QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
NEW COLLECTIVE AGREEMENT
by Pat E. Fagan
1. Will the new insurance premiums be deducted monthly or per pay period?
The premiums will be deducted per pay period and will be shown separately on your pay statement.
2. How much will the 5% employee premium for the EHCP be in dollars and cents?
The rate for 2006 is $3.32 per month for single coverage and $6.15 per month for family coverage. Those rates will be adjusted for 2007.
3. How much will the 5% employee premium for the Dental Plan be in dollars and cents?
The 2006 rate is $1.22 per month for single coverage and $2.75 per month for family coverage. Those rates will be adjusted for 2007.
4. Will there be a deductible amount in the Benefit (insurance) plans?
Effective January 1, 2007, the deductibles for the EHCP will be eliminated.
The deductibles for the Dental Plan will remain at $50 per year for single coverage and $80 per year for family coverage.
5. With the changes to the EHCP drug plan, what will be the rate of reimbursement for prescription drugs?
The new agreement contains a three tier drug reimbursement plan.
Drugs that are listed in the National Drug Formulary will continue to be paid at the current 80% coverage rate. The National Drug Formulary will have at least one prescription drug for every disease category.
Drugs that are not listed in the National Drug Formulary but are listed in the Quebec Medical insurance plan (RAMQ) will be paid at the RAMQ rate which is currently 71%. All other drugs will be paid at 50%.
Some exceptions may apply depending on the type of drug and the medical condition being treated.
The CPAA website (www.cpaa-acmpa.ca) has a link to the drug formulary site through which an employee can ascertain at which level a prescription drug is payable.
6. What happens to coverage for the retirees in the insurance plans between now and January 1, 2007?
Coverage remains the same for the EHCP.
The Dental Plan will be changed to reflect the 2005 fee guide 30 days after date of notice of ratification. Notice was given to CPC on September 29, 2006.
7. Can we negotiate buy back of Part-time pension based on actual hours worked?
The change to using actual hours worked for pension accrual will go back to July 1, 2006. Employees will not be eligible to buy back service for extra hours worked prior to July 1, 2006.
8. Can an employee in Classification Level 6B transfer to a Level 6A position?
If you have a transfer application on file prior to the signing of the new agreement (October 3, 2006), that transfer application will be considered valid for a period of 90 days from date of signing. After the 90-day period, a change from level 6B to level 6A will be considered a promotion.
9. What is the Corporate Achievement Bonus and how will it be paid?
The Corporate Achievement Bonus is paid to all employees based on the Corporate performance in four key areas. They are Employee Engagement, Customer Value Index, Delivery Service and Financial Performance. If the Corporation meets its target, you will receive 3% of your total regular earnings for the fiscal year. This payment could be adjusted depending on whether the Corporation fails to meet those targets or exceeds those targets.
The allowance is payable in the second quarter of the year following the fiscal year on which it is based. This means that the payment for the fiscal year 2006 will be made in May/June 2007. The payment will be made as part of a regular pay cheque.
10. How Has Severance Pay Changed?
Effective December 31, 2005 continuous service for the purpose of calculating severance pay will no longer accumulate. You will instead be offered the choice of receiving your severance pay benefit either:
1. on March 22, 2007 as an accelerated one time lump-sum payment equal to your years of continuous service multiplied by one week of salary as of December 31, 2005, OR
2. when you retire, as a payment equal to your years of continuous service as of
December 31, 2005 multiplied by one week of your salary at retirement.
The payment will be capped at a maximum 28 weeks of salary and will be pro-rated for periods of part-time continuous service for those Grade Office employees who have both full-time and part-time service. Continuous service for the purpose of calculating severance pay will include completed partial years of service.
11.How will the years of service for Severance payout be calculated if I have periods of both part-time and full-time service?
The part-time service will be pro rated to full-time years according to your scheduled part-time hours.
Example:
Lisa worked for 10 years at 20 hours per week and then worked for another 10 years at 40 hours per week. The first 10 years would be pro rated to get a total of 5 years of full-time service. Add that to the 10 years of full-time service and you would have a total of 15 years of service. Lisa would be entitled to 15 weeks of severance pay.
12.How will the years of service for Severance pay be calculated if I have all part-time service, but I have worked in positions with various scheduled hours?
The payment will be based on one week of pay for each year of service times the regular weekly rate of pay.
Example:
Bill worked for 5 years at a regular schedule of 25 hours per week, 4 years at 20 hours per week and 6 years at 18 hours per week. He is currently scheduled at 18 hours per week. His entitlement to severance pay would be 15 weeks of pay at his regular weekly rate of pay based on his current schedule of 18 hours per week.
13.How much of my severance pay will be withheld if:
– I take a cash payout for my severance pay?
If you elect to take a cash payment, the normal statutory deductions will be made including income tax and EI premiums.
– I roll over my severance pay into a RRSP?
If you roll over your severance pay to an RRSP, 10% will be withheld to cover EI premiums and Canada Pension Plan premiums. If the statutory deductions are less than 10% then the difference will be paid to you.
14.Can I elect to take part of my severance pay in cash and have the balance rolled over into a RRSP?
One of the options that will be available to you will allow you to take a portion of your severance payout as cash and deposit the balance into an RRSP account.
You will receive a letter from the Corporation that will explain all your options and give you the opportunity to select your best payout option.
15. Will I receive a notice from CPC explaining how much severance pay I am entitled to and how that amount was calculated?
You will receive a letter from the Corporation that will contain all the relevant information including:
•Years of service
• How your entitlement is calculated
• Amount of payment
• Your options for disbursement of your payment
16. How Do I Make My Choice?
A personalized letter will be sent to employees during the month of December. It will indicate the value of your severance pay benefit as of December 31, 2005. Also included will be a form that you must complete and return within 30 days specifying your choice of either receiving the benefit on March 22, 2007 or upon retirement. Payments for those choosing to obtain their benefit before retirement will be added to their pay cheque on March 22, 2007, provided the necessary documentation has been received.
17.What happens to my severance payout if I do not respond to the letter outlining my options?
The letter from the Corporation will identify a time limit for reply. Should you fail to respond to the letter your severance payout will automatically be deferred to retirement. All other options with respect to payout will still be available to you at the time you take your payout.
18.Can I use my severance pay to buy back previous pensionable service?
If you are eligible to buy back previous pension service, you can use your severance payment to purchase this service. This will be one of the options identified in the letter you will receive from Canada Post.
19.The information sent out identifies under Article 16, severance pay, that there will be a 1% increase if you don’t have 28 years of service. How does this apply and will it apply to employees after December 31, 2009?
The 1% increase in the base salary will apply only to employees who did not have 28 years of service as of December 31, 2005. If they complete their 28 years of service between December 31, 2005 and December 31, 2009, they will receive the 1% increase on December 31, 2009. After December 31, 2009, they will receive the 1% increase when they complete 28 years of service.
20.Who is entitled to retroactive pay?
The general salary increase of 2.4% is effective January 1, 2006. All CPAA members who were indeterminate employees as of the date of signing of the agreement (October 3, 2006), as well as employees who were on maternity leave, paternity leave, compassionate care leave, retired, laid off or died since January 1, 2006 are entitled to retroactive pay.
21.When does the new pay scale for Level 6A become effective?
In order to address the issue of compensation for postmaster positions in larger grade 6 offices, we negotiated changes to the job evaluation system including the creation of a new level. The previously existing Level 6 will be known as 6B and the new level will be Level 6A.
For the period January 1, 2006 to June 30, 2006, the old Level 6 pay scale will apply. The new pay scale for Level 6A became effective July 1, 2006.
22.Am I affected by the changes to the Job Evaluation Plan?
A total of approximately 500 positions affecting all levels within the bargaining unit have been identified as being re-classified upward as a result of the changes to the job evaluation plan. If your position is one of those you will receive a letter from the Corporation advising you of the change. All changes, including any salary adjustment as a result of re-classification, will become effective and be retroactive to July 1, 2006.