National Union-Management Committee (NUMC)

MINUTES OF THE NATIONAL UNION-MANAGEMENT CONSULTATION
(NUMC) COMMITTEE MEETING BETWEEN
THE UNION OF TAXATION EMPLOYEES (UTE) AND
THE CANADA REVENUE AGENCY (CRA)
HELD ON JUNE 9, 2005

OPENING REMARKS

Betty Bannon, National President of UTE, welcomed everyone to the meeting and was extremely pleased to see the Commissioner, Mr. Michel Dorais, and the Regional Assistant Commissioners in attendance. The Union appreciated their presence in that it would provide the Management Team the chance to hear first hand UTE’s concerns and views on national trends and issues. The National President then stated that the NUMC meetings were great forums to review the progress made since the last meeting, as well as bring closure to some of the issues. The Union did not expect individual regional issues to be dealt with in this forum, noting that normally those issues would be addressed at the regional level.

The Commissioner thanked the National President for the warm welcome, and confirmed that he and the Regional Assistant Commissioners would be regular NUMC participants, as it served to signal Management’s commitment to building a solid and long lasting working relationship with the Unions. He drew attention to the fact that not all concerns would be resolved through this forum, and emphasized that it was essential to work together at every level of the organization. The Commissioner also mentioned that he had met with many of the local/regional union representatives, and he planned to continue this practice when he traveled across the regions.

AGENCY CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM (ACS)

Management provided a brief overview of the activities that took place on some of the Agency’s classification initiatives since the last NUMC. Discussions with the Unions took place in November 2004, on the findings of the Agency’s Classification Reform Study. Both parties met again in March 2005 to talk about the Classification Study Synopsis; short format work description; job consolidation, and the process of ongoing union consultation. At this meeting, the Union stressed the importance of change management and communication with all the stakeholders as the project moved forward.

Management then addressed the May 4, 2005 announcement that the CRA was moving forward with the ACS-SP Initiative. It was noted that the project would be on a very tight timeframe as the objective was to be conversion ready by March 31, 2006.

The Commissioner reiterated the Agency’s commitment to the ACS-SP initiative, and the deadline set to complete this project. The CRA would be under close scrutiny by the rest of the Public Service, in anticipation of similar initiatives in their organizations. It was noted that the ACS-SP initiative was only one phase of the overall ACS initiative and that the next phase would focus on designing/implementing ACS for the other occupational groups, in consultation with the Union.

The Union was pleased with the Agency’s decision to move forward with the SP conversion, noting that the timelines were extremely aggressive. The Union then questioned the extent to which consultation would occur given that a working group had been established and work had already commenced without the Union’s involvement.

Management acknowledged the Union’s concern and stated that a meeting was scheduled to take place on June 10th whereby the Unions would be provided with a detailed overview of the project plans and timelines, along with proposed points where discussions would take place. Furthermore, it clarified that the working group had not yet been finalized, and that only preliminary work had been conducted to date. Management remained committed to engaging the Union in the SP conversion project, an example being the consultation that took place on the draft communiqué to employees about the CRA’s decision to move forward.

The National President stated that she had discussed the reopening of the collective agreement to negotiate only SP rates of pay, with the President of the Public Service Alliance of Canada, and that the Union would also be looking to ensure that protective language was included, in the event that employees received a lower classification level. The Commissioner agreed that the pay issues only would be revisited, and added that the Alliance would be given advanced notification of the anticipated timing for this stage of the process.

The Union asked when the demo on the short format work description template would take place. Management would get back to the Union on this matter.

COLLECTIVE BARGAINING PROCESS

The Union was pleased that, for the last round of collective bargaining, the CRA had been proactive in scheduling meetings before the expiration of the previous collective agreement. The Union was looking forward to an improved collective bargaining process, given the Commissioner’s positive approach to dealing with the issues.

The National President stressed the importance of meeting well in advance of the next round of negotiations, as the goal would be to have a tentative agreement in place before the existing agreement expired. To accomplish this objective, the Union wanted to have an intensive and continuous bargaining schedule that would call for both parties to remain at the negotiating table until they reached a tentative agreement or an impasse. Furthermore, UTE went on to state that Union negotiators have the full authority to make decisions, and strongly recommended that the CRA negotiating team be given the same mandate.

Management acknowledged the Union’s views and agreed that negotiations should be conducted as expeditiously and efficiently as possible. However, a commitment to remain at the negotiating table until an agreement was reached may not provide the necessary conditions to fulfill an appropriate examination of interests or solutions. The Commissioner added that the CRA would bargain in good faith and that the negotiators would have the mandate to negotiate. Furthermore, he was confident that his actions to date demonstrated his respect for the Union’s role in the work place.

The Union also requested to move forward on discussions pertaining to the essential services agreement. Management agreed that discussions should commence in advance of the start of the next round of collective bargaining, and invited the Union to contact the CRA with their availability.

UNION-MANAGEMENT CONSULTATION AGREEMENT (TERMS OF REFERENCE)

The Union noted that ongoing discussions were taking place on the draft Union-Management Consultation agreement (Terms of Reference), and was hopeful that both parties could come to a mutual agreement.

The Commissioner thanked the Union and Management representatives for pursuing this endeavour and stated that he would be pleased to sign the agreement once finalized.

COMPETENCY ASSESSMENT PROCESS AND OBSERVE AND ATTEST INITIATIVE

Management stated that a number of meetings had taken place with the Unions to share information, and more recently to obtain their feedback on the Observe and Attest (O&A) initiative. Further to the Union’s suggestions, some changes had been made to the O&A Strategy; for example, implementing a monitoring process and providing exceptions to mandatory participation in situations such as impending retirements or career decisions. Management was pleased to see that UTE would be participating in the managers training session, scheduled to take place in Ottawa, on June 21st and 22nd, and they were looking forward to hearing the Union’s perspective and comments relating to implementation.

UTE stated that the O&A initiative was the first step towards improving the process. It reiterated its opinion that employees meeting the job qualifications and competencies of their position should be grandfathered. The Union expressed concern that managers would be the ones responsible to “Observe and Attest” their employees, even though many have not been through a PQP process themselves.

Management acknowledged the Union’s concerns, and stated that training on O&A would begin at the executive level, cascading down to the MGs, and then to employees, allowing the individuals responsible for the implementation to thoroughly understand the process. Management would continue to consult with the Unions, at key points throughout the implementation of Observe and Attest.

ELECTRONIC BULLETIN BOARDS

Further to previous discussions, the Union asked when the direct link to the Union’s website would be provided to employees through Infozone.

Management stated that the moratorium previously placed on the addition of external sites had been lifted and the CRA was now in a position to provide the direct link.
Management also mentioned that a disclaimer would be added to inform employees that they would be leaving the CRA site and entering the Union’s website. A letter had recently been sent to the PSAC National President to advise her of this decision, and also that Management reserved the right to discontinue access to Union sites, should the Unions post information adverse to the CRA. However, based on the Agency’s experience with UTE, Management did not anticipate the need to do so. The Union would be advised of the implementation date.

The Union asked if the June 2004 NUMC minutes had been posted on Infozone. Management stated that the minutes were posted and could be found on Infozone under Staff Relations: (http://infozone/english/r2732472/connect_ens/staffRel/l_r/index.asp)

CLIENT SERVICES INITIATIVE (COUNTERS)

The Union stated that it had launched a national campaign on April 1, 2005 to raise the public’s awareness of the ERC decision to close the cash and client service counters. This included meetings with Members of Parliament and reaching out to specific groups affected by the CRA’s decision. The National President stated that neither UTE, nor the public believed an organization, whose primary mandate was to collect revenue, would actually make a decision to turn away clients wanting to make cash payments. The Union also questioned the ERC decision since the Assessment and Client Services Branch Annual Report indicated that individuals had in fact accessed both cash and enquiries counters on a regular basis. UTE wanted to know whether the Agency would revisit the ERC decision on the closure of the cash and client services counters. At the same time, the Union asked when it could expect to receive the impact analysis that was to have been conducted following the May 19, 2005 meeting, and when could employees expect to receive the WFA affected letters.

In addition, the Union understood that the Agency was looking to create an appointment-based system, which would allow the public to choose when it was convenient to meet with an Agency representative instead of being subjected to waiting times. UTE was of the view that scheduling appointments with the Public living in rural areas for example, tended to be more difficult than providing walk-in service. It suggested that both types of service be offered to the public. UTE was willing to further discuss this initiative in an attempt to reach a solution that would be acceptable to all parties.

The Commissioner acknowledged that this was a sensitive and complex issue and not without its challenges. He thanked the Union for the suggestion of offering both types of services. He took the opportunity to clarify that the proposal was to close only the cash counters, and to modify access to the walk-in counters. Although the announcement made by the government could not be reversed, and the funds had already been re-allocated, the Commissioner would review the situation over the next two to three weeks, and stated that he would advise the Union of the Agency’s outcome. Consequently, Management was not in a position to release the impact analysis or issue WFA letters until the approach or to the initiative was revisited.

As discussed at previous meetings, Management mentioned that Service Canada (SC) would also be providing the public the option to obtain general CRA information, including forms from over 300 SC outlets.

UTE asked for confirmation that vacation leave requested during the UTE campaign would not be questioned. Management stated that vacation leave requests would be treated in accordance with the collective agreement provisions.

The Commissioner appreciated the good exchange on this issue and reiterated that he would get back to the Union regarding the final outcome.

UNION-MANAGEMENT INITIATIVE

Management stated that discussions had taken place with the Unions regarding a proposal to move forward on the Union-Management Initiative (UMI). On May 2, 2005, the Agency Management Committee approved the proposal to proceed with the implementation across the Agency. Both Unions and Management had identified training facilitators and preparations were underway to deliver the one-day training sessions in September 2005.

At the conclusion of the training session, participants would sign the UMI Philosophy Declaration. The Union-Management UMI Steering Committee would then be formed and the first meeting convened. Some preliminary groundwork would be conducted, in the meantime, on the Committee mandate.

The Union was pleased to see that UMI would be moving ahead and believed this to be a positive step to a stronger working relationship. The National President noted that part of the Steering Committee mandate should be reviewing the communication strategy for the rollout and determining if the training material continued to be applicable. In fact, the Union had received a draft copy of the communication strategy, for discussion at a June 13th conference call.

The Commissioner expressed his sincere appreciation to the Atlantic Regional Vice-President, who took the time to walk him through the highlights and merits of the UMI during his visit to the region. He looked forward to taking the training session with the National President.

JOINT TERM EMPLOYMENT STUDY

Management stated that several meetings had taken place since the last NUMC. The final term study action plan had been shared with the Unions, along with an update on the term commitments and the seasonal employment analysis. Management mentioned that over the coming months, it would also provide information on the use of generic jobs, and quarterly updates on the appointment of term employees, with three or more years of service, to permanent status. As well, regional management were to move forward on its human resources planning and, at the same time, re-evaluate the status of terms and explore options to meet the term objectives. Management was confident that the 25% target would be reached.

While the Union reiterated its view that CRA needed to adopt an automatic rollover policy, it was extremely pleased to see the progress that had been made to appoint term employees over three-years of service and looked forward to receiving the next quarterly update.

The Union also took the opportunity to remind Management of its responsibility to monitor and manage the use of term employees in the regions. UTE emphasized the need to faithfully conduct the three-year review of term employees and to better manage the use of terms.

Management reiterated its agreement to follow through on the term commitments, signed by the former CRA Commissioner, and to carefully monitor the use of term employees. Management was equally pleased to note the progress that had been made on this important issue.

OFFICIAL LANGUAGES POLICIES

The Union reiterated its concerns regarding the changes to the Official Languages Policy; specifically that career progression in the CRA would be non-existent for its members with the move towards imperative staffing for bilingual positions. It asked if the CRA had completed its assessment of the impacts of those changes and, if so, the plans that were being made to adapt the Official Languages policies and directives to meet CRA needs. At the same time, UTE stressed the importance of providing employees with language training during working hours.

Management stated that as a federal institution subject to the Official Languages Act, as well as the policies and directives on language training and learning retention, the CRA was not in a position to deviate from the revised Official Languages Policies. However, in March 2005, Management did engage the Unions in discussions to find ways to alleviate the impact of imperative staffing of bilingual positions and to address concerns related to language training. The suggestions brought forward by all stakeholders was under review, and Official Languages expected to be in a position to share the results of the analysis with the Unions, and consult with them on the action plan, in the fall. Management stated that for the record, over 2000 employees were engaged in developmental language training last year, at the employer’s expense and during working hours.

ADMINISTRATIVE REFORM AND RENEWAL (ARR)

The Union expressed appreciation for the comprehensive presentation deck shared at the May 2005, Finance and Administration Reorganization meeting, as well as the productive discussions that followed. Since that time, the Union had an opportunity to review the information shared at the meeting in more detail and pointed out that, while the Agency was taking on more employees at the FI and MG levels, it was reducing the number of CR positions, creating a reversed pyramid situation. UTE went on to state that with such a top-heavy organizational structure, the plan would actually end up costing the Agency more money to implement. The Union also expressed concerns with the challenges the CRA would be faced with in placing CR-03s and CR-05s, given the human resources impacts expected from the numerous Agency initiatives.

Management acknowledged the Union’s concerns, and stated that the purpose of the reorganization was not to cut back on resources or service but rather to centralize some of the functions to better meet the needs of the Agency. Over time, the focus of the work had shifted from transactional activities to budget and resource management related matters, and it became evident that some restructuring was required. Management would continue to discuss and consult the Union on the remaining phases of the reorganization, before implementation.

The Union stated that it was pleased that a National Workforce Adjustment Committee had been established, and made the commitment to thoroughly discuss contentious issues through this forum with the Employer before filing complaints with the Public Service Labour Relations Board, if it became necessary. Management stated that it would continue to dialogue with the Unions at all levels to ensure that WFA situations were handled appropriately.

On another point, the Union encouraged Management to create more national work descriptions rather than having numerous work descriptions for a single job. Management stated that the intent was to move towards more national jobs and confirmed its commitment to consult with the Union on all work descriptions.

PERFORMANCE EVALUATIONS (WORK ASSESSMENTS)

Management provided a brief overview of the work conducted on the Performance Evaluation Initiative, including the fact that much of the work had been conducted in collaboration with the Union. The combined effort resulted in the development of some good tools to assist in measuring the performance of employees. The new job aids were piloted in both Victoria and Windsor, and the next steps would be determined once feedback was received and reviewed. Management would share the results of the pilot, and continue to consult with the Union.

The Union stated that this initiative should be held up as a model for other Management in the Agency on effective Union-Management consultation. It was pleased to be part of such a well-organized and beneficial initiative. UTE suggested that the name of this initiative should be changed from Performance Evaluation to Work Assessments. Management agreed to consider the recommendation.

CLOSING REMARKS

The National President took the opportunity to thank Bob Russell for the good work conducted as interim Assistant Commissioner, Human Resources Branch. She was also pleased that the Commissioner would be present at the NUMC to hear first hand the Union’s concerns. The Union would be contacting the CRA shortly to begin discussions on the essential service agreement.

The Commissioner thanked the National President for chairing the meeting, and reconfirmed that he and the Regional Assistant Commissioners would be attending the NUMCs. He thanked everyone for a productive meeting, and looked forward to future discussions.

Both Union and Management wished the participants a safe and happy summer.

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