lot of convention details need to be filled in and we don’t have a lot of time to spare before the March dates. Decisions about format, priority content and facilitating participation have to be made sooner rather than later,” said GSU general secretary Hugh Wagner. “Clearly the situation isn’t ideal, but GSU has a history of adapting, and we’ll do so again to get the members’ business done in 2021.”

WE’RE WORKING ON IT: Get it in writing!

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GSU staff rep Steve Torgerson is assisting a member whose understanding of circumstances didn’t coincide with the understanding management had on the same situation. Unfortunately, nothing is in writing, and when there is nothing in writing, it’s harder to enforce.

The best way to ensure that things happen as you understand and expect is to ask for written confirmation or to confirm the understanding yourself in writing to the other party. Written confirmation doesn’t need to be elaborate. It can be as simple as an email or a text exchange.

Click here to see an example of a quick email confirmation and to learn more about why written confirmation is important.