July 13 is Blue Shirt day!
With the college support full-time contract set to expire on August 31, 2022, bargaining has begun for the next contract. Support staff help students through every aspect of the student experience from admissions to convocation.
The colleges can’t work without support staff. They’re employed in more than 150 professions in the college.
Make the colleges hear your voice. Let’s unify for dignity, fairness and respect. Your bargaining team is asking support staff to wear blue on July 13 and August 10 to tell the colleges you want a fair contract.
Take a photo of you and/or your co-workers wearing blue over your lunch break, in person or on Teams or Zoom, and send it in to treasurer@opseu241.ca.
CAAT-S FT bargaining bulletin 1: Proposals exchanged
Our bargaining team exchanged proposals on June 15. The opening statement outlined the ever-changing environment at our colleges and the increased demands on support staff for more work with less time and resources.
The team has summarized the proposals and shared the exchange document they gave the employer. The proposal covered:
- Job competition
- Job security
- Vacation
- Health and safety
- Holidays
- Working conditions
- Education
- Wages
- Leaves
- Benefits
We believe in transparency, open communication and accountability to all support staff.
You can read the full bulletin and download the proposals document here.
The new PT Collective Agreement is here!
The new Part-Time Collective agreement has been added to our website, and is available to download. The agreement applies to:
- Regular Part-Time employees – Continuous part-time positions with no end dates and regularly scheduled hours on a weekly basis. Some may work less than 12 months of the year.
- Casual employees – Work on an on-call basis or do not have regularly scheduled hours on a weekly basis.
- Temporary employees – Temporarily replacing a Regular Part-Time employee that is on leave for no more than 9 months.
- Student employees – Any student working in a position that is only available to current students of the college, such as CSEP and co-op positions.
- Projects of non-recurring kind (PNRK) – Contract positions for non-recurring projects that don’t exceed 12 months in length.
The Collective Agreements can be found in our Member Help Centre
Show your support!
Show your support with these Zoom backgrounds that are available for you to download and use!
Full-time Support Staff – Town Hall
OPSEU Local 241 is hosting an information Town Hall meeting via Zoom on Wednesday, June 29 at noon, for Full-Time Support Staff.
The Town Hall will include updates on the new Collective Agreement bargaining negotiations for Full-time Support Staff members. Carla Tillapaugh, OPSEU Mobilizer for Regions 1 & 2, will be in attendance, and a question period will follow.
You must register with a non-Mohawk email address. Click here to RSVP.
We look forward to seeing you there!
Wear blue on July 13 and Aug 10
With the college support full-time contract set to expire on August 31, 2022, bargaining has begun for the next contract. Support staff help students through every aspect of the student experience from admissions to convocation.
Make the colleges hear your voice. Let’s unify for dignity, fairness and respect. Your bargaining team are asking support staff to wear blue on July 13 and August 10 to tell the colleges you want a fair contract.
Take a photo of you and your co-workers wearing blue over your lunch break, in person or on Teams, and send it to our regional mobilizer: Carla Tillapaugh carlatillapaugh@hotmail.com, Region 1 and 2 Mobilizer (Fanshawe, St. Clair, Lambton, Conestoga, Mohawk, Niagara and Sheridan)
Johnson Insurance preferred rates
Johnson Insurance has worked closely with OPSEU Local 241 to provide access to helpful services and products that take care of your home and car insurance needs.
Take advantage of this special offer now. Mention group code M2 for your preferred rates when you give Johnson a call today at 1-855-616-6708 or visit Johnson.ca/educator.
Employee Tuition Reimbursement Benefit
The Employee Tuition Reimbursement Benefit has been fully reinstated. This will be in effect Monday, May 16, 2022 and applies to eligible employees and education as outlined in the policy. This program provides financial assistance for employees who are pursuing a post-secondary College diploma, an undergraduate degree, a graduate degree (either Masters or Doctoral) and/or a professional or trade associate certificate outside of Mohawk College. It has been developed to support a lifelong learning environment with the ultimate goal of contributing to student success.
More information on the policy and the application form can be found at MyMohawk > Human Resources > Professional Development
CAAT-S sets their demands – and the team is set to bargain
College full-time support delegates, alternates and observers met in-person and virtually at the Sheraton Hotel in Toronto on April 30 to set their demands for the 2022 round of bargaining.
OPSEU/SEFPO President JP Hornick and OPSEU/SEFPO First Vice-President/Treasurer Laurie Nancekivell set the tone for the two-day meeting. The newly elected President delivered a rousing message that hit all the right notes with members who share so much with Hornick, a college faculty member.
Following speeches, bargaining team members took turns presenting slide deck information dealing with the demands submitted and the bargaining environment.
Delegates built the demand set, and, for ease of organization, the team condensed some 600 demand submissions into 46 recommendations grouped into 13 categories. Each category was debated and voted upon:
- wages
- benefits
- education
- health and safety
- holidays
- job postings
- job security
- layoff and recall
- leaves of absence
- other (new)
- union matters
- vacation
- working conditions
Next Steps:
- May 9-13: The team prepares bargaining proposals
- June 2: The teams submits its notice to bargain.
- Scheduled bargaining dates: June 13-16, July 18-22, August 8-12, August 22-September 2
- August 31: The collective agreement expires.
Read the full details here
Day of Mourning
The 28th of April is International Commemoration Day for Dead and Injured Workers organized worldwide by the trade union movement since 1996.
The Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS) reminds us that the National Day of Mourning, April 28, is not only a day to remember and honour those lives lost or injured due to a workplace tragedy, but also a day to renew the commitment to improve health and safety in the workplace and prevent further injuries, illnesses, and deaths.
Next Membership Meeting
Wednesday, May 22 at Noon online. Register now
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About Local 241
OPSEU/SEFPO Local 241 proudly represents all Support Staff at Mohawk College.
Local Stewards and elected Officers are volunteers. We help our members navigate the unionized workplace and understand, exercise, and enforce our rights under the collective agreement.