Tuesday, October 05, 2004
[IWS] CANADA: Weekly Work Report, 4 October 2004
IWS Documented News Service
_______________________________
Institute for Workplace Studies Professor Samuel B. Bacharach
School of Industrial & Labor Relations Director, Institute for Workplace Studies
Cornell University
16 East 34th Street, 4th floor Stuart Basefsky
New York, NY 10016 Director, IWS News Bureau
________________________________________________________________________
(The following is courtesy of the Centre for Industrial Relations, University of Toronto).
Weekly Work Report or the Week of October 4, 2004
These highlights of the week's HR/IR news are prepared by the Librarians at the Centre for Industrial Relations for our subscribers, alumni, faculty and students, and are intended for their individual use only. Please visit the CIR website for terms of use and information about organizational subscriptions. This message is composed in MS Outlook Express and contains hyperlinks that require an HTML-enabled email program.
The WWR is protected by Canadian copyright law and should not be reproduced or forwarded without permission. For inquiries or comments, please contact the Editor, elizabeth.perry@utoronto.ca.
----------
MORE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT WORKERS SET TO STRIKE: 80,000 federal government employees, members of the Program and Administrative Services Group of the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC), will be in a legal position to strike on October 7 following the report of the Conciliation Board on September 26. In the words of the Conciliation Board report, there remains Âa staggering array of diverse and complex matters in disputeÂ. The report declined to recommend a wage adjustment but left the wage issue to further bargaining, noting that Âthere may only still remain in play something like a spread of 1.75% over three years between the positions of the two parties.
If these administrative employees go on strike, they will join the workers at Parks Canada and the Canadian Revenue Agency who have been on strike since August and September respectively. According to a column by John Ibbitson in the Globe and Mail, Âvirtually the entire unionized federal public service will be on strike by November.
LINKS:
Treasury Board of Canada special website for collective bargaining information at <http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/media/lru-mnc/index_e.asp>
PSAC press release at <http://www.psac.com/news/releases/2004/87-0904-e.shtml>
Report of the Conciliation Board at <http://www.pssrb-crtfp.gc.ca/cases/190-2-335(1)_e.html>
ÂPSAC strike is about to get your attention by John Ibbitson at the Globe and Mail (Oct 1) (subscription required) <http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/Page/document/hubsv3/tgamHub?hub=Search&query=ibbitson&go.x=10&go.y=11>
----------
ONTARIO PUBLIC SERVICE BARGAINING PROCESS BEGINS: The Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) announced the members of its Central Bargaining Team and its Corrections Bargaining Team on October 2, as both parties ready for what is expected to be difficult collective bargaining in the Ontario public service. OPSEU will meet with employer representatives for the first time on October 7. Ontario Finance Minister Greg Sorbora set the tone for the employers position in a speech to the Empire Club of Toronto on October 1, when he emphasized the provinceÂs declining revenues and the governmentÂs plan to flat-line the budgets of 15 ministries. He also announced that a new, detailed review of government programs. The existing collective agreement expires on December 31, 2004.
LINKS:
Central Collective agreement for the Ontario Public Service 2002 Â 2004 is online at <http://www.opseu.org/ops/collective/collective.htm>
OPS Bargaining teams elected in OPSEU Front Lines (Oct. 4, 2004) at <http://www.opseu.org/ops/frontlines2oct042004.htm>
Press release from Greg Sorbora, Minister of Finance at <http://www.gov.on.ca/FIN/english/media/2004/nre10-ecoclub.htm>
Backgrounder to 2003-2004 Public Accounts of Ontario (released Sept. 27) at <http://www.gov.on.ca/FIN/english/media/2004/bke9-pacc.htm>
----------
CANADAÂS TOP 100 EMPLOYERS: Vancouver City Savings Credit Union tops the list as the number 1 employer in Canada, according to a special report issue of MacleanÂs magazine this week. Vancity earned its top spot by a combination of a strong culture of social responsibility and an innovative, employer-paid program of flexible benefits. Benefits include 3 weeks of vacation in the first year of employment; low-interest loans, mortgages and credit lines; tuition subsidies; transit subsidies; meditation and lactation rooms; an employee-run library, and subsidized parking for those who carpool.
The Top 100 Employers list is compiled annually by Mediacorp Canada , which invited 6,000 of the fastest-growing Canadian employers to complete an extensive application process; 1000 companies complied and competed. Employers were evaluated on the following criteria: business expansion and growth; physical environment; social, health, financial and family benefits; vacation and time off; employee communications; erformance management; training & skills development; and community involvement.
LINKS:
ÂSpecial Report: CanadaÂs Top 100 Employers in MacleanÂs.ca at <http://www.macleans.ca/topstories/>
ÂSo why did you take your job? In Macleans.ca at <http://www.macleans.ca/topstories/business/article.jsp?content=20041001_155358_5840>
----------
BEST EMPLOYERS IN QUEBEC: In another competition for Âbest employer bragging rights, awards went to Xerox Canada, Industrial Alliance, Auto and Home Insurance and D.L.G.L. Ltd on October 4. The 2004 Défi Meilleurs Employeurs awards are organized by Watson Wyatt and Affaires PLUS magazine to recognize best HR practices among employers in Quebec.
LINKS:
Watson Wyatt Press release at <http://www.watsonwyatt.com/canada-english/news/press.asp?ID=13678>
----------
GLOBAL COMPENSATION STRUCTURE AND STRATEGY: Watson Wyatt Worldwide conducted a survey of global compensation practices of 230 companies who are members of WorldatWork (formerly the American Compensation Association). The purpose was to establish a benchmark for U.S. multinational companies in 3 areas: global compensation structure and strategy, global tools and systems, and global compensation targets and vehicles. Of those with centralized compensation structures in place, 58% rated their payment structures as Âvery or Âmostly effective. Only 36% of companies with decentralized structures rated their own systems as high. Asia was ranked as the most challenging region to include in a global compensation system by 55% of respondents.
LINKS:
Summary of Global Compensation Practices at the Watson Wyatt website at <http://www.watsonwyatt.com/news/press.asp?ID=13672>
----------
PRODUCTIVITY AND INNOVATION IN CANADA: The Conference Board of Canada, in its latest assessment of CanadaÂs economic performance, states that Canada must increase its productivity or risk a decrease standard of living relative to the United States. The report, titled Exploring CanadaÂs Innovation Character: Benchmarking Against Global Best, evaluates CanadaÂs performance against 10 other countries using 17 benchmarks.
LINKS:
Exploring CanadaÂs Innovation Character: Benchmarking Against Global Best (64 pages, PDF) at the Conference Board website (registration required, free) at <http://www.conferenceboard.ca/boardwiseii/LayoutRecentPublications.asp>
ÂProductivity must rise: report in the Globe and Mail (October 5) at <http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20041005.gtrconf05/BNStory/einsider/?query=bruce+little>
----------
ONTARIOÂS ECONOMY AND RELATIONSHIP WITH THE U.S. UNDER DISCUSSION: Leaders from business, government, labour and academia will meet on October 6 and 7 for the Ontario Economic Summit, organized by the Ontario Chamber of Commerce. Building on the results of a survey of 52 Ontario executives by consulting firm Deloitte , the discussion will focus on leadership in innovation, creating the next generation workforce, improving OntarioÂs investment climate, developing strong infrastructure, expanding new and external markets and enhancing education. Among the 150 leaders attending the meetings: Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty, Bank of Canada Governor David Dodge, CAW President Buzz Hargrove, General Motors of Canada President Michael Grimaldi, Dean of the Rotman School of Management Roger Martin.
LINKS:
Ontario Economic Summit website at <http://www.occ-oes.com/oes/generalInfo.cfm>
Ontario: Land of opportunity (TD Economics Background paper for the Ontario Economic Summit) (30 pages, PDF) at <http://www.occ.on.ca/2events/2oes/TDResearchPaper_072004.pdf>
Summary of Deloitte survey results (1 page, PDF) at <http://www.occ.on.ca/2newsreleases/MR_09282004_DeloitteSurvey.pdf>
----------
UNIVERSITY GRADUATES IN CANADIAN KNOWLEDGE INDUSTRIES: A research report released by Statistics Canada on September 29 uses census data to demonstrate that the number of university graduates employed in high-knowledge industries more than tripled in Canada between 1980 and 2000. The study investigates the existence of diverging university/high school earnings ratio trends across industries in the knowledge-based economy. It also discusses the changing demand for high-skilled workers by comparing the relative wages of university graduates according to the field of their degrees.
LINKS:
Relative Wage Patterns among the Highly Educated in a Knowledge-based Economy, (28 pages, PDF) at <http://www.statcan.ca/english/research/11F0019MIE/11F0019MIE2004232.pdf>
----------
DEMOGRAPHICS AND PENSIONS: A recent research paper by Ralph C. Bryant, published by the Brookings Institute, looks at demographic shifts and their effect on public pension systems. The paper, titled Demographic Pressures on Public Pension Systems and Government Budgets in Open Economies, discuses the domestic and external consequences of aging societies and shows that alternative ways of operating public pension systems can lead to very different macroeconomic outcomes.
LINKS:
Demographic Pressures on Public Pension Systems and Government Budgets in Open Economies (summary and 78-page document ) at <http://www.brookings.edu/views/papers/bryant/20040922.htm>
----------
Centre for Industrial Relations 121 St. George St. Toronto Canada M5S 2E8 <http://www.chass.utoronto.ca/cir>
_____________________________
This information is provided to subscribers, friends, faculty, students and alumni of the School of Industrial & Labor Relations (ILR). It is a service of the Institute for Workplace Studies (IWS) in New York City. Stuart Basefsky is responsible for the selection of the contents which is intended to keep researchers, companies, workers, and governments aware of the latest information related to ILR disciplines as it becomes available for the purposes of research, understanding and debate. The content does not reflect the opinions or positions of Cornell University, the School of Industrial & Labor Relations, or that of Mr. Basefsky and should not be construed as such. The service is unique in that it provides the original source documentation, via links, behind the news and research of the day. Use of the information provided is unrestricted. However, it is requested that users acknowledge that the information was found via the IWS Documented News Service.
Stuart Basefsky *
Director, IWS News Bureau *
Institute for Workplace Studies *
Cornell/ILR School *
16 E. 34th Street, 4th Floor *
New York, NY 10016 *
*
Telephone: (607) 255-2703 *
Fax: (607) 255-9641 *
E-mail: smb6@cornell.edu *
****************************************
_______________________________
Institute for Workplace Studies
School of Industrial & Labor Relations
Cornell University
16 East 34th Street, 4th floor
New York, NY 10016
________________________________________________________________________
(The following is courtesy of the Centre for Industrial Relations, University of Toronto).
Weekly Work Report or the Week of October 4, 2004
These highlights of the week's HR/IR news are prepared by the Librarians at the Centre for Industrial Relations for our subscribers, alumni, faculty and students, and are intended for their individual use only. Please visit the CIR website for terms of use and information about organizational subscriptions. This message is composed in MS Outlook Express and contains hyperlinks that require an HTML-enabled email program.
The WWR is protected by Canadian copyright law and should not be reproduced or forwarded without permission. For inquiries or comments, please contact the Editor, elizabeth.perry@utoronto.ca.
----------
MORE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT WORKERS SET TO STRIKE: 80,000 federal government employees, members of the Program and Administrative Services Group of the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC), will be in a legal position to strike on October 7 following the report of the Conciliation Board on September 26. In the words of the Conciliation Board report, there remains Âa staggering array of diverse and complex matters in disputeÂ. The report declined to recommend a wage adjustment but left the wage issue to further bargaining, noting that Âthere may only still remain in play something like a spread of 1.75% over three years between the positions of the two parties.
If these administrative employees go on strike, they will join the workers at Parks Canada and the Canadian Revenue Agency who have been on strike since August and September respectively. According to a column by John Ibbitson in the Globe and Mail, Âvirtually the entire unionized federal public service will be on strike by November.
LINKS:
Treasury Board of Canada special website for collective bargaining information at <http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/media/lru-mnc/index_e.asp>
PSAC press release at <http://www.psac.com/news/releases/2004/87-0904-e.shtml>
Report of the Conciliation Board at <http://www.pssrb-crtfp.gc.ca/cases/190-2-335(1)_e.html>
ÂPSAC strike is about to get your attention by John Ibbitson at the Globe and Mail (Oct 1) (subscription required) <http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/Page/document/hubsv3/tgamHub?hub=Search&query=ibbitson&go.x=10&go.y=11>
----------
ONTARIO PUBLIC SERVICE BARGAINING PROCESS BEGINS: The Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) announced the members of its Central Bargaining Team and its Corrections Bargaining Team on October 2, as both parties ready for what is expected to be difficult collective bargaining in the Ontario public service. OPSEU will meet with employer representatives for the first time on October 7. Ontario Finance Minister Greg Sorbora set the tone for the employers position in a speech to the Empire Club of Toronto on October 1, when he emphasized the provinceÂs declining revenues and the governmentÂs plan to flat-line the budgets of 15 ministries. He also announced that a new, detailed review of government programs. The existing collective agreement expires on December 31, 2004.
LINKS:
Central Collective agreement for the Ontario Public Service 2002 Â 2004 is online at <http://www.opseu.org/ops/collective/collective.htm>
OPS Bargaining teams elected in OPSEU Front Lines (Oct. 4, 2004) at <http://www.opseu.org/ops/frontlines2oct042004.htm>
Press release from Greg Sorbora, Minister of Finance at <http://www.gov.on.ca/FIN/english/media/2004/nre10-ecoclub.htm>
Backgrounder to 2003-2004 Public Accounts of Ontario (released Sept. 27) at <http://www.gov.on.ca/FIN/english/media/2004/bke9-pacc.htm>
----------
CANADAÂS TOP 100 EMPLOYERS: Vancouver City Savings Credit Union tops the list as the number 1 employer in Canada, according to a special report issue of MacleanÂs magazine this week. Vancity earned its top spot by a combination of a strong culture of social responsibility and an innovative, employer-paid program of flexible benefits. Benefits include 3 weeks of vacation in the first year of employment; low-interest loans, mortgages and credit lines; tuition subsidies; transit subsidies; meditation and lactation rooms; an employee-run library, and subsidized parking for those who carpool.
The Top 100 Employers list is compiled annually by Mediacorp Canada , which invited 6,000 of the fastest-growing Canadian employers to complete an extensive application process; 1000 companies complied and competed. Employers were evaluated on the following criteria: business expansion and growth; physical environment; social, health, financial and family benefits; vacation and time off; employee communications; erformance management; training & skills development; and community involvement.
LINKS:
ÂSpecial Report: CanadaÂs Top 100 Employers in MacleanÂs.ca at <http://www.macleans.ca/topstories/>
ÂSo why did you take your job? In Macleans.ca at <http://www.macleans.ca/topstories/business/article.jsp?content=20041001_155358_5840>
----------
BEST EMPLOYERS IN QUEBEC: In another competition for Âbest employer bragging rights, awards went to Xerox Canada, Industrial Alliance, Auto and Home Insurance and D.L.G.L. Ltd on October 4. The 2004 Défi Meilleurs Employeurs awards are organized by Watson Wyatt and Affaires PLUS magazine to recognize best HR practices among employers in Quebec.
LINKS:
Watson Wyatt Press release at <http://www.watsonwyatt.com/canada-english/news/press.asp?ID=13678>
----------
GLOBAL COMPENSATION STRUCTURE AND STRATEGY: Watson Wyatt Worldwide conducted a survey of global compensation practices of 230 companies who are members of WorldatWork (formerly the American Compensation Association). The purpose was to establish a benchmark for U.S. multinational companies in 3 areas: global compensation structure and strategy, global tools and systems, and global compensation targets and vehicles. Of those with centralized compensation structures in place, 58% rated their payment structures as Âvery or Âmostly effective. Only 36% of companies with decentralized structures rated their own systems as high. Asia was ranked as the most challenging region to include in a global compensation system by 55% of respondents.
LINKS:
Summary of Global Compensation Practices at the Watson Wyatt website at <http://www.watsonwyatt.com/news/press.asp?ID=13672>
----------
PRODUCTIVITY AND INNOVATION IN CANADA: The Conference Board of Canada, in its latest assessment of CanadaÂs economic performance, states that Canada must increase its productivity or risk a decrease standard of living relative to the United States. The report, titled Exploring CanadaÂs Innovation Character: Benchmarking Against Global Best, evaluates CanadaÂs performance against 10 other countries using 17 benchmarks.
LINKS:
Exploring CanadaÂs Innovation Character: Benchmarking Against Global Best (64 pages, PDF) at the Conference Board website (registration required, free) at <http://www.conferenceboard.ca/boardwiseii/LayoutRecentPublications.asp>
ÂProductivity must rise: report in the Globe and Mail (October 5) at <http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20041005.gtrconf05/BNStory/einsider/?query=bruce+little>
----------
ONTARIOÂS ECONOMY AND RELATIONSHIP WITH THE U.S. UNDER DISCUSSION: Leaders from business, government, labour and academia will meet on October 6 and 7 for the Ontario Economic Summit, organized by the Ontario Chamber of Commerce. Building on the results of a survey of 52 Ontario executives by consulting firm Deloitte , the discussion will focus on leadership in innovation, creating the next generation workforce, improving OntarioÂs investment climate, developing strong infrastructure, expanding new and external markets and enhancing education. Among the 150 leaders attending the meetings: Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty, Bank of Canada Governor David Dodge, CAW President Buzz Hargrove, General Motors of Canada President Michael Grimaldi, Dean of the Rotman School of Management Roger Martin.
LINKS:
Ontario Economic Summit website at <http://www.occ-oes.com/oes/generalInfo.cfm>
Ontario: Land of opportunity (TD Economics Background paper for the Ontario Economic Summit) (30 pages, PDF) at <http://www.occ.on.ca/2events/2oes/TDResearchPaper_072004.pdf>
Summary of Deloitte survey results (1 page, PDF) at <http://www.occ.on.ca/2newsreleases/MR_09282004_DeloitteSurvey.pdf>
----------
UNIVERSITY GRADUATES IN CANADIAN KNOWLEDGE INDUSTRIES: A research report released by Statistics Canada on September 29 uses census data to demonstrate that the number of university graduates employed in high-knowledge industries more than tripled in Canada between 1980 and 2000. The study investigates the existence of diverging university/high school earnings ratio trends across industries in the knowledge-based economy. It also discusses the changing demand for high-skilled workers by comparing the relative wages of university graduates according to the field of their degrees.
LINKS:
Relative Wage Patterns among the Highly Educated in a Knowledge-based Economy, (28 pages, PDF) at <http://www.statcan.ca/english/research/11F0019MIE/11F0019MIE2004232.pdf>
----------
DEMOGRAPHICS AND PENSIONS: A recent research paper by Ralph C. Bryant, published by the Brookings Institute, looks at demographic shifts and their effect on public pension systems. The paper, titled Demographic Pressures on Public Pension Systems and Government Budgets in Open Economies, discuses the domestic and external consequences of aging societies and shows that alternative ways of operating public pension systems can lead to very different macroeconomic outcomes.
LINKS:
Demographic Pressures on Public Pension Systems and Government Budgets in Open Economies (summary and 78-page document ) at <http://www.brookings.edu/views/papers/bryant/20040922.htm>
----------
Centre for Industrial Relations 121 St. George St. Toronto Canada M5S 2E8 <http://www.chass.utoronto.ca/cir>
_____________________________
This information is provided to subscribers, friends, faculty, students and alumni of the School of Industrial & Labor Relations (ILR). It is a service of the Institute for Workplace Studies (IWS) in New York City. Stuart Basefsky is responsible for the selection of the contents which is intended to keep researchers, companies, workers, and governments aware of the latest information related to ILR disciplines as it becomes available for the purposes of research, understanding and debate. The content does not reflect the opinions or positions of Cornell University, the School of Industrial & Labor Relations, or that of Mr. Basefsky and should not be construed as such. The service is unique in that it provides the original source documentation, via links, behind the news and research of the day. Use of the information provided is unrestricted. However, it is requested that users acknowledge that the information was found via the IWS Documented News Service.
Stuart Basefsky
Director, IWS News Bureau
Institute for Workplace Studies
Cornell/ILR School
16 E. 34th Street, 4th Floor
New York, NY 10016
Telephone: (607) 255-2703
Fax: (607) 255-9641
E-mail: smb6@cornell.edu
****************************************
# posted by SBasefsky : 1:47 PM
