Dates: June 3 & 4, 2023
Saturday – 9:30 – 4:30 Sunday – 9:30 – 12:30
Location: Hilton Meadowvale Mississauga, 6750 Mississauga Road, Mississauga, Ontario L5N 2L3
Hotel Accommodation link: https://book.passkey.com/go/OPSEUSEFPORegion2
Registration Deadline: May 15, 2023, 4:00 p.m.
What You Need To Do Complete the necessary forms and email: [email protected]
Application Link – Spring Education Session
- Only If Necessary: Human Rights Accommodation FORM
- Day Care Form, if required
Note: Wages will not be paid for weekend education
Offered Classes
- STEWARDS 1: Making a Difference in the Workplace
- STEWARDS 2: Facing the Employer, Building Member Involvement
- STEWARDS 3: Dealing with Discipline
- Interpreting Your collective Agreement: An Activist’s Role
- EQUITY COMBO – (must attend all three)
- An Introduction to Gender Identity and Expression
- Poverty, Economics and Racism
- Violence against Women
Course Descriptions
Stewards 1: Making a Difference in the Workplace
This updated version (March 2015) of Stewards 1 includes a more detailed description and history of OPSEU’s equity-seeking groups. The course continues to support stewards through a range of tools and practical activities. The key aims are to strengthen steward skills to orient a new employee to the union, have effective one-on-one conversations with a cross-section of members, develop a communications strategy to enlist diverse member involvement, and develop approaches to everyday workplace problems.
Throughout the course, participants are supported as they develop a profile of their members, clarify the tasks of the steward, find the resources and information in OPSEU, and understand the grievance process and their role in it. Stewards 1 is a prerequisite to Stewards 2 and must be completed before taking Stewards 2.
Participants should bring their collective agreements.
Stewards 2: Facing the Employer, Building Member Involvement
Prerequisite: Stewards 1
This revised follow-up to Stewards 1 focuses on investigating and writing a grievance, facing management, and involving members in worksite action. Participants will use their own collective agreements to identify grievances. They will become immersed in an evolving case study in order to interview a grievor, write up a grievance, face the employer at a step 1 and make a presentation on safety issues to the union side of the Joint Health and Safety Committee. They will examine the elements of effective mobilization and develop a campaign strategy for a local.
Participants should bring their collective agreements.
Stewards 3: Dealing with Discipline
(September 2015) This is an advanced level steward course. It is suggested that participants take Stewards 1 and Stewards 2 prior to signing up for this program. Dealing with Discipline is a skills and knowledge focused workshop that will assist union activists in their duties representing members that are facing discipline up to and including dismissal.
The course bridges concepts from Stewards 1 and 2, Basic and Advanced Grievance Handling and Workplace Investigations. Participants should bring their Collective Agreements to the course.
Interpreting Your Collective Agreement: An Activist’s Role
Do you know what your collective agreement is? Do you have a copy of it? Have you ever wondered what is in your collective agreement and how to find information on different articles? Do you know how the collective agreement is structured? Are you confused by some of the terms used in it?
In this newly revised version of the Contract Interpretation course members will be assisted in understanding the power of their collective agreement and how to interpret and enforce their collective agreement. Using interpretation guidelines developed through case law, participants will build the skills and confidence needed to understand and use their collective agreements.
Activities will give participants an opportunity to review legislation, examine the importance of timelines, discuss case scenarios and debate some common clauses and what they mean. Participants should bring their Collective Agreements to the course.
Equity combo – (must attend all three)
- An Introduction to Gender Identity and Expression
- Identify your position on the sex and gender continuum.
- Become familiar with terminologies and their meaning.
- Link the relationship between gender identity accommodations and the Ontario Human Rights Code
- Know how/where to get support and tools to use in issues relating to gender identity.
- Poverty, Economics and Racism
- Define poverty and identify some of the causes of poverty
- Analyze some statistics on poverty and understand its impact on women
- Make connections between poverty, economics and race
- Be able to engage in conversations around discrimination, bias, assumptions and racism
- Explore and challenge myths relating to diversity, cultural differences and our unseen bias
- Think of ways to tackle these issues in their everyday lives
- Identify ways of becoming allies in the fight against poverty, inequality and racism
- Violence against Women
- This course will provide an opportunity for participants to explore issues of gender-based violence and develop strategies for supporting women and countering violence through union structures, legislation, and campaigns
Meal Expenses
$20 for breakfast, $27 for lunch, $36for supper
Travel Expenses
Round-trip mileage at the rate of:
- 65 cents per km. if driving alone;
- 70 cents/km. if driving with one OPSEU members as a passenger;
- 75 cents/km. if driving with 2 OPSEU members as passengers;
- 80 cents/km. if driving with 3 OPSEU members as passengers;
- 85 cents/km. if driving with 4 OPSEU members as passengers.
Hotel Accommodation
Members who live beyond 60 km are entitled to room accommodation for Friday and Saturday night(s).
Members who live within 60 km are entitled to room accommodation for the Saturday night only.
Members are reimbursed for the cost of accommodation and are responsible for making their own reservations and for paying the full cost of the room at checkout.
If you book your hotel room past the deadline, any increases to the hotel cost will be the responsibility of the member.
Parking costs are reimbursed – overnight parking can be added to your hotel bill. Provide the registration desk with your license plate number.
Below is the link for booking your hotel accommodation https://book.passkey.com/go/OPSEUSEFPORegion2
Human Rights Accommodation
“The Accommodation Fund was created to encourage and facilitate greater participation of those covered under the Ontario Human Rights Code. The fund will cover extra costs related to a member’s disability, illness or other grounds under the Code. For example, the Fund would cover the extra cost of a fridge in a hotel room for a member required to store medications at a particular temperature.
Requests for accommodation can be identified on your application of the Human Rights Accommodation Request Form, included as an attachment. This form can be sent directly to the Equity Unit by fax 416-448-7419 or email: [email protected]
Cancellation Policy
Not Attending Event
In accordance with OPSEU Policy, notification by a member to cancel course attendance should be received by both the Local President and the Regional Office no later than 48 hours before commencement of the regional school (i.e. no later than 4:30 P.M. on the Wednesday prior to the weekend school).
When a member does not attend and the Regional office has not been notified 48 hours prior to the school’s commencement, the member will be assessed a $50.00 penalty.
Extenuating circumstances will be taken into consideration.
Hotel Cancellation
Members who have booked a hotel room are responsible for cancelling their reservations at the hotel within the time limits as stated by the hotel when the booking is made.
Advance Cheques
Applicants may apply to receive an advance cheque (upon you Local’s approval) to cover accommodation, mileage and meal expenses by filling out the request for an advance portion of the application form.
Note: Advances are not given for lost wages.
Family Attendant Care
Complete the appropriate forms enclosed if you require Child/Family/Attendant Care at home and/or the Educational to attend.
OPSEU Policies
No fragrances, Nuts & Nut Products, Coco-Cola Products
Persons attending OPSEU/SEFPO events are to refrain from using perfume, cologne and other fragrances for the comfort of other participants
Participants are also to refrain from bringing nuts and nut products and Coca-Cola products to OPSEU events.
Child/Family/Attendant Care
Child care will be provided at regional schools.
Members must register for child care twenty one (21) days in advance of the event by completing the form and returning it to the coordinating OPSEU Regional Office. CANCELLATION MUST BE DONE WITHIN 24 HOURS OF THE EVENT.
When you bring children with you:
Members are entitled to claim the full cost of their hotel room and meal expenses for children under the age of 13 years at 50% of OPSEU’s standard meal allowance rates. Children ages 13–16 are entitled to the standard rates.
*Note: Children must be registered in OPSEU’s day care for reimbursement of the full cost of the hotel room and meal claims.
When care is provided in your home:
Members will be reimbursed for Family Care at the rate of $15.00 per hour to a maximum of $220.00 within a 24 hour period, while doing union business. It is recognized that to guarantee meaningful access to union activities, child care both day and night may be necessary. Please specify hours claimed for each day.
Members are entitled to reimbursement of reasonable costs of family/attendant care (child/elder/dependent) provided by someone other than their partners/spouses as a result of absences from home arising from the conduct of union business. Such allowances are not intended to reimburse members for family care expenses that they would have normally incurred as a result of employment, except where the absence exceeds the normal work day or week.
Claims must be signed by the service provider and may be verified by Head Office before payment is made.