ASPA Advocate
Welcome to the online home of ASPA at the University of Saskatchewan
1,900 U of S employees to hold strike vote Sept. 27
by Alex MacPherson, Saskatoon Star Phoenix, September 18, 2018
One day after serving notice that contract negotiations had reached an impasse, a union representing around 1,900 University of Saskatchewan employees has directed its bargaining committee to hold a strike vote later this month.
Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 1975, which represents a diverse range of employees including IT workers, truck drivers, parking enforcement officers and shopkeepers, has been without a collective agreement since Dec. 31, 2015.
In a news release issued Monday morning, the union said the “main sticking point” in the current round of talks was that the university refuses to negotiate pension plans, and is “threatening to make unilateral cuts to the pension plan.” READ MORE
Personal/Family Leaves – Article 20.9
Written by Darcy – Hryn-Bird, ASPA Member Services Officer
Did you know that as a member of ASPA you have access to three (3) days of paid leave to deal with emergent, personal or family situations?
Article 20.9 of the Collective Agreement (May 1, 2014 – April 30, 2019) states: “ In order to meet the needs of a member to attend to emergent, personal or family situations, a maximum of three (3) days of paid leave is eligible per calendar year and does not accumulate from year to year.” Read More
Unlimited leave is working so well, some companies are offering it fully paid
By Chris Pash, August 28, 2018
Annual leave, long stuck at a non-stretchable four weeks, is starting to open up for Australians. Until recently it has been rare for employers to offer anything more than the legal minimum.
Now there’s a movement to get a little more creative, add a couple of days here and there in the form of having birthdays off, official mental health days or just a couple of extra days as a form of inducement to come to work for a particular company.
Some even offer unlimited annual leave. That means the company just leaves it to its staff to decide what an appropriate amount of time off is. READ MORE
All Unions Pancake Breakfast 2018
Here are a few pictures from the 2018 Pancake Breakfast, held on September 6, We were pleased that Larry Hubick, President and Lori Johb, Secretary Treasurer from the Saskatchewan Federation of Labour (SFL) and President Stoicheff joined us for breakfast. It was a beautiful day for a great event.
L – R: Dawn Giesbrecht, ASPA VP, LaVina Watts, ASPA VP, Sheila ffolliott, ASPA Treasurer, Annetta Gellner, Executive Assistant, John Costa and Curtis Larson, ASPA Executive
President Stoicheff visiting with ASPA
Lori and Larry, SFL
ASPA Member Highlight – Darwin Roy, Executive Director Community Relations & Engagement
Written by Karen E. Mosier
Darwin Roy has a Bachelor of Education Degree and a Masters in Educational Administration, both from the University of Saskatchewan. He started his position as 
Executive Director on March 13, 2018.
His portfolio is to represent the University of Saskatchewan to ensure strong, positive, mutually beneficial relationships and community presence that enhances the University’s reputation, while building awareness of its purpose and presence. Read More
ASPA 2018 Census Summary – APDA
The ASPA Census 2018 questionnaire included questions about the utilization of the Accountable Professional Development Account (APDA), alternatively referred to as Accountable Professional Expense Fund (APEF).
A brief reminder: each year, on May 1, the employer provides a certain amount of APDA funds to each member. Full-time employees receive $1,100 per year. Article 12.10 of the ASPA Collective Agreement with the employer contains the relevant details of the annual allocation, and of the suggested uses of the APDA funds. You can find your personal APDA balance in PAWS, Employee, My Professional Funds. You will need to speak to your supervisor if you want to use APDA funds.
We believe that the APDA funds provide an important resource to our members who want to engage in professional development activities that benefit them and their work unit. We encourage our members to make full use of the APDA funds.
Following is a summary of the responses to several Census 2018 questions that address the utilization of the APDA funds. This is what we found: Read More
ASPA Member Highlight – Odili Obi, Waste Prevention Coordinator
Written by Karen E. Mosier, ASPA Communications Committee
Odili Obi has a BA in Economics from the University of Saskatchewan and a Masters in Business Administration from the University of Regina. He has worked at the University of 
Saskatchewan for 5 1/2 years.
Odili is the Waste Prevention Coordinator in the Office of Sustainability. He is in charge of managing the university’s single-stream recycling program. He manages solid waste. This includes landfill, waste, and compost. Currently, 27% of waste is diverted from ending up in the landfill because of the university’s aggressive recycling program. Read More
Why a Union Drive at Tim Horton’s in small town Saskatchewan Matters
| By Gerard Di Trolio
On Thursday August 16, workers at the Tim Horton’s in the small town of Canora, Saskatchewan will vote for the second time on whether to certify Workers United Canada Council to represent them. The previous certification vote was held in June 2017. The circumstances of the re-vote for certification called by the Saskatchewan Labour Relations Board in a 2-1 decision made on July 20 could have a chilling effect on further unionization efforts in the province. Read more! |
