Chalk River Professional Employees Group (CRPEG)
A group of The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC)
Please send your signed spring transcript with the scholarship application, and forward the final transcript in early July, as soon as possible.
Please send the application to PO Box 1224. E-mail submissions are not accepted.
CRPEG President Jonathan Fitzpatrick has expressed, in a letter (attached) to PIPSC President Debi Daviau, concern regarding a potential strike by PIPSC NCR staff who will be in a legal strike position on March 19, 2014.
“CRPEG supports fair treatment of the PIPSC staff, and recommends that PIPSC offer a non-zero economic adjustment to staff that protects their wages against inflation and recognizes the value of their work in support of PIPSC members.
It would be hypocritical for CRPEG to ask the employer for an economic adjustment for ourselves while the PIPSC staff, who support our negotiations and employee relations, are offered less.”
We would like to wish you, and your family, a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Have a wonderful holiday season with your family and friends. Please remember to be safe in your holiday activities.
CRPEG Executive:
| President | Jonathan Fitzpatrick | (DN-44067) |
| Vice President | Vince Frisina | (DN-44946) |
| Chief Steward | Wade Mayo | (DN-43755) |
| Treasurer | Bill Visneski | (DN-46327) |
| Secretary | Raghu Rao | (DN-44500) |
| PIPSC Relations | Henrik Andersen | (DN-44227) |
| Negotiations | Noel Harrison | (DN-46529) |
| Commmunications | Joe Magill | (DN-46886) |
| Special Assignments | Don Ryland | (DN-43229) |
| Member at Large | Matt Crowe | (DN-43659) |
| Member at Large | David Wang | (DN-46590) |
CRPEG Stewards:
| Trevor Dykman | (DN-43110) |
| Phyllis Heeney | (DN-46899) |
| Paul Jones | (DN-45808) |
| Pankaj Panchal | (DN-46655) |
| Bill Richmond | (DN-43860) |
| Curtis Russell | (DN-46759) |
| Jonathan Williams | (DN-43051) |
Note: All members of the Executive and Members at Large are also CRPEG Stewards.
The Canadian Nuclear Workers Council (CNWC) has issued their December 2013 newsletter. A free copy of the newsletter in either English or French is available at the links below:
CNWC Newsletter December 2013 (English)
CCTN Newsletter December 2013 (Français)
CRPEG is a proud member of the Canadian Nuclear Workers Council (CNWC) (see link). The Canadian Nuclear Workers’ Council is an organization of unions that represent workers in various areas of the Canadian nuclear industry, including electric utilities, uranium mining & processing, radioisotope production and nuclear research.
CRPEG Executive
Working Together For The Public Good
Note: Link to list of Executive embedded in CRPEG Executive.
CRPEG Membership Survey:
CRPEG Members registered with PIPSC will have received an e-mail requesting their participation in a membership survey. The survey results will be used to set priorities for bargaining of the next collective agreement. The deadline for the survey is 2013 November 22. Additional comments or suggestions can be sent to Jonathan Fitzpatrick, Noel Harrison or Vince Frisina.
2013 PIPSC Election for President:
Online voting for the election of PIPSC President has commenced. PIPSC members will have received an e-mail with their unique 12-character ballot key. Voting will close on 2013 December 4. If you require assistance contact Tammy Roussel at 1-800-267-0446 extension 2240 or by e-mail at troussel@pipsc.ca.
PIPSC AGM and Dues Increase:
See press release from PIPSC AGM: http://www.pipsc.ca/portal/
CRPEG Executive
Working Together For The Public Good
Note: Link to list of Executive embedded in CRPEG Executive.
To All Members:
The Collective Agreement between CRPEG and Atomic Energy of Canada expires on June 30, 2014. In order to assist your Bargaining Committee during the upcoming bargaining round, we would appreciate that you complete the following questionnaire. The results of this survey, together with information from previous questionnaires, and other problems with the current collective agreement, which have come to the attention of your Group Executive and the PIPSC Representative/Negotiator, will enable your Bargaining Committee to determine the issues to be addressed. Your cooperation is essential to help the Committee draft the Group’s bargaining proposals.
All individual responses will be treated anonymously and in strict confidence by the Executive/Negotiating Team and Institute analysts.
If you have any additional comments or suggestions or if you wish to discuss any concerns you may have regarding collective bargaining in greater detail, please contact Vince Frisina or Jonathan Fitzpatrick.
The deadline for the survey is November 22, 2013.
Thank you for your assistance.
CRPEG Executive
Working Together For The Public Good
Note: Link to list of Executive embedded in CRPEG Executive.
The National Capital Region (NCR) held its 2013 NCR Regional Council meeting at Ottawa on 2013 June 14 & 15. At this meeting, the NCR Council honoured eight outstanding members from the National Capital Region for their dedication, commitment and service for the benefit of PIPSC members – seven were presented with the “UNSUNG HERO” award and one with the “EXECUTIVE OF THE YEAR” award.
Mr. Vince Frisina, our CRPEG President, was one of the “UNSUNG HERO” awardees with a citation – “for his unwavering and burning desire to help any member in need, sticking to the principle of doing-the-right thing”.
On 2013 April 24th, Jonathan Fitzpatrick (CRPEG Vice-President) was presented with a citation from PIPSC President Gary Corbett and Vice-President Don Burns in recognition of his outstanding contributions to the Professional Institute’s Engineering Community by the leadership and dedicated effort taken in Ontario with the PIPSC Engineering Working Group’s Professional Registration Initiative. To date, this initiative has resulted in the recruitment of over 450 PIPSC members to the Professional Engineers of Ontario.
SEVERANCE PAY
PAYMENT PROCESS
Your tentative collective agreement contains the new provisions on severance that end accumulation of voluntary severance and provide for pay out of existing severance entitlements. You should have received your statement indicating the number of weeks of voluntary severance, and the monetary value calculated based on your salary as of 2012 June 30. Also included in the package is a form for selecting which option, as well as a form for transferring funds to your RRSP.
ROLL-OVER PROCESS FOR PAYMENTS INTO RRSP
There is a process through the Employer for rolling over payments in lieu of severance pay into RRSPs. Please refer to the recent bulletin on myAECL at http://myaecl/News/Company_
The employer will provide all employees with a copy of the form required to be completed and returned to the employer if they want to proceed with the roll-over
Only in cases of deferring the severance payment until retirement, an employee may benefit from a special RRSP contribution, which is not affected by your RRSP cap, of an additional $2000 for each year of employment up to and including 1995. This special provision can only be used upon termination and cannot be used for a payment in lieu of severance. You should consult the latest Canada Revenue Agency Income Tax Interpretation Bulletin IT-337R4 on severance (Retiring Allowances) for complete details and paragraph 60(j.1) of the Income Tax Act.
ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Q. What is this “severance deal”
A: Currently, most collective agreements with Treasury Board or Separate Employers provide for severance benefits for voluntary and involuntary termination. In this round of bargaining the Government has made it a priority to remove Voluntary severance provisions from collective agreements. This affects severance entitlements for resignation and retirement. Under this scheme accumulation of severance will cease for these voluntary departure situations effective the date of signing of the collective agreement. Severance entitlement will continue to accrue for involuntary termination such as lay off, death or incapacity. All indeterminate and term employees will be eligible for a termination benefit equal to one week of pay for each year of continuous employment.
Q. What are my options?
A: There are three options:
1. Cash out the severance pay you’ve accumulated right away at one week of pay for each year of employment, or
2. Defer the payment of the accumulated severance and have it paid out at retirement or when you resign, or
3. Cash out part of the accumulated severance pay immediately and defer the remainder to be paid when you either retire or resign.
Pay outs, whether immediate or deferred, are calculated based on your substantive rate of pay either as of 2012 June 30 or at the time of termination of employment with AECL.
Q. I am looking to have some of my severance cashed out this year. When will it be paid?
A: The Employer will try to issue payments in a timely fashion. Keep in mind that the earlier you make your decision, the earlier your payment will be made.
Q. What if I have pensionable service I would like to buy-back with my severance pay?
A. If you would like to buy-back previous service you need to be in contact with the Public Service Pension Centre who can provide all the necessary information.
Q. I am thinking of depositing some of my payout into a Tax Free Savings Account. What do I do?
A. Deposits to a Tax Free Savings Account are not tax deductible. Contributions to such accounts are made after income tax has been deducted
Q. I want to place part or all of my payout into my RRSP. How do I do that?
A. The employer has included this information with your statement. You need to make sure you have the available RRSP contribution room. Once that is confirmed you will need to fill out the form provided by The Employer. If you do not provide a valid Tax Waiver Form, the employer will be required to withhold income tax based on the value of your severance payout.
Q. I don’t believe that my continuous employment date has been properly calculated. Is there something I can do?
A. What you need to do is contact Payroll or Compensation & Benefits. It may simply be a miscalculation based on misinformation. If you think it is more likely a misinterpretation of the rules governing the calculation of continuous employment, contact a local steward or Employment Relations Officer for assistance.
Q. I am currently receiving disability benefits. Will taking my severance pay out affect my benefits?
A. No, receiving your severance pay out will not affect your disability benefits.
Q. If I am on Maternity or Parental Leave, will taking my severance pay out affect my EI entitlements?
A. Receiving any money while receiving Maternity or Parental Benefits under EI can affect your entitlements. If you are on Maternity or Parental Leave, you are entitled to defer your severance payout until you return to work. You should discuss this decision with Payroll.
Q. If I am on leave or in an Acting Position in another bargaining unit, will I have to choose what to do with my severance immediately?
A. No. The Employer will present you with the options for your severance entitlement when you return to your substantive position in the bargaining unit affected by the new severance regime.
Q. If I take my severance pay out now, will it have an impact if I get laid off in the future?
A. Yes, if you take your severance pay out now, should you be laid off in the future your lay off severance entitlement will be reduced by the period for which you took the pay out. If you defer the severance pay out, your lay off severance will not be reduced.
IF YOU HAVE FURTHER QUESTIONS, PLEASE REFER TO INFORMATION PROVIDED BY THE EMPLOYER OR THE PIPSC WEBSITE AT www.pipsc.ca.
The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC) gratefully acknowledges the work of the Public Service Alliance of Canada in developing many of these FAQs.
CRPEG Executive
Working Together For The Public Good
Note: Link to list of Executive embedded in CRPEG Executive.
The PIPSC AGM was held in Ottawa on November 16-17, 2012. 4 CRPEG members were in attendance at the AGM.
As part of the AGM, a rally was also held at Parliament Hill on November 16. Speakers were Gary Corbett (PIPSC President), Debi Daviau (PIPSC Vice President), PSAC, CLC, and CAW Union Presidents, a NDP MP and a Liberal MP. The rally made the press so there was lots of free media attention.
Further information on the AGM may be found at the PIPSC website at this link.
The PIPSC elections are now in progress and you might have received mail from PIPSC on how to vote electronically using the ballots. Online voting instructions have been e-mailed to you by PIPSC for your convenience. Please keep in mind that the deadline for online voting is 5:00 p.m., Wednesday, December 5, 2012.
Should you require any assistance, please contact Tammy Roussel at 1-800-267-0446, ext. 2240 or troussel@pipsc.ca.
It important that CRPEG members actively participate in elections and we maintain a good relationship with PIPSC senior officials. This assists the CRPEG Executive sustaining the exceptional professional support we receive from PIPSC specialists for grievances and negotiations.
Note: Ballot counting process:
Voting is by “Ranked Choice Voting”. The votes will be counted and if a candidate receives a majority he/she wins. If not, the votes received by the candidate who received the least amount of votes will be eliminated and his/her votes will be re-distributed using the second, third and forth choices going to other candidates still in the race until someone wins a majority.
CRPEG Executive
Working Together For The Public Good
Note: Link to list of Executive embedded in CRPEG Executive.
