Coroner union certification vote: April 5–7, 2022
The Ontario Labour Relations Board has officially ordered a certification vote to take, April 5 – April 7, 2022.
- Online voting begins: Tuesday, April 5 (noon)
- Online voting closes: Thursday, April 7 (noon)
In December 2021, coroners across Ontario voted 95 per cent in favour of entering into a co-operation agreement with OPSEU/SEFPO. We now encourage coroners to vote YES to secure a legal voice in achieving bargaining rights.
How do I vote?
You will be voting online.
The Ontario Labour Relations Board will send you an email (your email provided to the OCC). Before voting begins, you will be emailed a personal identification number (PIN). The PIN is strictly for personal use and must not be shared. A valid PIN is required to vote.
Will my employer or co-workers know how I voted?
No. The vote will be held by secret ballot. Voters are entitled to vote without interference, restraint, or coercion.
What if I don’t receive a PIN number, or cannot access my PIN number?
Call the Ontario Labour Relations Board (OLRB) Help Desk at: 416-326-7432
The OLRB Help Desk will be available to help you:
- Tuesday, April 5: 1 pm to 4 pm
- Wednesday, April 6: 11 am to 1 pm
- Thursday, April 7: 10 am to 11 am
Please leave a detailed message with your full name, contact information, and OLRB case number 2423-21-R, and a Labour Relations Officer will respond to your message as soon as possible.
What is the question on the ballot:
In your employment relations with your Employer, do you wish to be represented by the Union?
Need more info? Contact us anytime. It’s confidential!
Kiera Chion
OPSEU/SEFPO Organizing Representative
Direct cell: (416) 526-0330
[email protected]
Standing up for Ontario’s coroners
Ontario’s roughly 300 Investigative Coroners “speak for the dead to protect the living.”
But proposed cuts and changes to coroner services could leave the families vulnerable to the opioid crisis, dangerous situations in nursing homes and hospitals, and COVID-19. It’s even more vital that we have the very best coroners.
To support coroners – many of whom recently voted to join OPSEU/SEFPO – the union and the Ontario Coroner Association have launched an advertising campaign to warn the public.
So far, these ads have appeared in The Toronto Star and The Globe and Mail.
Ontario Coroners:
Time to turn the corner
As Investigating Coroners, we speak for the dead to protect the living. Now it’s time for us to speak up for ourselves. It’s time for:
Better pay
Fair on-call rates
A bigger say in our work
OPSEU/SEFPO proceeds with plans to organize Ontario’s coroners
Toronto – OPSEU/SEFPO has filed a certification application with the Ontario Labour Relations Board to unionize all Coroners who work for Office of the Chief Coroner.
The roughly 300 investigative coroners voted overwhelmingly in favour of joining forces with OPSEU/SEFPO earlier this year.
OPSEU/SEFPO President Warren (Smokey) Thomas says he hopes the provincial government quickly moves forward with recognizing the union as the official bargaining agent for the Coroners. “OPSEU/SEFPO would be delighted to be the voice of the coroners,” said Thomas. “They believe as we do that front-line know-how should be at the table when decisions are made and we’ll make sure the politicians and managers hear their concerns.”
Ontario Coroners Association (OCA) President Dr. Jeannie Walton says investigative coroners are concerned about a plan circulating in government that would allow people who are not doctors to become coroners.
“Ontario has the finest death investigation system in the world,” said Walton. “It’s the envy of other jurisdictions and it would be tragic and short-sighted to replace doctors with non-physicians. Coroner’s work is best performed by doctors.”
Thomas hopes the provincial government will move as swiftly as possible to recognize OPSEU/SEFPO as the official bargaining agent.
“The coroners have been very clear that they want OPSEU/SEFPO to be their voice in the corridors of power,” said Thomas. “We look forward to representing them.”
For more information: Warren (Smokey) Thomas: 613-329-1931
Province’s coroners choose OPSEU/SEFPO to represent them
TORONTO – Ontario’s coroners have overwhelmingly voted in favour of joining forces with OPSEU/SEFPO and hope for quick recognition from the province.
The Ontario Coroners Association (OCA) has not been able to negotiate good working conditions for its members for some time. Late last year they voted 95 per cent in favour of entering a cooperation agreement with OPSEU/SEFPO.
OPSEU/SEFPO has asked the government to agree to allow the union to represent the hundreds of front-line coroners and President Warren (Smokey) Thomas hopes the province will swiftly recognize their wishes.
Stronger together: OCA signs co-operation agreement with OPSEU/SEFPO.
It was decisive – 95 per cent of Coroners voted in December in favour of entering a co-operation agreement with OPSEU/SEFPO.
The vast majority of us want to bargain together instead of signing individual contracts with the OCC.
Instead of competing against each other in a race to the bottom, we are committed to working together for the sake of our profession and the communities we serve.
Having the OCA partner with OPSEU/SEFPO is an important step.
The next important step: having as many coroners as possible sign an OPSEU/SEFPO card.
The government understands union cards. The more who sign, the stronger our position with government.
As coroners, we speak for the dead to protect the living.
It’s time to the turn the corner, and unite our voices as one.
Click here to sign an OPSEU/SEFPO card now
It’s fast, easy, and 100 per cent confidential!
The Road Map to Collective Bargaining Rights for Coroners
Crown attorneys. Professional engineers. Law officers of the Crown. The Ontario government treats them all with respect by bargaining with them openly, transparently, and collectively.
But when it comes to Ontario’s Coroners, the OCC attacks the quality of our work and essentially tells us to take it or leave it.
- Wages? The OCC says take it or leave it
- Fair on-call rates? The OCC says take it or leave it
- Problems with Quin-C? The OCC says take it or leave it
As the executive of the Ontario Coroners Association, we have a plan to turn the OCC’s take it or leave it into let’s talk.
We’ve already finished the first phase of the plan, entering a co-operation agreement with OPSEU/SEFPO.
The next phase of the plan: have as many coroners as possible sign their own OPSEU/SEFPO card. It’s fast, easy, and confidential.
And it will show government that you’re committed to collective bargaining.
Here’s a roadmap for our next steps:
Campaign plan: in the New Year, prior to the June provincial election, OPSEU/SEFPO asks government to voluntarily recognize OPSEU/SEFPO as Coroners’ bargaining agent.
Negotiate framework that allows for collective bargaining
Elect bargaining team, set and prioritize demands
Negotiate collective agreement
Coroners ratify collective agreement and become OPSEU/SEFPO members
Ontario Coroners – Time to turn the corner
The Ontario Coroners Association
OPSEU/SEFPO
