PRC Meeting Minutes (July 2017)

PRAIRIE REGION COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES July 7 - 8, 2017 Radisson Hotel, Saskatoon SK Present: Marianne Hladun, Regional Executive Vice-President (REVP) Prairies Sandra Ahenakew, Aboriginal Peoples Rep Shaun Atilano, Separate Employers Locals Rep Satinder Bains, Regina Area Council Rep Greg Ballendine, Winnipeg Area Council Rep Shannon Blum, Persons with Disabilities Rep Phillip Chan, Racially Visible Persons Rep Alec Goertzen, Calgary Area Council Rep Tim Hubick, Southern Saskatchewan Geographical Rep Valerie Illingworth, Northern Saskatchewan Geographical Rep Evelyn Jackson, Saskatoon Area Council Rep Frank Janz, Alternate REVP Prairies Glen Johnston, Westman Area Council Rep Deb Kosteniuk, Regional Women's Committees (RWC) Rep Michelle Lang, Directly Chartered Locals (DCL) Rep Stasi L’Hirondelle, Northern Alberta Geographical Rep Gus Mardli, South-East Manitoba Geographical Rep Krysty Munns, Lethbridge & District Area Council Rep Kristy Slattery, Southern Alberta Geographical Rep Michael Weisgerber, North-West Manitoba Geographical Rep Pennie Young, Prince Albert Area Council Rep Ryan Zacharias, Young Workers Rep Alison Davis, Assistant to REVP - Prairies Tom Milne, Acting Regional Coordinator - Prairies Regrets: Chris Beaton, Edmonton Area Council Rep Chris Little-Gagne, GLBT Rep Housekeeping: PRC meeting will be recorded for minute purposes but not distributed. Administration of Oath of Office for Sr. Pennie Young. PSAC Statement on Harassment read by Br. Gus Mardli. The Anti-Harassment Coordinators for the meeting will be Br. Tom Milne and Sr. Deb Kosteniuk. PSAC Scent Statement read by Sr. Sandra Ahenakew. Any issues should be brought to the attention of Sr. Alison Davis. Sr. Sandra Ahenakew welcomed the Council to Treaty 6 Land. Roundtable of introductions of the Council. Order of the Day: July 7, 2017 at 9:00 a.m. – PRC Orientation The Orientation package is circulated to the Council. Rules of Order will be used at PRC meetings. Media training will be provided at the next PRC meeting. Action: Equity Reps to divide up HRC’s for reporting package submissions Action: Contact lists from Regional Conferences Action: Advise MFL that Ryan Zacharias will sit on MFL Young Workers Committee The Orientation package can be found at Appendix A. 1. Call to Order: The meeting called to order by Sister Marianne Hladun on July 7, 2017 at 4:05 p.m. 2. Adoption of Agenda m/s Glen Johnston Stasi L’Hirondelle That the agenda be adopted as presented with one change to move #8 Ratification of PRC Standing Committees up to #3 Hours of Session. MOTION CARRIED. 3. Ratification of PRC Standing Committees By-Laws Committee - Chair is Michael Weisgerber Communications Committee - Chair is Ryan Zacharias Education Committee - Chair has not been decided Finance Committee - Chair is Alec Goertzen Health & Safety Committee - Chair is Gus Mardli and Vice-Chair is Valerie Illingworth m/s Michelle Lang Sandra Ahenakew Motion to ratify committees as presented (see appendix B). MOTION CARRIED. 4. Hours of Session m/s Sandra Ahenakew Ryan Zacharias Motion to adopt hours of session 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. for both days of the meeting. MOTION CARRIED. 5. Opening Remarks No opening remarks. . Approval of Council Reports There is a requirement in the PRC By-Laws for all Representatives to submit a report. The reports are attached as they are received. The reports submitted can be found on the Prairies website Br. Frank Janz assumes the Chair. Reports: Marianne Hladun m/s Marianne Hladun Michelle Lang Additions: • Thanks to all for activities around NPSW. Issues with Phoenix are not getting better but worse and as of June IBM is not on even on site at the Miramichi Pay Centre. It is the software that is broken. This is a political issue and we need to put pressure on the MP’s in this region. • Leadership Training will be held November 30 - December 3 in Ottawa. Please mark your calendars. You will be getting info from Ottawa regarding travel etc. • We are preparing for bargaining with Treasury Board again • FB’s are still without a contract and they are mobilizing. • The other Tables have been signed • Re: PA/TC/SV/EB the call has gone out from the NBoD and the Components have been asked to submit names for the National Bargaining Conference by September 30th. There will be a call out for Equity members and those will be looked at by the AEC. At the October NBoD meeting they will be reviewing Reg 15. All of the timelines for the upcoming round of TB bargaining were approved at the June NBoD. December 1st will be deadline for bargaining demands. Bargaining Conference will be held March 27-29, 2018. • PSAC/UCTE 50600 is in a difficult round of bargaining with the Winnipeg Airport Authority and there is a strong possibility of a strike at midnight on June 21st. We do not cross picket lines so please be aware as travel should be booked out of Regina if they do go out. We have asked Sr. Benson if WestJet may be a possibility because the pilots have unionized and she will be checking with the CLC and advising. • In SK, there have been a multitude of rallies and a thank you to Sr. Michelle Lang who has been at all of them and is working with all the other unions. SK PRC need to be involved and visit your MLA’s. • In MB, the government is continuing with anti-worker legislation. Bill 28 affects our members with UVAE at Deer Lodge and our members at the universities. They passed Bill 28 and 29. We have created the Partnership to Defend Public Services (PDPS) which includes any union impacted by Bill 28. We are sharing legal costs and have filed a Constitutional challenge and an injunction regarding the wage mandate. Please talk to your MLA’s. Bill 29 is the healthcare bargaining restructure which impacts our members working at Deer Lodge. The unions have signed a solidarity pact that we will not go after each other’s members. There is no option for a Constitutional challenge on Bill 29. MOTION CARRIED. Sr. Marianne Hladun resumes the Chair. Shaun Atilano m/s Shaun Atilano Gus Mardli MOTION CARRIED. Satinder Bains m/s Satinder Bains Stasi L’Hirondelle MOTION CARRIED. Greg Ballendine m/s Greg Ballendine Frank Janz Addition: • August 17th is the deadline for NDP membership to vote for new leader. Question: Br. Mardli asks what EDA stands for in 4th paragraph? Electoral District Association. MOTION CARRIED. Tim Hubick m/s Tim Hubick Frank Janz MOTION CARRIED. Valerie Illingworth m/s Valerie Illingworth Stasi L’Hirondelle MOTION CARRIED. Frank Jank m/s Frank Janz Shaun Atilano Addition: • Would like to thank everyone for the silent auction donations that raised $3000 for Merchant’s Corner. Missed thanking Host Committee volunteer Greg Ballendine and Sr. Kim Haynes on the Finance Committee. MOTION CARRIED. Glen Johnston Report received after the deadline. Deb Kosteniuk m/s Deb Kosteniuk Valerie Illingworth MOTION CARRIED. Michelle Lang m/s Michelle Lang Shaun Atilano Additions : • Elected as 1st VP at the Regina District Labour Council. Recommend that Locals become affiliated. MOTION CARRIED. Stasi L’Hirondelle m/s Stasi L’Hirondelle Valerie Illingworth Additions: • Attended march with the Sisters Vigil that was held in downtown Edmonton. • Helped and participated in the NAD event held at Canada Place. May be last event as INAC is contracting out the event. MOTION CARRIED. Chris Little-Gagne m/s Michelle Lang Tim Hubick Question: Br. Mardli asks why Br. Little-Gagne’s letter was not distributed? Sr. Hladun advises that she has spoken with Chris regarding this and takes responsibility. It will go out shortly. Gus Mardli m/s Gus Mardli Tim Hubick MOTION CARRIED. Krysty Munns m/s Krysty Munns Kristy Slattery MOTION CARRIED. Kristy Slattery m/s Kristy Slattery Krysty Munns MOTION CARRIED. Michel Weisgerber m/s Michael Weisgerber Tim Hubick Shannon Blum m/s Shannon Blum Stasi L’Hirondelle Addition: • Would like email address added at the end of her report. MOTION CARRIED. Rep reports are found at Appendix C. 7. Outstanding Resolutions PRC received a package with remaining concurrence resolutions from convention and a summary of all resolutions dealt with at the PSAC Prairies Convention. As the remaining 5 resolutions would need to be forwarded on to the National Convention, the PRC are not able to deal with them. Resolution documents distributed can be found at Appendix D. 8. Finance Report Once the Finance Committee is struck then the Financial Statements will be presented by the committee going forward. Current statement presented by Sr. Marianne Hladun. m/s Michelle Lang Alec Goertzen Motion to approve the Financial Statement with a correction to the header dates to reflect the current year end. MOTION CARRIED. Financial Statement can be found at Appendix E. Action: Circulate funding request form to PRC The Health & Safety Committee presented their report at this time. m/s Gus Mardli Valerie Illingworth To accept the Health & Safety Committee report as presented (see Appendix F). MOTION CARRIED. 9. Agenda Items (a) PRC Proceedings – Formal or General Consensus – submitted by Br. Gus Mardli Br. Mardli says that the agenda item was addressed at the beginning of the meeting when Sr. Hladun advised that Rules of Order would be used. (b) Our Crowns, Our Saskatchewan – submitted by Sr. Michelle Lang Supporting documents found at Appendix G. This is about a government that is looking to dismantle Crown corporations. This is a formal request for the government to hold referendum. Please circulate widely and attend actions. Sr. Hladun advises that PSAC Prairies will be participating financially as well to support this referendum. Action: Send an electronic copy of FAQ’s and petition to PRC. Action: Marianne will send SK PRC contact info to the Campaign Coordinator Action: Confirm that it can be posted on the Prairies website. (c) What is the PRC’s plan for the next three years? – submitted by Br. Frank Janz Wants to get people thinking about it now but not looking for solid plans. Sr. Hladun advises that the NBoD comes up with a strategic plan every cycle to identify top priorities but will not be until December 2017 or January 2018. Sr. Munns says that having those priorities makes it easier to focus on. Br. Chan thinks that we should think about preventative actions ex. In Alberta, the NDP government is readying itself for next election. Sr. Ahenakew would like to see PSAC developing or supporting a campaign in regards to reconciliation that is happening. Would like to see training such Unionism on Turtle Island more widely. Would recommend that everyone reads Justice Sinclair’s recommendations. Sr. Slattery encourage the messaging to be bi-partisan as not all members are party driven but issue driven. Is it possible to have a short PRC meeting while at the Leadership Conference since most will be there? Sr. Hladun says she will check with Programs in Ottawa. She will also see if there is an action planned. Br. Ballendine says that the NBoD 2016-2018 Strategy has provided directions and the priorities are set out. Next year let’s go into the deferred revenue and use the funds for actions around these priorities. Sr. Hladun advises that a Steering Committee was set up after the PRC and National Officers meeting in 2015 but it lost momentum. She would like to see members at MP’s offices every payday. She suggested using some of the funds for an Environics poll in the past but the PRC did not approve the funds for it. Sr. Lang commits to going to Ralph Goodale’s office at lunch (11:30-1:00) every 2nd Wednesday. Action: Send out info on Feather Project to PRC and Committees. Action: Sr. Davis will look into PRC meeting for a couple of hours prior to Leadership Conference. (d) Who does the AREVP represent on the PRC – submitted by Br. Frank Janz Supporting documents found at Appendix H. Br. Janz says he has frustration and questions about who he represents. He has had a conversation with Sr. Hladun about this. He has voice and vote but is not representing members and it leaves a gray area. He wanted to share this with the Council and would appreciate feedback. It’s not meant to be divisive but to share so that if members ask then they know it has been discussed at Council. Sr. Hladun provides some background on the history of regionalization. It was decided that in the Prairies that the Alternate would sit at the table and have voice and vote so that if they ever had to step up, they would be better prepared. This is not the same in all regions. Sr. Munns says that she sees the Alternate as representing the delegation body as that is where you were elected. Br. Janz says that he agrees with that but does not have a specific responsibility within the structure. Br. Ballendine asks who can change this? Sr. Hladun answers that the REVP and A/REVP are governed by the PSAC Constitution and the roles and responsibilities is the purview of the PRC. Changes would have to be done at Convention with a resolution if the By-Laws were to be changed. Br. Mardli sees the Alternate as a Vice-REVP and thinks the Alternate should be more involved. Sr. Hladun says that in 2014 when developing the handbook no additional duties were identified. Br. Ballendine recalls Br. Pruden made a motion for monthly calls on the last Council? Sr. Hladun says that calls were arranged and the offer still stands. Br. Mardli asks what happens if the Alternate has to step up, they will need to have all the information. Sr. Hladun says that some info can be shared but some cannot, that is the benefit of the consistent staff in the office to provide that support if there is a change of REVP. (e) Mobilization in the region, should we as the Regional Council take on the task – submitted by Br. Frank Janz Br. Janz says with the Winnipeg Area Council they participate in the Santa Claus Parade etc. He would like to see more of this across the Prairie Region. Would like to see these actions more consistent to make things more cohesive. Thinks it is something the PRC could do more of. Sr. L’Hirondelle says that perhaps an action could be held at each PRC meeting. Br. Janz says that it’s not just about delegating things but taking ownership. There are funds available and a business plan should be brought to the PRC to be voted on. Sr. Hladun says that if there are ideas they should be brought forward but the Area Councils and Committees may be the best way to do that as we don’t want to take away from their mandates as it is also about building capacity. Sr. L’Hirondelle says that PRC are leaders and part of their role should be to plan and it may make it easier for other members to join a larger group and planned action. Sr. Lang agrees with actions but also does not want to step on Area Councils toes as not all Area Council Presidents are on PRC. Also need to remind Area Councils that there are issues that are not just federal. We need to support issues at the provincial level. (f) Convention 2020 - Location & Contact Lists – submitted by Br. Greg Ballendine Br. Ballendine asks if Sr. Davis could confirm the number she uses when preparing for finding a location for convention and provide some details on the process. Sr. Davis says that she uses 400 as a base number when planning for Convention. She looks at historical data from previous conventions. Sr. Hladun advises that the last convention cycle we went through Tourism in Calgary and Edmonton and also contacted Banff. There were not enough unionized bedrooms to meet our numbers. Edmonton has a unionized convention centre but there are only two unionized hotels. Sr. Hladun contacted the AFL to see if there were any possible hotels being organized but that was not the case. RFP’s for 2020 will be going out this fall and will be brought to the PRC in the new year. They will be sent out to all five cities this time so all the info is available. When a city is identified, Sr. Davis and Sr. Felix will go do site visits to look at accessibility at the venues. Br. Goertzen asks if perhaps the Prairies could ask for a special exemption from the XO to allow for the rotation. Sr. Hladun says that we will see what comes from the RPF’s to see if there has been any movement in unionized facilities. Br. Ballendine would like contact lists ready to be sent out right after convention, asks that this be actioned for the 2020 Convention so that PRC members do not have to wait to receive the info. (g) Convention 2017 Debrief and planning for Convention 2020 – submitted by Sr. Marianne Hladun RFP’s will go out in 2017 and will be brought to the PRC in early 2018. Sr. Hladun will send out the survey responses from the delegates that were received for the 2017 Convention. (h) Scheduling of PRC meetings and conference calls – submitted by Sr. Marianne Hladun The following conference calls and meetings were confirmed by the PRC: 2017 Thursday, September 14, 2017 - Official PRC conference call - 7 pm MB & 6 pm SK/AB 2018 February 9-10, 2018 - PRC meeting - location tbd Wednesday, May 9, 2018 - Official PRC conference call - 3 pm MB & 2 pm SK/AB November 2-3, 2018 - PRC meeting - location tbd Wednesday, September 5, 2018 – Official PRC conference call – 3 pm MB & 2 pm SK/AB Action: Sr. Davis will advise that calls need quorum when any additional official calls are being scheduled. (i) Prairie Region staffing update – submitted by Sr. Marianne Hladun Sr.Hladun advises that Br. Jeffrey Vallis has handed in his resignation and staffing process is underway. PRC will be advised when the position has been filled. Br. Milne provided an update on current staffing in the region: Winnipeg – Tina Matias-Bouchard has been extended until the end of August Calgary – Tabassom Javadi will be in the office for a one-month term Calgary – Diane White is the successful candidate for the indeterminate administrative assistant position Edmonton - Freada Vamvounis-Clarke has been extended to the end of the year Br. Milne is acting Regional Coordinator until the end of the year or shorter if the incumbent returns. (j) Prairie Region Strategic Plan 2018-2020 – submitted by Sr. Marianne Sr. Hladun advises that the February meeting will be one day of business and media training and the second day we will look at doing a facilitated strategic planning session with the National Officers. 10. Roundtable Discussion Br. Johnston – Westman Area Council not receiving bank statements. RO staff said they do not have copies and AC would have to pay to have them reprinted. Br. Milne will look into it. Br. Goertzen – what is the status of the XO library. Sr. Hladun says that there has been no change and has asked numerous times. Sr. Hladun will ask again. m/s Alec Goertzen Sandra Ahenakew Motion to adjourn at 4:57 p.m. MOTION CARRIED.