Bargaining Update #5 – FRENCH – Pension Settlement Information

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**Further to the email sent earlier today; please find below a French version of the PowerPoint Presentation**

Please click on the link below to open up a PowerPoint Presentation with additional Pension Information.  If you have any questions or need further clarification, please contact your RVP.  Your RVP will contact the Bargaining Committee to address your question/concern.  Thank you.

Pension Settlement Presentation_FR_revised

Bargaining Update #4 – Pension Settlement

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On Thursday September 13, COPE 491 joined CSU and the Employer at the table to ensure that all three Settlors could reach a settlement – the pension settlement was signed Friday afternoon.

Here’s what the Pension Settlement entails:

  • Retirees will receive a catch-up adjustment of their base pension to make up for the years without an indexing adjustment. A person that retired Jan 1, 2010 or earlier will see a base increase of 9.07 % (but they will not receive a retro payment).
  • January 1, 2018, retirees get an indexing adjustment of 100% of CPI and a retroactive payment for the period from January 1, 2018 to the date of the adjustment.
  • The conditions for the indexation benefit formula negotiated in 2007 have been replaced to improve the likelihood of delivering this benefit in the future.  The old solvency threshold of 105% has been removed.  There is now no solvency threshold.  The formula ensures that future plan surpluses are fairly shared between current and future retirees, while making it more likely that indexation will be at 100% of CPI.
  • The Employer will contribute an additional 1% to the pension plan every year the plan is funded at 130% or lower. Unlike previous employee and employer contribution increases, this 1% is specifically earmarked for indexing and cannot be absorbed by normal plan cost increases. The plan is currently funded at 129% and the pension improvements we have negotiated will reduce the surplus, so the Employer will start contributing the additional 1% as of Jan 1, 2019.
  • when guaranteed indexing was looked at the long-term projections showed that the guarantee would actually unfairly impact future retirees and active members. The projections also showed that even with a market drop such as 2008, the improved conditional indexing formula would deliver indexing above 50% of CPI.
  • CSU’s actuary is working with the Employer’s actuary on a presentation to explain and illustrate the indexing formula. The presentation will be available shortly.
  • In addition, the last tier of the Bridge has been removed. Employees hired after May 16, 2007 will no longer need 15 years of service to get the full value of the $8,000 Bridge. The service requirement is now 10 years for everyone.
  • There is a provision that allows the Employer to recover special payments from future surplus (Banker’s Note). The Employer has made special payments over the last few years worth $6 million.  They have agreed not to recover those monies prior to the conclusion of the next round of bargaining.

Please note: This will be discussed with the Executive as per the COPE491 Bylaws.  A ratification vote will be set up shortly, please ensure that your correct email address is with your RVP – the vote will take place with Big Pulse.  If you have any questions please contact your RVP and they will be in contact with the Bargaining Committee. 

Committee Appointments – 2018

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The COPE491 Executive has reviewed the applications received for the committee vacancies and have now made the appointments.

The appointments made are as follows:

  • Sick Leave Bank (NO requests) – Sister Connie Taylor
  • EAP Committee – Sister Shelley Douan
  • JBT Committee – Sister Lindsay Mills

The Executive would like to thank all members who put their name forward and congratulate those members appointed.

Bargaining Update #2

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Today your Bargaining Committee met jointly with the CSU Bargaining team to have a full discussion on pensions with the employer, along with CSU’s actuary. The discussions were very productive and informative.

The COPE Bargaining Committee will be meeting tomorrow to continue to prepare for our upcoming bargaining on October 2nd & 3rd. We are looking forward to continuing productive and positive negotiations with the employer.

Updates will be provided as bargaining continues.

Statement from COPE Local 343

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STATEMENT FROM COPE LOCAL 343 REGARDING DISAFFILIATION OF UNIFOR FROM CLC

From COPE Local 343 website:

Sisters, Brothers and Comrades,

As you may or may not know, Unifor decided to disaffiliate from the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC). This decision will have a negative impact on the labour movement. COPE Local 343 feels that leaving the house of labour is not only divisive, but in contradiction of everything we believe the labour movement stands for.

To be clear, it is our belief that this move by Unifor to disaffiliate from the CLC is directly related to the raiding actions taken by them over the last several weeks against UNITE HERE Local 75 members.

This is a huge risk for members of UNITE HERE Local 75 who are in a statutory freeze in their collective agreements during the open periods in 2018. When you decertify from your union your collective agreement is not protected, and these members could risk the provisions of the collective agreements they fought so hard to negotiate.

The Executive Board of COPE Local 343 is sending out this statement to you, our members, because we have members who work for UNITE HERE Local 75, and if this raiding is successful, these members, some of whom have worked for UNITE HERE Local 75 for over 45 years, will lose their jobs. We need to follow the lead of our members working for UNITE HERE Local 75 to support them and protect them to the best of our ability from the repercussions of the raiding by Unifor by participating in anti-raiding actions.

We know that Lis Pimental, the former President of UNITE HERE Local 75, dismissed the elected Executive Board when they did not support her interests. The former President took further actions and locked out the elected Executive Board and staff from the office, and appointed a new executive board. Lis Pimental is now assisting Unifor with the raiding. Of our 14 members working at UNITE HERE Local 75, 3 followed her to Unifor. These actions violate the constitution of the Local and it is our members and the elected Executive Board who requested the UNITE HERE International put Local 75 in trusteeship. To be clear, this is not a “US Invasion”.

It is important that we respect the democratic process and follow the constitutions of our organizations. In 2004, COPE/SEPB sought autonomy from OPEIU International. Amongst many ongoing issues, OPEIU International imposed a per capita increase that would have burdened us. The Canadian locals democratically and legally split from OPEIU to become their own Canadian Union – COPE/SEPB. Our departure from the International is a completely different situation than the one occurring here now with UNITE HERE Local 75 and the raiding of their members by Unifor.

To reiterate, we want our members to know that we do not take the actions of the Unifor raid on UNITE HERE Local 75 lightly and that we will support any anti-raiding actions our members who work for UNITE HERE invite us to participate in.

At a time when workers across the country are becoming more and more emboldened to rise up, we must now more than ever adhere to these principles and help those who wish to organize to do so.

Feel free to contact us at office@cope343.com for more information and the President Kelly Belbin will respond to you.

In solidarity,
The Executive Board of COPE Local 343

Update on OLRB Process

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The hearing dates that were scheduled for January 8/9 have now been concluded. This process was completed in the first day and the second day was cancelled. All parties now await a decision from the Vice-Chair of the OLRB (Ontario Labour Relations Board). We will share that decision once we receive it.

Happy New Year!

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Happy New Year! The COPE 491 executive wishes to send good wishes for a fantastic year to each and every member.

Quick update on the OLRB hearings for the application that was filed in December. The hearing date originally scheduled for December 27 was cancelled and the hearing for January 8 and 9 will be taking place as scheduled. Until the hearings have taken place and a decision is rendered there may not be much information to share. We will continue to provide all information we can to everyone.

COPE 491 will be taking time in the first part of January to also welcome our new executive members and will be working together to move forward in a positive manner. The Bargaining Committee is continuing to work compiling proposals from those submitted by members. There has been a start on a bylaw review and a committee will be formed shortly as well. 2018 will be a busy year again and we look forward to seeing member involvement and seeing our local continue to grow and strengthen together in a unified direction.

In Solidarity,
COPE 491 Executive