Chairpersons

Dr. Robert Walker, Assistant Deputy Minister (S&T)/CEO DRDC (Co-Chair)

Mr. Tom Ollevier, Steward (NCR), Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (Co-Chair)

Present

Dr. Anthony Ashley, Director General, DRDC CSS

Ms. Darlene de Gravina, Director Research and Development Human Resources

Dr. Ross Graham, Director General, DRDC CORA

Dr. Cam Boulet, Director General, DRDC Suffield

Mr. Terry Kiley, Vice-President (Nova Scotia), Union of National Defence Employees

Mr. R. Williams,Director General Science and Technology Operations (DGSTO)

Ms. Karen Ladurantaye, Employment Relations Officer, Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada

Mr. René LaRose, Chief of Staff S&T

Mr. Patrick Myre, Manager, Labour Relations, DRDHR

Ms. Doreen Dyck, replacing Dr. Ross Pigeau, Director General, DRDC Toronto

Ms. Maria Rey, Director General DRDC Ottawa

Mr. Raffie Stepanian, Representative, Association of Canadian Financial Officers

Ms. Susan Truscott, Director General, Military Personnel Research and Analysis

Ms. Lesley Ullyett, Director General Research and Development, Corporate Services

Dr. James Kennedy, Director General, DRDC Atlantic

Dr. Guy Vézina, Director General DRDC Valcartier

Mr. Bertrand Myre, Canadian Association of Professional Employees

Observers

Ms. Mélanie Bernard, Labour Relations Advisor, DRDHR

Absent

Mr. John Lachance, Chief Shop Steward, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers

Todd Faulkner, Shop Steward, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers

Presenters

Ms. Donna Wood, Project Manager MECSS

Ms. Corinne Di Labio, Corporate Service Manager, Corporate Office

SUBJECT / DISCUSSION / ACTIONS BY
1. Opening Remarks /
Observations preliminaries /
  • Dr. Walker opened by offering some initial remarks on financial matters, indicating that next years financial planning should be based on this year’s resource levels, and mentioning that there would be a re-balancing of DRDC internal and external (contract) expenditures. Any adjustments to staff size are expected to be addressed through normal attrition.
  • Before addressing the agenda, Dr. Walker discussed the financial reallocations undertaken recently by DND.
  • Mr. Ollevier mentioned that the ADM’s explanationsregarding the financial situation were clear especially with regards to balancing SWE and contracts.
  • Mr. Kiley also agreed on the clear explanations.

1.1 Acceptance of the Minutes of the last meeting held on February 12th 2009 /
Adoption du procès-verbal de la dernière réunion, tenue le 12 février 2009 /
  • The minutes of the previous meeting were accepted by all members present and were signed by the co-chairs.

1.2 Acceptance of the Proposed Agenda /
Adoption de l’ordre du jour proposé /
  • Dr. Walker informed the Committee that the union co-chair added three topics and that he would try to address them all. The three topics were:
  • Policy related to field and sea trials on medical evaluations
  • Career management for ENG employees
  • Evaluation of DSs across the organization

2. Update on the action items of last meeting /
Rapport sur les mesures à prendre à la suite de la dernière réunion / Electronic Bulletin Boards for sharing union information with employees
  • Mr. Ollevier and Mr. Lachance mentioned at the last meeting that they would like to see an electronic bulletin board for sharing information with union members and to review general information. Mr. Kiley recommended that the Agency look at the MARLANT site developed for this purpose as an example.
  • Ms. Ullyett mentioned that we will develop a dedicated site to support the posting of the UMCC minutes, decks and ROD.
  • ACTION: DRDHR working with DRDKIM on SharePoint option for posting UMCC minutes, Decks and ROD.
  • ACTION: DRDHR to research how the union electronic bulletin board is used at MARLANT.
Establish a LMRC for Corporate Office
  • Mr. Stepanian asked for the creation of a LMRC for the Corporate Office.
  • ACTION: DRDHR will be setting this up in the New Year.
Verification of the UMCC process
  • Dr. Walker asked DRDHR to communicate with union representatives in order to find out if the UMCC process is still acceptable to all.
  • DRDHR staff undertook such communication and no issues were raised.
  • DRDHR will periodically review this action to ensure acceptance of process.
  • ACTION: Closed
Medical evaluations for sea and field trials
  • Mr. Ollevier indicated he had heard that perhaps Health Canada would no longer perform medical evaluations, and inquired as tohow this would affect the above mentioned policy.
  • Dr. Kennedy explained that in the Atlantic center that a series of issues had been agreed to by the Halifax employees that where submitted to this UMCC for approval and a policy was subsequently agreed to.
  • Dr. Graham reminded the Committee that this UMCC approved an SOP, (availableon Descartes), which includes Health Canada performing medical evaluations. He also added that in the actual policy, it is mentioned that if Health Canada cannot perform medicals, employees can go to their own doctors for this purpose.
  • Ms. de Gravina mentioned that Human Resources is inquiring with Health Canada and that as soon as she obtains confirmation she will inform Committee members. The Policy will be amended if required.
  • ACTION: DRDHR to pursue discussion with Health Canada and advise Committee members accordingly.
/ Ms. de Gravina
Ms. de Gravina
Ms. de Gravina
Ms. de Gravina
3. Vancouver 2010 Olympic and ParaolympicGames/Jeux Olympiques et Paraolympiques de Vacouver 2010: /
  • Dr. Walker asked that a presentation be made in order to inform the Committee of some issues requiring discussion.
  • Dr. Ashley gave a brief overview of the background, and the project leader for the Vancouver Olympic Games, Ms. Donna Wood, gave a presentation on DRDC’s involvement during the Games.

  • Dr. Ashley raised the issues with regards to accommodation and scheduling. He explained some scheduling has been drafted (for Suffield) but that in most cases, DRDC employees’ schedules would be dependent on the requirements of other government departments. However in all cases, DRDC’s intent is to respect Collective Agreements. For the Suffield staff, after local consultation, a work schedule based on 28 days is being proposed. He asked the unions if they had any issues to raise on this matter.
  • Mr. Ollevier questioned whether provisions exist in Collective Agreements for 28-day work schedules, andasked whether employees where offered a different type of schedule.
  • Dr. Boulet replied that numerous discussions occurred directly with affected staff to find out their preferences (many of these staff is already on flexible schedules.)
  • Dr. Walker added that these are not final scheduling decisions, and local realities would be taken into consideration as schedules were finalized.
  • Ms. Ladurantaye reminded the Committee that employees do not negotiate conditions of employment (this is the role of unions)
  • Dr. Walker noted that we would not be able to resolve this issue in the short time period allotted at this meeting. He added that pending decisions on type of support required of DRDC staff by other departments (e.g. Health Canada) there may be a requirement for different types of schedules. He indicated his desire that unions have the opportunity to discuss with their members to be able to come to a resolution for the schedules of our various teams. If there is a need to review our position in accordance with Collective Agreements, we will do so.
  • Dr. Boulet added that these schedules were not set in stone and that it was explanatory discussions on our part.
  • Ms Ladurantaye asked if unions could get a copy of the required schedules.
  • Ms. Wood gave an overview of the proposed schedules and provided union members with a copy.
  • Mr. Kiley asked how employees were selected to work at the Games.
  • Dr. Boulet answered that for some functions only a few employees possessed the required skills. For the common tasks, volunteers were sought. No employees refused to participate.
  • Dr. Walker added that because of the nature of the work, there was no problem identifying interested staff. He reiterated that DRDC intent is to respect Collective Agreements. He then directed the appropriate DGs and the Project Manager to connect with DRDHR with regard to consulting with the unions to finalize schedules.
  • Mr. Bertrand Myre asked if employees would be considered as being on Travel Status.
  • Ms. Wood replied yes.
  • Mr. Kiley asked if employees were asked not to request leave during this period.
  • Dr. Boulet replied that this affects only employees whose work is related to the Games.
  • Mr. Kiley asked about the issue of double occupancy.
  • Ms. Wood replied that DRDC is not asking staff to share occupancy, but rather this is an issue being addressed by Heritage Canada and TBS; this affects all federal government staff who will be stationed at Whistler for the Games (within DRDC, only the mobile chemistry lab will be affected. Staff working out of Vancouver will be in single accommodations). Treasury Board Secretariatis in discussions on this matterand we are awaiting direction.
  • Mr. Kiley inquired about the type of consultation that has been undertaken to date.
  • Dr. Boulet replied thatV2010scheduling had been discussed at theSuffield LMRC.

  • ACTION: DRDC to finalize the schedules (in some cases once other departments have confirmed their requirements of DRDC).
  • ACTION:DRDHR to continue dialogue with unions regarding scheduling, once unions have consulted their membership. DRDHR will advise whether a meeting with unions on this topic will be required.
/ Ms. Wood
Ms. de Gravina
4. Compensation in the NCR/Rémunération dans la RCN: /
  • Ms. De Gravina gave some background onthe NCR compensation challenges, and indicated that DND Corporate HR has made arrangements with the WinnipegServiceCenter to offer compensation services to DRDC NCR. By March 31st, all DRDC NCRplaylistsare expected to have been transferred to Winnipeg.
  • Mr. Ollevier mentioned that he was still hearing mixed messages about compensation services, and had concerns about NCR pay office addressing outstanding pay casework.
  • Dr. Walker indicated he has discussed the matter with the ADM (HR-Civ), and understands that there are still some outstanding pay issues to resolve before the transfers occur. He willbe monitoring this issue with DRDHR.
  • Ms. Ladurantaye mentioned that it was a positive development that DRDC was addressing this important matter.

5.PSES discussion/Discussion sur SAFF: /
  • Dr. Walker initiated the discussion by mentioning that he would like to encourage a substantive dialogue with unions on this matter, perhaps through a working UMCC session, or through focus groups’.
  • Ms. de Gravina presented the key successes and challenges for DRDC, with a focus on Labour Relations.

  • Mr. Ollevier recognized that some issues are beyond the Agency level (e.g. compensation)but that other items within DRDC’s control are worth discussing.
  • Dr. Walker explained that his goal is to have a workplace with satisfied employees. He then asked if union representatives could discuss this among themselves and come back to him by the end of January with options for enabling an ongoing dialogue on this matter.
  • Mr. Ollevier agreed to be the focal point of contact for the unions on this matter.
  • ACTION: DRDHR to create a venue for discussion.
/ Ms. de Gravina
6. Strategic Review / Examen stratégique: /
  • Dr. Walker indicated that strategic review is ramping up in the department and will be a major effort through to June 2010. He also mentioned that this topic will be an ongoing item on the UMCC agenda for a while. In the interim, he asked all Committee members that if they had issues to bring them forward.
  • Mr. Bertrand Myre asked if the department had consulted on strategic reviewwith other departments that had undergone the process.
  • Dr. Walker replied yes.
  • Mr. LaRose offered information on the strategic review process, how DRDC is feeding into it, and the provisional dates for key milestones.
  • Mr. Ollevier questioned why DND and DRDC were looking at 10% reduction vice 5%.
  • Mr. LaRose replied that this was to ensure senior management and the Minister had various options before going to Treasury Board.

7. FinancialPressures / Pressions budgétaires: /
  • Dr. Walker initiated the discussion by asking what the specific concerns were.
  • Mr. Ollevier indicated that overtime for travel was an issue, and as an example, indicated that Valcartier pre-determines the overtime associated with travel as a practice and that is was difficult to work with these numbers.
  • Dr. Vézina replied that they do this for planning purposes. Once the employee has returned from the trip in question, the claims are reviewed and adjusted accordingly.
  • Dr. Walker gave further clarification on to the use of overtime estimates forfinancial planning, and for O/T pre-approval purposes, indicating that there is regard for exceptional circumstances.
  • Mr. Ollevier stated that if these numbers were not reasonable, the Agency should revise them.
  • Dr. Walker replied that these figures are used for planning and represent reasonable expectations based on travel from a given Center. After any travel, claims are reviewed in a manner respecting Collective Agreements.
  • Mr. Ollevier wished to discuss printout of the report showing planned international travel requiring the ADM’s approval.
  • Dr. Walker mentioned that the document used by Mr. Ollevier was not up for discussion at a UMCC. He offered to meet with the unionsto have an informal, issues-based discussion on travel and overtime.
  • Dr. Walker also mentioned that in his recentlab tours he has not heard anything on fair compensation for travel.
  • Mr. Ollevier indicated he would look into getting the issue raised at LMRCs.
  • Dr. Walker reiterated his openness to have a special meeting on this issue early in the New Year. He also encouraged all DGs to have discussions on this topic at their respective LMRCs.
  • Mr. Ollevier mentioned that he will likely want a meeting on this.
  • ACTION: DRDHR to look at a venue to discuss travel requests.
/ Ms. de Gravina
8. H1N1 Update / Mise à jour – virus de la grippe H1N1: /
  • Dr. Walker opened the discussion by mentioning that DND has been tracking this issue seriously and that current DRDC absenteeism numbers do not indicate a problem.
  • Ms. Di Labio added that ourweb-site as been updated with information available for staff.

9. Round Table / Table ronde: /
  • Mr. Ollevier initiated the discussion on the competency criteria for ENGs, asking if DRDC still intended to finalize this project, and indicated his preference that a PIPSC classification officer be involved.
  • Dr. Walker mentioned that he has had discussions in various fora regarding this issue, and it still must be positioned within the larger context within the Science community. The goal would be to apply selected characteristics of a incumbent-based system to a position-based system by leveraging developmental programs within a DM-agreed framework. The issue has been raised at the ADM S&T Integration Board, and Joanne Bray from the Institute has been involved. Next steps will be to query Science departments to ascertain interest and relative priority for such programs.
  • Mr. Ollevier mentioned that any developmental programs in the future should continue to allow for reclassification because of an evolution of duties.
  • Dr. Walker mentioned the Atlantic program for technologists as an example of a long-standing program allowing for certain aspects of career management. He re-iterated that a national dialogue across departments and unions is required.
  • Mr. Ollevier agreed than further consultation should continue.
  • Mr. Ollevier also raised the question of PERs, and challengesfor some DSs(e.g. publishing limitations when working at headquarters.)
  • Dr. Walker acknowledged the challenge and possibility that the SAS may require some fine-tuning, and would appreciate if Mr. Ollevier would engage a dialogue with Mr. LaRose on this issue through the DS Consultation Committee.
  • Mr. LaRose thanked Mr. Ollevier for having previously raised the option of re-animating the Committee.
  • Mr. Kiley mentioned that his membership is eager to be able to work at the Olympic Games and looking forward to continued discussion on this topic.
  • Dr. Walker closed the meeting by thanking all and wished all good holidays.

  • ACTION: Mr. Ollevier and Mr. LaRose to initiate discussion to re-establish the DS Consultation Committee.
  • ACTION: DRDHR to advise unions on the evolution of IB discussions regarding development programs.
/ Mr. Ollevier & Mr. LaRose
Ms. de Gravina

These Minutes are approved unanimously on this ______day of the month of ______2010.

Dr. Robert Walker, Co-ChairMr. T. Ollevier, Co-Chair

DRDC Union-Management Consultation Committee Meeting - Minutes Page 1 of 8 Last update: December 30, 2009