|
OSSTF District 11- Thames Valley
|
District 11 Office |
PSSP Bargaining Unit Newsletter:
Volume 2, Issue 1: October 7, 2003
Table of ContentsPlease click on any of the items in the Table of Contents to go to that item. |
|
President’s Message
|
OMERS
Workgroup Report to PSSP Leadership Workshop August 23,2003
|
President’s Message
By Sandra Miller
Welcome back to an exciting year already in progress. It has been a steep learning curve for me this first month, hence the late arrival of this newsletter. I want to say how pleased I am to be representing the PSSP membership and would like to welcome Marlies Suderman to the position of Vice-President. The executive, with some new faces and some experienced ones, will work hard for their respective groups and through committee involvement. I want to thank them for taking this journey with me.
I have started my term with the Provincial Election being the main topic of discussion and focus for OSSTF. As I type this, we are one day away from the vote that I hope leads us into four years of working with a more supportive government and I want to thank OSSTF District 11 staff and our Job Class Representatives for helping me to mobilize and educate our membership on the importance of this election and the need to have our voices heard. No matter what the outcome is I trust that this current executive will continue to support all PSSP members.
I have had the privilege of attending a PSSP Sector Council Meeting and am glad to report that I was voted in as a member of the Council for a 2 year period. In educating ourselves about PSSP issues across the province, we are better able to provide support to and advocacy for PSSP members at both the Ministry and at OSSTF Mobile Drive. I personally want to congratulate Nancy McDougall who will be the Sector Council Chair. I have always enjoyed working with Nancy whose knowledge and commitment has brought District 11 through some difficult times and I know her strength will make the PSSP Sector Council a strong voice for all of us.
In August of this year, I attended my first Leadership Conference in Toronto. Besides thoroughly enjoying myself, I gained invaluable knowledge. I attended many workshops on issues such as performance appraisals, negotiations and supporting members through a grievance. Of greatest benefit was a full day New Presidents’ Workshop. I hope to take some of the things I learned and apply them to my current position.
Currently, the Pay Equity Maintenance Plan negotiations continue with the Board. Lenore Alexander continues to be the staff member assigned to us from Provincial Office and it is hoped that the job class reviews will take place this fall. Although we are sitting more comfortably this year with a 3 year contract–meaning we do not have negotiations happening this school year–I encourage all members to become knowledgeable about the collective agreement and to suggest possible changes or additions to the Collective Bargaining Committee through their job class reps. This will assist the Negotiating Team next year when the groups return to the table for discussions.
In this first newsletter I have included a report from the OMERS Working Group. I encourage all members to educate themselves on the current changes to OMERS and the approved 2004 contribution rates. I have also included some points of interest I have come across in the past months. If you would like to contribute ideas or papers for this newsletter, please feel free to do so by contacting your job class representative or me.
Thank you.
Federation Services Officer's Report
By Bob Fisher, Office Phone: 659-6588; E-mail: BobFisher@osstf11.com
I am pleased to be assigned as liaison to the PSSP Bargaining Unit once again this year. My experiences last year were nothing but enjoyable as I dealt with your Executive and the varied membership of your group.
In my role as your Federation Services Officer, I can provide many services to you. Generally speaking, I will assist you with any concerns or problems that you have related to the application of the Collective Agreement or related Acts and Regulations. Of course, that could include many different issues, including but not limited to:
 |
your pay cheque...did they get it wrong or do you just have questions about deductions? |
|
leaves of absence...anything from a day to a year, for illness, religious reasons or ??? |
|
maternity or parental leaves... what is your entitlement?. |
|
seniority...why are you where you are on the list? |
|
professional development...can you go to a conference, and how is it funded? |
In addition, I provide support to your Executive by assisting in negotiations, performing research on items for which they need information, and generally supporting them operationally as they carry out their duties.
I look forward to working with you during the months ahead, and hope to be able to provide you with whatever support you need.
Government Refuses to Enforce Accountability for Private Schools
(Reprinted from a Provincial Memo to Districts and Bargaining Units)
On July 4, 2003, the first year results for private schools on the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (OSSLT) were finally released to OSSTF by the Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) as a result of our Freedom of Information request.
Private schools had to participate if they wish to grant the Ontario diploma. Their results are similar to the second year results which the EQAO had released voluntarily following pressure from OSSTF.
In 60 of the 154 participating schools, results were suppressed under EQAO rules which also apply to public schools. In 14 of the remaining 94 private schools less than 50% of the students were successful on Method 1 - the number successful of all those eligible to write the test.
Although the deferral rate for students in the public system is 4%, a total of 16 private schools had a deferral rate of 10% or more, and of those private schools, 8 had a deferral rate of 20% or more.
On June 3, 2003 OSSTF inquired as to whether the Ministry of Education intended to investigate schools where there were high failure and deferral rates. The Minister responded on June 26 that the Ministry's involvement with private schools is limited to requiring them to notify the Ministry annually of their intention to operate, and to provide statistical information to the Ministry. "Legislation does not authorize the Ministry to inspect private schools on matters related to the OSSLT."
So once again, the government is providing substantial tax breaks to parents who send their children to private schools, but refuses to enforce any accountability measures, even where there is a clear need to at least investigate and determine the reasons for problematic results and practices in some of the province's private schools.
(Editor’s note: Fortunately, the new Liberal government has promised to eliminate the Tories' "Equity in Education" Tax Credit.)
Proposed 2004 contribution rates approved by province
Reprinted from: http://www.omers.com/news/sept9-2003-contributionsapproved.htm
The Ontario government has approved the OMERS Board's proposed contribution rates beginning with the first, full pay period in 2004. | The new rates are slightly higher than OMERS full rates were before the contribution holiday (August 1998 to December 2002). |
| After a review of the plan's funded status, and because of poor returns from investment markets over the past three years, the OMERS Board determined that contribution rates needed to be adjusted to guarantee retirement benefits. |
| At the same time, however, the Board was mindful of the importance of keeping the costs to members and employers at a reasonable level. |
| The Board's approach to setting the new contribution rates ensures that rates reflect the actual cost of benefits. This approach is one that many other pension plans currently use. |
|
Contribution rates for 2004
|
||
|
Normal retirement age 65 |
On earnings up to the YMPE* |
6.0% |
|
On any earnings over the YMPE |
8.8% |
|
|
Normal retirement age 60 |
On earnings up to the YMPE |
7.3% |
|
On any earnings over the YMPE |
9.8% |
|
|
*Year’s Maximum Pensionable Earnings, set annually by the Canada Pension Plan. The 2003 YMPE is $39,900; the 2004 YMPE will be set later this year. |
||
|
Sample contributions for 2004* |
||||||
|
Earnings |
Normal retirement age 65 |
Normal retirement age 60 |
||||
|
|
2004 rates |
Previous |
Difference |
2004 rates |
Previous |
Difference |
|
$30,000 |
$34.62/week |
$34.62/week |
$0.00/week |
$42.12/week |
$40.38/week |
$1.74/week |
|
$40,000 |
$46.21/week |
$46.18/week |
$0.03/week |
$56.20/week |
$53.88/week |
$2.32/week |
|
$50,000 |
$63.13/week |
$60.60/week |
$2.53/week |
$75.05/week |
$70.22/week |
$4.83/week |
|
* Calculated using the 2003 YMPE ($39,900). |
||||||
| Former federal pension laws stated that when the OMERS plan surplus was greater than 110% of the plan's future costs, OMERS had to have a contribution holiday. During this surplus period, OMERS also improved benefits, including full inflation protection, better survivor benefits and increased pensions. |
| Federal pension laws were recently changed to allow the OMERS plan
surplus to reach 125% before a contribution holiday becomes mandatory.
|
OMERS Workgroup Report to PSSP Leadership Workshop August 23,2003
by Nancy McDougall
From August 1998 to December 2002, OMERS contributors and employers had a full contribution holiday. On January 1,2003, contributions for plan members and employers resumed on a 1/3 basis. The OMERS Board has recommended to the Ontario Government that on January 1, 2004 contributions for both members and employers increase to beyond pre-holiday rates.
At a focus group meeting held at the OMERS head office in Toronto on May 22, 2003 OSSTF expressed dissatisfaction with several OMERS policies and procedures that are not in the best pension and personal interest of plan members.
|
OMERS discourages members from requesting pension estimates by demanding that inquiries must be in writing. Phone and email requests are acceptable in most plans, but not OMERS. |
|
OMERS has refused to provide pension estimates to members more than five years from retirement. Without notifying members, OMERS now provides pension estimates no matter how close to retirement members are. |
|
OMERS mails annual statements, pension newsletters, and bulletins to employers for distribution. Those materials should be mailed to each member's home. |
|
OMERS does a poor job of communicating the pension rights and entitlements of members employed fewer than 12 months. The task has been left to OSSTF. |
|
OMERS client service representatives have repeatedly told members the best way to improve their pensions is to become 12 month employees. OMERS senior staffhave assured OSSTF that OMERS representatives will stop providing that incorrect advice. |
|
OMERS annual statements and pension estimates are confusing and far too detailed. OSSTF provided OMERS with more streamlined examples using charts and summaries to convey both pension data and calculations. |
|
OMERS continues to ignore errors employers make when reporting service and salary. In one OSSTF bargaining unit, the employer reports the salary and service for the same job class four different ways. OSSTF suggested OMERS include pension service records with the annual statements. |
| OMERS continued employers will receive copies of pension estimates of members making requests through the employer. To protect members' privacy, OSSTF insisted that copies should not be sent to employers unless members sign a waiver. |
Kids Voting Canada Increasing turnout of young voters
(Reprinted from the September 9, 2003 issue of Update)
It will not come as a surprise to many teachers and educational workers that one of the lowest turnouts in elections is in the 18 to 24 year old group. A group of highly dedicated and motivated young people have decided to try and do something about it. Kids Voting Canada is a non-profit, non-partisan group that has put together a project to teach our youth the importance of exercising their right to vote. The pilot project has been established for the Ontario provincial election. Every student in Ontario high schools, provided that the school has registered, will have the opportunity to vote on election day Thursday, October 2 in their schools in a parallel election with the provincial election. Many major newspapers and TV networks will be reporting the youth results throughout their election night coverage and comparing the youth results with the general election results.
OSSTF has been an enthusiastic supporter of this project since its inception. Currently over 600 schools representing over 500,000 students have registered to take part. OSSTF put together a team to write curriculum which is available to any school upon registration. For more information, call Toll free 1-866-488-8775 or 416-361-9596.