Presidents and Stewards Assembly Tomorrow

Periodically the PSAC National Component (now known as the Union of National Employees) holds regional assemblies to solidify networks across the provincial organization, to discuss priority issues and ensure all Local's have the most current information available through their local leadership.

Our Local's president will attend the Toronto Assembly all day tomorrow (Saturday, March 31), to connect with other Toronto-area union leaders, discuss the pressing issues facing us in the wake of the 2012 budget, and get a better sense of what kinds of strategies are being developed to assist members as we figure out what the proposed cuts to the public service mean to us, and to learn what tools and services are available through the PSAC. 

Relevant information coming out of this assembly will be shared via this site early next week.

If you have any issues you'd like us to raise tomorrow at the Presidents and Stewards Toronto Assembly, please email us at local00303@gmail.com.

PSAC Reaction to Budget 2012

Click here for the official PSAC response to yesterday's budget.

More Quick Facts on the Budget - from CBC.ca

The CBC.ca site has created a Budget Highlights section, with a graphic slideshow, as well as bullet points providing a useful executive summary on key issues.  Worth a look.

Budget 2012 - First Look

The Federal Budget has now been tabled, and below are some salient numbers mainly related to PCH, as well as some government-wide impact bullet points.  This information was compiled by Jesse, the Regional Policy Officer, shortly after the budget was released.

We'll be posting more information in the weeks ahead, as we get more specific interpretations from our Deputy Ministers, Regional Managers and official responses from the PSAC.

BUDGET FIRST LOOK:

PCH & PORTFOLIO

• $17.8 million in 12/13, $24.4 million in 13/14, $4 million in 14/15 = $46.2 million
• Canada Council and national museums have no reductions
• Within portfolio, CBC takes biggest hit @ $115 million.  Total portfolio reductions over three years are $191.1 million

ARTS & HERITAGE

• "The Government recognizes that arts and culture is an important generator of jobs and growth"
• Travelling Indemnification Fund is strengthened by raising limit
• CCSF's role in EAP is highlighted (along with Nat'l Arts Training Fund, Periodical Fund and Media Fund)
• 1812 & Diamond Jubilee are highlighted and linked to 2017

OFFICIAL LANGUAGES

• "Economic Action Plan 2012 will continue support for official languages by maintaining funding to protect, celebrate and enhance Canada’s linguistic duality."

OTHER GOVERNMENT DEPARTMENTS

• FedDev is reduced by $22 million over three years
• PHAC is reduced by $68 million over three years
• HRSD is reduced by $183.2 million over three years
• CIC is reduced by $71 million over three years
• DFAIT is reduced by $168 million over three years

WORKFORCE IMPACT

• "The planned reduction in departmental spending is expected to eliminate about 12,000 government positions over a three-year-period, with affected individuals qualifying for collectively bargained workforce adjustment measures. This number takes into account attrition—largely retirement or other voluntary departures."

• In total, federal employment will be reduced by about 19,200 or 4.8 per cent. To the largest extent possible, the Government will use these vacancies towards redeploying individuals whose jobs have been affected by the spending reduction. The planned reduction in employment includes the elimination of about 600 executive positions, or 7.4 per cent of the executive workforce, bringing the level of management overhead more in line with private sector best practices."

• "A large proportion of full-time-equivalent reductions will occur in the National Capital Region. The regional distribution of employment in the federal public service will be largely unaffected by the implementation of the departmental spending reductions."

• "Where possible, the Government will use natural attrition and internal redeployments to mitigate the impact on permanent federal employees. The Government will strengthen workforce information sharing across federal departments to ensure that hiring managers can be easily linked with affected employees."

PUBLIC SERVICE PENSION PLAN

• "The Government proposes to adjust the Public Service Pension Plan so that public service employee contributions equal, over time, those of the employer (50/50)."

OTHER NOTES

• PCH is placed in budget section entitled "Supporting Families & Communities"

A message from the PSAC UNE National President

~~~ le français suit ~~~

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Like many of you, I am deeply concerned with the Harper government’s plans to cut the public service.  Rest assured that we will continue to do everything we can to protect your jobs and quality public services.

As we approach the release of the federal budget, we can expect a clearer picture to emerge. Whatever the scenario, we must prepare ourselves so that we are ready to assist our union brothers and sisters, our colleagues and our friends.

I would kindly ask you to become familiar with the workforce adjustment material that has already been compiled by the PSAC. To make this process easier, we have created a section, on our website, entirely dedicated to WFA resources: http://www.nationalcomponent.com/WFA-RE/

Here, at the UNE head office, we will focus our expertise on helping those whose cases require a more peculiar attention. It’s a team effort; you can help us tremendously by offering your own expertise to cases that don’t require a higher level of attention.

Above all, we are here to provide you with the knowledge and expertise you need to help your fellow brothers and sisters – so don’t hesitate to call when you need it!

Finally, we have not lost sight of the human dimension of these cuts. Many of your colleagues will be blindsided and many will experience grief. We urge you to keep your organization’s Employee Assistance Program information handy. Remember that your desire to help can only go so far; know when it’s time for a professional to take over.

We hope you find this information valuable. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact members of your regional team.

In solidarity,

Doug Marshall

National President

Union of National Employees, PSAC

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Chers confrères et consœurs,

Comme bon nombre d’entre vous, je suis profondément préoccupé par les plans du gouvernement Harper, qui souhaite réduire la taille de la fonction publique. Soyez assurés que nous continuerons de faire tout ce que nous pouvons pour protéger vos emplois et la qualité des services publics.

Le budget fédéral sera déposé prochainement, et nous aurons alors une meilleure idée de la situation. Peu importe le scénario, nous devons être prêts à aider nos confrères et nos consœurs, nos collègues et nos amis.

Je vous demanderais bien gentiment de prendre connaissance des documents sur le réaménagement des effectifs élaborés par l’AFPC. Pour faciliter le processus, nous avons créé une section sur notre site Web, entièrement dédiée aux ressources sur le réaménagement des effectifs : http://www.elementnational.com/WFA-RE/

Ici, au bureau principal du SEN, nous utiliserons notre expertise pour aider ceux qui dont le cas nécessite une attention particulière. C’est un travail d’équipe; vous pouvez aider grandement en travaillant à des cas qui n’ont pas besoin d’être pris en charge à un niveau supérieur.

Nous sommes ici avant tout pour vous fournir les connaissances et l’expertise dont vous avez besoin pour aider vos confrères et consœurs. Par conséquent, n’hésitez pas à demander de l’aide lorsque vous en avez besoin.

Enfin, nous reconnaissons qu’il y a une dimension humaine aux suppressions d’emplois. Bon nombre de vos collègues seront désagréablement surpris et bon nombre auront du chagrin. Nous vous encourageons à garder sous la main les renseignements sur le Programme d’aide aux employés de votre organisation. Rappelez-vous que votre capacité d’aider a ses limites; reconnaissez le moment où il un professionnel doit intervenir.

Nous espérons que ces renseignements vous sont utiles. Si vous avez des questions ou des préoccupations, n’hésitez pas à communiquer avec les membres de votre équipe régionale.

En toute solidarité,

Doug Marshall

Président national

Syndicat des employées et employés nationaux, AFPC

Doug Marshall

National President / Président national
Union of National Employees - PSAC / Syndicat des employées et employés nationaux - AFPC
613-560-4301 (work/bureau)

613-741-8954 (cell)

doug.marshall@national-component.org

Welcome to your Local's blog!

Welcome to the Local 00303 blog, a site dedicated to keeping our membership updated on the latest union-focused news.

In the coming weeks we'll be publishing posts about the Federal Budget 2012, including information on the impacts on our members as well as updates from our regular meetings with the Regional Management Team (Marie, Robert and Alice) through our Labour Management Consultation Committee (LMCC).  A post on how LMCC works will follow soon.   

We'll also post links to PSAC releases, other useful web resources and anything that can help us navigate this uncertain time with as much information and support as possible.

As of today, you will no longer receive union updates through our Lotus Notes email system, so please check back on this site regularly for the latest PSAC-related news.  

We encourage you to comment on anything posted to this site, and if you have any suggestions for things you'd like to see here, or general questions or concerns, you can also email your Local executive at local00303@gmail.com.