August 30, 2014
Hello WPFFA Members,
I hope everyone is had a nice summer, even though the weather has not been cooperating. I have tried to give a summer recap of what has been happening. It seems like every time I wanted to put this report out something else happened. You can never wait for the perfect time, because there is no perfect time! Please take a quick read and if you have any questions feel free to contact the WPFFA executive board.
Captain’s Classes
A posting has come out with regards to holding a Captains class at the end of the year (November to December). Once again the Committee will be involved with improving the class assisting with the creation, deployment and presentation of information.
District Chief’s Classes
We have had some members ask to have their exams reviewed. We are currently looking into this.
Recruit Class
We will have a new recruit class commencing September 15th. For the first time ever, we have been informed that the City will be hiring 14 Fire Fighters and laying off the last 2 hires with first right of recall when someone retires from Fire Suppression. We have been told that the City will try this out and see how it works.
Motor Vehicle Accidents
If you have been involved in an accident with a WFRS vehicle and you have completed your accident review board meeting you may have noticed the new guidelines put in place. Once a meeting has taken place with the Assistant Chief, Training Officer, Clerk, WPFFA Representative, and yourself and a suggested resolution to the motor vehicle collision inquiry has been determined, the Assistant Chief will send the recommendations to the FMT who will give the final approval. Depending on the recommendations set by all involved, the member will then be notified of the outcome.
Engine 5 Accident
Engine 5 was involved in an accident and all members are doing well. Once again, be careful, follow the Highway Traffic Act, be safe and keep wearing those seatbelts!
Dress Uniforms /Groceries
We usually pick up our groceries when we are returning from a run or training, so it is not necessary to wear your Public Relations shirt while picking up groceries.
Rizza – HRTO(Human Rights Tribunal)
We had a few dates for Rizza concerning her HRTO claim. We were attempting to come to a resolve and unfortunately that fell through, so there are 5 more dates scheduled for hearings.
Pay Equity
We received an email from the City outlining their position and they have found that there is no pay equity adjustment required and that no further action will be initiated for the Emergency Communication Operator position. We will review the Cities findings and take the appropriate steps. We are currently going to have our members receive some JJE training so we can do a review for the Emergency Communication Coordinators. We are hoping to have this process completed by the end of the year.
2nd Assistant Chief
The grievance was denied from the CAO, so the grievance went to Arbitration. We retained the services of Howard Goldblatt to represent the WPFFA. Howard Goldblatt belongs to the firm Sack Goldblatt Mitchell LLP based out of Toronto. SGM Law is one of Canada’s leading labour law firms. There were 2 dates set for this Arbitration on August 28th and 29th. We met on Thursday August 28th and we attempted to mediate the case. Unfortunately, no resolve was found so we commenced with the Arbitration. We dealt with a bunch of preliminary issues, past practice and what evidence would be admissible during the case. The Arbitrator ruled in our favor and we will continue once again in the New Year. Our date for August 29th had been cancelled due to a funeral that the City lawyer needed to attend. There are 6 more dates added to this Arbitration from April 2015 to June 2015.
Modified Duties Arbitration
This Arbitration will re-commence on December 8th and 12th and January 8th.
WSIB Files
Our WSIB Advocate has been reviewing the 3 files and things are progressing quite well.
Sick Time Average
Our sick time has been below the City average and we continue to improve on this. If you are going to be placed on sick notes you must be over the Fire Department average for 3 consecutive years.
1) 2013 Average – 10.1
2) 2012 Average – 9.35
3) 2011 Average – 10.11
4) 2010 Average – 8.99
Most of the sick time interviews have taken place. If you have any concerns contact your union rep.
Sick Time on Weekends
The FMT has put the WPFFA on notice that a vehicle may be removed from service due to excessive sickness on the weekends. Unfortunately, this causes the City a huge expense when they are in need of hiring overtime to fill in those spots to keep the vehicles in service. There is no magic number; it will depend on numerous factors, such as:
What the original number was for the daily that day?
What were we starting at?
How many members booked sick?
What members are off for? (WSIB, Bereavement, Modified, Training) etc.
Did members get transferred? (Training, Vacations, Recruit Class)
Are some groups running short to begin with?
These factors will all need to be looked at before a decision to remove a vehicle is taken. No one wants to see a vehicle removed. Not only is it detrimental to us for safety purposes on scene, but to the taxpayers as well. That vehicle may be the difference between someone’s life and death.
AWOL
Lately, there have been members who have been marked down AWOL because they have forgotten to call in sick for their shift. If you are sick and there is no chance of you attending work the next day, you are allowed to call in the night before.
Relocation of Station 8 and inclusion of Emergency Operations Centre EOC (within the facility)
To provide the best opportunity to deliver effective and efficient fire services to the citizens of South Windsor the City is moving forward to relocate Station 8 to the vicinity of Concession No.6 and Provincial Road. Furthermore, the City has also decided to integrate a new EOC within the Station. This proposal is going to City Council on September 8th to be approved.
Fight Back Campaign
Our fight back campaign is in full swing. We had our media release in July and it was very well attended and received. We have our campaign page with all our videos for everyone to see. There is also a petition to have members and the public sign. Go to www.secondscountwindsor.ca for more information. You may have already noticed the billboards placed throughout the City. There is too much at stake and we need to make a stand for public safety.
IAFF International Fire Fighter Magazine
An article has been submitted to the IAFF and it will be published in the next issue.
OPFFA Intrepid Magazine
We were asked to put a local profile together of our Association. This article will be published in the next issue.
IAFF 52nd Biennial Convention
Brother Bobbie and I attended the 52nd IAFF Convention. It presented a unique opportunity to gather with fire fighters from across North America to address the issues that are affecting our members as well as chart the direction of the IAFF for the next two years. Improving lives, bettering our working conditions, ensuring that we protect and preserve our hard fought victories of the past, and formulating a plan to address our issues in the future is what the IAFF Biennial Convention is about. General President Harold A. Schaitberger opened the Convention with five standing ovations during his speech that would inspire and solidify the very meaning of the word Brotherhood. He even mentioned Windsor in his opening speech.
Memorial March – Sunday September 7th
Our WPFFA Memorial March is on Sunday September 7th. It was cancelled in June due to inclement weather. Once the Memorial March has been completed, bring your families to the picnic at Lanspeary Park.
George Copeland
George retired on July 31, 2014 and we would like to thank everyone who participated in making his final day a special day. He is truly grateful for the camaraderie that was shown to him!
Mark Koppeser
The WPFFA put out a list to have Mark’s shifts covered until September 20th, as he gets everything in order. Mark is currently in a facility to assist him with his sickness. He would like to express a sincere thanks to everyone who has assisted him!
Provincial Elections
The Provincial Elections were a huge success. We avoided getting a Conservative government in place and I believe everyone was in shock including the Liberals when they gained a majority government. That shows you what a little bit of handwork can do to make things work. A great effort was put forward by our OPFFA, the OPP, and our own WPFFA to put the Liberals in power.
Municipal Elections
We will commence with meeting the candidates very shortly with regards to the municipal election. Again, we support those who support us. What we would like to do is support 4 to 6 Candidates in Wards that we know will make a difference. What we are asking from the membership is to have 2 to 4 members work with these candidates on a daily basis and commit to their campaign. Again, we all saw what some hard work and commitment could do in getting the right person in office with the Provincial Elections. We definitely do not want to sit back and take a wait and see approach with this municipal election. If we can get the best candidate in office for us then we win. If we don’t do anything and we stand by the side and become spectators to this election then we deserve what we get!
Submissions
Our executive board met and went through all the submissions. The Economic Policy Committee will be meeting shortly to review the submissions as well. Once these meetings are completed we will set up dates to have the submissions reviewed and voted on by the membership.
42 hour Platoon System
We are currently attempting to resolve the way we do our vacation and stat picks for our 2015 selections.
New hire (Emergency Communications Division)
The City hired a new Emergency Communications Operator Heike Shelson to fill the vacant spot from when Bridget Chippett transferred into the Public Education Officer position. Welcome to our team!
Muscular Dystrophy and Memorial Fundraisers
If you can spare some time, we are in need of a few members to organize a few different fundraisers to raise funds for Muscular Dystrophy and our Memorial. If you are interested please contact a WPFFA Board member.
WEC Special Stars vs. Windsor Fire Fighters
We had a friendly soccer game on July 6th vs. the Special Stars. CBC showed up and did a really good story. Please read it. It was an amazing night for all the players and families. These kids on the Special Stars have autism and they played a wonderful game beating us in penalty kicks 8 to 7! We are looking forward to a rematch next year!
Captain John Wilson Park
The City of Windsor had the grand opening in June for Cpt. Wilson Park. The park is located in Station 8’s area on Ducharme Street next to Talbot Trails Public School. Cpt. Wilson unfortunately, passed away attempting to save a young child. We are looking at adopting this park.
Good Will
We have been planning a few events to take place in the City for the citizens of Windsor. We will be renting pools and ice rinks for citizens to take advantage of. We need to engage the public more and do more public relations on our own! I know this is hard because no one wants to speak about themselves and what they do in the community, but if you are involved and are volunteering your time, expertise and knowledge, let us know! The communities know that we are a value to our community. It’s time we realize that as well.
Closing Statement
The City, the FMT and the WPFFA may not always be in agreement with everything we do or interpret in the Collective Agreement, but we must always remain respectful and professional towards each other at all times. We are going into some very busy times, dealing with our Collective Agreement, negotiations, possible new organization and municipal elections. So, let’s stay professional at all times and do our best to serve the citizens of Windsor with the utmost respect and dignity that they deserve.
Our next General Membership Meeting is on Tuesday September 2nd, 2014 at 7:30pm at the Hook and Ladder.
Fraternally,
Angelo Gertsakis
WPFAA, Local 455
President
