Good Samaritan Society Collective Agreement 2020-2024

LETTER OF UNDERSTANDING #5

BETWEEN

THE GOOD SAMARITAN SOCIETY
(A Lutheran Social Service Organization)
(hereinafter referred to as the Employer)

AND

HEALTH SCIENCES ASSOCIATION OF ALBERTA
(hereinafter referred to as the Union)

RE: PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT ALLOCATION (PDA)
 

1. A Regular Employee who on April 1st of a given fiscal year is employed in a position of zero point three nine (0.39) FTE or greater and who has seven hundred and sixty-eight (768) paid hours with the Employer in the previous fiscal year shall be entitled to a professional development allocation (PDA) of up to fifteen hundred dollars ($1500.00) in the current fiscal year. The actual PDA amount shall be prorated to the FTE of the Employee’s position as of April 1st of the fiscal year in which the PDA amount will be available.

2. For the purposes of this Letter of Understanding, “fiscal year” shall mean the pay periods of the Employer’s fiscal year, starting with the first pay period commencing in April of one year and ending with the last pay period commencing in March of the following year.

3. Eligible expenses (see point 4) incurred within the fiscal year shall be paid from the PDA for that same fiscal year, with the exception of licensing fees which allows for the claim of unclaimed licensing fees for the prior fiscal year.

4. Eligible Expenditures
   The PDA may be used for the following purposes during the entitlement year:

   1. Time off without loss of pay to attend a course relevant to the Employee’s job classification. Reimbursement for such time off will be based on the number of hours absent from regular hours of work due to the course attendance multiplied by the Employee’s Basic Rate of Pay at the time the course is taken.

   2. Reimbursement for the cost of professional licensing fees required as a condition of employment or practice.

   3. Reimbursement of tuition costs or course registration fees for courses that are related to an Employee’s job classification.

   4. Reimbursement of travel costs associated with course attendance pursuant to point 4(a).

   5. Reimbursement for purchase of professional journals, books or publications related to an Employee’s job classification.

5. PDA funds allocated for the current fiscal year which are not used by March 31 of the same fiscal year shall be carried forward into subsequent fiscal year.  PDA funds carried forward which are not used by the conclusion of the subsequent fiscal year shall be forfeited by the Employee. For accounting of the use of PDA funds, eligible expenditures will be first applied against PDA funds carried forward, then PDA funds allocated to the current fiscal year.

6. Regular Employees who are laid off after April 1st of the fiscal year in which the funds are available to Regular Employees shall maintain access to the fund for the balance of that fiscal year. Any PDA funds not used by the conclusion of the fiscal year shall be forfeited by the Employee.

7. Regular Employees who are on approved leave of absence after April 1st of the fiscal year in which the funds are available to Regular Employees shall maintain access to the fund for the balance of that fiscal year.

8. Reimbursement will be provided by the Employer upon submission of a receipt from the appropriate organization that has provided the service to the Regular Employee. The Employer shall reimburse the Employee within fourteen (14) calendar days of the Employee having submitted all of the required documentation.

9. Regular Employee who terminates employment voluntarily and who within six (6) months of termination re-commences employment with the Employer as a Regular Employee shall maintain their PDA.  For the purposes of calculating their PDA entitlement, regular hours worked by the Regular Employee in the previous fiscal will be used in respect of point #1.

10. Time off requested by a Regular Employee for professional development shall be in accordance with the provisions of Article 23: Leave of Absence.

11. A Regular Employee who is employed in more than one position with the Employer will receive one PDA based upon the combined total of the full-time equivalencies (FTEs) of their positions.

12. Regular Employees will be given an update of their PDA balance twice per year in January and July, or upon request. If an Employee requests an update, such update will be provided, in writing, within fourteen (14) calendar days of the request. 

13. Effective the date of ratification:

    1. Each Regular Employee, who has qualified for a Professional Development Allocation as per point 1 of this Letter of Understanding, shall be entitled to take two (2) professional development days without loss of pay, annually prior to March 31st.

    2. Professional development days not used in the fiscal year prior to March 31st shall not be carried forward into subsequent years. 

    3. Requests for professional development days shall be made in writing, to the Employer, as early as possible and shall not be unreasonably denied. 

This Letter of Understanding shall expire on March 31, 2024, or upon the date of ratification of the next Collective Agreement, whichever is later.