The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada
The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada
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BC/Yukon Region – Regional Executive Meeting

Thursday, October 17, 2024, 1:00 – 5:00 pm, Friday, October 18, 2024, 9:00 am – 12:00 pm

JD Marriott Parq Vancouver, 39 Smithe Street, Vancouver, BC, V6B 0R3

Meeting ID:  VRNFR3XQ8B5

 

 Meeting Minutes

 

Regional Executive Meeting – October 17 & 18, 2024

  1. Approval of Agenda – (All) Consensus
  2. Approval of Minutes – (All)
    1. September 7, 2024 Consensus
  3. Business Arising from Minutes – (All)
    1. Review of action items
    2.  
  4. Regional Director Report - (M. Cranny)

I was pleased to attend the Okanagan Branch AGM September 11th and happy that we had folks who stepped up to serve on the Executive and thanks to Phil for taking on the role of President (and winning the position!). Lots of good questions from the members about RTO, the state of the union and such.

 

I attended RD and BOD meetings Sept 16-19th which was fruitful. The RD meeting was shortened to address some important board legal business, which was then continued October 2nd. I do believe we are nearing the end of this matter but we are making extra sure that we are following all processes correctly. The RD meeting finally finished the Steward of the Year forms/process to get final approval at the BOD so that we’ll have that, which I look forward to. The Legacy Foundation table at the AGM will be cash only so remind folks to get cash. I’m not a fan of this but they decided to simplify this year. There will also be a lottery for selecting seating sections for the AGM. This should be interesting but a bit more fair than the free for all of previous years.

 

BOD covered topics such as RTO, there is a multi-union media campaign that PIPSC is contributing to and while we strive to cut costs where we can, we found a way to support this important topic. The other big issue was finances and we reviewed financial statements and prepped for the AGM and how we can best push for this necessary dues increase. Shortly after draft documents were shared outlining strategy and talking points but we are still waiting for final versions after lots of comments were offered. As soon as I have that I will share it. I am glad we added Tommy Barron to speak to it at the SC this weekend. Of note the BCY Young Professionals Committee TOR was approved, thanks Davy for getting that to us. Another topic that came up was Uber and its use by union members. There was a proposal to provide Uber vouchers for folks attending the AGM but that was thought to be problematic. Uber is not a good employer from a union standpoint and we don’t want to send the wrong message even though it was a potentially very cost effective option. We also don’t want to hurt gig workers but find ways to help them organize.  Also, there is a very good train option from the airport to the hotel in Toronto. We also looked at the meeting schedule for next year and various sundry items.

 

I was happy to attend the SP Presidents meeting in Vancouver on Sept 20th. Again, RTO, Dues increase and finances were topics I spoke to. The SP exec certainly understands the need for dues increase and is supportive. They look forward to supporting documents.

 

I attended the BCFed meeting Sept 26th which is interesting and while many issues don’t affect our members directly they are relatable. Obviously with the election, that was a big topic and discussion of how to promote voting for a government that supports labour. Something we will be dealing with federally very soon. Many of the BCFed unions are not non-partisan like we are.

 

I was asked to speak at the SP Consultation meeting in Victoria on October 9th and you can guess the same popular topics came up.

 

Finally, there was a special board meeting on Oct 11th to accept the financial statements and budget to be proposed at the AGM.

 

I certainly look forward to the business with the President being completed as I am sure many are. I am also keenly interested in the PIPSC election, make sure you get out and vote. 5 resolutions from YPN.

Accept and approve Morgan’s oral report. m/s/c

  1. Office/Staff Report – (K. Hawkins)

The Vancouver office is technically fully staffed at this time; however, we have one newer person, one brand new person and one person who is just back from a longer leave. This means a lot of the heavy work is being shouldered by two of the representational staff. We have extensive issues occurring at CSC and they are demanding the efforts of the entire representational team in one way or another. The hours put into addressing these issues are well beyond our capacity but they’re important and require our time. The downside is that we are delayed on some files, due to capacity (not just people, but experience levels). I’ve had to step in on some files and I think we have a strong plan going forward but we require patience. If you hear of members with concerns, please send them my way. I can tap into some Prairie support if needed.

 

Finally, we have several adjudication hearings coming up in the new year. As of now, I see two definitively proceeding and three potentially proceeding. This is a significant drain on resources as we have two people assigned for hearings. Vancouver office will be moving to smaller space to minimize costs pending board approval.

Accept and approve Kris’ oral report. m/s/c

  1. Financial Report – Treasurer - (P. MacDougall)
    1. Financial update – Accept and approve Pete’s oral report. m/s/c
  2. Regional Training Committee Report – (P. MacDougall)
    1. Upcoming training in BC/Yukon Region – executive training for peer to peer. Accept and approve Pete’s oral report. m/s/c
    2. National training initiatives
    3.  
  3. Awards Committee – (D. Corda)
    1. Executive of the Year – forms open all year round.
    2. Steward of the Year – will be in attendance.
  4. YPN Initiative – (D. Chiu)
    1. YP Forum – October 2024 –

The YPC will be hosting three events at Steward Council - reception for YPs, billiards, and false creek ferry to Science World. The YPC briefly met virtually to finalize the planning for those activities.

 

Davy met again with other regional counterparts in Ottawa in September. The meeting took place at the PIPSC HQ on Tremblay. There was a presentation by staff that confirmed the underrepresentation of YPs throughout PIPSC. They are also driven by different things unsurprisingly. Written reports will be provided by each regional YPC going forward along with budgets. The intent is to review the need to reallocate budgets from regions who don’t make use of the budgeted funds.

 

The YPC will be meeting during the Steward Council to determine next engagement events and steps to focus the next fiscal year on outreach. Eric Massey, the negotiator with the SH group bargaining team, was invited as a guest to provide an introduction to the bargaining process and how YPs could be involved. A staggering of the current members has been determined and there will be roughly 4 members who will be stepping off June 2025.

Accept and approve Davy’s oral report. m/s/c

  1. National initiatives
    1. Legacy Fund & challenge cup – (S. Auchoybur)
      • Raffle Basket for PIPSC AGM update – will have a table provided at AGM.
      •  
  2. New Business
    1. Steward Council update – draft schedule on shared drive. Dinner would be later.
    2. 2025 Regional Council update – in Parksville.
    3. Surrey Branch – decision to include Langley in Surrey or Fraser Valley to be discussed in Nov meeting with Rob MacDonald. AI: Phil will invite Rob MacDonald to Nov 2024 meeting.
    4. Subcommittee for by-laws review – AI: Katrina will contact Rob MacDonald.
  3. Next Meeting(s)
    1. November 27, 2024, 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm, Delta Suites Vancouver – Training Committee
    2. November 28, 2024, 9:00 am – 5:00 pm, Delta Suites, Vancouver – RX Meeting
    3. February 21 – 22, 2025, Victoria or Vancouver AI: Phil will check with Alex on location for February meeting and no strategic planning meeting in February.
    4. April 8, 2025, 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm, April 9, 9:00 am – 12:00 pm, Mariott Inner Harbour, Victoria
    5. June 11, 2025, 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm, Tigh-Na-Mara Resort, Parksville - Training Committee
    6. June 12, 2025, 9:00 am – 5:00 pm, Tigh-Na-Mara Resort, Parksville - Regional Executive
    7. June 13 – 14, 2025, Tigh-Na-Mara Resort, Parksville - Regional Council
    8. August/September 2025, TBD
    9. October 16, 2025, 1:00 – 5:00 pm, Westin Hotel, Whistler – RX Meeting
    10. October 17, 2025, 9:00 am – 12:00 pm, Westin Hotel, Whistler – RX Meeting
    11. October 17 – 18, 2025, Westin Hotel Whistler – Steward Council
  4. Roundtable

Pete – Square set up on his phone for donations.         

Terri – issue of not enough members to meet quorum.

  1. Adjournment - To adjourn. m/s/c

Notes:

Published on 28 November 2024