A provincial arbitrator’s decision regarding a group of children’s aid workers in Peel is good news for workers at Nipissing and Parry Sound Children’s Aid Society says a news release from CUPE.
The ruling, released last week, "sets out clear directions for reducing caseloads among frontline CAS workers at Peel, making children’s aid workers in the north more determined than ever to see their own workload concerns addressed", it says.
“Now that a provincial arbitrator has ruled on workload for one group of CAS workers, Nipissing and Parry Sound CAS should stop stalling, end the lockout, and deal with their employees’ workload issues – properly and at the bargaining table,” said Fran Bélanger, national representative for the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE).
The children’s aid society locked out its unionized employees on December 23, after workers turned down a deal on the issue of caseloads while management wants to see movement from the union of what it called sick leave abuse, which is creating heavier workloads.
After Peel Children’s Aid Society agreed to binding arbitration a decision was handed down last week. The arbitrator’s award restricts the number of new cases assigned each month for one group; and reduces existing caseloads caps for three groups of workers, according to CUPE.
“A provincial arbitrator has ruled that the number of cases carried by Peel CAS workers has to be managed and has to come down,” said Debbie Hill, president of CUPE Local 2049. “We hope this news will translate into a new recognition that workers at Nipissing and Peel children’s aid – and the families we serve – also need protection from the effects of too many cases, too few staff, and employee burnout.”
