Optima has recently taken over the operation of the nursing care group from Saint Elizabeth Health Care. A Letter of Understanding (LOU) was signed between the new employer and your negotiating team to ensure that no AUPE member will lose employment as a result of this changeover. All rights and entitlements of employees will be protected, and the parties have agreed to implement at Hawthorne the collective agreement in place at the Lac La Biche worksite.
Also in the LOU, the parties have set aside five days to negotiate site-specific language, as the Lac La Biche agreement is silent on some of the nuances at Hawthorne (e.g., 12-hour shifts for Health Care Aides).
Unfortunately, during this transition, the lead negotiator left the Optima team and few details about their replacement have been provided. However, your negotiating team was encouraged by recent discussions we had with the employer expressing our mutual interest in moving this process forward.
On November 14, your negotiating team will meet to submit our proposal to the employer. Despite their personnel challenges, the employer has agreed to work through it and to meet if they have any questions or cannot accept any parts of the proposal.
AUPE NEGOTIATING TEAM – HAWTHORNE
Lorna Cruz
[email protected] or 587-439-0423
Vish Rathnayaka
[email protected] or 780-207-5929
Vicky Resuelo
[email protected] or 604-339-373
AUPE RESOURCE STAFF
Christian Tetreault Negotiator
[email protected]
Jennifer Garrison Membership Services Officer
[email protected]
Jaime Urbina Organizer
[email protected]
Communications
[email protected]
