Meeting Notice
Update on Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada
January 13, 2017
To: All MoveUP JS and Members at Burnaby English Language Centre
Your union recently followed up with the employer regarding the status of contract discussions with Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). The employer informed us that IRCC will not be reopening the request for proposals process at this time. Instead, they are proceeding on the basis of the proposals previously submitted. In the case of BELC, that previous submission was in August of 2015.
Based on that earlier submitted proposal, IRCC has offered BELC a contract from April 1, 2017 to March 31, 2018. To our disappointment, the offered contract includes a $103,484 reduction in the operating budget.
In order to compensate for this reduction, the employer has indicated of their intention to implement the following closure dates:
July 4-31, 2017
August 10 & 24, 2017 (evening only)
August 11 & 25, 2017
September 7 & 21, 2017 (evening only)
September 8 & 22, 2017
October 5 & 19, 2017 (evening only)
October 6 & 20, 2017
November 2, 16 & 30 2017 (evening only)
November 3 & 17, 2017
December 1, 2017
December 18-29, 2017
January 11 & 25, 2018 (evening only)
January 12 & 26, 2018
February 8 & 22, 2018 (evening only)
February 9 & 23, 2018
March 8 & 29, 2018 (evening only)
March 9 & 30, 2018
March 12-23, 2018
Furthermore, IRCC has instructed BELC to close 2 full-time classes.
Based on this information, we are calling an urgent membership meeting for this coming Monday. The purpose of this meeting will be to discuss these funding cuts and the employer’s planned response. Feedback will then be provided to the employer based on the information gathered at the meeting.
The meeting details are as follows:
Date: Monday, January 16, 2017
Time: 12:00 noon
Place: Burnaby English Language Centre
#209 – 6125 Sussex Avenue
If you are not able to attend this meeting please feel free to contact me via email or phone (604-473-3859) and I will be happy to discuss with you and include your feedback with that received at the meeting.
We will continue to work with all of you, and the employer, to mitigate the negative impacts of the IRCC funding cuts.
In solidarity,
Stephen Von Sychowski
Union Representative