2015/16 BCIT FSA Annual Report

2015/16 ANNUAL REPORT

Our VISION

Outstanding careers through
outstanding employment conditions.

It is our MISSION to create an outstanding workplace:
engage, celebrate, protect and make gains for
all our members.

SOCIAL JUSTICE EMPOWERMENT

INFLUENCE Our SOLIDARITY
VALUES

STRENGTH PRINCIPLED ACTION

Office Hours: M-F 8:30am-4:30pm

SE16-116 e: [email protected] Follow Us!
3700 Willingdon Avenue t: 604.432.8695
Burnaby, British Columbia f: 604.432.8348 BCITFSA
Canada V5G 3H2 w: bcitfsa.ca

2 BCIT Faculty & Staff Association Annual Report 2015/16

Message from your President and Executive Director

Teresa Place Paul Reniers
President Executive Director

Positioning “What the FSA has provided me with is a
the FSA community and place for strengthening teaching
for the Future practices, representation, and guidance within
the institution. As an FSA member, I respect the open
forum, discussion and inclusion of member voices on
many of the decisions facing the association.”

Frances McLafferty, Centre for Workplace Education

The FSA’s strategic planning process has matured a lot mediately began considering how we can form new alli-
since we first undertook the effort in 2007. Guided ances to better position ourselves to have an impact on
by mission, vision, and value statements, our third and the next round of bargaining in 2019. That initiative led
current plan is the most sophisticated yet and may ar- the board to endorse our affiliation with the Canadian
guably be the most successful. Over the past year, the Association of University Teachers, a recommendation
FSA tracked quite closely to the first year of the plan. that FSA members ratified in April.
We also saw many of the plan’s assumptions validated,
proving the plan’s relevance in the coming years.

Strategic Plan 2015-18

VISION: Outstanding careers through

outstanding employment conditions

Construction and the Environment

MISSION: Create an outstanding workplace: engage, Computing and
celebrate, protect and make gains for all our Academic Studies

members

OPPORTUNITIES Research and As part of our strategic direction to exercise more in-
International fluence within the post-secondary education sector, we
embarked on a government relations plan with the as-
MEMBERS RIGHTS EDUCATION sistance of a team of public affairs consultants. We set
Business on a path of demonstrating the substantial and innova-
Energy M.O.R.E: tive contributions that FSA members make to the social
Health Members Student Services and economic growth of BC. That effort has been very
Opportunities Transportation well received with MLAs from both major political par-
Rights Learning and Representation ties and the Chiefs of Staff of key ministers reporting
Education Technology Services Negotiation that they were highly impressed with tours provided by
Advocacy the FSA. The work so far has culminated in a very suc-
cessful visit with the FSA by the Minister of Advanced
The end of collective bargaining early in the fiscal year Education.
confirmed important aspects of the FSA’s current state.
We saw that we have the capacity to be influential lead-
ers in our sector and we saw that we are limited in the
gains we can expect to achieve for members on our own.
Coming out of collective bargaining, and in accordance
with our strategic plan, the FSA Board of Directors im-

BCITFSA.CA 3

Our government relations work was one way we carried In addition to reviewing committee appointment prac-
out our mission to celebrate our members. Another tices, we have also undertaken reviews of other opera-
means was through our publications which contained tional systems. We have continued the refinement of
increasing amounts of member content. As we connect the in-take process for member issues, giving members
more with external organizations, we encounter more one initial point of contact and attempting to respond to
and more praise for the quality of our communications enquiries as efficiently as possible. We commissioned
work. By creating more opportunities to profile the in- a study of our information management processes that
teresting work our members do, we are creating a bet- has produced a number of good recommendations to
ter understanding of what BCIT’s faculty and staff are modernize our systematic record keeping. We have
capable of and we are building connections between taken initial steps toward reviewing other business pro-
members. cesses. In co-operation with the FSA staff represented
by CUPE, we have begun preparations for implementing
We have undertaken a re-examination of our committee the national psychological health and safety standard
appointment practices. The strategic plan recognizes within the FSA office.
that committee appointments are an important part of
the collegial governance model on which the rights of The FSA’s current strategic plan is ambitious and trans-
our members are built. Committees also provide op- formative. The membership support for the historic de-
portunities for members to practice and develop skills, cision to affiliate with CAUT confirmed that we are on
gain exposure to BCIT’s decision-making functions, and the right path. We have done much in the last year to
to participate in protecting and advancing the interests position the FSA as a more influential force within BC’s
of the bargaining unit as a whole. As we refresh our post-secondary system. In doing that, we are profiling
appointment practices, we are expecting more account- our members as successful and productive innovators
ability from member volunteers. We want to ensure that and seeking new opportunities for them to share their
the representation we provide on committees is a good accomplishments with colleagues and decision-makers.
representation of the union’s priorities. To make com- At the same time, we are renewing our operations to en-
mittee participation more viable and rewarding, we are sure we maintain the capacity to manage this ambitious
also looking at developing resources to assist volun- agenda. FSA members can be confident that their union
teers. The renewal of our member education program is on a path to protect and advance their interests.
has begun with a focus on collegial practices.

4 BCIT Faculty & Staff Association Annual Report 2015/16

July 2015 2015/16

• Bargaining concludes in a five-year deal HIGHLIGHTS

September 2015 March 2016

• Members ratify collective agreement • FSA fights back plan to limit drug benefit coverage
• Government relations strategy launched • FSA begins regular office hours at the Downtown Campus

October 2015 April 2016

• BCIT 50th Anniversary Gala • FSA members vote to affiliate with CAUT
• FSA’s second Distinguished Alumni Award presented to • FSA members approve dues increase
• Amy Fell announced as winner of the FSA’s third Distinguished
Ralph Hargreaves
• Soft launch of new FSA member education program Alumni Award
• New collective agreement takes effect
May 2016
November 2015
• Government MLAs visit FSA
• Economic Stability Dividend announced, increasing wages 0.45% • Diversity Circles launched
as of May 1, 2016 • Ministerial Chiefs of Staff visit FSA

• FSA attends CAUT Council meeting as guests for the first time June 2016

January 2016 • Inaugural meeting of FSA Caucus for Applied Research and
Advanced Studies
• FSA Board of Directors endorses affiliation with CAUT
• Performance Development System Network launched • Diversity Circles awarded SSHRC funding
• Minister of Advanced Education visits FSA
February 2016

• Letter of Intent on Applied Research signed by FSA and BCIT
• Layoff notices given in Broadcast, Building, and Specialty Nursing
• Provincial Leader of the Official Opposition and caucus members

visit FSA

“The FSA is an entity that connects us all, otherwise we would

work in isolation. Strength comes from that unified body.
I think it’s important that members interact with the
FSA on an ongoing basis, not just when
there is a concern about the
Collective Agreement
or job action.

We best serve our students when there is a cohesive and supportive

relationship between members and the FSA.”

Joan Walker, Faculty, School of Health

Message from your Treasurer Total Revenue - Years Ended June 30

Terry Gordon $1,500,000 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
Treasurer $1,400,000 $19,348 $26,570 $33,991 $29,770 $30,726
$1,300,000 $1,031,222 $1,266,622 $1,326,578 $1,322,737 $1,370,950
Financial $1,200,000
Update $1,100,000
$1,000,000
The FSA finished its 2015-16
fiscal year in a very strong financial $900,000
position with total assets of $2.72 $800,000
million, including cash and short- $700,000
term investments of $2.60 million. $600,000
Membership dues earned during the $500,000
year were $1.37 million, which is $400,000
3.65% higher than the prior year. $300,000
This increase reflects both the small $200,000
wage increases received by FSA
members during the year as well as an INVESTMENT INCOME
increase in the FSA workforce at BCIT.
FSA financial reserves are invested MEMBER DUES
conservatively to preserve value.
Investment income for the year was Operating Results - Years Ended June 30
$31 thousand representing a return
of 1.23% on the average balance of $1,600,000 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
funds invested. The FSA reported its $1,400,000 $1,050,570 $1,293,192 $1,360,569 $1,352,507 $1,401,676
eleventh consecutive annual operating $1,200,000 $980,162 $1,108,989 $1,134,516 $1,201,108 $1,278,557
surplus and was able to increase its $1,000,000 $184,203 $226,053 $151,399 $123,119
strike fund by $72 thousand, to $2.02 $70,408
million. Another $40 thousand of the $800,000
operating surplus was used to increase $600,000
the General Reserve Fund to $325 $400,000
thousand. Other internally restricted $200,000
reserve fund balances on June 30,
2016, totaled $150 thousand. $-

TOTAL REVENUE
OPERATING EXPENSES
OPERATING SURPLUS

Operating Expenses Year Ended June 30, 2016

Salaries, benefits & release Office & administration,
time, $1,035,808 $33,891

Other, $111,725

Legal, audit & consulting,
$97,133

Strike Fund at June 30

$2,100,000 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
$2,000,000 $1,679,876 $1,686,937 $1,831,456 $1,950,071 $2,021,690
$1,900,000
$1,800,000
$1,700,000
$1,600,000
$1,500,000
$1,400,000
$1,300,000
$1,200,000
STRIKE FUND

BCITFSA.CA 7

Putting Our Strategic Plan to Work

The FSA wants M.O.R.E. for FSA members and for post-secondary education. Our

current strategic plan is built on these pillars: Members, Opportunities, Rights,
Mand Education. O
embers are at the core of all pportunities for members are
that the FSA does and the reason it exists. FSA continuously being sought by the FSA. The FSA
membersare integraltoBCIT.Ourmembersteach, Board of Directors and staff look for opportunities
support, research, and provide the knowledge, for members to connect with each other and
experience, and connection to industry that share ideas and to collaborate. We have approved
attracts BCIT students and prepares them for affiliation with the Canadian Association of
the workplace and for fulfilling careers. The University Teachers to create opportunities to learn
FSA Vision—“Outstanding careers through from and work with faculty associations from across
outstanding employment conditions”—applies the country to influence our key stakeholders. We
both to members and the students to whom create opportunities to highlight the amazing work
they are committed. We are driven to enact this of our members and make sure members’ voices
vision so our members will have diverse and are heard on matters that they care about and are
interesting careers while they help others build invested in.
outstanding careers for themselves.

We are inviting members to speak at In implementing our government
Tech Rep meetings to share stories relations strategy, we invite members
from their recent PD experiences so that to share the stories of their work with
members have a chance to hear about
what their colleagues are learning and to decision makers.
consider opportunities for their own PD.

8

R E
ights for members are our core ducation is not just what our members
means of creating an outstanding workplace and do, but what the union does as well. The FSA has
creating opportunities for members. Protecting and a strong focus on educating members about their
advancing our rights is the daily work of the FSA’s rights, and does this in part through supporting
professional staff, guided by our mission to “Create our Tech Reps and, through them, all members
an outstanding workplace: engage, celebrate, who make BCIT a great Institute. The FSA rolls out
protect and make gains for all our members.” Our education through Tech Reps and at program/
principled approach to the challenge of representing, department meetings, our website, and one-on-one
negotiating, and advocating for members is one that meetings. Knowing and understanding our collective
strengthens us. Without staff who are dedicated agreement rights empowers members to stand up
to the union movement and to FSA members, we for their rights and those of their colleagues.
would have very little to celebrate. Their hard work
contributes to our members having outstanding
careers.

Our labour relations team continues Our current education initiative provides
to use a system-wide lens when rights departments with an opportunity to learn
violations transpire, seeking to address about their rights and responsibilities,
thereby strengthening working conditions
issues and also prevent them
from recurring. for all.

Together we are stronger.

BCITFSA.CA 9

Message from your Member Engagement Team negotiation and advocacy work and will be the basis for
consultations on the next collective agreement starting
18 months from now.

In addition to seeking input and feedback from the

membership through surveys about our presence at

the downtown campus and our general meetings,

Kyla Epstein Maria Angerilli Marian Ciccone we connected online and in-person with groups of
Office members on a variety of matters. The list includes the
Member Engagement Executive development of an FSA research caucus; the members’
Officer Assistant Assistant

experiences in our education sessions; processes in

their departments; member participation on committees

and as Tech Reps. This is in addition to the input

from dozens of members that FSA staff and directors

MareemtbheersFSA encounter through conversations and meetings.

Members are continuously generous with their time,
their responses, and their knowledge. At the FSA, we
know that time is precious to our members and we
seek to value and acknowledge it. We continue to look
for ways to add value to the lives of members at work
and beyond. Engaging with members in dialogue about
the decision to affiliate with CAUT provided us with

opportunities to hear from members we don’t always

meet. We were encouraged by the questions we were

asked and the willingness of members to listen to how

this affiliation has the potential to make us better at

everything we do. We also heard that members expect

to see clear demonstrations of the value that CAUT

A Post-It note is not only my favourite office supply, it membership brings us.

is also an opportunity to contribute - any FSA member

who has been in a session with me knows that. This

past year has built on our commitment to fostering a

well-informed and engaged membership in order to

strengthen the FSA as a voice for, and of, members.

The year began with one of our primary purposes for
consulting and engaging the membership: ratification
of the collective agreement. Despite the relief of
getting substantial improvements to the agreement,
members also made clear their concerns about the
lack of improvements for Part-Time Studies Instructors,
research, Assistant Instructors and Technical Staff.
That feedback became the starting point for continued

1 deliciou 2015/16 MEMBER ENG
Tec Rep Ic Crea Socia
11 group consultation sessions

1 FSA Distinguished CAUT AFFILIATION APPROVED
Alumni Award
presented 24 member speakers at FSA meetings MAY DAY celebration
with 2 other unions

Drawing out the knowledge and experience of FSA departmental rights and responsibilities has reminded
members has allowed us to: me of two important factors of our work. First, where
we have rights, we also have correlating duties and by
• Implement a successful first year of the FSA exercising those rights and performing those duties,
government relations strategy our members contribute to better decision-making and
a more psychologically healthy and safer workplace.
• Produce a report on the Canada Research Chair Second, the FSA is here to counter abuses that any
(CRC) selection process at BCIT member may experience and we have many ways we can
do this. We can work with members to seek resolution
• Form the FSA Caucus for Applied Research and and to repair harm.
Advanced Studies

• Launch the (now SSHRC-funded) FSA Diversity
Circles project: An Indigenous model for post-
secondary teachers and academic staff to utilize
professional mentoring and community outreach
for engaging student and community diversity.

DIVERSITY CIRCLES

The Diversity Circles project exemplifies what’s possible As the FSA board drafts its first equity policy, considers
when members work together with the FSA. The the recommendations coming out of the Truth &
potential to build an effective model to engage with Reconciliation report, and plans for its first campaign to
increasingly diverse student and employee populations celebrate Fair Employment Week, we remain committed
in positive, sensitive, and strategic ways recognizes the to see that every Post-It note, every conversation, and
intricacy of our members’ working lives. The FSA, with every hour given by a member enriches the FSA and our
the involvement of its members, can build capacity, members’ lives.
foster resilience, and make BCIT work better for its
faculty, staff, and students.

Listening to FSA labour relations representatives provide
education sessions to members on their collective

A G E M E N T S N A P S H O T 6 member profile
a Tech Rep meeting in the BCIT Planetarium! i th
FSA VOICE
Diversity Circles Launched

15 surveys to groups of members
32 individual meetings

COLLECTIVE AGREEMENT RATIFIEDwith members
BCITFSA.CA 11

Message from your Labour Relations Team

Heather Neun Ken Howie Christine Nagy Tess Rebbitt Sascha Swartz “The FSA has supported ISEP instructors
Union Counsel Labour Relations Labour Relations countless times over the past 8 years.
Representative Representative Labour Relations Labour Relations They have taken on our right to better
Representative Information Officer
work conditions in terms of personal leave
and instructor hours.”

Kimberly Thompson, ISEP

Labour Relations Defending the Rights of Precariously
Priorities: Employed Members
A Year in Focus
• The team continued to defend the rights of FSA
The FSA’s labour relations staff continue to take a members with the least amount of protection, our
strategic approach to our work, seeking not only to members in Part-Time Studies (PTS) and members
correct injuries to individual members but also to on temporary contracts.
address the sources of the issues so that other members
don’t face similar problems. This approach may involve • We challenged BCIT’s decisions to improperly
a variety of tactics that go beyond filing grievances. contract new programs or convert existing programs
Pushing the employer to address the root causes of to PTS or temporary employment work.
problems consumes more staff resources and can take
time. However, our success in several areas over the • We resuscitated the Article 20 PTS Committee and
past year demonstrates the value of these efforts. began pressing the Institute to explain its decisions
to deny the application of important collective
agreement provisions and rights to our members in
the PTS instructor group.

• We advocated strongly for dignity and other values
associated with extending the rights of these
members to consultation and involvement in
department or program decisions that have a major
effect on these members and on the quality of BCIT
education.

• We challenged BCIT to defend its decisions to
abridge PTS instructors’ rights of academic freedom
and security of employment (“the right to normally
be rehired”).

12 BCIT Faculty & Staff Association Annual Report 2015/16 Cultivating Peace of Mind

• The FSA knows that unresolved conflict can
be exhausting and damaging to our members’
psychological health and well-being, as well as to
employee motivation and productivity. The FSA
continued to work to make management accountable
for addressing all forms of unacceptable,
disrespectful conduct in the workplace.

• The team provided ongoing advice and advocacy to
members unsure about their rights or requesting the
FSA’s intervention.

Full Compensation for Work Performed 2015/16
LR STATS
• We ensured that BCIT was treating all of our members
equally by paying administrative allowances to 470 274
everyone who is earning those allowances. inquiries received student employee
through our intake requests were
• We pressed for certainty around the justification and process (compared to reviewed
process for paying the lower Level 2 administrative 395 the previous year)
allowances.
78 1
• We corrected the Institute’s poor processes and
communication around at-barrier placement for Tech contracting-out “Collective Agreement
Staff. requests reviewed memag” of

• We made sure that members were placed at and paid for the FSA general application
the appropriate steps on the applicable salary scales. bargaining unit

• We tackled workload issues in relation to overloaded
departments and individual members.

Respecting the FSA Bargaining Unit
and Defending Important Departmental
Rights

• We successfully challenged an improper contracting
out of FSA bargaining unit work.

• We educated numerous members about their rights
as members of their department to be authentically
consulted on issues such as setting department
objectives and addressing important educational
matters.

Looking Ahead to 2016/17

The work of the FSA will continue under the direction of our 2015-18 strategic plan. Our efforts this year will
be focused on fulfilling the potential of the internal and external engagement work done over the past year and
realizing some of the operational improvements that we have undertaken.

External Opportunities

In November, CAUT will vote on admitting the FSA as a member. We have already begun building new relationships
with other BC faculty associations and other unions across the post-secondary system and this work will intensify
with an eye to the 2019 round of bargaining. If our membership is approved, FSA members will be better
informed about developments in our sector nationally and have more opportunities to engage with colleagues
at other institutions. FSA advocates and negotiators will also have better access to information to protect and
advance member rights.

Our government relations strategy will continue to highlight the innovative contributions FSA members make to
the social and economic prosperity of BC. That work will take us into a provincial election in May 2017 during
which we hope all major parties will recognize BCIT as an important provincial resource worthy of further support.

Internal Engagement

The FSA will continue to develop new and relevant means of providing members with the resources that they need
to have an outstanding career at BCIT. The federal grant for the Diversity Circles project, led by FSA Directors Zaa
Joseph and Shannon Kelly, will create many opportunities for members to learn and develop strategies to more
successfully reach students from all backgrounds. FSA staff will be giving a lot of attention to the development
of our own educational program with new and improved workshops and educational materials to assist members
in accessing and protecting their rights. We are working on a comprehensive member survey to measure and
document the attitudes of FSA members and the impact of FSA activities.

Advancing Rights

Even though we are a long way from the next round of collective bargaining, the work of advancing member rights
continues. We are examining our internal processes to ensure that our representation work is as responsive and
effective as we can make it. We will look to our education program to provide members with information and
skills to represent themselves and their colleagues in departmental, school, and Institute level committees and
processes. Research will continue to be a focus of labour-management discussions as we complete negotiations
under the Letter of Intent signed by BCIT and the FSA in February. We will invest further in our strategies to
address issues relating to the use of PTS contracts.

Improving Operations

The evolution of the FSA as an organization will continue in a thoughtful and planned manner in the coming year.
The review of our information management systems conducted this spring has produced many recommendations
to be implemented in the coming months. We are also beginning work on implementing the national psychological
health and safety standard within the FSA office. We recognize that an emotionally safe and supportive environment
for our staff is not only the right thing to do, but will also help ensure the continued high quality of service the
FSA members want. The collective agreement between the FSA and its staff expires at the end of April 2017 and
bargaining towards its renewal is expected to begin well before then.

14

“I am a First Nations man born in Victoria
and raised in Vancouver as well as often spending
time in the Tl’azt’en Nation traditional territory, a First Nations
reserve community in Northern BC. I have always seen the FSA as
important for establishing my rights as an employee under our collective
agreement. I also feel it is important to be part of a community as an employee
at BCIT. The FSA has now also contributed to community in the workplace and
has allowed me to meet others within the institution I may not otherwise have
met. Musi Cho (Thank you)!”

Zaa Joseph, Aboriginal Services

FSA Board of Directors

Current (2016/17) Past (2015/16)

Teresa Place, President Teresa Place, President
Kenzie Woodbridge, Vice-President Silvia Raschke, Vice-President
Terry Gordon, Treasurer
Terry Gordon, Treasurer Karl Hildebrandt, Director-at-Large
Karl Hildebrandt, Director-at-Large Zaa Joseph, Director-at-Large
Shannon Kelly, Director-at-Large
Zaa Joseph, Director-at-Large Paul Mills, Director, Associate Members
Shannon Kelly, Director-at-Large Joe Newton, Director-at-Large
Paul Mills, Director, Associate Members Ted Rutledge, Director, Associate Members
Kenzie Woodbridge, Director-at-Large
Joe Newton, Director-at-Large
Silvia Raschke, Director-at-Large
Ted Rutledge, Director, Associate Members

FSA Office Staff

Paul Reniers, Executive Director
Maria Angerilli, Executive Assistant

Heather Neun, Union Counsel
Ken Howie, Labour Relations Representative
Christine Nagy, Labour Relations Representative
Tess Rebbitt, Labour Relations Representative
Sascha Swartz, Labour Relations Information Officer

Marian Ciccone, Office Assistant
Kyla Epstein, Member Engagement Officer