Alberta Health Services Collective Agreement 2020-2024

EMS LETTER OF UNDERSTANDING #9

BETWEEN

ALBERTA HEALTH SERVICES
(hereinafter referred to as the Employer)

- and -

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

RE:  INCREASING OR DECREASING FULL-TIME EQUIVALENCY SPECIFIC TO EMS LOCAL CONDITIONS

WHEREAS the Parties agree that it may be of mutual benefit to Regular Employees and the Employer to allow Regular Employees, who request to do so, to reduce or increase their regular hours of work; and 

WHEREAS the Parties agree that increases and/or decreases to established FTEs can have the following positive effects on the workplace:

• Promoting a better work/life balance for Regular Employees by allowing them the opportunity to adjust their FTE as their lifestyle or personal circumstances change.
• Decreases to FTEs can provide increased choice to an Employee who gradually wants to phase or bridge into retirement and may create opportunities for formal succession or mentoring programs.

NOW THEREFORE the Parties agree as follows:

For EMS Employees working on an emergency response/patient transport vehicle or aircraft or as an Emergency Communications Officer the following shall apply; 

1. Regular Employees may submit requests to the Employer to increase or decrease their FTE. The Employer shall have the right to accept or reject any request for alteration of the Regular Employee’s FTE based upon operational requirements.

   1. All requests by Regular Employees to adjust FTE’s must be made in writing to the supervisor/manager and must state whether the FTE adjustment is permanent or temporary. The Union must be notified at the time the request is made. The Employer shall indicate approval or disapproval in writing within fourteen (14) days of the request and such request shall not be unreasonably denied, subject to operational requirements.

   2. If a Regular Employee requests to decrease their FTE the decrease request is limited to zero point five (0.5) FTE only.

   3. The resulting zero point five (0.5) FTE will be posted in accordance with Article 29: Promotions, Transfers and Vacancies.
      
      For EMS Employees not working on an emergency response/patient transport vehicle or aircraft or as an Emergency Communications Officer the following shall apply; 

2.  

   1. Regular Employees may submit requests to the Employer to increase or decrease their FTE. The Employer shall have the right to accept or reject any request for alteration of the Regular Employee’s FTE based upon operational requirements.

      1. All requests by Regular Employees to adjust FTE’s must be made in writing to the supervisor/manager and must state whether the FTE adjustment is permanent or temporary. The Union must be notified at the time the request is made. The Employer shall indicate approval or disapproval in writing within fourteen (14) days of the request and such request shall not be unreasonably denied, subject to operational requirements.

      2. If a Regular Employee requests to decrease their FTE by zero point three seven (0.37) or less, the resulting FTE may be posted in accordance with Article 29: Promotions, Transfers and Vacancies or reallocated amongst Regular Employees in accordance with this Letter of Understanding.

      3. If a Regular Employee requests to decrease their FTE by more than a zero point three seven (0.37), the resulting FTE will be posted in accordance with Article 29: Promotions, Transfers and Vacancies.

   2. FTE’s may be reallocated amongst Regular Employees within a functional work area. The Employer will advise the Union of the scope of the functional work area.

      1. FTE changes can occur between two (2) individual Regular Employees or can involve one (1) Regular Employee who initiates the request and a larger group of Regular Employees in the functional work area who participate in the reallocation of FTE’s.

      2. The reallocation of FTE’s is most effective in functional Work Areas where there are a significant number of working-level positions in the same classification. This allows the Employer to designate the Regular Employees in the functional work area who are “pre-qualified” or assessed to meet a minimum threshold to accept FTE adjustments that become available. Where more than one (1) Regular Employee is pre-qualified or meets the minimum threshold, the job is offered to the most senior Employee.

   3. The Employer may approach Regular Part-Time Employees with opportunities to increase their FTE’s.  Such additional FTE’s may become available either as a result of a vacancy or through operational changes resulting in small FTE enhancements. 

      1. The maximum increase that can be offered by the Employer is a zero point three seven (0.37) FTE.

3. Regular positions that are changed as a result of an FTE increase or decrease must comply with Article 10: Hours of Work, of the EMS Local Conditions.

4. Adjustments to FTE can be either permanent or temporary in nature. The Regular Employee who has temporarily reduced their FTE may return to their regular FTE prior to the end of the temporary period by providing a minimum of six (6) weeks written notice.

5. When a Regular Employee reduces their FTE on a temporary basis, their pre-reduction FTE will be maintained. A Regular Employee who has been granted a temporary reduction in FTE through this Letter of Understanding will accrue benefits and entitlements under the Collective Agreement based on the reduced FTE during the temporary period. At the completion of the term of the temporary reduction, the Employee will be reinstated into their pre-reduction FTE.

8.     Evaluation

         The Joint Committee agrees to review and amend the Joint Guidelines on Staffing Initiatives no later than one hundred and twenty (120) days following ratification of the Collective Agreement.

9.     This Letter of Understanding has no application to situations requiring a Duty To Accommodate. 

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