CFIA Employment Transition Policy – FAQ

The ETP applies exclusively to indeterminate employees in the IN, VM and S&A groups who are represented by PIPSC at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. Term employees are not covered by the ETP appearing in the collective agreement.

Employees are encouraged to do the following:

• review Appendix B of their collective agreement
• ensure that their PIPSC contact details are up to date and that they receive communications from their group
• prepare or update a resume and consider using available career guidance services and resources (for example, the Employee Assistance Program [“EAP”])
• take into account their mobility, their training and development interests, and their family situation.

When an employment transition is anticipated:

• if at least 10 indeterminate employees are likely to be affected, the President shall inform the PIPSC President or his/her delegate, in writing and in confidence, at least 4 working days prior to the announcement
• each affected employee receives a written notice indicating that his or her services may no longer be required and specifying the following:
  • if he/she benefits from a guarantee of a reasonable job offer (a “GRJO”) and if he/she is placed on surplus status
  • if he/she is an opting employee with access to the options provided for in Article 6.4 of Appendix B
• where applicable, the communication includes information on the possible date of layoff
• the Agency informs and consults PIPSC “as fully as possible” throughout the procedure.

The affected employee is an indeterminate employee who has been informed in writing that his or her services may no longer be required due to a transitional employment situation as defined in Appendix B.

Affected employee status ends when the employee:

• receives the official notice sent to employees declared surplus, or
• is informed that his or her services will continue to be required at his or her current position.

Seniority is only taken into account in the context of the Voluntary Departure Program (the “VDP”). When the number of volunteers participating in the VDP exceeds the number of positions to be eliminated, selection from among the volunteers is based on the total number of years of service in the public service, whether continuous or discontinuous.

The Agency sets up internal voluntary departure programs when the following situations arise:

1. At least 5 affected employees belonging to the same group and level within the same work unit are likely to undergo an employment transition;
2. The president cannot offer them a GRJO.

The VDP allows affected employees to leave the Agency voluntarily. Those who volunteer and are selected become opting employees with access to the options provided for in article 6.4.

Employees who already have a GRJO are not eligible for the VDP.

Two main scenarios are possible:

1. Surplus employee with GRJO
   • the President knows or can foresee the availability of a job for the employee and offers him or her a GRJO
   • the employee becomes a surplus employee with priority for appointment to a reasonable job offer
   • the employee does not have access to options (Transition Support Measure [TSM] or education allowance)
2. Surplus employee without GRJO (opting employee) ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

• ​​​​​​​the president cannot offer them a GRJO
• the employee becomes an opting employee and has 120 days to choose one of the 3 options provided for in article 6.4 (option A, B or C).

A GRJO is a guarantee of an offer of employment for an indeterminate period within the Agency, given by the President to the affected employee when he/she knows or can foresee that a position will become available.

The employee who gets a GRJO:

• is declared surplus and is given surplus priority
• does not have access to the 3 options provided for in article 6.4 (TSM, education allowance, etc.)
• may be laid off only if he/she refuses a reasonable job offer and, where applicable, not before 6 months after being declared surplus.

There is no fixed maximum duration for the surplus period during which the employee benefits from a GRJO. Surplus status only ends when one of the following situations occurs:

• the employee accepts a reasonable job offer and is appointed for an indeterminate period
• surplus status is revoked
• the employee resigns
• the employee is dismissed after refusing a reasonable job offer, at the earliest 6 months after being declared surplus.

A reasonable job offer, as defined in Appendix B, is:

• a job offer for an indefinite period within the Agency
• normally at an equivalent level, but could be at a lower level
• provided to an employee who is trainable and mobile
• as far as possible, within the employee’s area of assignment, as defined by the National Joint Council (NJC) Travel Directive
• assessed on the basis of salary (interim allowances are not included in salary for this purpose).

If a surplus employee or laid-off person is assigned to a lower-level position under the ETP, his or her salary (and any pay equity compensation payments, if applicable) is protected in accordance with the salary protection provisions of the collective agreement or the applicable federal directive.

Salary protection continues until the employee is appointed to a position with a maximum rate of pay equal to or greater than that of the position from which he/she was declared surplus or laid off.

Yes. Employees continue to be paid while they are:

• in surplus status as employees benefiting from a GRJO
• in surplus status under Option A
• awaiting their departure date under options B (TSM) or C (education allowance), subject to the conditions of these options.

Compensation ceases in the event of layoff, resignation, or when the employee is deemed to have been dismissed under the applicable provisions.

Yes. Surplus employees are required to continue reporting for work. They could be assigned different tasks, depending on their qualifications. The Agency is required to provide reasonable time, tools, and support to help the employee find alternative employment.

When the work unit is relocated beyond the normal commuting distance between the employee’s home and his/her workplace:

• employees are notified in writing and given 3 months, in accordance with Appendix B, to decide whether they wish to move with their position

The delocalized position may subsequently be presented with a reasonable job offer, should no reasonable job offer be available locally.

An opting employee is an indeterminate employee who has not obtained a GRJO and who therefore has 120 days to choose one of the 3 options provided for in Article 6.4:

Option A: 12-month surplus priority period

• the employee becomes surplus and has a priority period of 12 months to receive a reasonable job offer
• if no reasonable job offer is made, the employee is dismissed at the end of this period
• if the employee resigns before the end of the surplus priority period, the President may authorize a lump sum payment equal to the employee’s regular pay for the balance of the surplus priority period, up to a maximum of 6 months, subject to the limits set out in Appendix B.

OPTION B: Transition Support Measure (TSM)

• the employee receives a lump-sum payment based on years of service (10 to 52 weeks’ salary), in accordance with Appendix B, Annex A
• the employee is required to resign, but is deemed to have been dismissed for severance pay purposes.

Option C: Education Allowance

• the employee receives the TSM plus up to $17,000 reimbursement for eligible tuition, books, and materials at a recognized educational institution
• the employee may do one of the following:
  • resign immediately
  • take up to 2 years of unpaid leave while studying, with the possibility of retaining benefits by paying both the employee’s and the employer’s share
• at the end of the period of leave without pay, unless he/she has found other employment, the employee is dismissed.

If he/she has not chosen an option within 120 days, the employee is deemed to have chosen Option A.

The Agency remains responsible for informing employees on leave of the occurrence of a situation covered by the ETP, and is required to provide them with advice and information on their rights under Appendix B.

However, an employee on leave is generally not declared surplus or opted out until he or she returns to actual employment. The 120-day opting period does not begin until after this return.

The Agency is required to do the following:

• treat affected and surplus employees fairly
• assign a guidance counsellor to each opting employee, each surplus employee and each person made redundant
• advise employees on the following:
  • the ETP and the priority system
  • rights and obligations
  • salary, benefits, allowances and pension
  • alternatives such as retraining, relocation, lower-level employment, term employment, retirement, TSM or education allowance;
  • resume development and interview preparation;
  • the consequences of refusing a reasonable job offer;
  • the role of PIPSC and the Employee and Family Assistance Program.

Retraining is on-the-job or other form of training to enable the following people to qualify for vacant or planned positions within the Agency (and, in some cases, to facilitate external employment):

• employees affected
• surplus employees
• laid-off persons.

Retraining may last up to 2 years, subject to the required approval, and requires a written retraining plan agreed by the employee and the manager concerned.

This type of committee, established under the collective agreement, is separate from the union-management consultation committee and is responsible for the following:

• develop strategies for potentially affected employees
• identify employment opportunities and trends
• promote learning, training and development, mobility and job placement
• monitor the application of ETP measures to ensure that they are applied consistently and equitably
• ensure that affected, redundant and laid-off employees receive counselling and assistance.

Surplus employees should:

• actively participate in the re-employment process
• provide the Agency with accurate, up-to-date information (for example, a resume)
• be available for interviews
• seriously consider retraining, relocation, fixed-term appointments and lower-level positions
• use available resources such as guidance counsellors, human resources advisors, managers and professional resource centers.

The ETP is part of the collective agreement. Any allegation of misinterpretation, misapplication or violation of the ETP may be dealt with through the grievance procedure provided for in the collective agreement.

Employees are encouraged to contact their PIPSC steward or labour relations officer for assistance.