Probation Officer Allowance (POA) Days are in place to allow you time off in lieu of the overtime you cannot earn. Schedule 6 requires you to work a minimum of 36¼ hours per week and has no maximum. In the Unified Category, Schedule 6 employees receive hour for hour or greater, for all overtime worked.
If the employer has their way, those POA days are gone.
The employer is coming after the compensating days you currently receive in lieu of overtime. The employer wants them back and has not agreed to pay overtime. The employer wants to convert your compensating POA days to so-called “vacation” days. The greatest impact will be on contract Probation Officers…POA days are the only time off they are able to earn.
Currently, the Collective Agreement allows for additional Probation Officer Allowance days to be granted beyond the standard allotment of seven, at the discretion of the Area Manager. If the employer converts these to vacation days, managers will no longer have that discretion.
It is also unclear whether these vacation days will still exist after the expiry of the Collective Agreement. They may have to be negotiated each and every time, or they may be gone FOREVER.
Remember all the times you worked through your lunches and breaks, took home reports and stayed late to deal with a client in crisis? You still get to do all that, except now you won’t be fully compensated for it.
In addition to a two-year wage freeze and a twelve step wage grid, this employer now wants you to do work for free. Ultimately, they plan to save money on the backs of dedicated Probation and Probation and Parole Officers who work extra hours to serve clients and keep communities safe.
There is no room in any union contract for free work. Please continue to support your Bargaining Team.
Authorized by:
Tom O’Neill, Chair, Corrections Team
Warren (Smokey) Thomas, President
