In the Matter of an Interest Arbitration
Between
G4S Secure Solutions (Canada) Ltd. (“G4S” or the “Company”)
-and-
International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, Transportation District 140 (Lodge 16) (the “IAM” or the “Union”) 2
BACKGROUND On June 21, 2012, representatives of G4S and the IAM entered into a Mediation/Arbitration Agreement respecting the terms and conditions for a collective agreement that would apply to eleven (11) airport security operations in British Columbia.
That Mediation/Arbitration Agreement provided for my appointment as mediator/arbitrator for the purpose of making a final and bending determination on those terms and conditions for a collective agreement.
I met with representatives of the Company and the Union in a mediation process on June 20 and June 21, 2012 in Richmond, BC and agreement was reached on a large number of the issues in dispute. However, many issues remained outstanding.
I then scheduled an interest arbitration process for August 15 and August 16, 2012 in Richmond, BC and, during that interest arbitration process, I heard detailed representations from the parties on the issues still in dispute.
After considering the representations made by the Company and the Union, the provisions in other relevant collective agreements, and the interest arbitration jurisprudence, I hereby prescribe the terms and conditions for a collective agreement.
1) TERM OF THE COLLECTIVE AGREEMENT
The term of the collective agreement will be from November 1, 2011 to March 31, 2015.
2) MATTERS AGREED TO BY THE COMPANY AND THE UNION IN DIRECT COLLECTIVE BARGANING OR DURING MEDIATION MEETINGS
All matters agreed to by the Company and the Union in direct collective bargaining or during mediation meetings will be included in the collective agreement.
3) EFFECTIVE DATES
Unless otherwise specified, the effective date for the application of any matters agreed to by the Company and by the Union or any matters determined during the August 15-16, 2012 interest arbitration process will be August 20, 2012. 3
4) MATTERS SUBJECT TO THE AUGUST 15-16, 2012 INTEREST ARBITRATION PROCESS
During the interest arbitration process on August 15 and August 16, 2012, the Company and the Union made representations to me on the particular matters that they argued should be included in the collective agreement and they provided their proposed collective agreement wording respecting those matters.
What follows is the wording for those specific provisions that I have concluded are appropriate for inclusion in the collective agreement.
ARTICLE 2.09 – FULL-TIME AND PART-TIME EMPLOYEES
A full-time employee is an employee who holds a position on a continuous, scheduled basis and is scheduled for more than 30 hours per week.
A part-time employee is an employee who holds a position on a continuous scheduled basis and works between 4 and 30 hours per week. For clarification “continuous, scheduled basis” means a published shift line that works a similar rotation each week. ARTICLE 5.07 – UNION REPRESENTATION
(a) Company Funded Chief Shop Steward
The Chief Shop Steward referenced in Article 5.01(b) will be the only full-time position funded directly by the Company for the purposes of remuneration and benefits. The Chief Shop Steward as defined in Article 5.01(b) shall be employed on day shift Monday to Friday, or as mutually agreed, in order that he/she will be able to discuss Union matters with both the Membership and Management.
In accordance with this Article, when the Chief Shop Steward returns to employment as a designated Screening Officer, following any term of office within the Union, there shall be no adverse effect resulting from any effect or loss of certification, including but not limited to seniority, scheduling, compensation, etc. The employee shall be required to recertify in accordance with CATSA National Training Certification Program.
(b) Other Union Stewards
In Vancouver, a Senior Steward as designated by the Union will be scheduled to work at each work location/point, for a total of six (6) positions. Their schedules and work locations will not be modified without agreement of the Union except in emergency staffing situations. 4
In the regional Sites, every effort must be made to schedule meetings with the Chief Shop Steward, as outlined in Article 5.05, or as otherwise mutually agreed, without loss of wages to the Chief Shop Steward. At a site level the parties may mutually agree to temporarily modify the schedule of the Chief Shop Steward for this purpose.
ARTICLE 17 – UNION REPRESENTATION
17.01(a)
Employees shall receive the maximum amount of scheduled hours up to forty (40) hours per week, based on seniority.
17.01 (f)
Rest days shall be consecutive, as far as possible, it being understood that the Company will make every reasonable effort to provide consecutive rest days.
17.01 (m)
A shift bid process will take place at least twice (2) per year with schedules to be implemented in or about April and October or as otherwise required at a Site level. The Company and the Union acknowledge that the shift bid process will commence prior to the date the shift schedules are to be finalized and posted.
17.05
The Company will post work schedules at least seven (7) calendar days in advance of the implementation of the work schedule. The Company however, may change posted work schedules due to airline, airport or CATSA requirements, in which case the Company will meet with the Union Shift Bid Committee to demonstrate that the changes are necessary in accordance with the above reasoning. In the event that a change is required, the employee shall be provided with at least forty-eight (48) hours’ notice before such change. The Company will make every reasonable effort to avoid adjusting employees bid shift start and/or stop time. The Company agrees to accomplish the schedule change on a voluntary basis in seniority order. If there are insufficient volunteers, the principles of reverse order seniority will apply in the adjustment of shift schedules. Schedule adjustments that result in an increase in available hours per week will be posted for seventy-two (72) hours and awarded on the basis of classification seniority.
Vacant shift lines, whether for the balance of the shift schedule or temporary in nature, will be posted for seven (7) calendar days and awarded on the basis of classification seniority.
Employee requests for shift modifications must be detailed in writing and provided to the Joint Scheduling Committee for consideration. The committee will meet weekly or as otherwise required. 5
17.06 (a) All employees shall be compensated for authorized overtime hours worked at one and one-half (1 1/2) times their regular rate provided an employee has completed forty (40) hours work during the week.
17.06 (d) The Company may not be able to advise an employee of the meeting of the conditions laid out in a, b, and c above as the overtime qualifier may occur after the extra hours are worked and is only determined at the completion of a work week.
17.06 (e) Employees shall have the right to refuse overtime. When overtime is required and no employee accepts to work such overtime, the junior employee shall be required to work such overtime.
17.06 (h) Employees will be paid for any hours spent in training, testing and certification, which hours may qualify for overtime pay pursuant to Article 17.06(a).
17.08 Full-time employees who work in addition to their regular weekly shift shall be paid the following for the hours worked by the employee in excess of forty (40) hours work during the week:
a) during their first extra shift, one and one-half (1-1/2) times their regular rate of pay;
b) during their second extra shift, two (2) times their regular rate of pay; and
c) during their third extra shift, three (3) times their regular rate of pay.
In computing remuneration for time worked, hours compensated at overtime rates shall not be pyramided, duplicated or counted further for any purpose in obtaining additional payment. ARTICLE 18.03 – VACATION SELECTION
(a) Vacation preferences will be allocated in order of seniority within each classification, pursuant to Article 9.02.
(b) Each employee must bid a minimum of two (2) weeks of their entitlement, in accordance with Article 18.01.
(c) Employees may split their vacation entitlement into blocks of not less than one (1) week. In such cases, an employee’s first preference will be in order of classification seniority with the awarding of his/her subsequent preferences occurring after all other employees have made their selection in each selection round. These subsequent preferences will continue to be awarded in order of classification seniority. 6
Letter of Agreement
Within sixty (60) days, the Company and the Union will meet to jointly develop a process which provides for appropriate vacation ratios and equitable opportunities based on seniority, timing of vacation selection, timing of vacation payments, allocation of prime vacation time and vacation block selection.
If the Company and the Union are unable to reach a satisfactory conclusion in this matter by November 30, 2012, it will be immediately referred to arbitration pursuant to Article 7.01.
ARTICLE 19 – PAID HOLIDAYS
19.01 For the purposes of this Agreement, the following days are recognized as paid Statutory Holidays for employees who have completed their first thirty (30) days of employment with the Company:
New Year’s Day Labour Day
Good Friday Thanksgiving Day
Easter Monday Remembrance Day
Victoria Day Christmas Day
Canada Day Boxing Day
B.C. Day The above list of recognized Statutory Holidays will automatically be amended to include any newly legislated Federal Statutory Holidays, during the life of the Agreement. 19.03 No employee is entitled to be paid for a Statutory Holiday on which he/she does not work when he/she was not entitled to wages for at least one hundred and twenty (120) hours during the thirty (30) calendar days immediately preceding the holiday. Notwithstanding the previous sentence, the employee is entitled to be paid 1/20th of the wages he/she has earned during the thirty (30) calendar days immediately preceding that Statutory Holiday. 19.04 An employee, who qualifies for Statutory Holiday pay in accordance with Article 19.03, and is not required by the Company to work on any of the above Statutory Holidays, shall be paid the equivalent of the wages he/she would have earned at his/her regular basic hourly rate for his/her normal hours of work. 19.05 An employee, who qualifies for Statutory Holiday pay in accordance with Article 19.03, and is required by the Company to work on a regularly scheduled shift on any of the above Statutory 7
Holidays, shall be paid one and one-half (1-1/2) times his/her regular basic hourly rate for time worked during his/her normal hours of work on such Statutory Holiday in addition to his/her pay under Article 19.04. Any hours worked by an employee on a Statutory Holiday before or after his/her regularly scheduled shift will be paid at the rate of double (2.0) time.
When an employee volunteers to work a Statutory Holiday on his/her regularly scheduled rest day, the overtime rates prescribed in clause 17.08 shall apply.
19.06
If any of the above Statutory Holidays are observed by the Company while an employee is on scheduled vacation or on his/her regular day off, the Company shall compensate the employee on the following basis:
(a) the equivalent of the wages he/she would have earned at his/her regular basic hourly rate for his/her normal hours of work; or, (b) a day off with pay, in accordance with (a) above, in lieu of the Statutory Holiday. Such day may be taken in conjunction with his/her vacation or at some other mutually agreeable time.
ARTICLE 21.03 – BENEFIT COVERAGE
a) The Company shall pay one hundred percent (100%) of the costs associated with providing a health and welfare benefit plan to all eligible employees and their eligible spouses, partners and dependents, including an employee assistance program, extended medical insurance, supplemental health care insurance, dental care insurance, vision care insurance, emergency travel insurance and life insurance coverage(s), immediately following ninety (90) days from the employee’s date of hire with the Company.
b) The benefit plan referred to above will continue for the duration of the Agreement and benefit levels will be maintained. A schedule of current benefits will be distributed to all employees by the Company in the next thirty (30) days.
c) Employees shall be required to complete benefit enrollment forms during employment orientation.
d) The Company will maintain coverage and continue to pay all premiums associated with the health and welfare benefit plan for the duration of all paid absences and absences due to occupational injury or jury duty.
i) In the event an employee is absent due to layoff, the Company will maintain coverage and continue to pay all premiums associated with the health and welfare benefit plan for a period of three (3) months.
ii) In the event an employee is absent due to illness, non-occupational injury or leave in accordance with the Canada Labour Code, the Company will maintain coverage and continue to pay all premiums associated with the health and welfare benefit plan benefit coverage for a maximum of one (1) year.
8
ARTICLE 21.04 – PENSION PLAN
Effective April 1, 2013, the Company shall make payments to the IAMAW Multi-Employer Pension Fund for each employee performing work in a job classification covered by this Agreement as follows:
1. The Company will contribute four percent (4%) of the employee’s total earnings. Total earnings means all monies an employee earns for wages and includes earnings for vacation, paid holidays, approved Union Leave, VRSC and COLA.
2. Contributions are payable for all non-probationary, part-time and full-time employees covered by the Agreement.
3. The payments to the Pension Fund shall be made to the IAMAW Multi-Employer Pension Fund.
4. The Pension Fund shall conform with the requirements of the Pension Benefits Standard Act and the Income Tax Act so as to enable the Company to treat contributions to the Pension Fund as a deduction for Federal Income Tax purposes.
5. All contributions shall be made to the Pension Fund by the twentieth (20th) day of the following month and in such manner as determined by the Union.
Note: The existing RRSP contribution plan will continue until the IAMAW pension plan is in place.
ARTICLE 28 – VRSC (VOLUME, RISK, STRESS AND CONSEQUENCES)
A five percent (5%) monthly bonus payment addressing Volume, Risk, Stress, and Consequences (“VRSC”) will be provided to full-time employees at the following three (3) airports (the “VRSC Airports”):
1) Vancouver
2) Victoria
3) Kelowna
For further clarity, the VRSC payment will not be provided to employees at any airport covered by this Agreement that is not referred to above.
The Annual VRSC Amount is calculated by taking the Level 3.4 hourly rate multiplied by 2080 hours, multiplied by five percent (5%). The Annual VRSC Amount is divided by 12 to provide a Monthly VRSC Payment. 9
The Monthly VRSC Payment will be paid by the end of the month next following the month in which it is earned by the screening officer working at least a majority of his/her scheduled shifts in the month. It is understood that paid absences (i.e. vacation, paid sick, bereavement etc.) provided for in this Agreement shall be counted as shifts worked in this calculation.
Part time employees at the VRSC Airports with a minimum of sixteen (16) hours to a maximum of thirty (30) hours per week will receive 60% of the Monthly VRSC Payment.
ARTICLE 29 – COLA (COST OF LIVING ADJUSTMENT)
A Cost of Living Adjustment (“COLA”) monthly payment will be provided to full-time employees at the following six (6) airports (the “COLA Airports”) based on the following rates (the “Applicable Percentage”):
1) Vancouver 7.5%
2) Victoria 2.5%
3) Kelowna 1.5%
4) Prince George 1.5%
5) Fort St. John 1.5%
6) Penticton 1.5%
For further clarity, the COLA payment will not be provided to employees at any airport covered by this Agreement that is not referred to above.
The Annual COLA Amount is calculated by taking the Level 3.4 hourly rate, multiplied by 2080 hours, multiplied by the Applicable Percentage. The Annual COLA Amount is divided by 12 to provide a Monthly COLA Payment.
The Monthly COLA Payment will be paid by the end of the month next following the month in which it is earned by the screening officer working at least a majority of his or her scheduled shifts in the month. It is understood that paid absences (i.e. vacation, paid sick, bereavement etc.) provided for in this Agreement shall be counted as shifts worked in this calculation.
Part time employees at the COLA Airports with a minimum of sixteen (16) hours to a maximum of thirty (30) hours per week will receive 60% of the Monthly COLA Payment applicable at that airport. 10
APPENDIX “A” – RATES OF PAY
SCREENING OFFICERS a) Current Hourly Wage Rates *F1: $15.57
*Level 3.1: 0 – 2080 hours: $17.70
*Level 3.2: 2081 – 4160 hours: $18.07
*Level 3.3: 4161 – 6240 hours: $18.44
*Level 3.4: 6241 + hours: $18.81
b) Wage Increases
The hourly wage rates set out above will be increased as follows: Effective October 1, 2012: 1.5%
Effective April 1, 2013: 2.0%
Effective April 1, 2014: 2.5%
c) Point Leads
Point Leads will be paid twelve and one-half percent (12.5%) above Level 3.4.
The Acting Point Lead rate will be equal to the Point Lead rate.
d) Base Administrators
Base Administrators will receive $1.50, as an adjustment to the employees’ base rate, per hour for each hour worked on a bi-weekly basis.
e) Employees Working Split Shifts Employees working split shifts will receive an allowance equal to one (1) hours pay provided they report for both parts of the shift. 11
5) ISSUES ARISING RESPECTING THE IMPLEMENTATION OR INTERPRETATION OF THIS ARBITRATION AWARD
I remained seized to deal with any issues arising respecting the implementation or interpretation of the provisions of this Arbitration Award.
THIS ARBITRATION AWARD IS RENDERED AT RICHMOND, BC ON AUGUST 16, 2012
______________________
Brian Foley