Minutes of the Executive Council Meeting

Minutes of the Executive Council Meeting
December 7 - 10, 2020

MONDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2020
MORNING SESSION

1. CALL TO ORDER OF THE REGULAR MEETING

The meeting was called to order at 9:00 hours.  President Marc Brière was in the Chair. In attendance: Doug Gaetz, Adam Jackson, Kimberley Koch, Greg Krokosh, Gary Esslinger, Cosimo Crupi, Jamie vanSydenborgh, Brian Oldford, Ken Bye, Linda Koenders, Jérôme Martel, Eddy Aristil and Daniel Camara.

2. HOURS OF SESSION OF THE REGULAR MEETING

m/s     Doug Gaetz / Kimberley Koch

That the hours of session be as follows:

Monday:     11:00 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.; 1:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.
                    3:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. Open Discussion
                    Break:  2:15 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Tuesday:      11:00 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.; 1:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Wednesday:  11:00 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.; 1:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Thursday:     11:00 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.; 1:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.

Lunch:   12:15 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Break:   2:30 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

  • MOTION CARRIED.

3.  ADOPTION OF AGENDA

m/s     Ken Bye / Brian Oldford

That the agenda be adopted as printed with the following additions:

New Business

None

Open discussion

8.       CLC Endorsement of Bill Morneau (A. Jackson)
9.       ARNI - Big Brother System (J. Martel)
10.     Agency Consultation on Diversity (E. Aristil)
11.     Update on NBoD Meetings (B. Oldford)
12.     Black Class Action Lawsuit (K. Bye)
13.     New Employee Union Orientation Sessions (C. Crupi)
14.     Anti-Racism Training (L. Koenders)
15.     Anti-Black Racism Action (A. Jackson)
16.     Online National Course (J. Martel)
17.     Role of the Executive Council during the Pandemic (B. Oldford)
18.     2021 AGMs Cycle (C. Crupi)
19.     Discussion on Virtual AGM (J. Martel)
20.     In-Person Regional Events (J. Martel)

Point of Order

Brother Gaetz indicated that the points of New Business and Open discussion are asked in advance.  He indicated that for two (2) to three (3) points in the open discussion, the remainder should have been sent before the deadline.  He also indicated that if an item did not get discussed at the previous meeting, then it should have been sent before the deadline with your report. He mentions that too much time is spent on these items which should have been included beforehand.

The point of order was well taken by the Chair.  The Chair shares Brother Gaetz concern about this.  He also indicated that it is happening at the Presidents’ Conferences and the Executive Council. 

  • MOTION CARRIED.

4. ADOPTION OF MINUTES OF THE PREVIOUS MEETINGS

m/s     Cosimo Crupi / Gary Esslinger

          That the minutes of the Executive Council Meetings of September 2020 be adopted.

  • Recorded Vote #1.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

President Brière turned the Chair over to Brother Gaetz, 1st Vice-President.

5. PRESIDENT’S FOLLOW UP ITEMS

m/s     Marc Brière / Adam Jackson

That the follow up items be adopted.

Recess for lunch

AFTERNOON SESSION

The meeting was called back to order at 1:00 p.m. with the 1st Vice-President, Brother Gaetz in the Chair. 

5.  PRESIDENT’S FOLLOW UP ITEMS (con’t)

That the follow up items be adopted.

  • Recorded Vote #2.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

6.  REPORT OF THE PRESIDENT

m/s     Marc Brière / Adam Jackson

That the report of the President be adopted.

President Brière resumed the Chair.

OPEN DISCUSSION

The Council members discussed the items under this section.

The meeting recessed at 4:00 p.m.

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 8, 2020
MORNING SESSION

The meeting was called to order at 11:00 a.m. with President Brière in the Chair. 

President Brière turned the Chair over to Brother Gaetz, 1st Vice-President.

6.  REPORT OF THE PRESIDENT (cont’d)

That the report of the President be adopted.

  • Recorded Vote #3.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

President Brière resumed the Chair.

7.  REPORT OF THE 1st VICE-PRESIDENT

m/s     Doug Gaetz / Adam Jackson

That the report of the 1st Vice-President be adopted.

  • Recorded Vote #4.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

8. REPORT OF THE 2nd VICE-PRESIDENT

m/s     Adam Jackson / Doug Gaetz

That the report of the 2nd Vice-President be adopted.

  • Recorded Vote #5.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

Points of orders

Brother Ken Bye point of order is that he wants to know since the vote already has been taken, we should not go back and change it.  He wants clarification on it.

President Brière indicated that it has been done at the NBoD before.  We got the same clarification from Brother Chris Aylward.  If during the report, the person has a glitch and cannot advise us and wanted to vote but could not vote because of technical issue, not because they were absent.  If they signified right after, Brother Aylward have accepted their votes.  If they missed the whole report, then, they cannot vote on something they did not hear.  So, in this case, we will exercise the same latitude and let the person vote.  It is consistent with the ruling of the President of PSAC.

Brother Bye does not agree with the clarification.  He would like to see Brother Aylward’s ruling.

President Brière indicated that it was ruled that way by Brother Aylward and there is no written ruling on this.  It was not challenged by anybody at the NBoD. 

Brother Doug Gaetz disagrees with the President.  He agrees with the previous speaker.  Brother Gaetz indicated that he was not in agreement with Brother Aylward’s ruling. If you are not present for the vote, then you are not allowed to vote after the facts and the vote has been concluded.  We should be firm on this and should be according to what our By-Laws and Regulations states.  We should be consistent.

President Brière agrees that it could be a contentious issue.  

Brother Gaetz wants to be certain that we are consistent in the way we interpret the rules and the way we deal with it.  He indicated that whenever the NBoD makes decisions, it is not always the proper decisions.

President Brière granted the points of orders from both Brothers Bye and Gaetz.  The vote will not be counted.  He indicated that if anyone has a technical issue to advise Brother Camara or himself.  If we see the person was present until the vote, we might stop the vote and check with the person.  If the person does not answer, we will then go on with the vote and the person will be absent.

9. REPORT OF THE REGIONAL VICE-PRESIDENTS / ALTERNATES

m/s     Brian Oldford / Greg Krokosh

That the activity reports of the RVPs and ARVPs be adopted.

  • Recorded Vote #6.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

President Brière turned the Chair over to Brother Gaetz, 1st Vice-President.

10. REPORT OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

m/s     Marc Brière / Adam Jackson

That the report of the Executive Committee be adopted.

  • Recorded Vote #7.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

President Brière resumed the Chair.

Recess for lunch

AFTERNOON SESSION

The meeting was called back to order at 1:00 with President Brière in the Chair. 

11 a)  REPORT OF THE STAFFING COMMITTEE

m/s     Jérôme Martel / Adam Jackson

That the report of the Staffing Committee be adopted.

  • Recorded Vote #8.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

11 b)  REPORT OF THE BY-LAWS COMMITTEE

m/s     Ken Bye / Jérôme Martel

That the report of the By-Laws Committee be adopted.

  • Recorded Vote #9.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

11 c)  REPORT OF THE TECHNOLOGICAL CHANGE COMMITTEE

m/s     Brian Oldford / Kimberley Koch

That the report of the Technological Change Committee be adopted.

  • Recorded Vote #10.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

11 d)  REPORT OF THE WELL-BEING COMMITTEE

m/s     Kimberley Koch / Linda Koenders

That the report of the Employee Assistance Program Committee be adopted.

  • Recorded Vote #11.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

11 e)  REPORT OF THE HEALTH & SAFETY COMMITTEE

m/s     Doug Gaetz / Brian Oldford

That the report of the Health & Safety Committee be adopted.

  • Recorded Vote #12.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

11 f)   REPORT OF THE EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES COMMITTEE

m/s     Linda Koenders / Greg Krokosh

That the report of the Equal Opportunities Committee be adopted.

  • Recorded Vote #13.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

11 g)  REPORT OF THE HONOURS AND AWARDS COMMITTEE

m/s     Cosimo Crupi / Gary Esslinger

That the report of the Honours and Awards Committee be adopted.

RECOMMENDATION #1

m/s     Cosimo Crupi / Gary Esslinger

Be it resolved that Executive Council approve the H&A’s Committee unanimous decision to award the AWARD OF MERIT IN THE FIELD OF HEALTH AND SAFETY - ELIZABETH (BETTY) BANNON for the 2019 year to XXXXXXXXX from local XXXXXXXXXX.

  • Recorded Vote #14.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

RECOMMENDATION #2

m/s     Cosimo Crupi / Gary Esslinger

Be it resolved that Executive Council approve the H&A’s Committee unanimous decision to name the second National Scholarship award as the Robert “Bob” Campbell National Scholarship”.

  • Recorded Vote #15.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

That the report of the Honours and Awards Committee be adopted as a whole.

  • Recorded Vote #16.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

11 h)  REPORT OF THE WORKFORCE ADJUSTMENT COMMITTEE

m/s     Adam Jackson / Eddy Aristil

That the report of the Workforce Adjustment Committee be adopted.

  • Recorded Vote #17.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

11 i)   REPORT OF THE FINANCE COMMITTEE

m/s     Doug Gaetz / Gary Esslinger

That the report of the Finance Committee be adopted.

Recommendation #1:

m/s     Doug Gaetz / Gary Esslinger

Be it resolved that the attached 2021 budget be approved by the Executive Council.

  • Recorded Vote #18.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

m/s     Doug Gaetz / Gary Esslinger

Be it resolved that the unused portion of the line items Education - Regional, Education – National, Non UTE Union events, Political Action / Campaigns, and Computer & Electronics, be carried over until 2022.

  • Recorded Vote #19.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

The meeting recessed at 4:00 p.m.

WESNESDAY, DECEMBER 9, 2020
MORNING SESSION

The meeting was called to order at 11:00 a.m. with National President Brière in the Chair. 

11 i)   REPORT OF THE FINANCE COMMITTEE (cont’d)

Recommendation #3:

m/s     Doug Gaetz / Gary Esslinger

Be it resolved that the 2021 UTE Triennial National Convention Per Diem rate be set at $105 per day for weekdays and $125 per day on the weekend.

  • Recorded Vote #20.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

Recommendation #4:

m/s     Doug Gaetz / Gary Esslinger

Be it resolved that the 2021 UTE Triennial National Convention registration fee be $75.00 per person.

Be it further resolved that if the 2021 UTE Triennial National Convention is held virtually, authority should be granted to the 1st Vice-president, in consultation with the National President, to reduce, or eliminate the registration fee.

  • Recorded Vote #21.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

Recommendation #5:

m/s     Doug Gaetz / Gary Esslinger

Be it resolved that the attached 2022-2023 budget be forwarded to the 2021 UTE Triennial National Convention.

  • Recorded Vote #22.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

Recess for lunch

AFTERNOON SESSION

The meeting was called back to order at 1:00 with President Brière in the Chair. 

11 i)   REPORT OF THE FINANCE COMMITTEE (cont’d)

Recommendation #6:

m/s     Doug Gaetz / Gary Esslinger

Be it resolved that $15,000 from the line item PSAC National Convention, to be held in 2022, be used for promotional items for all delegates and observers in order to promote UTE’s visibility at Convention.

  • Recorded Vote #23.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

Recommendation #7:

m/s     Doug Gaetz / Gary Esslinger

Be it resolved that the unused portion of the following line items; Education - Regional, Education – National, Regional Conferences, Non UTE Union events, Political Action / Campaigns, and Computer & Electronics, be carried over until 2023.

  • Recorded Vote #24.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

Recommendation #8:

m/s     Doug Gaetz / Gary Esslinger

At the request of the Chair, the session went “in camera ".

Council then moved back into its regular session.

Be it resolved that the following line items be approved for overspending:

DATE

LINE ITEM DESCRIPTION

EXPLANATION

 2020 BUDGET

 ACTUAL
OR EXPECTED

 OVERAGE

26-Nov-20

Legal

Over budget approval

50,000.00

85,000.00

35,000.00

26-Nov-20

Investment Management

Over budget approval

30,000.00

35,000.00

5,000.00
  • Recorded Vote #25.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

That the report of the Finance Committee be adopted as a whole.

  • Recorded Vote #26.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

11 j)   REPORT OF THE COMMUNICATIONS COMMITTEE

m/s     Gary Esslinger / Ken Bye

That the report of the Communications Committee be adopted.

  • Recorded Vote #27.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

11 k)  REPORT OF THE BARGAINING COMMITTEE

m/s     Adam Jackson / Jamie vanSydenborgh

That the report of the Bargaining Committee be adopted.

  • Recorded Vote #28.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

11l)    REPORT OF THE POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE

m/s     Jamie vanSydenborgh / Cosimo Crupi

That the report of the Political Action Committee be adopted.

  • Recorded Vote #29.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

11 m) REPORT OF THE CALL CENTRE COMMITTEE

m/s     Greg Krokosh / Jamie vanSydenborgh

That the report of the Call Centre Committee be adopted.

  • Recorded Vote #30.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

11 n)  REPORT OF THE UNION MANAGEMENT APPROACH (UMA) COMMITTEE

m/s     Eddy Aristil / Doug Gaetz

That the report of the Union Management Approach (UMA) Committee be adopted.

  • Recorded Vote #31.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

12. ADOPTION OF FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

m/s     Doug Gaetz / Cosimo Crupi

That the Financial Statements as of October 31, 2020 be adopted.

  • Recorded Vote #32.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

13. EXPENSE CLAIMS OVER 90 DAYS

None

14. COLLECTIVE BARGAINING

A short discussion on bargaining took place.

15. RECOMMENDATION – APPOINTMENT OF AUDITORS FOR THE YEAR 2020

m/s     Doug Gaetz / Gary Esslinger

Be it resolved that we appoint Andrews & Co. as auditor for fiscal year 2020.

  • Recorded Vote #33.  MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

16. 2021 BUDGET FOR REGIONAL CONFERENCES

m/s     Doug Gaetz / Gary Esslinger

Be it resolved that the following be the Regional budget allocations for the year 2021.

Total budget amount - $ 400,000.00

Pacific

13.07%

$ 52,279.00

Rocky Mountains

9.49%

$ 37,954.00

Prairie

8.39%

$ 33,569.00

Greater Toronto

6.95%

$ 27,797.00

Southern & Western Ontario

9.64%

$ 38,575.00

Northern & Eastern Ontario

9.30%

$ 37,188.00

National Capital

10.35%

$ 41,419.00

Montréal

9.82%

$ 39,260.00

Québec

9.66%

$ 38,646.00

Atlantic

13.33%

$ 53,313.00

Total

100.00%

$ 400,000.00
  • Recorded Vote #34.  MOTION CARRIED.

OPEN DISCUSSION (cont’d) 

The Council members discussed the items under this section.

The meeting recessed at 4 p.m.

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020
MORNING SESSION

The meeting was called back to order at 11:00 with President Brière in the Chair. 

OPEN DISCUSSION (cont’d) 

The Council members discussed the items under this section.

Recess for lunch

AFTERNOON SESSION

The meeting was called back to order at 1:00 p.m. with President Brière in the Chair. 

OPEN DISCUSSION (cont’d) 

The Council members discussed the items under this section.

The meeting adjourned at 4:00 p.m.

_____________________________                       ___________________________
Marc Brière                                                               Doug Gaetz
National President                                                    First National Vice-President

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