Submission

SaskTel Part III Brief

Issues

This submission is in response to the second topic of the consultation paper: Looking at Federal Labour Standards: "What Works? What Does Not Work?" Specifically, the question: Do any current provisions of Part III of the Canada Labour Code need improvement? Are there problems with the application of Part III of the Code that need examining? What works and what doesn't work from your perspective?

Background/Implications

SaskTel is the leading full service communications provider in Saskatchewan, providing competitive voice, data, dial-up and high speed Internet, entertainment and multi-media services, security, web hosting, secure electronic transactions, text and messaging services over its digital network, as well as cellular and wireless data services through SaskTel Mobility. SaskTel employs more than 4,000 people in over 50 communities throughout Saskatchewan and provides communication services to more than 425,000 customers living in 13 cities, 535 smaller communities and their surrounding rural areas and approximately 49,000 farms. SaskTel is a highly innovative and competitive communications solutions provider for its customers, delivering sound financial returns and public policy benefits to the people of Saskatchewan.

SaskTel has approximately 3,500 unionized employees represented by the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada (CEP). Employees have been represented by a union since 1945. SaskTel has been recognized as a Canadian Top 100 Employer for the past five (5) consecutive years.

SaskTel officially became subject to the Canada Labour Code on July 1^st, 2000.

Consideration of Issues:

Since moving under federal regulation SaskTel has been running into issues with Part III of the Code, specifically related to Maximum Hours of Work.

1. Basic Service Demands

Our Collective Agreement is well established and offers many protections to employees, including provisions whereby overtime is voluntary except in cases of emergency. The Collective Agreement language, regarding voluntary overtime reads:

1. "Planned overtime to satisfy promotional demands, etc., shall be of a strictly voluntary nature." (emphasis added)
2. "Any overtime for basic service demands to meet the communication needs of our subscribers will be handled on a voluntary basis, except that it is understood there are some unexpected situations that will at times occur, such as unexpected workload of an urgent nature or unexpected sickness that causes acute staff shortage, etc., on short notice. These types of occurrences can be reasonably considered emergencies that could justify compulsory overtime, provided every reasonable effort has been made by the Company to cover such incidents on a voluntary basis." (emphasis added)

Employees not interested in working overtime have the right to turn down opportunities to work additional hours with no repercussions. SaskTel had been able to work in this manner - obtaining volunteers to work overtime in situations where there was a requirement to meet peak workload, customer demand, special projects, etc. - and had done so successfully for many years.

Since July 1^st, 2000, we have identified difficulties where employees are needed to work overtime for non-emergency purposes, where employees have clearly identified themselves as volunteering for additional hours, yet the provisions of Section 171.(1) preclude SaskTel from utilizing these individuals beyond forty-eight (48) hours in a week. Many of the job functions required for service restoration and service delivery require highly skilled individuals, at times putting limits on the number of available personnel. It is our view that employees willing to work should be given the opportunity to do so if the requirement is identified.

2. Competitive Environment

SaskTel operates in a highly competitive environment and must respond quickly to changing market conditions. In a competitive environment SaskTel must have the ability to respond to the service expectations of customers, some of whom pay for maintenance contracts to provide immediate response. Some areas of the Company operate twenty-four hours a day and our customer service forces are scheduled days, evenings and weekends to meet customer demand. Our retail stores operate retail hours and compete with employers such as Wal-mart, Future Shop, Sears, Staples, Office Depot and a myriad of others who are not subject to CLC regulations. SaskTel's continued success depends on our capacity to continue building and improving customer relationships and loyalty so that service remains as a differentiator for the Corporation. The provisions dealing with hours of work found within the Code do not provide the flexibility required to respond quickly to customer service requirements.

3. Special Projects and Ministerial Permits

Ministerial permits to exceed maximum hours have been applied for and granted for peak workload and projects where it is known well in advance that excess hours will be required. Long timeframes required for approval do not render this a viable process for many situations. We have been advised by local HRSD Labour Affairs Officers that permits will not be granted on a recurring basis to address peak workload situations such as year end financial reporting.

Recommendations

In summary, SaskTel recommends that employers who operate with collective agreements be exempt from Part III provisions related to hours of work. This practice of exempting collective agreements is well established in the Canada Labour Code. We recommend that employers and duly elected bargaining agents be allowed to negotiate the terms and conditions related to hours of work, the ability of employees to work overtime and the processes in which overtime is solicited. The parties to a collective agreement are in a better position to determine what makes sense for the business and employees. Legislative amendments are a one-size-fits-all solution and are not appropriate for issues such as hours of work. Exempting employers with a collective agreement from these provisions of the Code would free up HRSD staff to deal with enforcement issues arising between employers and employees in non-unionized environments.