Part of Bethany Care Society Collective Agreement 2020-2024

Bethany Care Society Collective Agreement 2020-2024

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Table of contents
  1. General Conditions
    1. Requests for a leave of absence, without pay or benefit of Employer contributions will, where possible, be made in writing to the Employer thirty (30) calendar days in advance, except that in extenuating circumstance the time factor may be waived or reduced.  The granting of leaves of absence is subject to the approval of the Employer.   Normally the Employer will reply in writing to a request for leave of absence within seven (7) days of receipt of the request, exclusive of Saturdays, Sundays and Named Holidays.  If the request cannot be granted, the Employee will be provided with the reason(s) in writing.
    2. Except as provided elsewhere in this Collective Agreement, during leaves of absence without pay of longer than thirty (30) calendar days, and subject to approval by the Insurer(s), Employees may elect to maintain coverage of contributory plans specified in this Collective Agreement, provided that the Employee makes prior arrangements to pay full premium costs.  Failure to pay the full premium costs prior to the commencement of the leave of absence may mean, at the discretion of the Insurer, that the Employee will not be in receipt of benefit coverage.
    3. For the portion of maternity leave during which an Employee has a valid health-related reason for being absent from work and who is in receipt of Sick Leave, EI SUB Plan benefits, STD or LTD, benefit plan premium payments shall be administered in the same fashion as an Employee absent due to illness.
    4. An Employee who has been granted leave of absence of any kind and who overstays their leave without permission of the Employer shall be deemed to have terminated their employment.
    5. Excluding Adoption, Union, Maternity and Paternity Leave, Employees requesting a leave of absence in excess of thirty (30) days may, at the discretion of the Employer, be required to use up previous years accumulated vacation entitlement prior (contiguous) to the commencement of the requested leave of absence.
  2. Union Business
    1. Where permission has been granted by the Employer for an   Employee, who is a locally elected representative of the    Union, to leave their employment temporarily in order to represent another Employee at an investigative meeting or grievance proceeding with the Employer, they shall suffer no loss of pay for the time so spent.
    2. One (1) Employee who is hired to a paid position with the Union shall be granted leave of absence without pay for a maximum period of 1 year. Such leave of absence shall be renewable for a further term upon written request. If it is permissible under the pension and group life plan and any other welfare plans, the Employee shall have the right to pay the full cost, including the Employer's share, during the period of such leave of absence.
    3. The Employer may grant leave of absence with pay to Employees to attend Union conventions, seminars, education classes or to perform the duties of any office of the Union. A request for leave shall be submitted in writing to the Employer with as much advance notice as possible, preferably four (4) weeks in advance, and approval will be subject to the efficient operation of the site. Requests for leave will not be unreasonably denied.
    4. One representative of the Union from each of the functional areas of therapy and social work shall be granted time off with pay, and without loss of seniority, in order to participate in negotiations between this Bargaining Unit and the Employer.
    5. To facilitate the administration of Union, leave as provided in (c) and (d) above, where Union leave has been granted, the Employer will continue the salary, plus any shift differential and/or weekend premium the Employee would have been paid had they been at work during such leave. In turn, the Employer shall invoice the Union for the actual salary plus any shift differential and/or weekend premium paid to the Employee or for replacement salary costs, whichever is greater, plus an amount determined by the Employer to cover the costs of benefits and administration.
  3. Maternity Leave
    1. An Employee who has completed ninety (90) days of employment shall, upon their written request, be granted Maternity Leave to become effective thirteen (13) weeks immediately preceding the expected date of delivery or such shorter period as may be requested by the Employee, provided that they commence Maternity Leave no later than the date of delivery. Maternity Leave shall be without pay and benefits except for the portion of Maternity Leave during which the Employee has a valid health-related reason for being absent from work and is also in receipt of sick leave, EI SUB Plan benefits, STD or LTD. Maternity Leave shall not exceed sixteen (16) weeks.
    2. A pregnant Employee whose continued employment in their position may be hazardous to themselves or to their unborn child, in the written opinion of their physician or a registered midwife, may request a transfer to a more suitable position if one is available. Where no suitable position is available, the Employee may request Maternity Leave as provided by Article 20.03 (a) if the Employee is eligible for such leave. In the event that such Maternity Leave must commence in the early stages of pregnancy which results in the need for an absence from work longer than eighteen (18) months, the Employee may request further leave without pay as provided by Article 20.01.
    3. A pregnant Employee whose pregnancy ends other than as a result of a live birth within sixteen (16) weeks of the estimated due is entitled to maternity leave. Such maternity leave will end either sixteen (16) weeks after the commencement of the leave.
  4. Parental Leave
    1. A parent-to-be who has completed ninety (90) days of employment shall, upon their written request, be granted leave of absence without pay and benefits for a period up to sixty-two (62) weeks for parenting duties following the birth of a child.
    2. An Employee who has ninety (90) days of employment shall be granted leave of absence without pay and benefits for a period of up to sixty-two (62) weeks for the purpose of adopting a child provided that:
      1. they make a written request for such leave at the time the application for adoption is approved and keeps the Employer advised of the status of such application; and
      2. they provide the Employer with at least one (1) day notice that such leave is to commence.
    3. Parental Leave shall end seventy-eight (78) weeks from the birth of the child or date of adoption, unless mutually agreed otherwise between the Employer and the Employee.
    4. An Employee absent on Parental Leave shall endeavor to provide the Employer with twelve (12) weeks written advance notice of their readiness to return to work but in any event shall provide four (4) weeks written notice, following which the Employer will reinstate them in the same position held by them immediately prior to taking such leave and at the same step in the salary scale or provide them with alternate work of a comparable nature at not less than the same step in the salary scale and other benefit that accrued to them up to the date they commenced the leave.
    5. Parental Leave of at least one (1) working day with pay shall be granted upon the written request of a parent-to-be to enable such Employee to attend to matters directly related to the birth or adoption of a child.
  5. Court Appearance
    1. An Employee required by law to appear in court for jury selection, as a member of a jury, or as a witness in matters arising out of their employment with the Employer, shall be paid the difference between the pay received for such court service and the pay the Employee would have normally received if  they had been working, based on the basic rate of pay.  Where practicable the Employee will report to work during those hours that they are not required to attend court.   For the purpose of the Employee reporting to work, travel time shall be considered as time required to attend court.
    2. Where an Employee is required by law to appear before a court of law for reasons other than those stated in (a) above, they shall be granted a leave of absence without pay.
  6. Bereavement Leave
    1. Upon request, an Employee shall be granted five (5) consecutive calendar days without loss of regular earnings in the event of a death of a member of the Employee’s immediate family (i.e. spouse, child, parent, brother, sister, mother-in-law, father-in-law, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, grandparent, grandchild, guardian or fiancé).  Spouse shall include common-law and/or same sex relationship.  Step-parent, step-children, step-brother and step-sister shall be considered as members of the Employee’s immediate family.

      Upon request, an Employee shall be granted three (3) consecutive calendar days without loss of regular earnings in the event of a death of an Employee’s aunt or uncle.
      1. The Employer may extend the above bereavement leave by up to two (2) additional days without loss of regular earnings in the event travel in excess of two hundred (200) kilometres is required to attend the funeral.
      2. Bereavement leave shall be taken within the ten (10) consecutive calendar days commencing with the date of the death.
      3. Notwithstanding the provisions of Clause 20.06(a), where special circumstances exist, an Employee may request that Bereavement Leave be divided into two (2) periods. Such request is subject to the approval of the Employer. In no circumstances, however, shall an Employee be eligible for more days off with pay than they would have been eligible to receive had the Bereavement Leave been taken in one (1) undivided period.
    2. In the event of a death of another relative or close friend, the Employer may grant up to one (1) working day off with pay to attend the funeral services.
    3. Employees may be required to substantiate, in the form prescribed by the Employer, any claim for bereavement leave. Payment of bereavement leave benefit shall not be effected until required substantiation has been supplied.
  7. Personal Leave
    1. Benefit eligible regular Employees shall be entitled to three (3) Personal Leave days at the Basic Rate of Pay each year, from April 1 through March 31. Employees shall request such days as far in advance as possible. These days are for the purpose of attending to personal matters and family responsibilities, including but not limited to attending appointments with family members. Requests for Personal Leave shall not be unreasonably denied, subject to operational requirements.
    2. The number of Personal Leave days for existing Employees are determined by their FTE as of April 1st.  The number of Personal Leave days for new Employees are determined by their hire date and their FTE as of their hire date. 
       
    3. Employees as of April 1st and hired April 1st  to July 31stHired August 1st to November 30thHired December 1st to March 31st
      Full-time and Part-time Employees greater than zero point eight (0.80) FTEThree (3) Personal Leave daysTwo (2) Personal Leave daysOne (1) Personal Leave day
      Part time Employees between zero point six (0.60) and zero point eight (0.80) FTETwo (2) Personal Leave daysOne (1) Personal Leave dayNo Personal Leave days
      Part-time Employees between zero point three eight (0.38) and zero point five nine (0.59) FTEOne (1) Personal Leave dayNo Personal Leave daysNo Personal Leave days

      (c) Personal Leave days are granted per incident as a full day.

      (d) Any Personal Leave days not used by March 31st each year shall not be carried over.  Any Personal Leave days not used shall not be paid out on termination of employment.

  8. Education Leave
    1. Should the Employer direct an Employee to participate in a specific program, such Employee shall be compensated in accordance with the following:
      1. for program attendance on regularly scheduled working days, the Employee shall suffer no loss of regular earnings;
      2. for hours in attendance at such program on regularly scheduled days off, the Employee shall be paid at their basic rate of pay to a maximum of seven and three-quarter (73/4) hours per day;
      3. the Employer will pay the cost of the course including tuition fees, reasonable travel and subsistence expenses subject to prior approval.
    2. An Employee absent on approved education/exchange leave shall be reinstated by the Employer in the same classification held by them immediately prior to taking such leave or be provided with alternate work of a comparable nature.
  9. During leaves of absence in excess of thirty (30) days, an Employee may work casual shifts with the Employer without adversely affecting their reinstatement to their position in the bargaining unit from which they are on leave.  It is the responsibility of the Employee to determine the impact of working these shifts on any insurance coverage.
  10. Caregiver Leaves
    1. Compassionate Care Leave
      1. An Employee who has completed at least ninety (90) days of employment, shall be entitled to leave of absence without pay but with benefits at the normal cost sharing, for a period of twenty-seven (27) weeks to care for a qualified relative with a serious medical condition with a significant risk of death within twenty-six (26) weeks from the commencement of the leave.
      2. Qualified relative for compassionate care leave means a person in a relationship to the Employee as designated in the Alberta Employment Standards Code regulations.
      3. At the request of the Employee, compassionate care leave may be taken in one (1) week increments.
      4. Where possible, an Employee shall apply for compassionate leave at least two (2) weeks in advance of the commencement of the leave and shall advise the Employer if they want to take the leave in weekly increments.
    2. Critical Illnes of a Child Leave
      1. An Employee who has completed at least ninety (90) days employment, with a critically ill or injured child requiring care or support, shall be entitled to leave of absence without pay or benefits, for a period of thirty-six (36) weeks to care for their critically ill child.
      2. Critically ill child means a child, step-child, foster child or child who is under legal guardianship, and who is under eighteen (18) years of age for whom the Employee would be eligible for the parents of critically ill child leave under the Employment Standards Code (Alberta).
      3. At the request of the Employee, critical illness of a child leave may be taken in one (1) week increments.
      4. Where possible, an Employee shall apply for critical illness of a child leave at least two (2) weeks in advance of the commencement of the leave and shall advise the Employer if they want to take the leave in weekly increments.
    3. Employees may be required to submit to the Employer satisfactory proof demonstrating the need for compassionate care leave or critical illness of a child leave.
  11. not allocated
  12. Death or Disappearance of a Child Leave
    An Employee who meets the criteria for death or disappearance of child leave specified in the Employment Standards Code shall be entitled to a leave of absence without pay for a period up to:
    1. Fifty-two (52) weeks in the event of the disappearance of a child; or
    2. One hundred and four (104) weeks in the event of the death of a child.
  13. Domestic Violence Leave
    1. An Employee who has been subjected to domestic violence may require time off from work to address the situation and shall be entitled to leave of absence without pay for of up to ten (10) days per calendar year.
    2. An Employee may access applicable leaves of absence or banks such as sick leave, personal leave, court appearance leave, or general leave without pay.
    3. Personal information concerning domestic violence shall be kept confidential by the Employer.
    4. When an Employee reports that they are experiencing domestic violence, the Employer shall complete a hazard assessment and, where appropriate, may facilitate alternate work arrangements.
  14. Citizenship Ceremony Leave
    An Employee who has completed ninety (90) days of employment is entitled to one half (1/2) day of leave without pay to attend a citizenship ceremony to receive a certificate of citizenship, as provided for under the Citizenship Act (Canada).
     

Employers: Bethany Care Society