USW Local 1944 is aware of Telus’ abuse of compulsory overtime language under the Collective Agreement. In response, we are filing a policy grievance against the practice of forcing compulsory overtime when members already have scheduled vacations. We are also supporting the filing of grievances where the scheduling of compulsory overtime violates other provisions of the Canada Labour Code.
Please be aware of your rights with regard to compulsory overtime:
Members may decline work if the employer has changed their scheduled work days with less than 96 hours' notice.
The Labour Code also requires that management provide 24 hours' notice if they are going to change the hours of your shift or add OT to your shift. While there are some exceptions to this requirement, the Union does not believe that the Black Friday season qualifies, as it was clearly foreseeable. Shifts scheduled in this manner should be worked but grieved.
Members can refuse overtime to carry out family responsibilities related to the health or care of any family members or the education of any family members who are less than 18 years of age. Before doing so, a member must have genuinely attempted but failed to find an alternate arrangement. (There are some limitations under the Code to the ability to use this right, but the Union does not believe that they apply in such a foreseeable case as the annual Black Friday understaffing issue.)
Members may grieve a management policy or rule with regard to compulsory overtime if that policy or rule is demonstrably unreasonable. However, given the potentially subjective interpretation of this, please contact a Local Union Representative to determine whether your treatment violates this standard.
It is extra important that we remain vigilant about our compulsory overtime rights as we believe Telus has been operating in bad faith, contradicting their previous assurances regarding how compulsory overtime would be used.
In 2015 when Telus negotiated compulsory overtime for clerical members in western Canada, promises were made by Telus during negotiations that the new language would only be used in extreme, emergency cases. As members in Eastern Canada already had this provision and it had not been used, the Union and its members could trust that the new language would not be abused.
As SVP Arlene King stated on November 3, 2016:
“Only if an insufficient number of team members volunteer at a time where we have a critical business need for additional hours would we consider assigning overtime on an as-needed basis. It is important to note:
The opportunity to assign overtime has also existed in CE in the East (Ontario, Quebec) for the same 10+ year period and to date has not been exercised, however, in the rare situation where we may need to use it in the future it will be applied responsibly and with restraint.
I want to assure you that, should the tentative agreement be ratified, we will be thoughtful in exactly how and when we implement this new language and have no intention of exercising it lightly.”
And yet, the company turns up the pressure each year prior to Black Friday, threatening to use compulsory overtime unless an extreme amount of overtime shifts are 'voluntarily' picked up by members. Failure to hit these OT targets has indeed led the company to impose compulsory OT.
The employer is responsible for hiring, and for maintaining adequate staffing levels. 7000+ overtime hours from Nov 13th - Dec 3rd is roughly 1000+ shifts over three weeks.
Members should not be abused because the employer systematically manufactures conditions of inadequate staffing through aggressive VSP offerings, lack of hiring, and creating a toxic work environment where staff turnover is increasing.
“Work-life balance” ended in 2016 and has since been rebranded as “work-life integration.” Members need an employer who does not use them to the point of burnout, offering disingenuous platitudes about their commitment to mental health. Many people have been scheduled 12 days in a row by using a Monday to Saturday shift followed by a Sunday to Friday shift.
We need to fight back at every opportunity against unfair work practices that harm our personal lives and mental well-being. Please make full use of your rights under the Canada Labour Code to refuse overtime for inadequate notice of schedule changes or the applicable family-oriented reasons explained above.
Contact a Local Union Representative if:
- Your refusal is challenged
- You are considering challenging the reasonableness of your compulsory OT schedule as it has placed you in a position of extreme hardship
- You have further questions
Click here to see the list of the Local Union Representatives.
In Solidarity,
USW Local 1944