Bulletin
ICBC – Workload at DLCC Victoria
May 8, 2020
To: All MoveUP ICBC members at DLCCV
We have heard from many of you regarding the substantial increase in your workload, call volumes and additional duties as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and the changes that ICBC has made to driver licensing processes and procedures. We want you to know that we understand and truly appreciate your efforts during this difficult time. And on behalf of the driving public of this province, thank you for taking their calls.
As the corporation has worked to limit customer traffic into the Driver Licensing Offices, these services and transactions have been transitioned to the call centre. DL renewals, booking knowledge tests, as well as performing functions that were traditionally performed by Road Safety BC, to name a few, are some examples. This, combined with lower than usual staffing levels, have made the work feel unmanageable for quite some time.
We have taken your concerns forward to the corporation and have made it clear that you are feeling overwhelmed, overworked, and at times hopeless in your day-to-day at DLCCV. In response, the corporation has advised us that it is taking the following steps to help you with your day-to-day:
- Relaxing certain core targets to allow additional time off of the phones, backing off of compliance
- Allowing you to take additional time/extra breaks between calls when you need it (advise work leader first)
- Removing call centre stats from the digital display boards to to help with morale and anxiety
- Providing regular 1 on 1’s with your supervisors and managers for support, guidance, and to share personal impacts
- Accommodating certain employees to work from home
- Posting 14 new part time positions and 4 new full time positions
The corporation advises the union that it is aware of your concerns and acknowledges that this is a tenuous and uncharted time and pledges to continue to monitor and evaluate strategies to address your concerns going forward. If you do not feel comfortable voicing your concerns to management, please continue to approach your Job Steward or your Union Representative. We know that prolonged unmanageable workloads take a toll on your health and leads to increased absenteeism. We know that it affects your work life balance, and we know that the pace at which you are currently working is unsustainable.
While at work, we want to ensure that you are taking all of the breaks that you are entitled to throughout the day, including your 5-minute stretch breaks outlined in Article 22.08 of the Collective Agreement. Please also ensure that you are not performing work while on your breaks, including: file work, reading work emails, adding to your EPM, or anything that is work-related. The corporation needs to be scheduling time for you to do this work during work time.
If you are finding you are being overwhelmed or there is something going on in your life you would like to talk to someone out, we have the Employee and Family Assistance Program, which is no charge, and there are a number of ways to get in touch. Here is the link, which has the various ways to contact: EFAP Hub Page
You can find more resources on MoveUPTogether.ca/FlattenTheCurve.
In solidarity,
Trevor Hansen
Union Representative