Dear NAPE Public Sector / MUNL / Marine Institute Member,
As you are aware, NAPE has reached a tentative agreement with your employer.
*All 21 bargaining teams, consisting of rank and file members from your bargaining unit, recently met to go through the package and are recommending acceptance of this deal.*
The tentative agreements apply to the following NAPE public sector bargaining units: Air Services, CNA Faculty, CNA Support Staff, Correctional Officers, General Service, Group Homes, Health Professionals, Hospital Support Staff, Laboratory X-Ray, Marine Services, Maintenance and Operational Services (MOS), Newfoundland and Labrador Liquor Corporation (NLC), School Boards, Student Assistants, Ushers, and WorkplaceNL.
The agreements also cover the five MUNL/Marine Institute locals – MI Faculty, MI Support, MUNL – Custodians, MUNL – Campus Enforcement, and MUNL – Maintenance.
Given the increased voter turnout, flexibility for those members who may be travelling/isolating/unable to attend an in-person vote, and uncertainty relating to covid/other public health matters, logistical and travel considerations, etc… we are going to use the phone / online voting system again for this vote.
We are working with Intelivote Systems Inc. to conduct your vote safely and securely. This Canadian company conducts votes for many of our sister unions and is a leader in the field. Intelivote is a services company that provides eDemocracy solutions to Government at all levels, political parties, unions, associations and other organizations that are required to regularly conduct elections, surveys, referendums, plebiscites, or other events that require secure, accessible member participation. Intelivote is federally certified. We have worked with this company on numerous votes.
The ratification vote process will be monitored by an independent third-party – Deloitte Canada (the same auditing firm that oversees our elections of President and Secretary-Treasurer).
Details on the voting process, voting instructions, hotline numbers, and FAQ information, etc. will be mailed, emailed, and posted post-Labour Day. We are still working on the final details and timelines.
Voting will go live from September 21 to September 26.
This six (6) day window will provide ample opportunity to review the packages, ask questions, talk to coworkers and family members, etc. before you vote. This is significantly more time than is allotted at in-person meetings.
Tentative agreement packages, overviews, FAQs, explanatory video, and other support documents and guides will be posted as soon as the voting window opens, which is the procedure followed by our union as determined by delegates at our Biennial Convention – our highest decision-making body as a union.
This process ensures that every member has an equal opportunity to cast a vote in the ratification process – it is accessible to and inclusive of all members. It means members can vote from anywhere (so long as they have access to a phone or the internet). Voter turnout has increased in every instance in which we have used this system (eg. 31% increase in 2020 online/phone vs. 2018 in-person).
NAPE will never know how you voted – the electronic and phone ballot is encrypted and secure and guarantees your ballot is secret.
At our Biennial Convention in 2019, our highest decision-making body as a union, the direction was given via vote of delegates to continue with the process as we have always done – which is not to release the details in advance of the ratification vote.
As you may recall, details of a previous collective agreement got out to the employers’ groups before the vote opened. They used the period between the tentative agreement and the votes to attack our agreement in the media and lobby the government to make changes. This is one of the many pitfalls of releasing the information ahead of the vote.
We also have to keep in mind that the government is in talks with other unions – so both the government and the union have agreed to keep the details private until the voting process begins.
It is crucial that NAPE has your current contact information on file. If you do not have a NAPE member card, or if you have recently moved or changed your physical or email address – please complete the member card registration form here: https://nape1.wpengine.com/mem…/nape-membership-card-application/
(You may also fill out a physical card or call our Membership Department, but the online form is the preferred method.)
In solidarity,
NAPE Bargaining Oversight Committee
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