Bulletin
BCH & Powertech – Flexible Work Model – Letter of Understanding
April 8, 2022
To: All MoveUP members at BCH & Powertech
As a follow up to our last bulletin of March 28th and leading up to next weeks move to a flexible work model starting on April 11th, your union encourages you to read the parties letter of understanding attached here, to better understand the conditions that were negotiated between your union and BC Hydro. We are expecting that there may be a few issues arising out of this LOU, therefore it is important that if you have signed an agreement under this model and you have any questions or concerns, that you reach out to your job steward.
As you may be aware, as of Friday at 12:01 a.m. in British Columbia, the BC Vaccine Card will no longer be in effect. This means that events, services, and businesses that were previously required to check for proof of vaccination status will no longer be required to do so.
For our members who work at BC Hydro and Powertech this may have an impact on your workplace as there was a previous requirement for the public to show proof of vaccination to access services. It is up to individual businesses and organizations to choose whether they wish to continue requiring the BC Vaccine Card on their premises.
The health and safety of our members is paramount. As these changes come into effect, we will be continuing to monitor health and safety plans at your workplace, listening to our members’ concerns, and working with your employers to recommend new safety protocols and procedures, or to tweak existing ones.
It is important to note that the discontinuation of the BC Vaccine Card is not connected to your employer’s vaccine mandate. The vaccine mandate policy that your employer has introduced remains in effect. For our members who are not comfortable with receiving the vaccine, we continue to work on their behalf to ensure the mandates are reasonable for the nature of their work and are scheduled to arbitrate our policy grievance in May with Arbitrator Somjen.
As we have throughout the pandemic, we continue to encourage all our members to get their COVID-19 vaccinations. Vaccines are safe and the most effective way to combat the spread of COVID-19, and to ensure that you, your colleagues, and your loved ones remain safe.
In solidarity,
Mike Novak, Union Representative
April Young, Union Representative
Javed Saheb, Union Representative
Ronnie Ho, Union Representative
Natalie Hoedel, Union Representative
Cheryl Popeniuk, Senior Union Representative
Rysa Kronebusch, Vice President – Utilities