1. My provincial government instituted a new provincial holiday called Family Day. Do Canada Post employees get the day off?

No, Article 21 of our Collective Agreement lists the Designated Holidays which were negotiated. Canada Post Corporation falls under federal laws and federal holidays. The only exception to the general rule has to do with June 24, which is observed by Canada Post employees in Quebec, whereas the remainder of Canada Post employees throughout Canada get a day off for Civic Holidays in early August.

2. I am Postmaster of a small post office. I informed my Local Area Manager of my upcoming vacation plans and told her that I had paid for a non refundable all inclusive trip. My L.A.M. now tells me that I cannot go on my holiday because there is no available Term employee to replace me in my absence. Is that correct?

That is incorrect. We , as Postmasters, will assist Canada Post Corporation to find suitable Term employees. That assistance takes the form of putting up posters in our offices or retail outlets in our communities. We also help Canada Post Corporation by training the individuals who are ultimately hired. That said, it is the sole responsibility of Canada Post Corporation management to hire staff and to make sure that replacement workers are available for all locations. This is also to ensure all existing employees can enjoy their leave entitlements. If someone cannot be hired locally, Canada Post Corporation must look for any/all available Term employees within a 50km radius of your office. If no one can be found within that area, CPC can look beyond the 50km radius to find a suitable employee. If an employee is found who lives more than 50km away from your office, that employee should ask that he/she be paid for mileage.

3. My child had a medical specialist appointment. On the day of the appointment, I drove to the doctors' office only to find that my child's appointment was cancelled because the specialist had been called out for an emergency. By the time I drove home, it was too late for me to report for my shift. My Local Area Manager tells me that since I did not see the doctor, I have to take the day as Leave Without Pay. Is that true?

That is false. The appointment was cancelled without notice by reasons of the Specialist having to respond to an emergency. Something which is beyond your or his control. You simply need to get a note from your child's doctor to support that fact and submit the note to Canada Post Corporation, along with your Special (code 9200), Leave Request form.

4. I am a bilingual employee and I work in a bilingual office. My Superintendent issued me a 24 hour Notice of Interview. On the day of the interview, I requested that the interview be given to me in my birth tongue. The Superintendent told me that under provincial legislation, he did not have to consider my request. Is that correct?

Wrong! Canada Post Corporation must comply with federal laws. The relevant laws are the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the Official Language Act of Canada. We must also consider the Canada Post Corporation Official Language Policy and finally our own Collective Agreement. Bilingual employees of the Corporation, who work in a bilingual office or a bilingual position, have the right to be given interviews in the official language of Canada of their choice. The Superintendent violated your rights and you can file a grievance or a complaint under any or all of these avenues. Note that not all CPAA representatives are bilingual. If you require the presence of a bilingual union representative, please contact your Branch President with your request, as soon as you receive the 24 hour Notice of Interview. Arrangements will be made for a bilingual representative to be available at your meeting.

5. I am a Part-Time Assistant and our office is short staffed. However, I am not offered all the available extra hours. My Postmasters tells me that I can only be offered the hours that do not conflict with my shift. Can you explain what that means?

Your Postmaster is referring to Article 20.13(c) of the Collective Agreement. First consider that the available hours are for a specific shift. The first duty of the Postmaster is to replace the missing body for the hours of the absent employees' scheduled shift(s), so as to ensure the smooth operation of the Post Office. In a perfect world, you would simply move from your shift to the vacant one and take all those hours for as long as the other employee is absent. The Postmaster would then simply back fill your own shift. As we all know, the reality of Post Offices operation is not a perfect world. Article 20.13 must be understood and it must be applied in its' entirety and its' proper sequence. If you are unable to move into the vacant shift but are still available for extra hours, you must be offered additional hours keeping in mind a few conditions. First, the vacant shift cannot be modified. Second, the extra hours offered to you cannot overlap with your own scheduled hours. The overlapping portion of hours between the two shifts is considered to "conflict". As such, the portion of hours which conflicts with your own scheduled shift cannot be offered to you. Finally, you can be offered extra hours up to concurrence of a maximum of eight hours to be worked within a ten (10) hour period.

6. I see my physician on a regular basis for ongoing medical treatment. I applied for sick leave with pay for a medical appointment under Article 32.04 of the Collective Agreement. My Local Area Manager asked for specific information about the nature of my health concerns and then denied my leave request on the basis that I did not receive a "medical procedure" as stated in the article of the Collective Agreement. Is that correct?

Absolutely not! No Local Area Manager or any Corporation manager can ask about the nature of an employees health issues, this is an invasion of the employees' privacy. Secondly, the Corporations' management staff is not qualified to determine what is or not a "medical procedure". You must contact your local CPAA representative without delay.

7. I am a Full Time Assistant and my schedule is for 8hrs/day, Monday to Friday. An immediate family member died last Saturday. My Superintendent is telling me that the four days of Bereavement Leave starts on Saturday. He also told me that as Monday was a Designated Holiday, I was only entitled to Tuesday. However Tuesday is the first day of postal operation after a long week-end, so he told me I could only have half the day off. Can he do that?

That Superintendent is so wrong on so many fronts, it is mind boggling! Article 26 of our Collective Agreement states that employees shall be entitled to special leave with pay for a period of not more than four (4) days and not extending beyond the day following the funeral. It is important to note that Bereavement Leave scheduling must conform to the Collective Agreement and then be in keeping with the needs of the employee, not the Corporation. In your particular example, your schedule is Monday to Friday and you are not normally scheduled to work week-ends, therefore the week-end is not counted as part of the four days. Additionally, the Monday is a Designated Holiday negotiated in our Collective Agreement, and it cannot be rescheduled. Bereavement Leave could start on Tuesday if that is your choice. There may be cases where faith, religious beliefs, the wishes of the deceased or distances will necessitate special consideration as to when the four days are scheduled. It doesn't need to be immediately after the passing of your immediate family member. It does however need to be scheduled in function of the date of the funeral/burial/cremation, etc.

8. My Local Area Manager denied my request for Pre-Retirement Leave on the basis that I had not yet used up all my Annual Leave entitlement. Can he do that?

No, he cannot. Article 22.14 outlines the requirements which must be met in order to qualify for Pre-Retirement Leave. The first sentence of the Article states "In addition to vacation leave..." It does not specify whether Pre-Retirement Leave should be taken after, before or in the middle of your Annual Leave entitlement. As long as the Pay Exception Report and Leave Request Form are correctly coded, the scheduling of the Pre-Retirement Leave is entirely at your discretion.

9. I am a Senior Assistant in a level 6A office. Can I refuse the acting assignments of Postmaster?

No, you cannot! The Senior Assistant job description, as shown on all competition postings held by Canada Post Corporation states: "... and assume supervisory responsibilities in the absence of the Postmaster." Additionally, Article 40.02 of the Collective Agreement reinforces the expectation that one of the Senior Assistants' function is to replace the absent Postmaster.

10. I am a Status Indian working for Canada Post on my Reserve. I wish to contribute to CPP but Canada Post is telling me that I cannot unless all other Status Indians also employed by Canada Post elect to contribute. Is that correct?

The answer is a little convoluted but according to Revenue Canada, no it is not. Canada Post as an employer cannot on its own accord deduct CPP contributions from Status Indian employees unless it does so for all Status Indian employees. On the other hand, you as an individual Status Indian employee can elect to contribute to CPP. A specific form need to be filled out and submitted. You need to contact Revenue Canada for more information and the proper advice.

11. Our Local Area Manager told our Postmaster that we needed to cut costs and only 50% of replacement hours for employees on vacation or short term absences could be used. Can he do that?

Absolutely not! Article 12 of the Collective Agreement states that the hours needed to operate an office have been established by the Corporation following meaningful consultation with the Association. All offices have weekly "authorized hours" and they are to be used. If an employee is absent from the office, that missing worker needs to be replaced. That position was confirmed in consultation at the National level.