During convention, our members voted in favour of an emergency resolution to add a new elected position, that of National Advisor for Parks Canada.
It was only last May when we first got news that Parks Canada was possibly interested in having a full-time union representative to deal with national labour issues. The position would have its salary and benefits paid by Parks Canada, but would report to the UNE national president.
Such arrangements aren’t all that uncommon; they exist in other components within the PSAC. And in some Locals, the local president is paid to focus solely on labour relations issues. National President Doug Marshall will be following up with Parks Canada in the coming weeks to ensure that the terms of this new position, once negotiated, are in our members’ best interest.
With a large chunk of our membership made up of Parks Canada employees, it goes without saying that we could use all the extra help we can get on that file!
But it won’t just be Parks Canada members who will benefit from this decision. By having a full-time union representative handling the Parks Canada issues, other elected officers will have more time to focus their attention on the more than 60 other workplaces we represent.
“With only one full-time paid elected position at the UNE, there’s always more than enough work to go around,” explained National President Doug Marshall.
The day after delegates gave the position a thumbs-up, Eddie Kennedy was elected by acclamation to the position. With already three years of experience under his belt dealing with Parks Canada issues at a national level, Kennedy says he’s confident that the new position will help resolve workplace issues in a timelier manner.
“Let’s say a worksite is scheduling students when our members are on seasonal layoff and it can’t be resolved at a local level – they’ve met with local management and they’re holding firm on their position. They would normally have to wait for a national labour-management consultation committee meeting to raise that concern.”
Traditionally, these meetings are held only twice per year.
“Now we’ll have a direct line to the chief human resource officer to raise the issue directly, nationally, right off the bat,” explained Kennedy. “Our members can expect a much faster turnaround time.”
In the future, when the local executive reaches an impasse at their level, we encourage them to contact the national advisor directly. Kennedy says he will be working very closely with staff, regional teams and the other national officers to find solutions for members.
As part of his new position, Kennedy will also be fighting on behalf of members who are still fighting the 2012 job cuts.
“Parks still has about 75 who are still in the affected stage – there’s also another group of about 55 who are moving from educational leave to layoff priority status.”
The first group finds itself in a sort of purgatory: “They don’t know whether they’ll be surplused or not,” explained Kennedy.
As for the second group, the agency still has a lot of work to do to find them new jobs.
We kindly ask for your patience while we bring a few tweaks to our website to reflect the addition of this new position. If you wish to contact Eddie Kennedy, you can email him at Eddie.Kennedy@une-sen.org.