Why should I participate?

The Social Mapping Survey is a fundamentally important project for OPSEU/SEFPO. The survey is conducted every five years as per OPSEU/SEFPO Policy. The union recognizes that the ever-changing demographic of the membership needs to be surveyed regularly.  The information we get from members during this process will identify gaps and barriers and inform changes we need to make to ensure the union meets the needs of everyone.

By participating in this survey you’ll be taking action to make sure that the union reflects you.

Knowledge is power, and gaining a better understanding of our membership will help us build a more powerful union. It will also help us identify policies and issues that most impact our members.

Plus, there are some fun prizes to be won too! More information is below.

Why do I need to complete the survey?

This question really gets to the heart of the Social Mapping Project! The goal of this survey is to better understand who OPSEU/SEFPO members are in their fullest sense: what barriers they are facing, what is working for them and what isn’t. This is to update OPSEU/SEFPO’s policies, inform the strategic plan and increase access to resources to better serve all members. With an eye to removing barriers.

How will I receive the survey?

If you have registered or updated your information in the OPSEU/SEFPO member portal, or completed an electronic membership application (EMA), you will receive your unique individual link to the online survey in an email from Blueprint, the research partner for the Social Mapping Project on Monday, October 7, 2024. If you don’t receive it, please check your spam folder. Below are screenshots of the Blueprint email:

What if I don’t have an email address, access to internet or have difficulty accessing the survey?

The survey is available in alternative formats and methods to ensure accessible participation. This includes a paper survey, interview via telephone among others. For more information, please contact the Blueprint team. Their contact info is below.

Who is Blueprint and what do they do?

Blueprint is a non-profit, mission-driven organization founded on the idea that evidence is a powerful tool for change. They work with policymakers and practitioners to generate and use evidence to solve complex policy and program challenges. Blueprint has research expertise in workforce development and employment services, income security, youth development and well-being, community safety and well-being, gender and sexual diversity and equity, and housing and homelessness.

Blueprint researchers believe in leveraging multiple methods and approaches to gather and synthesize data, to provide rich and more in-depth insights into the issues they tackle with their clients. Furthermore, mixed methods ensure that they imbricate their research with an equity lens, understanding that some data collection methods favour certain groups over others.

Why am I receiving an individual link instead of a general one?

Using individual survey links is a good research practice to ensure data quality. Based on best practices, risks to data quality have increased when using general survey links (i.e. increase in robots or automated responses to gain incentives, increase in survey duplicates, or increase in detractors actively trying to skew data).  Individual links help to ensure that responses are from OPSEU/SEFPO members only, and that they receive just one response from each member.

Using individual survey links is also helpful for the response rate. The secure survey platform Blueprint uses, Qualtrics will send automated reminders to those who have not completed surveys without Blueprint researchers needing to access individual responses. This ensures that your identity and responses remain confidential.

Can I share the survey link I receive with others?

The survey link you receive is unique and can only be used by you. As this is not a general link, it is not meant to be shared broadly. Once you have completed the survey that link will no longer be active.

If I don’t complete the survey in one sitting, is that data still captured, and can I finish at another time?

Yes, and yes! Although it is highly recommended that you complete the survey in one sitting, you don’t have to do so. If you complete the survey partially, all the inputted data will still be saved. When you come back to the survey at another time, you can resume where you left off.

What is the deadline to submit the survey?

The deadline to submit the survey is now November 25.

What are you going to do with the collected survey data? Will all members be able to get a breakdown of the results at a regional, local, and sector level?

The goal is for the survey data results to be broken down by a regional, local and sector level.  The data will be analyzed and presented to the OPSEU/SEFPO SMS Committee and Task Force in the new year. Blueprint will present the finalized survey findings and recommendations at the OPSEU/SEFPO Convention in April 2025.

What are you going to do with my data and how are you going to protect it?

Blueprint will be responsible for data collection, analysis and reporting to protect your privacy and confidentiality. The survey data Blueprint collects from you will not be associated with your email or any other identifying information.

The survey data will be stored on Blueprint’s secured encrypted server, accessible to only the core Blueprint team members working on this project. Once they have analyzed the data, Blueprint will present aggregate findings (i.e. a collection of responses) to OPSEU/SEFPO, with zero identifying information attached. After the project is over, Blueprint will destroy all member data from their server securely.

Who is going to see my answers to the survey questions?

Only Blueprint’s core research team working on this project will have access to individual responses, but your answers to the survey questions will not be associated with your email or any other identifying information.  Blueprint’s commitment to ethical research practices ensures that when they share data outside their team, no individual responses will be linked to any identifying information. Therefore, nothing you share, whether in survey or interview, or through an email, phone call or other form, will impact your relationship with your union, your colleagues, your employer or anyone else.

How can I help spread the word?

We are producing a tool kit which will include shareable graphics and template emails/social posts to help spread the word amongst your coworkers, locals, and other union gatherings and communications.

We encourage members to think creatively about how to spread the word about the importance of the Social Mapping Survey and to encourage others to get involved. On Instagram or TikTok? We want to see your reels!

Are there any incentives for participating?

Yes! Blueprint will be conducting a weekly draw of survey participants towards a credit of $100 for the OPSEU/SEFPO Shop throughout the period of data collection.

When the survey closes there will be a draw for four grand prize winners. There will be three prizes at a value of $300 each and one grand prize valued at $1,000.

 Who can I contact if I have questions?

If you have questions related to the OPSEU/SEFPO member portal, including registration and updating your information, please contact [email protected] or your local leaders.

If you have questions about the survey, including support needed and opportunities to complete it in alternative ways, please contact the Blueprint researchers below:

Sheetal Lodhia, Senior Associate, Blueprint, email [email protected], Tel: 226-979-6364
(English, French)

Jing Chong, Senior Associate, Blueprint, email: [email protected],  Tel: 905-730-5091
(English)