Details of agreements between unions and City of Calgary, ICS Courier
The following details of labour agreements were compiled by CLV Reports, a sister publication to Canadian HR Reporter that looks at trends in collective bargaining and labour relations.
City of Calgary
Calgary (2,900 employees of a transit service and the Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 583)
Renewal agreement: Effective July 6, 2009, to expire Jan. 2, 2012. Ratified on Feb. 9, 2010, with 87 per cent voting in favour.
Wage adjustments:
July 6, 2009 – 3.5 per cent. April 6, 2010 – one per cent. July 5, 2010 – four per cent. Jan. 3, 2011 – 0.5 per cent. July 4, 2011 – wage re-opener. Paid holidays: 11, unchanged.
Vacations with pay: Three weeks after two years, four after eight, five after 17, six after 25, seven after 30, unchanged. Employees can carry forward one week of vacation per year to a maximum of six weeks, becoming eight weeks after 12 years of service.
Shift premium: $0-$0.90-$0.90, previously $0-$0.85-$0.85, becoming $0-$1-$1 in the second year. Call-in is a minimum of two hours at double time. Service pay is $120 after 10 years, $180 after 15, $240 after 20 and $300 after 25. Split shift premium is $0.50 if the shift is 10 hours long, $1 if it is 11 hours. The split shift premium also increased; no details are available.
Weekend premium: Time and one-quarter for operators on regular shifts on Sunday.
Overtime: Time and one-half for the first two hours over a regular shift; double time thereafter and on a day off for operators. Double time after 10 p.m. for day-shift operators. Double time after nine hours in a day for maintenance and clerical. Overtime can be banked to 80 straight-time hours.
Benefits Benefits for most city employees are provided through the Municipal Employees Benefit Association of Calgary, a body with representatives from the unions and non-voting members from the city. The following benefits are common to all unionized groups: Medical benefits: Level 1 benefit is provided by an extra $1,100 for the health-spending account (HSA) paid by the city. There is no extended health-care coverage or out-of-province emergency. Level 2 is city-paid with a $300 contribution to the employee’s HSA, semi-private or private hospital, pay-direct drugs reimbursed 90 per cent with a drug card and least-cost alternative; some OTC drugs are covered if prescribed. The dispensing fee cap is $7.50, becoming $7.75 in the second year and $8 in the third. Extended health-care benefits are reimbursed 100 per cent. Smoking-cessation products are reimbursed 90 per cent and covered to a $200 lifetime maximum. Psychological counselling with no co-insurance to $75 per visit and $750 per year; paramedical services are reimbursed to a $800 combined annual maximum. Vision care to $400 every 24 months (glasses/contacts or laser eye surgery). Hearing aids are reimbursed 100 per cent to $350 every five years. Overall annual extended health-care maximum is $30,000. Out-of-province emergency medical travel is reimbursed 100 per cent to a maximum of $2 million.
Dental: City-paid plan. Level 1 core plan was deleted Jan. 1, 2007; there is an extra $800, city-paid, for the HSA as of Jan. 1, 2009. Level 2 reimburses 80 per cent of basic care, including periodontal, and 80 per cent of major restorative, including crowns, bridges and dentures, to a combined annual maximum of $1,500, and 50 per cent of orthodontics to a lifetime maximum of $2,000 for children only. Level 3 reimburses basic services 100 per cent, major services to 80 per cent to a combined maximum of $1,750 annually. Orthodontics is reimbursed 50 per cent for both adults and children to a $2,500 lifetime maximum. Fees for procedures are according to the 1997 Alberta General Practitioner Dental Association Fee Guide plus 12 per cent.
Short-term disability: City-paid plan provides a benefit of 90 per cent of regular wages from the first day of disability for 119 days.
Long-term disability: Employee-paid plan provides a benefit of 67 per cent of the first $27,000 of salary, 55 per cent of the next $90,000 and 50 per cent of the remainder. Benefits are indexed up to four per cent per year. Benefits are integrated with Alberta’s workers’ compensation board and the Canada Pension Plan and continue until recovery, death or retirement age. All unchanged.
Life insurance: City-paid coverage of two times annual salary to a maximum of $500,000. Optional, employee-paid coverage in $10,000 blocks to the lesser of $600,000 or four times salary for employee and to $200,000 for spouse. Unchanged.
Pension: Local Authorities Pension Plan. The city administers an optional group registered retirement savings plan.
Safety shoes: Annual allowance of $150 for maintenance.
Tool allowance: Annual allowance of $450.
Rates of pay (current, after first increase): community shuttle operator – $19.21; office cleaner – $20.95, progressing in two annual steps to $23.46; operator – $22.21, progressing to $27.77; journeyman heavy duty mechanic – $30.96, progressing to $34.65. Clerical: Grade 1 – $15.39 to start, progressing to $16.93 and in four steps over three years to $20.59; Grade 15 – $40.64, progressing to $49.40.
Editor’s notes: Discipline: Sunset clause is 12 months for warnings and short suspensions, 24 months for suspensions of five days or longer. Severance: In the event of permanent layoff, notice or pay in lieu is one week after three months, two weeks after two years, four after four, five after six, six after eight and eight after 10. Bereavement: Seven calendar days for the death of a spouse, child, parent or sibling. Up to seven days for a step-parent, step-sibling, mother-in-law, father-in-law, sister-in-law, brother-in-law, grandchild or grandparent of either the employee or spouse. Medicals: The city reimburses $60 of the cost of annual class 1 and class 2 medicals.
ICS COURIER Vancouver (68 employees of a courier company and the Canadian Auto Workers, Local 114) Renewal agreement: Effective Nov. 3, 2008, to expire Nov. 2, 2011. Signed on Dec. 14, 2009.
Wage adjustments:
None in the first year. However, employees receive a lump sum of four per cent per hour worked since the expiry of the previous agreement. Effective Nov. 3, 2009 — $0.48 to start rate and $0.22 to end rate for sorter, $1.56 to start rate and $0.25 to end rate for courier, $0.57 to start rate and $0.25 to end rate for five-ton driver, plus a lump sum of $300 for full-time and $200 for part-time employees. New class of walker is created. (See also wage grid in editor’s notes below.) Effective Nov. 3, 2010 – $0.54 to start rate and $0.24 to end rate for sorter, $0.68 to start rate and $0.28 to end rate for courier, $0.73 to start rate and $0.28 to end rate for five-ton driver. Paid holidays: 11, including one floater, unchanged.
Vacations with pay: Three weeks after five years, four after 10, five after 15, unchanged.
Shift premium: $0.35, unchanged, becoming $0.75 in the second year, for all hours between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. Lead hand premium is $1. First-aid premium is $0.25.
Overtime: Time and one-half over eight hours in a day or 40 hours in a week for sorters, nine hours or 45 hours for drivers.
Medical benefits: B.C. Medical Services Plan is company-paid. Company-paid plan provides prescription drugs to an annual maximum of $1,500 (new).
Weekly indemnity: Company-paid 1-1-8-15 plan provides a benefit of 60 per cent of regular wages.
Safety shoes: Annual allowance of $100 for safety boots.
Rates of pay (current, after first increase): sorter – $10.78 to start, progressing to $11.32 after six months and in two more steps after 24 months to $13.04; walker – $13.22, progressing to $16.38; courier – $13.63, progressing to $16.91; driver five-ton – $14.57, progressing to $17.98; average – N/A.
Editor’s notes: Wage grid: The previous wage grid progressed in four steps over 30 months. In the second year one step is dropped, and in the third year the final step is brought back by six months, making the progression three steps over 18 months. Education: The company contributes $1,500 per year to the union’s PEL fund. Bereavement: Three to five working days for the death of a spouse, child, parent, sibling, mother-in-law, father-in-law or other relative residing with the employee.
CLV Reports is a weekly newsletter that helps labour relations professionals stay up to date in the fast moving industrial relations field with reports from collective bargaining tables across the country. Settlements are covered in complete detail with pertinent information on wage adjustments, paid holidays, vacations with pay, shift premiums, medical benefits, dental plans, weekly indemnity, life insurance, pension plans, cost-of-living allowances and rates of pay. CLV Reports monitors the trends in wage settlements, working conditions and pension benefits enabling you to negotiate wage contracts using the latest economic data including the consumer price index and labour force information. For more information, and to start your subscription, visit www.hrreporter.com/clv.
