update magazine October 2012 Special Edition
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Responsibility pay in the community
CH1 level nurses will receive responsibility pay when relieving in a higher rated position or designated in charge on evenings and weekends. Family Day Stat
The new Family Day stat in February has been added to the list of statutory holidays in Article 39.
Ratification Vote Voting on provincial collective agreement takes place October 18th
Early Retirement Incentive for Long-Term Disability
To encourage more employees on LTD to apply for the Early Retirement Incentive Benefit, they may choose to maintain their extended health benefits coverage to age 65 (excluding MSP and dental), with the premiums cost-shared 50:50 between employer and employee. Sick bank cash-out for new hires
Effective January 1, 2013 new employees will not be entitled to cash in their sick leave credits. The ability to receive a 40 percent pay-out of sick banks will continue for all current employees upon retirement. However, in negotiations for the provincial contract extension in 2009, members clearly indicated their preference for receiving sick leave through a STIIP (Short-Term Illness and Injury Plan) as opposed to the current system of bankable sick days. Progress toward achieving a STIIP has so far been limited to reducing the waiting period for long-term disability from five months to four. But the discussion has highlighted that accumulating unused sick days as a potential retirement cash-out is not the most appropriate way to structure sick leave. Withdrawing the retirement cash-out for new hires confirms that sick time is for nurses to access when they are sick. In future rounds of bargaining members may want to address this issue by making improved severance pay upon retirement a priority. update
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Who’s eligible to vote? Most, but not all, BCNU members are eligible to vote for the new contract. The proposed new provincial contract affects all BCNU members who are covered by the Provincial Collective Agreement (PCA). That includes all Registered Nurses and Registered Psychiatric Nurses who deliver care in the unionized public healthcare sector for one of the six health authorities or their affiliates. Currently, about 90 percent of all BCNU members work under the PCA and are therefore eligible to participate in the ratification vote on October 18.
2/18/2013 11:58:05 AM