BCIT FSA

Questions of the Week

December 05, 2025

Q: I’ve seen the Bulletin mention that it is the duty of Department Selection Committees to recommend salary scale placement for new FSA hires. But how am I supposed to know where to properly place someone?

A: Placement criteria for FSA job categories are set out in Article 11 of the Collective Agreement. These criteria are also detailed in the placement forms that should be completed by Departmental Selection Committees. The forms are available under the Recruitment/Selection Committees section, FSA subsection on the employer’s HR Forms page and should typically be supplied to the Committee by the employer. While the Collective Agreement states that Departmental Selection Committees recommend placement, the Dean or their equivalent may disagree with that recommendation; however, they must provide their reasons in writing to the Committee.

For new hires, a letter of analysis explaining their initial placement must accompany the appointment letter. New hires have six months to challenge their initial placement by appealing to the Institute Placement Committee. In addition, temporary employees who are hired into a regular position may have their probation period reduced by the Selection Committee under certain circumstances (Article 12.5.2, p. 79). Please be in touch if you have questions.

Q: I’m hoping to get some clarification on Departmental processes. If there are 13 FSA members in my Department, does each person and the manager receive one vote (for a total of 14)? Or is it interpreted as one vote for the whole FSA team and one vote for the manager? Does the manager have the ability to veto a Departmental majority if they don’t approve of the outcome.

A: Each person in a Department and their related manager receive one vote. In the example you give, this would indeed be 14 votes in total. A Department is defined in our Collective Agreement as “the Employees and the related Manager in one of the units designated as a Department by Memorandum of Agreement, or by Appendix III,” in which “each member of the Department shall participate in deliberations and decisions with a single voice and a single vote” (p. 3) The Department is the base or substructure upon which the practices of Article 14 collegial governance rights are built, in part, by and for our members. The Department is the authorial body for some 30 or more democratic rights our members enjoy—and over which the manager does not have veto power by the terms of the Collective Agreement. Please reach out if your Department is interested in Article 14 Collegial Governance Rights Training. Contact us if you have questions.

November 07, 2025

Q: I know that a number of Departments at BCIT have received training on how to use their collegial governance rights. How do I sign my Department up for this training?

A: Article 14 collegial governance rights are a lynchpin of this Collective Agreement. The article grants substantial authority to our members—collectively, within their Department, alongside their related manager—to govern the Department’s day-to-day operations. This includes establishing terms of reference consistent with the Collective Agreement, developed through normal procedural rules. Responsibility for Departmental planning and decision-making rests with the Department as a democratic body. To support this, the FSA has, in recent years, placed emphasis on helping members exercise and strengthen their Departmental Rights. Please reach out to us to receive Article 14 Rights and Responsibilities Training.

Q: I saw that the BCGEU has reached a tentative agreement with the province. Can we expect to get what they got?

A: The tentative main agreement between the BCGEU and provincial government is available here. The public-service component of the BCGEU still needs to ratify the agreement—or not. Voting on the agreement will close on November 13, 2025. At this time, we cannot definitively say that the total wage increase achieved by the BCGEU through eight grueling weeks of job action will be duplicated in the general wage increase mandate for unionized public-sector workers. If past patterns hold, however, we do anticipate that the BCGEU agreement will form the basis of the eventual public-sector mandate.

Q: With the BCGEU reaching a tentative agreement, do you think that bargaining will move more quickly for the FSA?

A: The employer has asked, and the FSA Bargaining Team has agreed, to cancel bargaining sessions this week. Our next bargaining days are scheduled for early in the new year. The intervening period is likely to allow the government to set the general wage mandate for unionized public-sector workers and our respective bargaining teams to adapt strategy in response. We do not anticipate a significant delay or, conversely, any expediency due to the tentative BCGEU settlement—which has yet to be ratified.

Collective bargaining follows a multi-step process. In recent rounds, the negotiation of a new CA for FSA members has typically concluded in about one year and included around 15 to 20 meetings between the respective bargaining teams.

November 14, 2025

Q: I’ve been at BCIT for just over a year, and it looks like I may need to take some significant time off to address some family issues that have recently come up. Have I been here long enough to be eligible for that?

A: Leaves are covered in Article 9 of the Collective Agreement. You may be most interested in General Purpose Leave Without Pay for Regular Employees, which is outlined in 9.7 (pp. 52 – 53). Under this contract language, such leaves may be granted or extended to a total of three years (9.7.2) and shall not be withheld unreasonably. Indeed, the granting of such leave shall be limited only by the availability of a suitable replacement (9.7.1). In short, the FSA is not aware of any minimum amount of time one needs to be employed here before they can take 9.7 leave.

Depending on your particular situation, you may have other options as well. Please contact us if you have questions.

Q: Another FSA member in my Department is not living up to the basic requirements of their role. Can the FSA bring a case against them?

A: It’s in the labour relationship between the employer (BCIT/management) and you (FSA member) that the FSA supports you. We do this by improving your working conditions and making sure that the employer and its representatives do not violate the Collective Agreement, established practice, or labour and human rights law. On the other hand, if you believe that you’re being bullied or harassed, you may seek out the Respect, Diversity, Inclusion Office, who may be able to adjudicate the matter.

November 21, 2025

Q: The union side of a Departmental Selection Committee I’m sitting on is having trouble choosing between candidates. How do we come to a conclusion while respecting the Collective Agreement?

A: In our guide—which members should review before the committee sits—the FSA strongly recommends appointing an odd number of union members to avoid ties in union voting. Being that you’re past that point, Article 5.2.3.3.3 (p. 23) asks for the Selection Committee to “prepare a report which shall include a written statement of criteria used in preparing the shortlist. Criteria shall be based on: Faculty, Assistant Instructors, or Technical Staff responsibilities as outlined in Article 1, relevant Appendices and Memoranda of Agreement, specific job duties, and a job description if one exists for the position.” If such criteria have been established, hopefully proceeding in good faith through rational argumentation resolves the deadlock among FSA members. Revisiting the Selection Committee language in 5.2.3 (pp. 22-23) may in general be helpful as well. Remember also that the weighting of the committee vote is meant to be 50% FSA members in the Program Group and 50% management.

Q: I heard that Departmental Selection Committees should be recommending a new FSA hire’s pay scale. How does this work?

A: Yes, indeed, one of the responsibilities of the Departmental Selection Committee is to “recommend placement of the prospective Employee on the salary scale” (Article 5.2.3.3.5, p. 23). This may be included with the forwarding of the committee’s recommendations. The Dean or equivalent will review the new employee’s placement on the salary scale thereafter (Articles 11.2.5, p. 69; 11.4.3, p. 71; and 11.6.4, p. 74). If disagreement occurs, the Dean or equivalent is required to provide a rationale in writing to the committee. See our blog post on placement and advancement for more information. In addition, temporary employees who are hired into a regular position may have their probation period reduced by the Selection Committee under certain circumstances (Article 12.5.2, page 79).

New hires have six months to appeal their placement to the Institute Placement Committee (IPC). Contact us if you have questions.

Q: I’m wondering whether AIs (Assistant Instructors) get On-Duty/Off-Campus shifts for Winter Break.

A: To paraphrase a 1975 agreement we signed with the employer: if Faculty and AIs do not have a class or other committed on-campus duty, they are expected to manage their own time, whether on or off campus.

This practice is further outlined in Article 8.7.1 of the Collective Agreement (pp. 39-40), which states: “For Regular and Temporary Instructional Employees, Term, Spring and Winter break periods are not considered vacation periods. Duty allocations during Term, Spring, and Winter break periods shall be decided by each Department, consistent with fair treatment for each Employee within the Department, and any Employee without such assigned duty shall not be required to be in attendance at the Institute.”

This year, the employer has agreed that non-instructional employees may be on duty, off campus December 22, 23, 29, 30, and January 2. Christmas Eve Day, Christmas, Boxing Day, New Year’s Eve Day, and New Year’s Day are holidays.

November 28, 2025

Q: I’m Faculty. Do I need to be on campus for my Month Free of Teaching (MFOT)?

A: This is a question we receive fairly frequently, so we have an FAQ that addresses it (under the Collective Agreement Rights heading). Article 8.6.1 of the Collective Agreement provides Teaching Faculty (not Specialized Faculty, Assistant Instructors, or Instructors working in PTS) one month “…free of teaching and student evaluation (examination, marking and marks review) duties.” Subject to the duties assigned to you by your Department, you are not required to be in attendance at the Institute during your MFOT. If you are not on campus during this month, you are considered “on-duty, off campus.” The Collective Agreement does not list any specific activities or deliverables for the MFOT. Responsibility for assigning duties to be undertaken during this month resides with the members of your Department.

While many Faculty use all or part of June as their MFOT, there is nothing in the Collective Agreement that requires your MFOT be taken in June. Subject to the requirements of your Department, the MFOT may also be scheduled in segments rather than continuously. We are aware of some Faculty, for example, who spread their month over the entire summer, while others take half of their MFOT in June and the other half in August. MFOT does not count against other breaks, such as vacation or the Christmas break period.

Q: We haven’t received a bargaining update in a while. When will the next one be coming?

A: Bargaining is currently on a bit of a hiatus until the new year. The next FSA bargaining update will most likely be published once the province releases its public sector bargaining mandate, which will set the monetary terms of bargaining. We will also provide an update following the next round of bargaining sessions, which will take place in the new year. However, we anticipate that the mandate will be released before we next sit down at the bargaining table with the employer.

October 3, 2025

Q: Our Department has been approved to implement a major program change for a diploma program, which includes developing several new courses. Our AD requested a budget estimate for this work, with the expectation that it would be done through contracts since it exceeds regular faculty duties. Management now suggests that no contracts will be offered and that our non-teaching month is sufficient. While curriculum development is part of faculty duties, the scope of this work far exceeds what could reasonably be expected. Can you provide guidance on how we might push for fair compensation?

A: There are two key points to emphasize in order to answer your question:

Collegial governance: Duties during the Month Free of Teaching (MFOT) are decided democratically by the Department (one vote each to each member, including the AD). Assigning development work during the MFOT is reasonable if there are no other conflicting high priority items to accomplish in that month. Articles 14.2 and 14.3 cover planning and appeals; Article 8.8 covers workloading and its appeals. Consensus is ideal, but majority rules.
Limits on non-contact work: The Collective Agreement prohibits increasing traditional non-contact hours without approval from both the individual and the union (Article 8.2.2). A typical 35-hour week for MFOT is reasonable; more may trigger a grievance.

Next steps: call a Department meeting, plan and assign MFOT work within traditional norms, and push for contracts or additional hires if extra work is needed. The FSA offers training on collegial governance, including on PD Day or by request. Contact us to set up this training.

Q: Does it matter if I have another job while I work at BCIT?

A: Employees at BCIT owe their employer a duty of fidelity and commitment, and this obligation is generally stricter for full-time BCIT employees than for those who work only a few hours per week. BCIT’s Policy 1500 addresses potential conflicts of commitment (pp. 5-7). While the full policy is worth reviewing, subsection (c), Outside Remuneration, is especially relevant. It expressly permits paid employment outside BCIT, provided certain conditions are met. These include, but are not limited to: the outside work must not interfere with an employee’s BCIT duties; it must not create a real, perceived, or potential conflict of interest; and it must not involve the use of BCIT space or equipment.

The policy also requires employees to disclose any real, perceived, or potential conflicts of interest (p. 4). We encourage members—particularly those who are full-time or have a substantial time commitment to BCIT—to report outside employment. You should disclose such work and speak with your manager.

Q: I’m a Specialized Faculty member (Full-Time, Regular) and I feel like I’m being overworked. How do I redress this?

A: According to Article 8.2, a full-time workload for Specialized Faculty is 35 hours per week, unless otherwise agreed upon (p. 37). For Specialized Faculty, workload Dispute Resolution is covered in Article 8.9 (p. 41), which details the process for non-instructional staff to dispute workload assignments.

Employees (individually or in groups) may file disputes by submitting written explanations to their Department. The Department must respond in writing within five working days, explaining its decision. If unresolved, the complaint may be escalated to the Dean/Director, who investigates and provides written recommendations within five working days. Should the matter remain unresolved, it can then be referred to the Non-Instructional Workload Disputes Committee, composed of equal representation from the FSA and management, which would hear the complaint. The Panel must issue findings and recommendations within ten working days. Within five working days of receiving the Panel’s decision, the Dean/Director and Department must inform the Vice-President(s) and FSA how they will implement the recommendations or otherwise resolve outstanding issues.

Additionally, it’s worth keeping in mind that although the Collective Agreement is prescriptive when it comes to timelines, often these are extended due to the realities of participant calendars.

October 10, 2025

Q: Is the month free of teaching (MFOT) meant to be consecutive time? Does it count as vacation?

A: Article 8.6 of the Collective Agreement (p. 39) grants teaching Faculty (not Specialized Faculty, Assistant Instructors, or PTS Instructors) one month free of teaching and student evaluation duties. You are not required to be on campus, unless assigned specific duties by your Department, but considered “on duty, off campus.” MFOT scheduling is flexible: it can be taken in full or in segments, at any time of year. It is not vacation nor a Term, Spring, or Winter break.

Q: I just found out that a Department in our School is without a Tech Rep. Can I volunteer for the position?

A: Technical Representatives (Tech Reps) represent Areas rather than Departments, although in practice these are often the same. There is nothing in our by-laws that prevents a member from representing an Area other than their own. However, the Area in question would need to select a Tech Rep through its preferred process.

To serve effectively as a Tech Rep in any Area, it is important to maintain regular communication with the members you represent. This includes making your role known, being available to triage concerns and offer guidance, and relaying relevant information from Tech Rep and general meetings back to the membership. If you are able to manage those responsibilities, you will do an excellent job.

October 17, 2025

Q: In the latest Bargaining Dispatch, the FSA uses the terms “housekeeping items” and “bargaining protocols.” What do these mean?

A: “Housekeeping,” in this context, refers to amendments to a collective agreement that involve correcting typographical errors, refining punctuation, or updating language for clarity—amendments that do not, in other words, alter substantive meaning or value within the agreement.

A “Bargaining Protocol Agreement” is a document signed at the outset of collective bargaining. It outlines the procedures by which the negotiations will be conducted, possibly including provisions like the location of meetings, the process for exchanging proposals, and how the parties may communicate with their principles.

Q: Our Manulife coverage limit for acupuncture is $250 annually, which does not even cover two visits at the current rates charged by the clinic I attend. Given that a treatment plan often requires a block of five or more sessions, this limit is quite restrictive. Are there any discussions underway about increasing acupuncture coverage or providing members with a general health spending account that allows greater flexibility in choosing professional treatments?

A: Our Bargaining Team has recently reviewed all our benefits to identify areas for improvement, drawing on data from our member survey and other member discussions. Acupuncture was part of that review.

The guidance we’ve received from experts in benefits bargaining is that health care spending accounts generally provide much less overall value than our current system of itemized benefits. In particular, members who make more claims than the average could end up at a significant disadvantage and paying out of pocket for services that would otherwise have been covered.

Q: Our Department consists of three (3) FSA members. Given our size, how would a Program Head be appointed? Would they be elected?

A: The general outline for appointing a Program Head is covered in Section 5.2.4.1 of the Collective Agreement. Recommendations for Program Head or other Departmental Administrative Positions “shall be made by the Department through the Manager or equivalent to the Employer” (p. 24). In practical terms, this Article means that any vote or recommendation concerning such an appointment would involve the three FSA Department members in conjunction with their respective Manager. In most cases, but especially given the relatively small size of your Department, the most effective approach will be to strive for consensus wherever feasible.

Q: I’m wondering how long I should anticipate bargaining to take this round.

A: If recent history provides the precedent—and there is of course no guarantee that it does—then we should anticipate the negotiation of a new Collective Agreement to conclude in approximately one year and involve around 20 meetings between the respective bargaining teams. Please see our brand new Bargaining FAQ page for more information.

October 24, 2025

Q: I read recently that we’ve been working without a Collective Agreement since July. Does this mean that we can’t claim things usually covered by our benefits?

A: You’re still able to claim benefits as you otherwise would. We cover this question, and others, in our Bargaining FAQ. In a nutshell, even though our Collective Agreement has expired, nothing about your current terms of employment changes. All provisions of the previous contract remain fully in effect—including your salary, benefits, and access to professional development funds—until a new agreement is reached and ratified. There is a caveat to this, however. In the event of a strike or lockout, the employer may choose to rescind or modify the terms of a collective agreement. But this would be left entirely to the employer’s discretion.

Q: I’m a regular full-time member currently on sick leave. I’ve instructed a course in PTS for the last few years, and I feel like I can still handle my PTS class but not my full-time duties. Can I still teach this class?

A: As a general rule, if you’re too ill to perform your regular duties, you shouldn’t be teaching PTS on the side, nor working elsewhere. There may be rare, medically supported exceptions. Please contact us if you have questions.

October 31, 2025

Q: I was wondering if the FSA could propose to add in the Collective Agreement that faculty can increase a step on the salary scale if they complete an associate Certificate for Polytechnic Teaching that is offered at BCIT.

A: The language in the Collective Agreement that allows Faculty to move up an additional step based on achievement—beyond their annual step increase—can be found in Article 11.3.7 (p. 70). We encourage any member who has completed an educational or professional achievement (including the Polytechnic Teaching Certificate) that they believe meets the criteria outlined in this section to submit an application to the Institute Placement Committee (IPC). We strongly recommend including details about the workload and hours involved in completing the achievement, as this information helps the committee make a well-informed comparison to previously approved certifications.

Q: I’m looking through the Collective Agreement and can’t find our life insurance benefits. What’s my coverage?

A: Life insurance coverage is detailed in your benefits booklet, which can be found for both regular and temporary employees here, with the caveat that members “who have completed the duty year in which their 65th birthday falls and who elect to continue their employment will be entitled to Group Life insurance in the amount of $10,000 until age 70.” (Article 17.2, p. 120)

September 5, 2025

Q: I have said in the past that “the term Service Department does not exist in the Collective Agreement,” only “Department.” Now I’m second guessing myself. Was I correct?

A: You were right: it isn’t in there. Colloquially, “Service Department” could mean a Department that provides instruction for other Departments—say the way that Engineering students may take Communications classes taught by the latter—and Departments like ITS that provide support. There is indeed no distinction in the Collective Agreement between such kinds of Departments, service and other. A Department is a Department.

Q: I know that our Collective Agreement expired at the end of June. Does that mean we’re working without a contract? When will bargaining begin for our next contract?

A: Legally, when a collective agreement in BC lapses, the terms of that agreement remain in force until such time that a lockout or strike occurs, or a new Collective Agreement is ratified. Subsequently, an employer may then make changes to the contract like removing benefits or denying wages.

This summer, the FSA served notice to BCIT management to begin bargaining, with the first negotiation session scheduled to take place in early October.

To keep up to date with the latest in bargaining, members should continue reading the Weekly E-Bulletin and/or check the FSA’s Bargaining Communiques.

September 12, 2025

Q: At an orientation session last week, an FSA representative mentioned that we can challenge where we’ve been placed on the wage ladder. How would I go about doing this?

A: New members have six months from their date of appointment to appeal their placement on the wage scale to the Institute Placement Committee (IPC). Members are often successful in these appeals, even in cases where an initial challenge is denied.

Last summer, FSA Member Engagement Officer Matt Greaves sat down with Counselling faculty member Ray deVries, who shared how their Department successfully appealed initial placement through the IPC. The FSA encourages members to discuss this right with colleagues to ensure newcomers are aware of the opportunity.

The first step in appealing your placement is to contact your HR representative to let them know that you believe you’ve been misplaced. If you are unsatisfied with their answer, please contact us.

Q: With BCIT cancelling its 2025 Distinguished Awards, will the FSA present its Distinguished Alumni Award?

A: In the spring, FSA leadership agreed to postpone the selection of our Distinguished Alumni Award until 2026, aligning with BCIT’s next Distinguished Awards presentation.

September 19, 2025

Q: Another member mentioned that they read in a past Weekly E-Bulletin that managers don’t oversee the vacation selection process for FSA members. Does this mean the decision is left to the individual member?

A: Not exactly, but you’re not far off either. The Collective Agreement requires that the Department (which is defined as all the FSA employees and their related manager [like an AD] in one of the units specified by Appendix III in the Collective Agreement, with each individual holding one vote) plan a vacation calendar. This is covered in Article 9.2.3.1 (p. 44), which says that: “An Employee has the right to select a vacation period, and may take it in a continuous period or in segments at the option of the Employee subject to a schedule established by the Department, with notification to the Dean.”

As we noted in the previous E-Bulletin: A good practice is to have the Department list the times that its members may use their vacation days. After establishing vacation slots, members may then select what days they wish to take vacation, which is done in consultation with the Department as a whole. Ideally, members would select the days with as much advance notice as possible, although some people may book at the last minute. As a Department, you should work this out with each other as a collective unit.

Q: Will there be any efforts to win higher raises for members who work in Departments that have trouble hiring?

A: Wage increases across the unionized public sector in BC and at BCIT are uniform. Pattern bargaining ensures as much. This means that all of our members receive the same base percentage wage increase unless there is a distinction made between hourly and salary rates. This happened in the first year of the 2022-25 agreement, in which public-sector employees received an increase of either $0.25/hour for hourly rates or $455 for annual salary scales, plus 3.24%. But I digress. When members have in the recent past attempted to achieve a market-differential top-up for their Department, it has been unsuccessful.

Q: For the next round of contract, I’d like to see more control over workload and Workloading.

A: Workload comes under Article 8 of the Collective Agreement. Workloading is determined by the Department, not by your manager, as an Article 14 collegial governance right. Under this provision, the Department already holds robust rights in the democratic determination of member workloading, which is set by the Department or its delegate.

Q: I requested that the Manager of Labour Relations at BCIT remove a Letter from my employee file (see Article 7.2.6), but this request was denied. What’s my next step?

A: If you still wish to have the Letter removed, your next step is to appeal the Manager of Labour Relations’ decision to the Labour/Management Committee. See Article 7.2.7 for more information on this process. At the same time, please inform the FSA of your situation.

Q: I don’t really want to buy American right now. Does anyone in the house of Canadian labour publish a ‘buy union’ list for Canadian goods and services?

A: Yes, the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC), a federal affiliate, has just such a website. On first glance there are, however, omissions. The United Food and Commercial Workers Local (UFCW) 1518’s page for its Vancouver shops has unionized locations not covered in the CLC’s page, although these are only UFCW 1518 shops.

September 26, 2025

Q: With the growth of some of the programs in our School and the portfolio of the program head therefore increasing, I’m wondering whether there is any way to get Program Heads (or other Departmental Administrative Positions) more support for the work.

A: If there are increases to your Program Head’s workload, it’s worth underscoring that it is the Department that determines release time for Program heads: “The Department may, if it wishes, make recommendations for terms of reference” and “[t]he Union Employees in the Program, with the participation of the Associate Dean or equivalent having one vote, shall determine in accordance with the Collective Agreement Release Time for the Program Head and other supervisory personnel within the Bargaining Unit” (Articles 5.2.4.2 and 5.2.4.3, p. 24). In other words, if workload is increasing for the Program Head, the Department, acting as a deliberative body or delegating that responsibility, may change the terms of the reference for the position, including workload or release time. The Department can attempt to alleviate overwork issues. Any increase to Program- Head allowances would be determined in collective bargaining with the Institute.

Q: Is the FSA considering including clear language about the need for the Program Heads to be rotated or posted every three years? What happens if a sitting Program Head does not want to leave the role after three years?

A: The language in Article 5.2.4 (p. 24) does not limit a DAP holder to three years. This is only the term of the position. Incumbents wishing to retain the position are free to seek nomination or appointment unless your Department has democratically created terms of reference prohibiting as much. To wit: “The Department may, if it wishes, make recommendations for terms of reference, including the term of appointment and provisions for recall, for positions referred to in Article 5.2.4.1 to the Employer, but in any case the new appointment shall be for a period not exceeding three (3) years and shall be renewable” (p. 24). How a member comes to hold a DAP position is up to the Department. It is a Department right.

Q: I am wondering about the scope of duties that Program Heads should be assigned and involved with in their roles. Is there a comprehensive list of what sorts of things PHs are tasked with or does this depend on what each Department decides? My question, more generally, I suppose is: at what point does the Program Head role end and the manager role begin? I worry that our Program Head is doing what our manager should be doing i.e., the manager is offloading what should be their responsibility onto our PH.

A: Program Heads and other FSA members holding what we call Departmental Administrative Positions (DAPs) (Article 5.2.4, p. 24), are not a manager to you, any other FSA member, or any BCGEU colleague. DAP holders take on administrative tasks and are issued a stipend for doing so. See our explainer for more. So, there’s some malleability to bear in mind. If you’re concerned, please contact us.

June 6, 2025

Q: I read through the FSA’s layoffs booklet and I’m wondering why Departments are featured so prominently. They’re not being laid off, people are.

A: Departments hold significant power under our Collective Agreement and serve as the foundation of democratic governance at BCIT. Defined in Article 1.8.5.1 (pp. 3-4) and listed in Appendix III, each “Department” refers to both the FSA-represented employees and their related manager. Note that “employees” includes only FSA members, not those represented by BCGEU units.

Every FSA member in a Department has the right to participate equally in discussions and decisions. When the Department has decision-making authority, each FSA-represented employee and their manager cast one vote each. When the Department is to be consulted, rather than to decide, every FSA member must have the opportunity to express their views, and a meaningful exchange of ideas must take place before any decision is made.

This structure is crucial because the Collective Agreement assigns numerous rights and responsibilities directly to the Department, including robust rights related to layoffs.

Q: With impending budget cuts, our Department meetings have become contentious. Do you have advice for running an orderly meeting?

A: Running effective Department meetings is important, as Departments form the foundation of workplace democracy for FSA members at BCIT. In 2023, we published this resource outlining the foundational practices that Departments should implement to support strong collegial governance.

June 13, 2025

Q: My manager has indicated that they want to reduce our Departmental budget by eliminating some of the release time that our Program Heads receive. Can my manager do this?

A: Your manager cannot unilaterally change the historically established or documented terms of Departmental Administrative Positions (DAPs), such as Program Heads, the FSA believes. DAP terms are typically defined at the Department level—which includes FSA members and their corresponding manager—though their most basic elements are explained in Article 5.2.4 of the Collective Agreement (p. 24). Article 5.2.4.3 is particularly relevant to this question: “… the Union Employees in the Program, with the participation of the Associate Dean or equivalent having one vote, shall determine in accordance with the Collective Agreement Release Time for the Program Head and other supervisory personnel within the Bargaining Unit” (p. 24). Appointing a Program Head or other DAP is an important right under the Collective Agreement, giving FSA members a greater voice in workplace decision-making, which members should avail themselves of. See this slightly dated but still useful primer for more on this subject.

Q: I read in the Bulletin that the FSA has updated its calendar of observances. I’m wondering why the FSA would choose to observe, say, National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women but not, say, Asian Heritage Month.

A: Recognizing that no list of commemorative occasions can be exhaustive—and given staffing constraints—the FSA has selected a focused calendar of observances for the upcoming school year. This calendar aims to reflect core trade union values such as solidarity and the fight against inequality.

Rather than commemorating general heritage celebrations, we have chosen a limited number of dates that allow us to spotlight specific social issues. For example, our observance of the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women in December not only drew attention to gender-based violence but also reflected upon the progress made in addressing gender discrimination and inequity within post-secondary education.

Q: In the collegial governance article of the Collective Agreement, Article 14, what’s the difference, in practice, between 14.1, which deals with Departmental objectives, and 14.2, which deals with Departmental plans?

A: One way to think about it is the difference between what (14.1) and how (14.2). That said, there is some ambiguity in what qualifies as an objective under 14.1, though it's manageable with some clarity. Our Senior Labour Relations Representative likes to use the following example: management says, “let’s build a $1.5 million home.” That’s an objective under 14.1—it sets the goal and requires consultation. Then, under 14.2, the Department figures out how to achieve that goal: who does the work, what the plan is, and so on. Now imagine management later says, “the house must have three bedrooms.” Does that cross into our 14.2 planning rights, or is it a new 14.1 objective? The key question is whether management has a valid and reasonable business rationale for specifying the number of bedrooms. If they do, then it could reasonably be considered another objective under 14.1. But if the decision is arbitrary, without a clear rationale, then it likely oversteps into 14.2 territory, infringing on our right to plan the work.

May 30, 2025

Q: I’m finishing up my first full academic year teaching at BCIT and my colleagues and I were given some time during the summer to work remotely. Can you explain how this (remote work) and my month free from teaching work?

A: Article 8.6.1 of the Collective Agreement provides teaching faculty (not Specialized Faculty, Assistant Instructors, or Instructors working in PTS) one month “…free of teaching and student evaluation (examination, marking and marks review) duties” (p. 39). You are not required to be in attendance at the Institute during your Month Free of Teaching (MFOT), except when on-campus duties are assigned by your Department. If you are not on campus during this month, you are considered “on-duty, off campus.” The Collective Agreement does not list any specific activities or deliverables for the MFOT. Responsibility for assigning duties to be undertaken during this month resides with the members of your Department.

Although many faculty members choose to take all or part of their MFOT in June, the Collective Agreement does not mandate that it be taken during this month. MFOT can also be scheduled in segments rather than as a single continuous period. For example, some faculty members spread their MFOT across the entire summer, while others divide it between June and August. MFOT is also separate from other breaks, such as vacation time or the Winter break.

Q: I’m thinking about participating more in union activities next year. Do you have any suggestions?

A: The Get Involved dropdown menu on our homepage lists different types of possible FSA involvement, including becoming a Tech Rep or Board Member, sitting on internal committees and caucuses, sitting on joint committees with the employer, and representing our union on affiliate committees run by the BC Federation of Labour and Canadian Association of University Teachers. Attending one of the FSA’s tri-annual (academic year) general meetings is a good start too! For more information, please reach out to Member Engagement Officer Matt Greaves.

May 23, 2025

Q: I have an FSA co-worker that mentioned the essential skills language in our Collective Agreement. How does it work?

A: Essential Skills and Expertise language is found in Article 18.3 (105-106) of our Collective Agreement, which relates to layoffs. In effect, this language obligates your manager to define the criteria determining what skills/expertise are essential to your Department. A Selection Committee is then convened and reviews members, in reverse order of seniority, by posing the following question: If this person were laid off, would the Department have, within the Employees remaining, the essential skills or expertise needed to meet Departmental objectives and activities? The FSA has put together a toolkit to help members navigate potential layoffs. It’s a fairly detailed process in our contract, which we explain on pages 5-7 of the toolkit. If after reading the toolkit it’s still unclear, please be in touch. It is imperative that the process is invoked quickly, as Department members have only 10 days from formal notification of layoffs to do so.

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Q: I’m newish to BCIT. Is my Program Head my boss?

A: No. Your Program Head (or PTS Coordinator) is not a manager to you or any other FSA or BC General Employees Union member. They are your unionized colleague and not excluded management. In our Collective Agreement, we categorize Program Heads as Departmental or administrative positions occupied by FSA members. Individuals occupying these roles typically take on administrative and organizational duties that are not managerial in scope. They do not have the power to hire, fire, or discipline you as a manager would.

May 16, 2025

Q: I couldn’t find the Pay Scale for Specialized Faculty in the Collective Agreement. Does that mean we have the same pay scale as teaching faculty?

A: Teaching Faculty and Specialized Faculty—formerly called Non-Teaching Faculty— are on the same pay scale in our Collective Agreement (pp. 86-87)

Q: I saw that the FSA is presenting at the June 4, 2025, PD Day. What does “Organizing Democracy In Your Department” entail?

A: This presentation is a version of the Article 14 Rights and Responsibilities Training delivered by Vice President Shannon Kelly and Member Engagement Officer Matt Greaves to members across various BCIT Departments. The workshop will provide attendees the knowledge and tools to use a range of rights that influence how their Departments operate—rights that, in most private or non-academic public-sector workplaces, would typically fall under a manager’s control

May 9, 2025

Q: According to Article 10.7.1 of the Collective Agreement, after three years of employment at the Institute, an Employee can apply to their Department for up to one-year unpaid leave for the purpose of gaining experience in the Business, Engineering, Health, Academic, or Educational communities. Does this include fixed-term contract employment and permanent employment?

A: The article (pp. 63-64) is silent on this. Leave under 10.7 is possible after three years of employment, which provides members the opportunity to leave BCIT without pay and work in a related field to increase their professional development. It can be fixed-term or permanent employment elsewhere. Please peruse the article for more information.

Q: My Department is hoping to write a Terms of Reference for how we schedule vacation time. We want to ensure that all Department members are aware of the days when vacations would be blocked out. Can you coach us on this process?

A: We received a question very similar to what you’re asking in September 2024. At that time, we wrote: “The Collective Agreement requires that the Department (which is defined as all the FSA employees and their related manager [like an AD] in one of the units specified by Appendix 3 in the Collective Agreement, with each individual holding one vote) plan a vacation calendar. A good practice is to have the Department list the times that its members may use their vacation days—we can call these vacation slots to distinguish them from actual vacation days that are selected and booked. After establishing vacation slots, members may then select what days they wish to take vacation, which is done in consultation with the Department as a whole. Ideally, members would select the days with as much advance notice as possible, but it’s possible that some people may book at the last minute. As a Department, you should work this out with each other as a collective unit. The reality, however, is that most Departments don’t work like this. Many either plug all their vacations into July and August (which is fine as a plan) or leave it to the AD to approve vacations. The Collective Agreement does not actually permit the AD to do this; it’s a Department right to plan the slots and an individual right to select one’s vacation. But if the Department leaves it to the AD, then they’ve made a de facto delegation to the AD and should think about taking that power back by motion. Or leave it with the AD if it’s easier. In that latter case, though, you’re basically asking the AD to permit you to take vacation, which is actually your right.”

May 2, 2025

Q: Does the Collective Agreement have a clause for members to remove letters of warning or expectation that a member may receive from management?

A: Yes, and this is a right that could likely be better utilized. However it isn’t automatic. According to our Collective Agreement, “[a]n Employee may request, in writing, that material be removed from the Employee's personnel file under any or all of the following circumstances: 7.2.6.1 the material is more than two years old (p. 29); 7.2.6.2 the material is no longer specifically relevant to that Employee's current situations (p. 29); 7.2.6.3 The material is invalid (p. 29); and such material shall be removed subject to Article 7.2.7 but material shall not be removed from an Employee's personnel file except at that Employee's request (p. 29).” Additionally, “[i]f the Manager of Labour Relations considers the material referred to in Article 7.2.6 to be of continuing relevance in spite of being more than two years old, or considers that it is valid, then the Employee shall have the right to appeal to the Labour/Management Committee for decision. 7.2.7.1. (p. 29).” Employees are also entitled to add additional comments to documents in their personnel files, or to add material to the file—under Article 7.2.3 (p. 28).

Q: I have a question about Article 10.3 funds. If you are in a pool and don’t use all funds—for example, you only use $500 this year when entitled to $1418—does that mean you have access to the remaining $918 the following year, in addition to the yearly $1418 you receive each year? In other words, does the fund roll over?

A: You should talk to your program’s fund coordinator for more details. Each member typically chooses between drawing an individual annual amount or participating in a shared pool. Those who opt into the pool generally have a higher amount allocated per person. In many departments, pooled funds are split equally among participants, which often results in more funding per individual each year.

If you choose the individual option and don’t use the full amount in a given year, it will carry over to the next. For pooled funds, any unused portion also rolls over, but it's harder to predict exactly how much you'll be able to access in future years. To understand how your specific group handles the pooled funds, reach out to the coordinator—usually a fellow member of your Department. See our Memorandum on the 10.3 fund for more.

April 25, 2025

Q: A recent FSA newsletter caught my attention. I’ve had co-workers move up more than one step in a year by virtue of their achievements. Can you explain this process?

A: Absolutely! This is covered in Articles 11.3.7, 11.5.5, and 11.7.4. Faculty, Assistant Instructors, and Technical Staff who have completed six continuous months with BCIT can advance an extra step for an achievement which brings recognition to the Institute or for educational or professional achievement, adjudicated by the Institute Placement Committee. Members achieve this step for a variety of accomplishments, including but not limited to certifications, degrees, and publications. Please peruse Article 11 for more information, including timelines.

Q: Can I use Article 10.7 Professional Development Leave Without Pay for my education? Could I use it to pursue a graduate studies degree, for example?

A: Generally speaking, Article 10.7 (pp. 63-64) is administered within your own Department. Article 10.7.1 says that “an Employee may apply to the Employee's Department, for up to one (1) year's leave without pay for the purpose of gaining experience in the Business, Engineering, Health, Academic, or Educational communities” (p. 63). I would suggest that you probably have good arguments to use this leave for a relevant graduate degree. We do see leaves being denied for lack of suitable backfill but never really for improper use of 10.7. If you’re denied, then please write to us.

April 17, 2025

Q: If it’s not in the body of the Outlook invitation, where do I find the meeting link to attend our hybrid GMs remotely?

A: To facilitate secure voting and fulfill our legal obligations under the Societies Act, the FSA distributes individualized (personal) meeting links through a Zoom email and communicates this process in our FSA Weekly E-Bulletin. As with the January 2025 General Meeting, our practice going forward will be to send your individualized Zoom link one week before the General Meeting—in this case, on April 16, 2025—which should have arrived in your inbox with Zoom in the sender field. Please get in touch if it did not.

Q: I’m a faculty member. Can we get monetary increases after we hit the top step? I know that we get raises as negotiated in the Collective Agreement that apply to all steps, but I’m wondering if we still get other additional increases at the top.

A: The Professional Development Allowance (p. 154) is provided to members who have been at the top step of the regular faculty pay scale for a minimum of one year. This allowance is paid every pay period and subject to all taxes but also applies to pensionable earnings. It is also not subject to any of the constraints typical of PD funds.

Q: The 10.3 Professional Development Fund Guide says that internet costs can be claimed under the fund (p. 10). Can you advise if the whole of my bill may be covered or only a portion—given that I obviously also use my home internet for things other than work?

A: The allocation of 10.3 funds is determined by a representative or representatives of the Program Group to which you’re applying. The Guide outlines expenses which are generally consistent with the language and includes internet service. The determination of what is and what is not funded and to what extent something may be funded, however, lies with the Program Group.

April 11, 2025

Q: I’m a new FSA member and I recently learned from a colleague that, if I think that I was misplaced on the salary scale, I can challenge my placement. How do I do this?

A: This is an important right that we highlight to new members and encourage long-standing members to share with newcomers to their Departments. When you first join the Institute, you do indeed have six months to challenge your initial placement on the wage scale to the Institute Placement Committee (IPC). Members are regularly successful when challenging their placement through the IPC, even after an initial rejection. In fact, last summer, member Ray deVries from Counselling gave an insightful interview to Member Engagement Officer Matt Greaves, sharing how their Department achieved success in appealing placements.

Q: I looked in the Collective Agreement and the term “Specialized Faculty” is used 23 times. However, I can’t see any definition of what a Specialized Faculty member is or does. Can you please advise?

A: “Specialized Faculty” replaced the previous terminology of “non-teaching faculty.” In post-secondary there tend to be professions that are considered equivalent to Faculty, requiring the same professional development, such as librarians and counsellors. Generally, new specialized faculty positions need to be negotiated with the FSA since, as you point out, there is otherwise no explicit definition.

April 4, 2025

Q: I have heard of FSA members being hired into jobs and reporting directly to senior leaders. Do they not have a Department?

A: All regularly employed members of the FSA have the right to participate in the collegial governance of BCIT. Those rights are enshrined in the Collective Agreement and provide Departments various powers. BCIT should not be hiring individuals in regular employment to work without a Department for precisely this reason. Currently, we do not know of anyone in this position but have seen it in the past. If you are aware of any such individuals, please let us know.

For those that are curious, the Collective Agreement provides the definition of a Department, which in Article 1.8.5 (pp. 3-4) permits each member a vote and a voice in Departmental affairs (the manager is only one vote in and among the Department). As well, a list of Departments exists in Appendix 3 of the Collective Agreement (pp. 126-127). Every regular member should be able to point to one of the Departments in Appendix 3 as their location to exercise collegial governance rights.

Q: How do I know who was chosen by the FSA to sit on a management selection committee?

A: Each month (including in this issue) the FSA publishes a list of members who sat for us on management selection committees. Please see below our list of management selection committee participants for March, 2025. The FSA has policy around how we appoint members to committees (Policy 1.5.1). In particular, Clause 4.2 of Policy 1.5.1 deals with procedures for member appointments to management selection committees.

Q: How do I know what’s going to be accepted as a valid request for 10.3 Professional Development funds?

A: Three years ago, the FSA signed Memorandum of Agreement 22FSA01, which provides guidelines on the application of 10.3 funds. The guide outlines the activities or resources consistent or inconsistent with 10.3 (pp. 9-10), eligibility (p. 11), and other terms.

March 28, 2025

Q: I was just hired into a Regular position in my Department after being a Temporary BCIT employee, unionized with the FSA. Does my probation period restart now that I’m a Regular employee?

A: Under Article 12.5 of the Collective Agreement (p. 79), your Selection Committee can apply the duration of your Temporary appointment to the Regular Employee one (1) year probation period—assuming that there is less than a five-month break between the two appointments. The Selection Committee does however need to actively exercise this right. It isn’t automatically applied in this circumstance. Like the right to recommend placement on the salary scale, this is a right that selection committees hold that, perhaps, isn’t exercised as often as it could be.

Q: There’s a pretty nasty cold running through my community. Do I need to get a medical note if I can’t work?

A: Before I answer the question, it’s important to underscore that you must notify your manager if you’re unable to attend work because of injury or illness (Article 9.3.2, p. 45).

With that out of the way, the language in our Collective Agreement generally allows the employer to ask for a physician’s statement after 18 sick days in a calendar year or 10 consecutive sick days (Article 9.3.5, p. 46) With that said, nothing in the contract language compels them to ask for any statement at all.

Q: I’ve been invited to a meeting with my manager which seems like it may involve a reprimand. What do I do?

A: We have an essay on this topic by Labour Relations Representative Michael Thompson—The Right to Representation During Employer Meetings. In it, Michael notes that “[w]here there is a possibility of discipline, most employers will ensure that the employee has union representation to guard against the discipline imposed (if any) being set aside at a later date by an arbitrator.” If, after reading Michael’s essay, the best course of action remains unclear, please contact us.

Q: I’m experiencing what seems to me to be bullying at work. Is there anything I can do to stop this?

A: If someone at BCIT begins to behave in this manner the first step is to tell them to please refrain from bullying. You can also inform them that if they continue to do so you may file a Respect, Diversity, & Inclusion (RDI) complaint about their behavior. If you choose to go that route, the RDI Office will guide you through the process. RDI also offers confidential advice.

March 21, 2025

Q: Is there a mechanism by which a Department (as a group) may apply for 10.3 pooled PD funds?

A: According to Article 10.3.4: “These funds shall be administered in the agreed upon manner by the program group but, without limiting the right of the employee to use the funds for the purposes stated. To access grants from these funds, an individual or group applies to the program group which has the responsibility to administer the allocation of the funds” (emphasis added).

However, the collective agreement and its associated MemAg on PD, refer to the “individual” repeatedly. The idea of a group application was probably contemplated when the initial language was written but subsequently members just got used to applying as individuals.

A Department could try to apply as a group, even if that means having individual applications all together, so that a group claim can be made, and see what your program group but also what finance and HR would say, citing 10.3.4. You may need to plan early and talk to everyone that would make a decision in this matter to ensure it goes smoothly.

Q: In my previous union job, seniority played a large role in deciding who received first choice of certain tasks. Is this the same at BCIT?

A: A few years ago, Senior Labour Relations Representative George Talbott wrote a blog post outlining how seniority may or may not be a factor for FSA members—usually the latter.

March 14 2025

Q: It seems like the AD in our Department has a lot more power than in other Departments, like the ability to appoint people to selection committees. Why is this?

A: Article 14 of the FSA’s Collective Agreement with the employer provides Department members (all the FSA members plus their relevant manager) a range of democratic rights—nearly 40 by our count, including appointing FSA members in a Department to selection committees (Article 5.2.3.2.1, p. 22). However, if the Department fails to exercise any of these rights, managers could exercise them by default.

Management exercising these rights is not written in stone, however. We have several resources available for members looking to take back their Article 14 rights. See, for example, our case study of members in the School of Business & Media taking back the same rights you mention (pp. 2-3) and this piece on establishing robust collegial governance practices.

Q: What’s an Associate Member? I see that, with the nominations for the FSA’s Board of Directors now open, the FSA will be electing Directors-at-Large and Directors, Associate Members.

A: We touch on this in the nomination form for the Board and in last week’s E-Bulletin. The definition of an Associate Member is available through Bylaw 2.2 (2) (p. 2) and Article 4.3 of the Collective Agreement (p. 18). It includes current and some recent FSA members working exclusively as Part-time Studies Instructors and Lab Assistants, who are ineligible to be Regular Members. Please also see the eligibility requirements for Directors, Associate Members (6.3 [3], p. 9).

Q: I really wanted to apply to sit for the FSA on an upcoming management selection committee but I opened the Friday Bulletin a few days after it was sent and missed the deadline. Why is the deadline so tight?

A: Unfortunately, our distribution of member selection committee openings is constrained by the timing in which we receive the employer’s notice, after which we have only ten (10) days to appoint (3 [a], p. 142). In fact, in many instances we push the employer to get additional time added to appoint a member to a management selection committee.

From a communications point of view, it would be inadvisable to send all members each selection committee call-out, which is why they tend to go in the Friday E-Bulletin. Indeed, the FSA typically advertises management selection committee openings in the E-Bulletin, but sometimes we also work through the Tech Reps in a given area, or appoint a member from the Board, as the situation calls for.

March 7, 2025

Q: I was recently called to serve on a jury. Am I required to submit to the Institute my per diem for my service? Is this covered under the Collective Agreement? If so, what are my obligations?

A: The relevant Collective Agreement language is found in Article 9.9 (p. 53), which states that “An Employee in receipt of their regular earnings while serving at court, shall remit to the Employer all monies paid to them by the court, except travelling and meal allowances not reimbursed by the Employer.” The context for this is that your wages will be paid as usual, and your leave would begin when you are called to serve. For the former, Article 9.9 states that “[a]n Employee shall, upon written application to the Dean or equivalent, and upon prior written acknowledgement, be granted leave of absence with full pay for all absences resulting from or associated with being summoned to serve on a jury or being subpoenaed as a witness in court proceedings.” If the per diem is a meal or travel allowance, the employer would not expect reimbursement. The daily fees paid to jurors are not, however, meant to cover most travel costs and meals. This is further explained in this Government of BC blog post.

Q: Why did I receive two emails of the Friday Bulletin, one on Friday and another on Tuesday? Both around 6am.

A: The FSA re-sends our Friday E-Bulletin to those who haven't opened it on the following Tuesday. Recently, however, we've been informed that some recipients who have opened the Friday email are also receiving the Tuesday version. We contacted Mailchimp, the FSA's bulk-email service provider, to investigate why openers were being marked as non-openers. It turns out that in order for an email to be counted as "opened" in Mailchimp, recipients must enable images or download the pictures when they first receive the email. If this doesn't happen, the system marks the email as unopened. This is no doubt a common issue for members, as Outlook has a default setting that requires permission to download images from external senders like Mailchimp. To avoid receiving a second email on Tuesday morning, please right-click to download pictures on your Friday E-Bulletin

Q: I plan to take a one-year Professional Development Leave starting in 2026 (my Department has approved). Will such opportunities be restricted now that the Institute wants Departments to cut expenses?

A: Article 10.3.5 guarantees professional development funding for eligible members (10.3.7 outlines eligibility). Programs receive this funding irrespective of the institution’s financial state, meaning that funding provided under 10.3 of the Collective Agreement may not be limited by the institute. See also our Guide to 10.3 Professional Development Funds.

February 28, 2025

Q: Does the FSA provide new member orientations?

A: Yes! This is an important job of the Member Engagement Officer. While we have produced a New Member Handbook, new member orientations allow us to provide guidance to new FSA members on navigating working life at BCIT and answer any questions that attending members may have. If you’re a Tech Rep or Program Head with a new member orientation coming up, please reach out to the FSA to schedule a short—15 minute or so—presentation/Q&A. New members can also reach out to us directly.

Q: What vaccinations are covered by our benefits?

A: Vaccines can be written into or out of a benefits plan through the collective bargaining process. So, for example, the rather costly shingles vaccine was included in our benefits beginning with the latest contract (p. 4, 30). Vaccines other than the shingles vaccine, such as the RSV vaccine, are not covered at this time, however.

February 21, 2025

Q: We have a Departmental meeting coming up in March, and I’m wondering whether to invite a member who’s currently on maternity leave… or, if it comes up in the future, any other approved leave for that matter.

A: Department business should include members on leave. The definition of a Department in Article 1.8.5.1 of the Collective Agreement (p. 3) is “… the Employees and the related Manager in one of the units designated as a Department by Memorandum of Agreement, or by Appendix III … Each member of the Department shall participate in deliberations and decisions with a single voice and a single vote.” Whether one is still an employee while they are on leave is clarified on page 4 of the Collective Agreement, which defines an employee as “… Faculty members and Assistant Instructors and Technical Staff and anyone who teaches or has a teaching-related function in connection with a course, class, or training carried on by or at BCIT, or under the BCIT label; and any such persons who are paid by salary, wage, honorarium or fee through BCIT and any such persons who are on an approved leave” (p. 4; emphasis added).

While the Collective Agreement is unambiguous that individuals on leave remain members of their Department, and are therefore able to participate in Departmental business, some Department members may not be able to attend on-campus meetings. The vote is still valid if a member on leave does not attend the Department meeting, nor is a member on leave required to attend.

Where possible, we recommend a hybrid meeting setup. See also the FSA’s best practices for collegial governance.

Q: Our manager has invited an HR representative to an upcoming Departmental meeting. Do I need to invite an FSA representative too?

A: There are meetings in which members have the right to union representation and others where it would not make sense to bring a representative. At first glance, this may be the latter, but we need more information about the purpose of HR’s attendance. Please contact us ASAP.

We broached this topic in 2023 in the article The Right to Representation During Employer Meetings. If you are unsure whether to bring a representative, please contact us.

Q: A recent call out for management selection committee participation sought two FSA representatives, not the usual one appointee. Why did the FSA get to have more representatives on this committee?

A: At BCIT, the rules governing management selection committees are found in the Search Committee for Excluded Managers memorandum of agreement, also known as the “Quad Agreement” (pp. 142-143)—referring to the three largest campus unions (BCITFSA, BCGEU Support Staff, and BCGEU Faculty) and the employer, who are the signatories. The first two clauses of the Quad Agreement read:

“a. Each bargaining unit shall have the right to appoint, within 10 days of notice … one (1) member from its bargaining unit to the Selection Committee;

b. If a bargaining unit decides, at their discretion, not to appoint a committee member to the Selection Committee, they can choose to give their seat to another bargaining unit, by giving notice to BCIT Human Resources (p.124; emphasis added).”

For the committee you mention, one of the other campus unions gave their seat to the FSA.

February 14, 2025

Q: Is travelling abroad to attend conferences going to be restricted now that the Institute wants Departments to cut expenses?

A: Our Professional Development (PD) funds are set aside under the Collective Agreement and administered by Department or committee, so that sort of travel cannot be restricted for financial reasons. On the other hand, if BCIT is paying for travel that isn’t covered under PD, funds are allocated at the Institute’s discretion.

Q: I know that there’s a vacant Tech Rep position in my Department. How do I go about filling it?

A: Who becomes a Tech Rep is decided at the level of area, usually a Department. In our Collective Agreement, a Department is defined as all the FSA members and their related manager (p. 3) in one of the units designated as a Department (pp. 126-127). When choosing a Tech Rep, however, the manager (who’s not an FSA member) has no say whatsoever and should not be present.

The best way to become a Tech Rep, where possible, is to begin by speaking with the current Tech Rep (areas usually have space for two Reps). Then get the item on your next Departmental agenda, providing plenty of notice and allowing a vote. With that said, it is up to your own area/Department how to choose their Tech Rep(s). FSA Board and staff are not generally involved in the process.

A list of Tech Reps and vacancies is available in the Member Portal area of our website.

February 7, 2025

Q: I’ve been thinking of retiring and now I hear that BCIT is hoping to make budget cuts. What should I do?

A: No details have been formally announced, or at least not to the FSA. You can certainly let your manager know you have an interest for now. This is about the most you can do at this point.

Management cannot negotiate with members individually, even on a retirement incentive, so the union needs to be involved. Please reach out to us if your manager wants to have any discussions around this topic.

Q: With the recent snow, I’m wondering what our rights are as FSA members when it comes to inclement weather.

A: This also came up in our January 2024 Questions of the Week feature. There we said:

Extreme weather events can affect different categories of members in different ways. If BCIT closes due to an extreme weather event, they are signaling to students that it is not safe to travel to the campus. That too, then, applies to its staff. If you were scheduled to be at work that day (for example you work in ITS and do not work from home), then you should not be required to attend to work. The FSA’s view is that this closure does not affect your right to collect your usual salary.

For those of you that are instructional staff, such as instructors or AIs, the employer may request that you move your teaching online if it was face-to-face. This is normally a request and can be denied by you if it is phrased in that way. However, if you do not teach online on the day BCIT closes, you may need to find ways to make up the missed work in another way later. Discussions with your program head and colleagues may assist in planning for make-up time. If your manager however appears to be ordering you to teach online, when you normally would be teaching face-to-face, you should obtain clarity. Write back and ask: “is this an order? My union has instructed me to ask whether I face discipline if I refuse.” If the answer is yes, then you must work (if possible and if you have the necessary equipment and internet connection, etc.) online. The principle in labour relations is “work now and grieve later.” This means a management order must usually be obeyed and grieved later. Exceptions exist for such things as orders that could damage your health.

There may not be a general rule that applies to everyone. You may have the office space and internet set up, and it may be reasonable to work from home. But some may have unplanned issues with childcare, eldercare, or health concerns, for example, on a given day. Each of you may be in an individual situation that may require assessment by the FSA. As in the situation above, if you are clearly ordered to do so, you should work from home if possible but contact the FSA for further guidance. We may grieve on your behalf.

Q: If it’s not in the body of the Outlook invitation, where do I find the meeting link to attend our hybrid GMs remotely?

A: To facilitate secure voting and fulfill our legal obligations under the Societies Act, the FSA distributes individualized (personal) meeting links through a Zoom email and communicates this process in our FSA Bulletin.

As with the 2025-01-29 General Meeting, our practice going forward will be to send your individualized Zoom link one week before general meetings, which will arrive in your inbox with Zoom in the sender field.

January 10, 2025

Q: After a new member orientation session, I realized that I had forgotten to include some of my past job experience on my application to BCIT. Therefore, I may have been placed at a lower pay-scale level than I deserve. How would I go about moving to the proper level?

A: New employees have six months from beginning work at BCIT to challenge their placement. We have several publications about placement and advancement that should be helpful to members in your situation or similar. Here’s a short essay on our blog about navigating the Institute Placement Committee (IPC) process. FSA member in Counseling Ray DeVries was also interviewed in the most recent issue of the Voice newsletter (pp. 10-11) regarding his Department’s successes when applying to the IPC. To get an even more complete view, see Article 11 of the Collective Agreement.

Q: Apparently, a full-time regular employee can elect to reduce their hours permanently. If I were interested in cutting back my hours, how would I go about it?

A: If at all, you would do so very carefully and with great forethought! We have an article on this issue from the 2022 Fall Voice (p.2). There, we wrote that the FSA generally advises members that:

… a permanent reduction in their hours is not advantageous. It is preferable, in most cases, to continue requesting leaves of absence because a reduction in your full-time status will negatively affect the following non-exhaustive list: vacation accumulation, sick leave accumulation, pension, progression on the salary scale, and Article 10.3 professional development funds.

Reducing your FTE permanently requires the agreement of the FSA. If you have questions, please contact our LR team.

January 17, 2025

Q: It looks like I’m going to be starting an MA program at UBC next year. When do applications for Professional Development Leave close?

A: We have a freshly redesigned guide for members with questions about Professional Development (PD) Leave. No deadline is specified in Article 10.5 of the Collective Agreement, which deals with PD Leaves. However, leave committees are required to establish multiple application dates up to a maximum of three (3) times per year. Indeed, most leave committees usually meet two or three times annually, establishing their own application dates. The Tech Rep in your area should be able to point you in the direction of your application dates.

Q: This is my first semester at BCIT. I’ve been in a union before but never in this large and complex of a workplace. What do I need to know?

A: A great place to start is the FSA’s New Member Handbook. The FSA also has a number of committees and caucuses, internal and external, that you can join—see the Get Involved dropdown menu on our website for more. Finally, you can attend our hybrid General Meeting on January 29, 2024. If you haven’t already received an invitation, please reach out to us.

January 24, 2025

Q: Do FSA members have long-term sick leave? I don’t see it in the Collective Agreement. Other jobs I know have short-term sick leave (a few months-paid) and long-term sick leave (unlimited with reduced salary paid by some insurance).

A: We have a long-term disability benefit administered by Manulife, the details of which are spelled out in Appendix 6 of the CA (pp. 130 - 136). Short-term disability is covered under Article 9.3 (pp. 45 - 48). Generally speaking, after six months of illness or injury, or when your sick days are used up, whichever comes second, a member would apply and be assessed for long-term disability, assuming that they remain totally disabled because of accident or illness.

Q: I’m hoping to hire a student employee, but I can’t find the hiring form we’ve previously used. Has its location changed?

A: Yes, in a manner of speaking. When the FSA launched our revamped website at the end of October we also redesigned our forms, including our Request to Hire a Student form.

January 31, 2025

Q: On Monday, BCIT management proposed an average 4.8% budget reduction from Departments. This follows a 4% cut last summer. What can I do to limit the negative consequences of this cut for myself and my Department?

A: The most important question that Departments can ask themselves is: what work can we no longer reasonably perform to enable a 4.8% reduction in our budget? These cuts should not be treated as something Departments can absorb while continuing with business as usual. Rather, members should re-consider the functions of their Department and what they can stop doing.

These discussions can take place during Departmental meetings. Our Collective Agreement sets aside three hours every Wednesday for Union Business (p. 9), which could include Departmental meetings.

Q: Why does the FSA capitalize ‘Department’ in its communications?

A: We do this because a capital D, Department has a particular meaning in our Collective Agreement. Departments are defined in Article 1.8.5.1 and generally listed in Appendix III of the Collective Agreement. Each reference to “Department” in the Collective Agreement means: “the Employees and the related Manager.” The “employees” refers to Institute workers who are FSA members but not those represented by BCGEU units at BCIT. Each FSA member of a Department has the authority to participate in deliberations and decisions with a single voice and single vote. If the subject is one the Department has the right to decide, it’s a single vote for each FSA-represented employee and a single vote for their related manager. If the subject is one the Department has the right to be consulted on, then there must be opportunity for each FSA member to voice their opinion and there must also be a serious exchange of information or ideas before a decision is made. This is important because the Collective Agreement assigns dozens of rights and responsibilities to the Department.

2024-12-13

Q: Our Collective Agreement mentions “contact hours” a number of times—especially as they relate to faculty duties—but what does or doesn’t count as a contact hour? What is its definition?

A: “Contact hours” are not defined in the Collective Agreement. This means that much will depend on the past practice at the Institute and in your Department. For example, teaching a course online is regularly credited with contact hours, even though there is no face-to-face contact with students. Interested members may discuss contact hours with their Department as an issue covered under Article 8.8.1, regarding your workload assignment, canvass other Departments, or ask their Tech Reps to do so.

2024-12-06

Q: As an FSA member and BCIT employee, what do I owe to the Institute as my employer when I show up to work?

A: Employees owe a duty of loyalty to their employers, the nature of which is further defined by the employee’s role, responsibilities, and circumstances. The employee's duty is to act primarily for the benefit of their employer in matters related to their employment (care, loyalty, and candor). Generally, this refers to an employee’s duty to attend work on time, perform competently the duties of the job with reasonable skill and judgement, and act in good faith and fidelity.

Q: I find that deciding things in our Department (like vacation) is difficult, as there is a power imbalance that means that more junior members’ interests are often ignored. How should I navigate this?

A: Article 14 of our Collective Agreement provides a host of powers to Departments (defined as all the FSA members and their relevant manager in one of the units listed as a Department in the Collective Agreement). These matters are to be decided democratically, either through Departmental votes or by parties delegated by the Department to organize its affairs. Democracy is messy and it can be difficult to execute the functions of a Department in a way that works for all its members. We nevertheless encourage consensus where possible.

Reach out to the Tech Rep(s) in your area if you feel that your interests are being ignored—and that Article 14 processes are proceeding unfairly. As a democracy (one person, one vote), all members’ voices are important. You may also reach out to the FSA if you need further advice on how to exercise your Article 14 rights.

2024-11-29

Q: I’m getting a lot of invitations to attend bargaining events. Does this mean that bargaining has begun?

A: Not yet! We’re in the consultation phase. Contract negotiations, when done democratically, are a long process that begins well before the labour-side team ever sits down at the bargaining table. We’re currently in the third stage captured by our bargaining flowchart—consultation, including the bargaining survey. The quality and quantity of feedback we’ve received so far has surpassed previous bargaining sessions. Consultation continues for several more weeks. See below our Collective Agreement Committee outreach dates for more.

Q: I was excited to read about Donabel Santos winning the FSA’s Distinguished Alumni Award in last week’s Bulletin. Who can apply for that award? Do they have to be an FSA member?

A: Since 2014, the FSA’s Distinguished Alumni Award has been chosen annually—minus the pandemic years. Generally speaking, we’ll start advertising for nominations in January. Here’s the 2024 timeline. Nominations are submitted on the nominee’s behalf by a colleague or colleagues. Nominees must be a current FSA member and former BCIT student.

2024-11-22

Q: The FSA used to have a guide to using student employees, but I can’t find it now. Did you get rid of it?

A: Quite the opposite! The FSA has expanded our collection of guides. We have freshly redesigned guides to Overtime & Compensation, Part-time Studies (Flexible Learning), PD Leave, Management Selection Committees, Department Selection Committees, and yes, Hiring Student Employees. On the same page, you’ll find a memorandum of agreement concerning the use of Professional Development Funds.

Q: I woke up to frost on my windshield last Friday. With the winter almost here, what are our rights when it comes to inclement weather?

A: This also came up in our January 2024 Question(s) of the Week feature. There we said:

For those of you that are instructional staff, such as instructors or AIs, the employer may request that you move your teaching online if it was face-to-face. This is normally a request and can be denied by you if it is phrased in that way. However, if you do not teach online on the day BCIT closes, you may need to find ways to make up the missed work in another way later. Discussions with your program head and colleagues may assist in planning for make-up time. If your manager however appears to be ordering you to teach online, when you normally would be teaching face-to-face, you should obtain clarity. Write back and ask: “is this an order? My union has instructed me to ask whether I face discipline if I refuse.” If the answer is yes, then you must work (if possible and you have the necessary equipment and internet connection, etc.) online. The principle in labour relations is “work now and grieve later.” This means a management order must usually be obeyed and grieved later if disagreed with. Exceptions exist for such things as orders that could damage your health.

2024-11-15

Q: The November 8, 2024 Bulletin mentioned sick leave for full-time FSA members but omitted our members in PTS (Flexible Learning). What are our rights and benefits?

A: FSA members working exclusively in PTS (Flexible Learning) are generally entitled to five sick days per year, as per provincial legislation. Since 2020, FSA members in PTS are also able to apply to the $25,000 PTS Sick Leave Fund, with funds distributed on a first come, first served basis. If some members have already drawn at least five (5) days on the PTS Sick Leave Fund and it becomes exhausted, the FSA believes other members are still able to access sick days to a maximum of five (5).

Any days drawn from the PTS Sick Leave Fund count toward the provincial minimum. For example, if a member in PTS has taken two (2) days paid sick leave from the Fund, they still have three (3) available if the Fund is empty. To access the Fund, PTS Instructors/Lecturers should report their sick time to their Department and a PTS Sick Leave form will be completed and sent to Disability Management in BCIT Human Resources.

Q: I’m a Tech Rep wondering if the FSA has a mechanism for me to receive feedback about how I’m doing in the role.

A: Tech Reps are appointed by the program area that they represent, usually a Department, typically on an annual basis. Their work is guided by FSA Policy 2.3.1, which does not mention a feedback mechanism, nor am I aware of areas that offer one. With that said, if Tech Reps are looking to receive feedback, they may consider broaching the topic with their members during a members-only meeting.

2024-11-08

Q: Our department just realized that we could elect a second tech rep after operating with only one for a couple of years now. Is there anything else we may have missed about the Tech Rep program?

A: Tech Reps are appointed by the program area, usually a Department, usually on an annual basis. The norm is to have two Tech Reps per area, however some smaller areas have only one. Reach out to us if you’d like more information. Article 2.1.7.1 of the Collective Agreement (p. 8) says that “the Employer recognizes the Union's right to appoint Tech Reps, taking into account both operational and geographical considerations.” The means by which Tech Reps are appointed are up to the individual area. So, not only are the reps chosen by each area, the process by which they’re chosen is also up to the local group. Broadly speaking, the work of Tech Reps is guided by FSA Policy 2.3.1. Tech Reps act as conduits between Board/staff and the members in their areas. They liaise between these groups in a number of different ways, including watching for problems, passing along crucial union information, and triaging member concerns. Tech Reps are, moreover, being seen by the membership-at-large as being the pivot upon which the union presence in individual Departments turns, with more and more members recognizing Tech Reps as their first point of contact.

Q: I’m a full-time faculty member, what happens with my unused sick days? I see that they build up on my attendance record but is there any benefit to us when they’re unused? Also, what are we allowed to use a sick day for?

A: Sick leave provisions come under Article 9.3 of the Collective Agreement and, for full-time employees, are bankable to 250 in total, according to 9.3.1. At retirement, employees get a 40% payout on this (Article 9.12, p. 54). Sick days may also be used as maternity leave, according to Article 9.6.1.6 (p. 49), and family illness up to 15 days per annum, according to Article 9.3.6 (p. 46).

Sick days are to be used in cases of illness or injury rendering an employee unable to work. There are several subclauses to 9.3 that expand the application and use of sick leave, which I encourage members to peruse for more information. Contact us if you have questions about your sick leave options.

2024-11-01

Q: What processes are in place to choose FSA members to sit on Selection Committees for other FSA members?

A: It is up to the FSA members in a given Department how to choose their Selection Committee representatives, with many following internal terms of reference (ToR), also approved by the same Department members. Please reach out to Member Engagement Officer Matt Greaves if you’re interested in establishing a ToR for Selection Committees in your Department. Member Selection Committee practices are outlined in Article 5.2.3 of the Collective Agreement (pp. 22-23).

Q: I saw a question in the October 18, 2024 Bulletin about the Wednesday union business period (2:30-5:30pm) and I thought the FSA should know that our AD has been scheduling Department meetings at that time.

A: Article 2.1.8 (p. 9) does indeed set this time aside for union business. Please notify your manager of Article 2.1.8 if they are scheduling events at this time and get in touch if the practice persists.

2024-10-25

Q: Can members working in PTS (now Flexible Learning) be Tech Reps?

A: Yes, they absolutely can. Tech Reps rules are covered under FSA Policy 2.3.1. In fact, 2.3.1.3.1 even allows for ancillary or associate members—like members in PTS—acting as Tech Reps to receive funds to defray costs associated with attending meetings, following approval by the FSA President.

2024-10-11

Q: A significant cold is going through my family. Am I required to provide a medical note if I can’t work?

A: Employees shall notify their manager if they’re unable to attend work because of injury or illness, according to Article 9.3.2 of the Collective Agreement. Article 9.3.5 of the Collective Agreement states that “[a]fter an Employee has been absent on sick leave for either 10 successive working days, or for 18 working days in a calendar year, then the Employer may require the Employee to provide a statement from the Employee’s personal physician specifying the nature and prognosis of the illness.” The language therefore allows the employer to ask for a statement after 18 sick days in a calendar year or 10 consecutive sick days. With that said, nothing in the contract language compels them to ask for a statement at all.

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Q: I’ve been invited to a meeting with my manager which seems like it may involve a reprimand. What do I do?

A: We’ve recently republished an essay by Labour Relations Representative Michael Thompson that provides greater detail on this issue. Michael notes “[w]here there is a possibility of discipline, most employers will ensure that the employee has union representation to guard against the discipline imposed (if any) being set aside at a later date by an arbitrator.” If, after reading Michael’s essay, the best course of action remains unclear, please contact us.

2024-10-04

Q: I’m interested in a management selection committee going on in my Department that already has an FSA appointee. Can the FSA appoint me as a non-voting observer?

A: Article 3.f. of the Quad Agreement MemAg (p.142) allows the selection committee (but not the Union) to appoint a non-voting member where additional expertise is needed. It’s up to them to appoint on that basis. On selection committees for FSA members, however, Article 5.2.3.2.1 says that “the Union may sit as an observer on the Selection Committee as full participant except with no vote” (p. 22).

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Q: Is it possible to regularize as an FSA member at BCIT without an ongoing position? I believe this happened in my Department and I find it very confusing.

A: After an employee regularizes, the employer is obligated to find them a position, even if it is a limited-term contract (in which case the employer would need to find the member additional work thereafter). Regularization is dictated by Article 4.6 (p. 20) of the Collective Agreement and its subclauses. The Article states that “[a]fter two (2) years of employment as a Temporary Employee, an Employee will become a Regular Employee,” then lists four conditions. The last of which, 4.6.1.4, says that regularization will occur “[p]rovided the position or a similar one is to be filled, or the same primary functions or similar functions are to be carried out.” While the employer is obligated to fulfill the duties of regularization, this may not be as simple as a newly regularized worker stepping into the same position they held while on contract.

2024-09-27

Q: Do FSA members working in Flexible Learning (Part-time Studies) have seniority?

A: Seniority is a complicated matter in our Collective Agreement (CA); and it unfolds differently for our members than it often does for other unionized workers. Senior Labour Relations Representative George Talbott has a piece on seniority and the CA that I highly recommend. For members in PTS, the lynchpin right is rehiring. Indeed, the CA language doesn’t consider seniority as such but, instead, the right to be rehired. Article 5.2.5.2.7 says, simply, that unless the employer provides stated reasons to the contrary, PTS instructors can expect to be hired again. Unlike seniority, a senior instructor in PTS does not have a claim over other courses taught by more junior instructor. Nor can an instructor in PTS assert a seniority claim over a new course that no one has taught before.

Q: I have an upcoming surgery scheduled, which I anticipate will involve significant recovery time. Who do I reach out to in order to help navigate this whole ship?

A: Your manager should be in touch with the Rehabilitation Committee (Article 9.3.11). The Rehab Committee is a joint committee made up of two employer and two FSA appointees. It reviews short and long-term disability reports, making recommendations to the employer regarding accommodations and working with employees on graduated return-to-work plans.

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2024-09-20

Q: It’s only our second week back in the semester and already some long-simmering conflicts in our Department have boiled over. What can the FSA advise to help solve in-Department conflict?

A: Conflict being inevitable, the goal for working people in a trade union is to have solidarity in conflict. That is, working with one another toward a common goal. At the FSA, this is especially true when enacting Article 14 Department Rights practices. Indeed—and speaking very generally—the role of unions is to help mediate the labour relation between the employer and unionized employees in their bargaining unit, not to intervene on behalf of one member against another. If the conflict becomes disrespectful or worse, however, the FSA generally advises members to seek guidance from the RDI office.

Q: I applied to fill an FSA seat on a management selection committee in my Department but someone else was chosen—someone who I feel is less qualified. Why was this?

A: According to our Quad Agreement with Institute management: BCGEU Support Staff, BCGEU Faculty, and the FSA, on one hand, and the employer on the other, shall each hold an equal number of seats on selection committees for most BCIT managers. Internally, within the FSA, applications to occupy management selection committee seats are adjudicated by the President based on a variety of criteria, ultimately commensurate with what is best for the FSA.

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2024-09-13

Q: My Department is looking to improve how we determine each individual’s vacation. Does the FSA have any tips on good practices?

A: This is an area where Departments at the Institute tend to struggle. The Collective Agreement requires that the Department (which is defined as all the FSA employees and their related manager [like an AD] in one of the units specified by Appendix 3 in the Collective Agreement, with each individual holding one vote) plan a vacation calendar. A good practice is to have the Department list the times that its members may use their vacation days—we can call these vacation slots to distinguish them from actual vacation days that are selected and booked. After establishing vacation slots, members may then select what days they wish to take vacation, which is done in consultation with the Department as a whole. Ideally, members would select the days with as much advance notice as possible, but it’s possible that some people may book at the last minute. As a Department, you should work this out with each other as a collective unit.

The reality, however, is that most Departments don’t work like this. Many either plug all their vacations into July and August (which is fine as a plan) or leave it to the AD to approve vacations. The Collective Agreement does not actually permit the AD to do this; it’s a Department right to plan the slots and an individual right to select one’s vacation. But if the Department leaves it to the AD, then they’ve made a defacto delegation to the AD and should think about taking that power back by motion. Or leave it with the AD if it’s easier. In that latter case, though, you’re basically asking the AD to permit you to take vacation, which is actually your right.

Q: This is my first semester at BCIT. What information can the union give me?

A: A great place to start is the New Member Handbook. The FSA also has a number of committees and caucuses, internal and external, that you can join—see the Get Involved dropdown menu on our website for more. Finally, you can attend our Annual General Meeting on October 23, 2024. If you haven’t already received an invitation, please reach out to us.

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2024-09-06

Q: I’m generally happy with our vacation provisions, but I’m wondering whether Regular Faculty members can get more vacation days.

A: Yes, eventually. Our Collective Agreement deals with vacation in Article 9.2. Regular full-time Faculty members, Tech Staff, and Assistant Instructors are entitled to an additional four (4) days of vacation per year upon reaching 20 years of service.

Q: I heard you guys finally received hard copies of the latest contracts. That’s great! How do I get mine?

A: Yes, we’re very excited. We’re not reserving copies of the new Collective Agreement, however; stop by the FSA offices in SE16-116 during business hours to get yours. If you have new members in your Department, please also pick up copies of the New Member Handbook.

Q: I feel like I haven’t heard much at all about any FSA progress on women and gender issues lately. Are we doing anything to improve the working lives of our female-identifying and gender non-conforming members?

A: The FSA is proud to have significantly improved our parental leave language in the last Collective Agreement. Our union also has an Equity Caucus, which all members are invited to join; we appoint members to sit on the BC Federation of Labour’s Women & Gender Rights Standing Committee; and we frequently publish member pieces that address issues of gender inequality and oppression (for example: one, two, three).

Yet we recognize that there’s more the FSA could do, and this begins with member outreach. A union is only as strong as members make it, and we’d like your help making the FSA a more equitable union. Visit the dropdown “Get Involved” menu on our website for participation opportunities. Get in touch with your Member Engagement Officer if you’d like to publish a Member Voices blog post. We are also receiving feedback ahead of the next round of bargaining—please feel free to let us know what you’d like to see in the next contract to address gender asymmetries in the current one.

Q: For the last few years, the FSA has celebrated Bike to Work Week in the Friday email Bulletin but not this May. What gives?

A: Throughout the academic year, FSA staff and Board have undertaken a process to reevaluate how occasions are commemorated by our Union. This has involved rethinking both how commemorations will occur and what will be commemorated. We’ll have more on this in the fall semester.

2024-06-13

Q: I believe that, in a recent Departmental meeting, our Department violated our own internal terms of reference. I’d like the FSA to intervene and overturn the results of a vote in that meeting.

A: The FSA has no authority to do this. Article 14 of the Collective Agreement (p. 85) provides significant powers to our members in and as a Department (plus their related manager) to conduct the day-to-day operations of the Department. This includes creating applicable terms of reference that follow the Collective Agreement, when doing so through normal procedural rules.

The responsibility for Departmental planning and related decision-making rests with the Department as a democratic body, and, to facilitate as much, the FSA has placed increasing emphasis on enacting Departmental Rights over the past few years. Our Information Officer has written a helpful article on best practices for conducting meetings. We also held parliamentary procedure training last November. If disagreements become more procedural than what’s outlined in the article, however, the Union recommends studying Robert’s Rules of Order. With that said, the FSA recommends that Departments work to achieve consensus on important decisions.

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Q: I saw in last week’s Bulletin a call out for members to sit on BC Federation of Labour committees. What are those committees and what do they do?

A: The FSA has many different ways for members to become active in the Union, curated under the “Get Involved” dropdown menu on our website. This includes representing the FSA on standing committees of the BC Federation of Labour, or BCFED. The BCFED accepts appointee positions for these standing committees. Click through for descriptions. Broadly speaking, the standing committees, through their research and recommendations, help to direct the outlook and work of the provincial labour movement, with appointees reporting back to their home unions.

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Q: Not really a question, but, in the last Bulletin you mentioned some of the ways in which the FSA has worked toward making gains on gender issues. The FSA has advocated for years for gender-neutral washrooms at BCIT, pushing the employer to make changes. This could have been mentioned.

A: Thank you! Yes, this is absolutely the case, and we appreciate the reminder. As always, please feel free to reach out to the Member Engagement Officer, contact details below, if you spot an error or would like to add to something we’ve published.

2024-05-03

Q: Now that the new Collective Agreement is available online, when will the pay scales be posted?

A: Pay scales aren’t posted online independently of the contract with the employer. Our most recent Collective Agreement runs from July 1, 2022 to June 30, 2025, with the wage scale dictated by provincial pattern bargaining. In March of this year the final general wage increase was established at three percent, which is reflected in the final wages in Article 15 of our agreement. Which is to say that the Collective Agreement is up-to-date.

2024-05-10

Q: I have been having intense and unpleasant interactions with my AD lately, including what seems to me, at least, to be the dictionary definition of bullying including raised voices and veiled threats. Is there any help the FSA can provide?

A: If your manager begins to behave like this in a meeting the first step is to tell them to please not yell at you. Inform them also that if they continue to do so you may file a Respect Diversity Inclusion complaint about their behavior. For more on when and when not to have union representation at a meeting with your manager, see Labour Relations Representative Michael Thompson’s recent Voice essay (pp. 8-9).

2024-05-17

Q: With the recent notice of staff reduction, how does a Department determine whether a vacancy is temporary or regular? In other words, whether a position has a fixed end date or not.

A: Under Article 4.2.2, a temporary position can only be posted in four specific circumstances. It’s worth posting the language here in its entirety. A Temporary Employee shall be used only:

4.2.2.1 to fill a vacancy created by a Regular Employee who is away from that Regular Employee’s position or from the Institute, for a stated period of time;
4.2.2.2 to fill a temporary vacancy up to one year where instructional staff are unable to configure to meet training delivery requirements or to accommodate unanticipated circumstances which result in the temporary need for increased staff;
4.2.2.3 to fill a temporary vacancy caused by a temporary increase in workload or a temporary shortage of expertise in the specific area for up to one year; or
4.2.2.4 to fill a temporary vacancy that is grant-funded with a duration of no longer than three (3) years. In this regard, a “grant-funded appointment” is an appointment for a specific term, for the sole purpose of performing work on a time-limited research, curriculum development, or academic program development project that is funded by a grant from an external agency or entity.

In an era of layoffs, the likelihood of 4.2.2.2 and 4.2.2.3 is probably low.

2024-05-24

Q: I remember, about a year ago, seeing an FSA call out for Departments to receive collegial governance training. Is that still something you offer?

A: Yes, it absolutely is. Collegial governance rights are broadly established in Article 14 of our Collective Agreement with the employer. They provide the collective of members (and one manager) that comprise a BCIT Department with a host of powers over their working day. Over a dozen Departments have been trained on how to enact their Article 14 collegial governance rights so far, and some combination of Vice President Shannon Kelly, Executive Director Doug Thorpe-Dorward, and Member Engagement Officer Matt Greaves can provide your Department with Article 14 training next.

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Q: Ahead of my regularization date, the Tech Rep in my Department explained what a “regularization snapshot” is. I think I understand, for the most part, but how do I get a hold of this snapshot?

A: Article 4.6 of the Collective Agreement deals with FSA member regularization. Temporary FSA-unionized employees who’ve worked at BCIT for two years with no more than five months continuous break will regularize, unless their current temporary contract is for backfill or a grant-funded position, which delays regularization. See 4.6.1.2 – 4.6.1.3 for more detail. Members regularize at the FTE on the day of their regularization snapshot, be it 0.5 FTE, 0.66 FTE, 1 FTE, etc. Regularizing FSA members can request their snapshot date by emailing the Institute’s Human Resources Coordinators.

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Q: How do we know if the Institute has eliminated a position after a retirement? Are we to trust management to tell us the truth?

A: Under Article 2.3.3.1 of the Collective Agreement, managers shall involve the Department (i.e. FSA members) in budget and personnel matters, inter alia, so you have the right to know and to be involved. If you receive pushback and/or answers that you feel are violating your Collective Agreement rights, please get in touch.

If the position is in fact being eliminated due to the retirement of an employee, after the effective date of retirement and the decision has been made to eliminate the position, the reasons for this “shall be forwarded in writing to the Union within one (1) calendar month of the vacancy occurring” as per Article 5.2.1.2. Members can also follow up with the FSA if they have questions about eliminated positions.

2024-05-31

Q: I was told that our Department’s Program Head couldn’t regularize in that position. Is this true?

A: Under the terms of our Collective Agreement Regularization occurs after two years of employment as a Temporary Employee (see Article 4.6). If an employee was hired as a Temporary Employee and then appointed to a Program Head position (which is a temporary Administrative position), the employee’s underlying position could be regularized after two years, even if they were at the time occupying a temporary administrative position. The Program Head appointment would remain a temporary appointment with terms and conditions as defined by the department under Article 5.2.4.2. but certainly the employee could be regularized while occupying the Program Head position.

2024-04-05

Q: What are our rights when it comes to participating in lawful political activity off campus and outside of work hours? Do managers have the right to discipline members for publicly supporting policies or causes?

A: Good questions. Timely. The answer to the first is that the Charter of Rights and Freedoms provides for peaceful assembly and free expression on one’s own time with limited restrictions.

On the second question, managers absolutely should not discipline a member for engaging in protected activity. With that said, it appears as a though an instructor at another Lower Mainland post-secondary institution may have been fired for their political activity even after their speech was found to be protected. If this is indeed the case, it points to the fact that workers—even unionized post-secondary workers—may be vulnerable to abuses of power by those who hold it. If you feel you have been subject to negative consequences at work for any off-duty conduct, please contact the FSA.

2024-04-12

Q: What vaccinations are covered by our Manulife benefits? I believe that we got the shingles vaccine included in the last contract, did we not?

A: Good memory! Yes, the rather costly shingles vaccine was indeed included in our benefits beginning with the latest contract. This is stated explicitly in your benefits booklets (p. 30 regular members; p. 4 temporary), which has a section on this. Vaccines other than the shingles vaccine, such as the RSV vaccine, are not covered, however. As the FSA begins preparing to negotiate with the employer for the 2025 round, we’re welcoming suggestions from members regarding what they’d like to see in the Collective Agreement.

2024-04-19

Q: I have a question about taxes. I’m a member currently working in Flexible Learning at BCIT. Can I claim work from home benefits?

A: So, a disclaimer to begin: We cannot give tax advice. Everyone’s tax situation is different, and you should consult your own tax advisor for specific advice. With that said, Labour Relations Assistant Baba Oguntoye has written a short explainer for our members in PTS (Flexible Learning) on this very question. It is applicable only to our members working in PTS, without a regular or temporary contract.

2024-04-26

Q: I ask this as my Department’s current 10.3 Pooled Fund Coordinator: With the new Collective Agreement settled, are previous Memags still enforced? Recently, several members reported having these claims rejected/questioned by either our AD Manager or Finance.

A: I really like this question, thanks. Memags, or Memorandums of Agreement, date back in FSA lore all the way to November 1974, and we’ve added another 700 or so over the last 50 years. Memags are negotiated by the FSA and BCIT between bargaining cycles and serve different functions. Some Memags fill in perceived gaps in the FSA-BCIT Collective Agreement. Others vary provisions of the FSA-BCIT Collective Agreement in specific circumstances, such that those provisions operate differently than stated. Still other Memags establish an agreed upon interpretation and practice for provisions that have proved confusing or contentious.

Memags like 2022FSA01 that you mention—regarding 10.3 pooled funds—remain in force regardless of the Collective Agreement iteration we work under. If managers are violating that language, please get in touch right away or alert the manager that they should act in compliance with relevant Memag.

2024-03-01

Q: Has BCIT produced new pay scales for 2024? I was looking on the FSA Collective Agreement page and BCIT’s site but couldn’t find anything.

A: I did some poking around the BCIT website but was unable to find a pay-scale chart for 2024. That said, an explanation may get us most of the way there. Annual raises begin on July 1, the beginning of the contract year of our Collective Agreement with the employer. Two-thirds of the annual increases for the 2022-25 contract are already reflected in your wage. The final increase, beginning July 1, 2024, will be two percent plus a potential cost of living increase to three percent, depending on inflation—in line with the provincial Shared Recovery Mandate.

Q: I’m a full-time faculty member and I’m finding myself, more and more, putting in non-contact hours in excess of what I’m paid for. What should I do about this?

A: This is somewhat complicated terrain to navigate. Luckily the FSA have an FAQ page dedicated entirely to overtime and compensation. There isn’t really a short answer to your question, other than that we ask that members not volunteer to work excessive hours on a voluntary basis without compensation. Follow the link and please bear in mind distinctions between Regular Teaching Faculty and Specialized Faculty, Assistant Instructors, and Technical Staff as well as those between contact and non-contact hours (for teaching Faculty).

2024-03-08

Q: What are Article 19 (pp. 109-10) discipline meetings used for? I looked it up in our contract and they seem intimidating, but I don’t really know why these meetings happen.

A: Article 19 Disciplinary Meetings are meant for potentially serious breaches of protocol. They are absolutely not meant to resolve trivial workplace issues or banal personality clashes with a manager. Speaking precisely, there isn’t really a universal list that BCIT managers use to determine what rises to the level of an Article 19 and what doesn’t. In any event, the FSA will be there to support members called in to Article 19 Meetings.

In October 2022, our Labour Relations Representative Michael Thompson gave a presentation to Tech Reps on the Article 19 Disciplinary Meetings, which may be useful here. See also our January Member Questions of Week for more on Article 19 investigations.

Q: Members of my Department think that our manager may have violated the Collective Agreement by failing to meet with us before promoting an AI to backfill a teaching Faculty instructor who’s away. What can we do about this?

A: This is a bit of a Collective Agreement deep track, so we applaud your knowledge of our contract! Article 11.5.2.1 states that “[a]n Assistant Instructor may be assigned or appointed on a temporary basis to replace or substitute for a teaching Faculty Employee who is absent. Such assignment or appointment shall be recommended by the Manager after consulting with the Employees in the Department. It may also be recommended through the normal selection process as defined in Article 5.2. The decision or method of appointment shall be Departmental.” In other words, managers have a duty to consult with Department members before making a decision. This consultation must be open and allow for the possibility that a manager’s mind may be changed through the exchange of ideas. If this is an ongoing problem with the manager—that is, management ignoring Article 14 rights—we’ve recently published a case study on members taking back those rights. See also our guide to holding successful Department meetings. You can also contact us for help.

2024-03-15

Q: How many days of sick leave can we take before requiring a doctor’s note? I found 10 successive days in the contract. Does this mean that employees can take 2 weeks of sick leave including weekends?

A: Sick leave is covered under Article 9.3.2 of the Collective Agreement. You are entitled to sick leave when you are unable to come to work because of illness or injury. The agreement requires that you advise your manager (or equivalent) on the day of illness if you are unable to attend work.

While the language of the contract is not mandatory, the employer may require you to provide a statement from your personal physician after you have been on sick leave for either 10 successive working days or 18 working days in a calendar year. The statement from your physician would need to specify the general nature and prognosis (how the illness or injury might impact your work) but should not include a specific diagnosis of your condition.

2024-03-22

Q: I’m an assistant instructor. I’m wondering if there’s anything written in the Collective Agreement about Spring Break. Do I get to work from home because students aren’t on campus, or do I have to come in for the week?

A: See Article 8.7 of the Collective Agreement for more on Spring Break. For instructional faculty, duties are allocated by the Department (meaning all the FSA members in your Department plus your immediate manager). Follow the link for more. The short answer is that if you are not assigned duties to be on campus during Spring Break then you are not expected to be on campus performing those duties.

To learn how to effectively run Department meetings where votes take place, please see this overview. The FSA also provides collegial governance training, which can help members effectively utilize their contract language to run their Department. Contact your Member Engagement Officer Matt Greaves if your Department is interested.

2024-03-28

Q: I’m new to the FSA. What’s the most important thing to know about working at BCIT?

A: Welcome to our Union! The FSA is a certified trade union and member-driven association that represents full-time and part-time technological faculty and staff at BCIT. New members can see our New Member Handbook for important information to guide their transition to working at the Institute. This includes very important information on challenging your initial placement.

2024-02-02

Q: I’m reading through the Collective Agreement and have questions about 10.5 PD funds that I can’t find answers to. I’ve been told there are “Super PD” funds under 10.5, but the agreement seems to just refer to PD Leave. So, I am not sure if there are funds to begin with! Are there funds available for PD expenses, or is this just for PD related leaves? Specifically, I am looking to apply to have expenses that are part of a Masters degree covered. To confirm, I cannot access 10.5 until I have been at BCIT for one year, correct? I see there are three application windows. If there are funds available, when would the next application window open up? What is the application process to access the funds?

A: Thanks for the questions! You’ve asked a number of them and we’ll do our best to answer as many as we can. Pour yourself a coffee because this will take a minute.

For article 10.3 PD Funds, most departments have a committee and maintain a spreadsheet that tracks the “pooled” $1418 each member receives on April 1 of each year. I use quotes because it’s generally treated as an individual allocation. BCIT and the FSA have developed guidelines for the use of these funds, and you do indeed need to be a regular or temp employee (with contract term of 9 months or more) on April 1.

Article 10.5 PD Leave Committees (this is where you’d go to get your Master’s fees covered, though you could also utilize 10.3 funds) “Super PD,” are birthed from Article 10.5.2.2. It’s a catch all for those of us that don’t fall within a school (schools have their own committees). The committee provides funds to support PD activities, including the funds for a backfill (if required). Applicants need one (1) year of full-time service and applications are received in February and September, generally speaking. There’s a Sharespace site with more details we encourage you to visit. If you have questions that are not answered there, Denisse Navarro is the administrator in HR.

For article 10.6 Short-term PD leave, Tech Staff, Assistant Instructors, and Specialized Faculty have access to 30 days of paid leave. Article 10.7: PD Leave without Pay is generally intended for longer-term leaves. Article 10.11, PD Leave for PTS is a recently negotiated benefit that’s similar to 10.5 but for the exclusive use of members teaching in PTS.

Q: I’m an FSA faculty member. I have just received a Decision Review Board (DRB) hearing notice, related to an academic integrity violation. The student involved appears to have employed the services of a legal expert to write a formal and lengthy appeal. I would like to know what support the FSA has can provide and the possible implications are of losing or conceding the case.

A: We’re sorry to hear this! It’s common for faculty members to feel intimidated by the formality of the DRB process and its quasi-judicial trappings. This is, however, in no way a disciplinary hearing or an investigation of your competency. HR is not involved, and you are not being judged on the outcome.

The panel is comprised of two faculty members, a student member, and the Chair (who may also be a faculty member). The person who made the decision to which the DRB is being appealed will most likely be considered a “decision-maker” in this DRB hearing. The DRB process is guided by 5104 PR-2, which states that students can only appeal a decision on one of the following grounds:

The decision-making process violated institute policy or the decision-maker was biased.
There is evidence that was unavailable at the time the decision was made that would have likely resulted in a different decision.
The outcome imposed by the decisionmaker was unreasonable.

So, weirdly enough, they’re not actually appealing the decision itself (e.g., whether or not a violation of academic integrity occurred) so much as they’re appealing the process or the consequence imposed or providing new evidence.

As far as advice goes, read the Student Code of Academic Integrity Policy 5104 and associated procedures carefully, be factual in any written or oral submissions, take good notes in the hearing itself, and ask the panel about anything in the process that isn’t clear (and likewise, get them to rephrase any questions that also aren’t clear). There are clear timelines for each step of the process and what is provided to the decision-maker in the policy.

Sometimes the Student Association advocates reach out to faculty very early in the process before the student has even applied for an appeal. This can be positive— the SA advocates are often good at resolving conflict at a lower level than a DRB hearing. This can be daunting to faculty who don’t understand the process—that it’s non-disciplinary for our members.

2024-02-09

Q: Did our pensionable earnings get corrected after we received retro in the fall—for work completed after our last contract expired and our new one was ratified? That is, did our pension contributions get reassigned back to where they would have been—in the interim period between last contract ending and our new one beginning—if there was no gap in contracts and retro pay didn’t occur?

A: Yes, pensionable earnings/service that was paid retroactively would be provided to the Pension Corporation as an update, providing them with when the service/earnings should have been allocated. So yes, it would be reassigned to the correct timeframe

2024-02-16

Q: I’m thinking about reducing my FTE’s. Aside from working fewer hours, how will this change my working and benefits?

A: Generally, we advise our members that a permanent reduction in their hours is not advantageous to them. It’s preferable in most cases to continue requesting leaves of absence.

A reduction in your in your full-time status will negatively affect the following (not exclusive): your vacation accumulation, sick leave accumulation, pension, progression on the salary scale’s increments, and article 10.3 professional development funds.

Keep in mind that once the reduction is complete, you won’t be able later to change your mind, or be able to demand a reinstatement to full time. If in future you are looking for a return to 100% fulltime (1.0 FTE) status, there’s no obligation for BCIT to give that to you. They may refuse.

As well, the permanent reduction in hours is not a right, but requires consent of both the union and the employer. We usually don’t have too much trouble with the Institute in these cases, but it’s always a theoretical possibility they will say no.

2024-02-23

Q: I heard from my manager that I may lose some of my vacation days if I don’t take them soon. Is this true?

A: This is fairly common question, which we answer in our FAQs. All employees have the right to carry over up to ten (10) working days of vacation leave for their use in a subsequent year, pursuant to Article 9.2.7.1. However, under Article 9.2.7.4, an employee also has the right to apply for permission to reschedule or to carry over additional vacation leave, as long as the total vacation entitlement in any one (1) year does not exceed 58 days. See Article 9.2.7.2 for the exception to this rule.

In addition to the carry over limits described above, if an employee finds they are unable to take all of their scheduled vacation in a calendar year, and they are authorized to forego the scheduled vacation leave, they may apply for permission to carry over the additional vacation leave (Article 9.2.7.6). These excess vacation days will be paid out via a lump sum by the second pay period in February of the subsequent calendar year.

2024-01-12

Q: I’ve been a faculty member with BCIT and an FSA union member for just over 20 years, however I haven’t seen this milestone reflected in additional vacation days. Who do I talk to about that?
A: This is an important aspect of the Collective Agreement that we don’t necessarily get asked about each day. Articles 9.2.1.1-3 provide faculty, assistant instructors, and technical staff four extra days of vacation annually, upon reaching 20 years of service with the Institute. If you believe you’re not receiving your properly allotted amount of vacation days, please contact an HR representative. If that fails to fix matters, please contact us.

2024-01-19

Q: I received an email from BCIT HR, and I’m wondering if you can help me navigate this situation. I don’t have any context for what HR is asking, other than that it is supposedly about a colleague who may have behaved inappropriately. I am hesitant to meet with HR without a union representative, to be honest.
A: Generally speaking, it is not the FSA’s practice to have representatives attend HR meetings with witnesses related to an article 19 investigation—as long as you yourself are not the subject of discipline or investigation. See pages 8-9 of the Fall 2023 Voice for more. We can, nevertheless, provide
some advice. We encourage you to go to the meeting with the following in mind:

In advance of the meeting date, ask the HR manager to send the questions they will ask you (keeping in mind you must abide by confidentiality protocols with anything related to the investigation).
If they reply that they won’t send you the questions, ask them to send you at least enough information for you to understand the reason or incident for which you are being called as a witness, so that you can meaningfully respond.
During the meeting take good notes and don’t hesitate to ask for a pause in talking so that you can make those notes.
Answer questions honestly but don’t speculate. Respond if you have relevant knowledge or information, but if you don’t know the answer it’s ok to say you don’t know.
If during the conversation the manager accuses you of wrongdoing or the conversation turns toward you being investigated or disciplined based on your answers to the questions, then tell them you need to stop the meeting and reschedule for a time when you can have your union representative present. Then contact the FSA right away. A rep will reply to you as soon as they are able.

Q: We’ve hired four new members in our Department during the past month. Do I need to send the FSA their names so that they can enroll in the union?
A: No, actually. The FSA is the exclusive bargaining agent for BCIT employees with jobs that come under our umbrella (rather than, say, BCGEU Faculty or Support Staff employed by BCIT). Members are automatically enrolled when joining BCIT in an FSA position. In Canada, generally speaking, dues are automatically paid by all unionized workers and those workers are automatically enrolled in their union. This is known as the Rand Formula, following a 1946 Supreme Court Decision. Union members do very well for those dues. In this country, the median hourly wage rate is about $7 per hour higher for union workers than non-unionized workers. Even the anti-union Fraser Institute recognizes the union advantage. Public-sector workers with a union density of about 74 percent retire 2.4 years earlier and make almost 10 percent more than their private sector counterparts, with about 14 percent union density.

2024-01-26

Q: Last week was a bit of a mess with the snow. What are our FSA members’ rights when it comes to inclement weather and working remotely?
A: Extreme weather events can affect different categories of members in various ways. If BCIT closes due to an extreme weather event, they are signaling to students that it is not safe to travel to the campus. That too, then, applies to its staff. If you were scheduled to be at work that day (for example you are in ITS and do not work from home), then you should not be required to attend to work. The FSA’s view is that this closure does not affect your right to collect your usual salary.

For those of you that are instructional staff, such as instructors or AIs, the employer may request that you move your teaching online if it was face to face. This is normally a request, and can be denied by you if phrased in that way. However, if you do not teach online on the day BCIT closes, you may need to find ways to make up the missed work in another way later with your students. Discussions with your program head, colleagues may assist in planning for make up time.

If your manager however appears to be ordering you to teach online, when you normally would be teaching face to face, you should obtain clarity. Write back and ask, is this an order? My union has instructed me to ask whether I face discipline if I refuse. If the answer is yes, then you must work (if possible and you have the necessary equipment and internet connection, etc.) online. The principle in labour relations is, work now and grieve later. This means an order must usually be obeyed and grieved if disagreed with. Exceptions exist for such things as orders that could damage your health.

For those of you that are not instructors, but work both on campus and at home, we have not assessed a position on whether the employer has a right to order you to work online if, on the day of the closure, you were going to be on campus. There may not be a general rule that applies to everyone. You may have the office space and internet set up, and it may be reasonable to work from home. But some of you may have unplanned issues with childcare, eldercare, or health issues, for example, on such a day. Each of you may be in an individual situation that may require assessment by the FSA. As in the situation above, if you are clearly ordered to do so you should work from home if possible, but contact the FSA for further guidance. We may grieve on your behalf. Please let the FSA know if you or your Department were ordered to work from home on Wednesday and/or Thursday of last week.

Q: Some BCIT program heads have been sending out emails asking instructors to try to accommodate students during the transit strike as it may be difficult for students to get to campus. I am wondering if this is considered anti-union. Are we undermining the striking transit workers by making student accommodations?
A: We really appreciate your consideration of solidarity with striking CUPE 4500 members. With many public sector strikes, inconvenience is part of a process that ends in improved public services and working conditions. It would not generally be considered scabbing to make accommodations for students. I don’t believe CUPE 4500 has asked the public not to do such things (as is the case when, say, a union calls for a boycott during job action). With that said, there are things you can do to help expedite the process. Let Coast Mountain Bus Company, its Board, and VP of Customer Communications know that you want a fair deal for workers. If the strike persists, you can also join a CUPE 4500 picket line. You can follow CUPE Communications for more.

2023-12-01

Q: Last week’s E-Bulletin message about the FSA not collecting dues on retro pay got the wheels turning, and now I’m wondering how much we pay in union dues. Is what we pay a normal amount?
A: BCITFSA members pay 1.85 percent of their gross salary to union dues, which is tax deductible. Just down the road, our Burnaby neighbours the BC Nurses’ Union and Hospital Employees’ Union pay 2 percent and 2.1 percent, respectively. On the other end of the spectrum, some unions with much lower staff complements and therefore less ability to grieve may pay around 1 percent. In Canada, generally speaking, dues are paid by all workers in a unionized workplace. This is known as the Rand Formula, following a 1946 Supreme Court Decision. And union members do very well for those dues. In this country, the median hourly wage rate is about $7 per hour higher for union workers than non-unionized workers. Even the anti-union Fraser Institute recognizes the union advantage. Public-sector workers with a union density of about 74 percent retire 2.4 years earlier, they acknowledge, and make almost 10 percent more than their private sector counterparts, with about 14% union density.

Q: BCIT’s messaging in their Wednesday newsletter makes it sound like all employees have to apply for retroactive pay. BCIT writes in their update: “A reminder for FSA members that the deadline to apply for retroactive pay is December 15, 2023.”
A: This could be clearer, it’s true. Regular members do not need to apply for retro pay. A more complete description of who needs to apply and who doesn’t is available on our website.

2023-12-08

Q: With exams just around the corner, many of us are beginning to think about holiday shopping. How feasible is it to buy union?
A: Information on buying union during the holiday season is easier to find in the US than Canada. The AFL-CIO posts a very thorough list for union gift giving. For treats and eats, UFCW Canada posts a list of their union-made goods.

2023-12-15

Q: When I worked at a post-secondary in Ontario for a decade, seniority basically dictated what positions would be given and to whom. What’s seniority like in the FSA contract?
A: Great question! The short answer is that seniority is less determining for FSA members, in many but not all regards, than it is for other unionized workers. The FSA’s Senior Labour Relations Representative George Talbot wrote the best analysis I’ve seen of how it plays out here. Follow the link for George’s piece.

2023-11-03

Q: I want to ask other members about workload. Recently, my Department had a meeting with HR, who was less than kind when challenged on the wages members get. Their response was basically “well, you accepted the job knowing the wages, so what is the issue?” It’s true that we agreed to accept the wages we have, but no one expected to work excessively hard, be challenged every step of the way, and have a very poor work-life balance for that low wage (relative to other institutions). The final position HR took at the meeting was “what can faculty do to make the job better?” This, instead of “what can BCIT do to make your job better?” This very much read as “what extra work can you do (adding to your workload) to enhance your work environment?” They meant things like weekly program meetings, monthly meetings with the AD, and faculty helping out other faculty. There is no time to do this, of course, no time to mentor incoming faculty (so new faculty are just dropped in and forced to swim). We really need to address the issue of contact time to improve the working conditions, faculty health, student experience, and overall stress levels of FSA members.
A: It’s never a bad time to think about improving working conditions. Along with the reference above to contact time, please write your Member Engagement Officer with ways to alleviate overwork or areas that need to be addressed. Your answers will be collected and may be published in a future E-Bulletin.

Q: Will either the FSA or BCIT announce to members when the retroactive pay has been paid out so that we can check to see if we have received our payments? I have no idea if I have been missed and I suspect this would be true for other members.
A: While the employer is in charge of handling the distribution of retro pay through their payroll system, the FSA will update members in the weekly E-Bulletin when deposits begin.

2023-11-10

Q: What’s the difference between a warning letter and a letter of expectation? A: The difference hinges on discipline. A warning letter, or written warning, is typically disciplinary in tone and approach. It may include what the employer perceives as an incident of poor performance or rule breaking.
A: warning letter may also be grieved. A Letter of expectation, on the other hand, is meant to be non-disciplinary, providing clarity and support. The FSA will, however, sometimes object to a warning letter if it seems to approach a disciplinary position.

2023-11-17

Q: Does the Employment Standards Act’s (ESA) language on overtime apply to me?
A: In spite of Part 7, Article 34(u) of the ESA excluding FSA members from other ESA language covering hours of work and overtime, overtime provisions are detailed in Article 8.5 of the BCIT/FSA Collective Agreement. See also our FAQ on overtime and compensation.

Q: Am I able to use my Professional Development funds on an iPad?
A: We’ve received three or four questions about PD funds this week. As is often the case with labour relations, the answer to the question above is “it depends.” Helpfully, for all involved, the FSA and employer negotiated a memorandum of agreement in early 2022 to guide the application of Article 10.3 of the Collective Agreement, the Professional Development Expense Fund. The criteria used to adjudicate the fund are:
• Is the activity, resource or equipment relevant to or does it augment the individual’s area of professional competence or continuing development?
• Will the activity, resource or equipment provide a measurable benefit to the individual, the Department, or the Institute?
• Does the activity, resource or equipment assist the individual to maintain currency and flexibility in their area or professional competence?
• Will the expenditure for the activity, resource or equipment promote leadership in technological education? The recent practice has been to consider tablets, generally speaking, consistent with 10.3. However, we urge members to peruse the short memorandum of agreement guide hyperlinked above.

2023-11-24

Q: I’m currently working as staff but looking into taking some courses at BCIT that will help me become a part-time instructor. Can I use the tuition waiver for this purpose?
A: That’s great! We love to see members utilizing their Collective Agreement. Article 10.10 (pp. 63-4) deals with employee registration in BCIT courses. The short answer to the question above is “probably,” so long as the conditions in that Article are met.

2023-10-06

Q: Where can FSA members find out their current step on the pay scale? I can figure it out by my pay stub, but is there another BCIT location where you can see your current pay scale? Also, what is the date or are the dates that Faculty move up one step on the pay scale?
A: The only way to determine your pay scale other than your pay stub is to ask HR. On advancement, Article 11.3 of the Collective Agreement states that Full-time Regular Faculty Employees shall advance one step on the Faculty salary scale each year on April 1 or October 1. When the anniversary date of an initial appointment is between January 1 and June 30, the increment date shall be April 1. When the anniversary date of an initial appointment is between July 1 and December 31, the increment date shall be October 1. This is, however, subject to some provisions. Read Article 11.3 in full on our website.

2023-10-13

Q: Is it my imagination, or is management laser-focused on faculty and loading while we get emails telling us that a new manager has been hired for a role I’ve never heard of?
A: While we can’t speak to the specifics of workloading or management hiring in particular Departments, we know that the employer has been looking into the idea of reducing program credits. These discussions are in their infancy, but we encourage members to ask their School’s leadership to invite the Institute’s Academic team to share their perspective. With regard to management hires, it is well-documented that in North America and elsewhere managerial roles occupy an increasing amount of post-secondary budgets relative to unionized instructors, technical staff, and support staff. The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) has written about this longstanding trend. For the CCPA, this situation creates a feedback loop wherein administrations increasingly prioritize non-core functions (those other than education, research, and support) of the post-secondary institute. The FSA is concerned that this trend continues at BCIT in a midst of a well-known budget deficit.

2023-10-20

Q: I had a student working for me in 2022 and therefore they were part of the BCITFSA bargaining unit. Are student employees, current or former, eligible for retro pay?
A: Great question! The answer, emphatically, is yes (assuming those students worked between July 1, 2022 and July 13, 2023—the period that retro pay covers). All FSA members who worked in that roughly 54-week time are entitled to retro pay as the wage gains in the contract apply to all members. Some FSA members will, however, need to apply to receive retro pay. If you know a former student employee, retired member, or someone who works in PTS but was without a contract on July 13, 2023, please forward them the link above. For more on student employees, see Article 4.4 (p. 19) of the Collective Agreement.

2023-10-27

Q: The “Question of the Week” section from last week’s E-Bulletin states that the Retro Pay coverage date is from July 1, 2022 – July 13, 2023. It appears, however, that we didn’t receive our adjusted pay until a few weeks after that. Should this retroactive pay period actually be between July 1, 2022 – August something 2023, when we started to receive our updated wages?
A: This is a great point! FSA communications have distinguished retro pay as unpaid wages covering the period beginning with the retroactive start date of the new Collective Agreement (July 1, 2022) and the actual date of ratification (July 13, 2023). There were, however, weeks in between July 13, 2023 and when members began to see their new wage reflected in their pay. These few weeks will indeed be covered by the retro payment.

2023-09-08

Q: What is the status of my retro pay, negotiated in the most recent contract, and dating back to July 1, 2022?
A: BCIT updated its pay scales at the end of August, and members should already see their new salary reflected on their pay stub. The process of calculating and then delivering retro pay is, likewise, under BCIT’s control. We want the employer get things right when retro pay is issued and anticipate that this will take some time.

2023-09-15

Q: Since the bargaining communique came out I’ve wondered: which FSA positions fall into hourly rates and which fall into annual salary scales?
A: Our members with PTS contracts receive hourly rates, which now includes a one-time 3.9 percent increase on top of general wage gains. Guest lecturers, student employees, and markers also receive an hourly rate and overtime is calculated on an hourly basis. All other members receive an annual salary, although that scale can also be broken into hourly rates. See Article 15 of the 2019-22 Collective Agreement for more details.

2023-09-22

Q: I was reading the details of our new contract and saw that the shingles vaccine is now covered by our extended health benefits. Does this mean that I’m able to claim my August 2022 vaccination?
A: Wages are back dated to the beginning of the new agreement (July 1, 2022) but benefits are not. Instead, our new benefits became available with ratification in the summer.

2023-09-29

Q: This is my 18th year working at BCIT as a part time/flexible learning instructor. My years of service have never been acknowledged by the institute. I think there are many valuable and talented instructors like me that are overlooked and underappreciated. Is there anything that can be done to celebrate our membership in the BCIT community?
A: From the union perspective, the best way to force the employer to treat our members in PTS with the same dignity they do other employees is to make your voices heard. The FSA is co-hosting a pub night with the UBCFA, FPSE, and CUFA BC in October. This event will provide an opportunity for our members in PTS to get together with others from the Lower Mainland to strategize around how best to put our common issues on the agenda. All our members working in PTS are welcome to attend.

Connecting with the FSA

We encourage any member of the FSA to work collegially with their colleagues and manager to address concerns and issues that may arise. We also encourage members to be familiar with the general employment information provided on the BCIT Human Resources website.

If you still have a question about your Collective Agreement, a concern about violations of your rights or problems with your working conditions, or any question about the FSA – please reach out to us via our contact page!

We are aware that for many members, it can be difficult to decide when to voice your concerns. We also know that the ability to raise concerns is different for so many reasons (e.g. type of employment, length of employment, etc.). We want to make sure that all members know that the FSA values and protects confidentiality. You can contact the FSA in confidence to explore your specific concern and learn what rights you may have. There are strong protections in place to ensure that management cannot retaliate against a member who seeks union advice.

To better manage the workloads of FSA labour relations staff and ensure that priority matters get the attention they require, the FSA introduced a new process for handling all new inquiries. Member phone calls, e-mails and walk-in visits are received by a designated staff person. If an answer to the member’s question is readily available, it will be provided. Otherwise, the member will be referred to an appropriate resource such as one of our dedicated Labour Relations Representatives, who will make every effort to contact the member as soon as possible.

For labour relations inquires, you can see the path your request will follow on page 3 of our January 2020 newsletter.

If your matter is outside of the scope of the FSA’s work you may be referred to another resource such as BCIT’s Human Resources, Manulife, etc.

Urgent matters are given priority attention. Please direct all new inquiries or issues to [email protected] or 604-432-8695.

While we make every effort at our events and meetings to give members a chance to opt out of being photographed, we acknowledge that group photos may end up including members who do not want their images to appear in a published photo. Please notify [email protected] and we will take down the photo.

If you have concerns about activities or incidents in your work area but aren’t sure if you’re ready to contact the FSA yet, we have developed a form for you to use to keep a report about an activity you may be concerned with. Tracking your concerns using this form will help the FSA labour relations team support you if/when you bring a concern to us. Please use a new instance of the form for each activity/incident you record.

You do not need to send us the form right away, keep it on file for if/when you reach out with your concern.

Download form (fillable PDF).

In addition to special meetings or events that are held on an as-needed basis, the FSA holds the following regular meetings:

General Meetings, including the Annual General Meeting, are held three times per year, usually in October, January & April
Board Meetings are held monthly except in the summer
Tech Rep Meetings are held monthly except in July, August & December

For a summary of dates, visit the events page, or check the FSA Calendar.

Slides and meeting notes or minutes are posted in the Members-Only Sharepoint (login required).

Many things! Please see our New Member Handbook and reach out to the Tech Rep(s) in your area.

Collective Agreement Rights

Please reach out to us if you have questions about your Collective Agreement, a concern about potential violations of your rights, problems with your working conditions, or any question about the FSA.

If you have concerns about activities or incidents in your work area but aren’t sure if you’re ready to contact the FSA, we have developed a form for you to use to keep a report. Tracking your concerns using the form will help the FSA labour-relations team provide support if/when you bring a concern to us.

All communications with the FSA are confidential.

Welcome to the FSA! Our New Member Handbook provides valuable information as you begin work as a member of our Union.

In particular, new members should know that they can challenge their placement on the salary scale within six (6) months of appointment. See our Fall 2022 issue of the BCITFSA Voice newsletter (pp. 10-11) for more.

Departments are defined in Article 1.8.5.1 and generally listed in Appendix III of the Collective Agreement. Each reference to “Department” in the Collective Agreement means: “the Employees and the related Manager.” The “employees” refers to Institute workers who are FSA members but not those represented by BCGEU units at BCIT. Each FSA member of the Department has the authority to participate in deliberations and decisions with a single voice and single vote. If the subject is one the Department has the right to decide, it’s a single vote for each FSA-represented employee and a single vote for their related manager. If the subject is one the Department has the right to be consulted on, then there must be opportunity for each FSA member to voice their opinion and there must also be a serious exchange of information or ideas before a decision is made. This is important because the Collective Agreement assigns dozens of rights and responsibilities to the Department.

The Collective Agreement (Articles 1.4.3-1.4.6) allows each Department some flexibility to develop their workloading process. There are guiding principles to ensure fair and equitable distribution of the work (Articles 1.4.3–1.4.6 & 8.8.1) and consultation (Article 1.8.4) within the Department, but the details of the process are left to Department members and the related Manager. Some Departments may choose to partially delegate the authority to a Departmental Workloading Committee, which may be done by specific motion at a Departmental Meeting (Article 14.4). This Committee receives requests from Department members regarding their workload preferences and drafts a Departmental plan based on those requests to bring back to the Department. The Department members must then review and approve that plan prior to its implementation. A Department-approved appeal process should be in place to process any appeals of Departmental decisions (Articles 14.4-14.5; 8.8.3; 8.9.1).

Articles 8.8 and 8.9 (for instructional and non-instructional staff respectively) provide three levels of dispute resolution when disagreements concerning workload arise. The Workload Dispute Process gives members the opportunity to challenge workloads that are unfair, inequitable, or unreasonable, whereas the grievance process is used for issues like excess contact hours or overtime. Please contact the FSA for guidance in workload disputes and to keep us informed regarding workload issues in your department.

Visit the Benefits section of BCIT’s website and scroll down to the relevant FSA hyperlink. You may also contact BCIT Human Resources. If you have questions or concerns left unanswered by HR, contact the FSA by email or call us at 604-432-8695.

The FSA’s Collective Agreement with the employer includes approximately 20 different types of leave provisions. These leaves are wide-ranging, and include absences for circumstances such as bereavement, participating in election to public office, maternity and parenting, professional development, and sick leave.

Some of the more common leaves that the FSA is asked about are:

(a) Maternity, Parental, and Adoption Leave (Article 9.6)

(b) General Purpose Leave Without Pay (Article 9.7)

(b) Professional Development Leave (Article 10.5)

(d) Development Leave, Short-Term – Technical Staff, Specialized Faculty, and Assistant Instructors (Article 10.6)

(e) Professional Development Leave Without Pay (Article 10.7)

There are various eligibility criteria to be satisfied for these different leaves, as well as limits on how much leave time an employee can take.

If you have any questions that are not answered by reading the respective Collective Agreement provisions, or if you are experiencing difficulty in accessing your rights to a leave, contact the FSA.

Article 8.6.1 of the Collective Agreement provides Teaching Faculty (not Specialized Faculty, Assistant Instructors, or Instructors working in PTS) one month “…free of teaching and student evaluation (examination, marking and marks review) duties.” Subject to the duties assigned to you by your Department, you are not required to be in attendance at the Institute during your MFOT. If you are not on campus during this month, you are considered “on-duty, off campus.” The Collective Agreement does not list any specific activities or deliverables for the MFOT. Responsibility for assigning duties to be undertaken during this month resides with the members of your Department.

For more information on seniority, see this short piece by Senior Labour Relations Representative George Talbott.

There is so much information on this topic that we have a separate FAQ on Overtime & Compensation. We also encourage you to reach out to the FSA directly if you think you’re working overtime and/or you’ve been directed to work overtime.

There are two types of professional development allowances: (1) the Article 10.3 Professional Development Expenses Fund, Program-Administered funding; and (2) an annual allotment of $2,400 for eligible full time Faculty employees.

Article 10.3 professional development funding is an annual allotment provided to eligible employees on April 1st of each calendar year. This is more commonly referred to as the “Pooled PD fund”. The general purpose of the fund is “to promote leadership in technological education through funding of relevant professional development activities and/or the purchase of equipment or services which maintain currency, flexibility, and professional competence of employees or augment the professional development of the individual employee” (Article 10.3.2). Refer to Memorandum of Agreement 22FSA01, Guide to Article 10.3 Professional Development Expenses Fund, for further information about the purpose and use of Article 10.3 funds.

An annual allotment of $2,400 in PD funding is available to Faculty employees after they have been at step 15 of the faculty salary scale for the equivalent of at least one annual workload year. This funding is paid via payroll, spread over the year, and subject to taxes. There are no reporting requirements or restrictions on the use of these funds.

FSA members planning to retire should visit the employer’s Retiring from BCIT webpage. You should be able to find all the resources and information you need there. BCIT HR also hosts regular pension seminars in conjunction with the Pension Corp.

Regular Employees please see Article 9.1.1 of the Collective Agreement, which outlines Pre-Retirement Leave, as well as Article 17.1, which concerns the schedule for providing the employer your notice of retirement.

If you have any concerns after working through that information and discussing it with BCIT HR, you can contact us directly.

All FSA employees have the right to carryover up to ten (10) days of vacation leave for use in a subsequent year, pursuant to Article 9.2.7.1 of the Collective Agreement. Under Article 9.2.7.4, an employee also has the right to apply for permission to reschedule or to carryover additional vacation leave, as long as the total vacation entitlement in any one (1) year does not exceed 58 days. See Article 9.2.7.2 for the exception to this rule.

In addition to the carryover limits described above, if an employee finds they are unable to take their scheduled vacation total in a calendar year, and they are authorized to forego the scheduled vacation leave, they may apply for permission to carry over the additional vacation leave (Article 9.2.7.6). These excess vacation days will be paid out via a lump sum by the second pay period in February of the subsequent calendar year.

Winter Break is the period between terms where attendance for work on campus is not required, similar to being on-call in other workplaces. It is not considered vacation, and employees must be available for remote work, or to attend on campus should a need arise. Each Department plans for coverage with consideration to services required, vacations booked, and fair treatment of all in the Department.

For instructional employees, Winter Break is the period after marks review and before commencement of the next term.

Winter Break for non-instructional employees is guided by this letter of understanding. Highlights include five (5) consecutive days of Winter Break, with a plan in place for coverage by November 1 of the anticipating year. If 5 consecutive days are not possible, then days are added preceding the period to make a total of 5 consecutive days. For this purpose, statutory and general holidays are not considered workdays.

PTS Specific

All BCIT Part-Time Studies (PTS) employees–or Auxiliary Employees, as they are called in the FSA-BCIT Collective Agreement–with the following types of contracts are FSA members covered by the Collective Agreement: Instructor, Lab Assistant, Marker, Curriculum Development, PTS Administration. The Collective Agreement establishes your employment rights as a worker at the Institute. Some of these rights are unique to our members in PTS, some are universal, and some don’t apply to members working exclusively in PTS. Applicable rights include rates of pay, a grievance process, and (for PTS instructors) the right to normally be rehired.

Our members in PTS are encouraged to participate in FSA meetings, committees, and events. We also hold two positions on the FSA Board of Directors for members in PTS, known as Directors, Associate Members.

The FSA’s Caucus on Part-Time Studies (COPTS) was created to support members in PTS and facilitate their contributions to the Union. COPTS enhances participation by member participation in in solving issues faced by auxiliary workers, provides guidance to the FSA regarding issues facing members in PTS, , and influences the direction of FSA policy. COPTS is listed on our main committees page; here is the caucus’s terms of reference. Please let us know if you’re interested in joining.

Article 5.2.5.2.8 of the Collective Agreement gives the first right to teach a course to the individual who authored it, so long as they were not paid to do so by BCIT. Article 7.4 ensures that an employee who “creates, develops, acquires or introduces” course materials retains ownership over them. When BCIT pays someone to author a course, the Institute may claim ownership over those course materials. In such cases, BCIT may also deny the creator the right to use the materials at other institutions or online.

Instructors who plan to develop and introduce a new course, whether on their own or under contract with BCIT, first should obtain a written understanding with their Associate Dean that acknowledges that the course, and all its associated materials, will belong exclusively to the author. Course authors should expect adequate compensation for any rights over course materials claimed by BCIT. When being paid to develop a course, authors should insist that the agreement clearly sets out any rights that they retain over its materials.

Contact the FSA if you have any questions about the ownership of course materials. Please also note that our national affiliate the Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT) provides copyright information on their website.

In our 2020 round of bargaining, the FSA won a pooled Professional Development (PD) fund for our members working in PTS without access to other PD funding. The 10.11 PTS PD Fund is for PTS members working on Instructor/Lecturer, Lab Assistant/Demonstrator, Curriculum Development and Administration contracts. The fund provides $210,000 annually for use by members on these employment contracts towards professional development ineligible for Article 10.3 funds. The Part-Time Studies Professional Development Committee administers the funds and executes calls for submissions.

In our 2020 contract, the FSA won what’s known as the Pooled Sick Leave Fund. This was created for eligible PTS Instructors/Lecturers who are unable to teach due to an illness. BCIT contributes $25,000 per year to this fund, which can be accessed on a first come, first serve basis. To be eligible for access to the sick leave fund, Instructors must meet criteria established in the Letter of Understanding (p. 153 of 2022 CA).

To access the fund, PTS Instructors/Lecturers should report their sick time to their department and a PTS Sick Leave form will be completed and sent to Disability Management in BCIT Human Resources.

For other questions about the PTS Sick Leave Fund, please contact BCIT Human Resources.

A provincial five (5)-day sick leave minimum was enacted into the Employment Standards Act (ESA) in 2022 and applies to our members working in PTS. If some members have already drawn at least five (5)-days on the PTS Sick Leave Fund and it becomes exhausted, the FSA believes other members are still able to access sick days under the ESA to a maximum of five (5).

Any days drawn from the PTS Sick Leave Fund count toward the provincial minimum. For example, if a member in PTS has taken two (2)-days paid sick leave from the Fund, they still have three (3) available under the ESA if the Fund is empty.

Please also note that for the ESA, sick time is counted in days and not hours.

Snow days, or other class cancellations due to campus closures, are inconvenient for all members but can be particularly problematic for members teaching PTS courses. While scheduling an in-person make-up class may seem like the most obvious solution, this may cause other problems where students have commitments that prevent them from attending. Providing students with a take-home class–where they complete specific readings, submit exercises, participate in peer reviews, and will be counted absent for a class if they don’t–is a great alternative. Some instructors make small but critical revisions to the overall course schedule such as combining two topics or adding an extra reading/exercise to each class. If the snow day occurred on a scheduled test day, the test can be moved to another day in the existing schedule and one of the above methods used to make up the bumped class.

Please review FSA’s Part-Time Studies Guide for additional resources which you may find useful.