Posted at 11:00 a.m.
I am an ordinary woman who accomplishes the extraordinary every day. Taking on a general management position in a childcare center (CPE) is not easy. Fortunately, many people know how demanding this work is and I can feel this recognition from both the CPE team and the parents, very often.
“This social project in which we believe! »
Since last Thursday, I have been completely shocked to find that my employers’ association cannot even sit down with the union side to discuss before a press release from the union is in the media. I don’t understand why the two parties can’t come to an agreement where everyone is a winner. As general manager, I have confidence in our negotiation committee, which relies on meetings with management to propose offers to the union party. We are not talking about a human resources policy to be revised, but about a collective agreement, an employment contract that can lead to a deficit if you are not familiar with the different budget envelopes of a CPE.
I hear from friends that three points are problematic and, what is surprising, is that the renewal of these articles proposed by management works well in other regions. Let’s take a look at these points and the possible repercussions.
First, the collective agreement as currently applied allows a team member to request a vote on a decision to be made that does not meet with consensus. Everyone has the right to a vote, each of the educators as well as the managers, who are in the minority. The problem is that we hire managers to have a global vision of the needs of the corporation, to apply the laws and regulations, to enforce the policies approved by the board of directors made up of parents… lack of consensus during said vote, the manager cannot do his job, which can have consequences, such as making decisions that go against the educational program of the environment and government regulations.
Second, the selection and tenure committee has the mandate to decide on the hiring and the granting of tenure to a candidate. With the shortage of personnel, this is a key issue. Our lists of on-call replacements are empty, external replacement services are not meeting demand, and management is sacrificing administrative tasks every day to allow each person on the team to have a break or to be treated at home one day. We must modernize the agreement, we can no longer carry out our management work as before.
Does the union side really have the same objective as us to offer childcare services to families?
Third, our hours are subject to government rules for ratios, we have an 11 hour time slot, which gives parents 10 hours of care per day. Would you find it normal for the management to be able to associate the opening hours with the nursery? This is the perfect example of what managers experience on a daily basis. A baby’s need is to experience as much stability as possible in an environment where he meets several adults in a typical day in CPE. Why is the association of schedules with group choice not considered in this context?
I am a manager who supports a team with a view to continuous improvement in well-being. I am optimistic, I encourage, I accompany, I invest myself in a social project in which I believe and I know that the general managers of the CPEs of Montreal-Laval do this same work every day. I sincerely hope that the negotiations will lead to a conclusive agreement, and soon.