Article 30 - Insurance plans

30.01

In the event of death, illness or accident, employees covered by this agreement are entitled to the plans described hereinafter as of the date indicated and until their effective retirement, regardless of whether they have completed their probation period.

a) Every employee who holds a position, hired on a full-time basis or for seventy per cent (70%) or more of full-time: after one (1) month of continuous service.
Every employee who does not hold a position, hired on a full-time basis or for seventy per cent (70%) or more of full-time: after three (3) months of continuous service.
The Employer pays the full contribution to the basic health insurance plan for these employees.

b) Part-time employees and employees who do not hold positions and who work less than seventy per cent (70%) of full-time: after three (3) months of continuous service, and the Employer in this case pays half of the contribution payable for the basic health care plan for a full-time employee, with the employee paying the balance of the Employer’s contribution as well as their own contribution.

A new part-time employee who works less than seventy per cent (70%) of full-time or who does not hold a position is excluded from the insurance plans under this Article until they have completed three (3) months of continuous service, after which they are then covered under a) or b) until the 1st of January that immediately follows, depending on the percentage of time worked during these three (3) months.

On January 1 of each year, part-time employees and employees who do not hold positions who have completed three (3) months of continuous service become covered under a) or b) for the next twelve (12) months, depending on the percentage of time worked during the period between November 1 and October 31 of the previous year.

The above-mentioned period of thirty (30) days or three (3) months does not apply in the following cases:

• 1) when after leaving the Employer for good, an employee returns to the same Employer within a period of no more than thirty (30) calendar days of leaving;
• 2) when an employee changes employers and no more than thirty (30) days elapse between the time they leave the previous Employer and begin working for the new Employer, providing that the same disability insurance plan exists with the new Employer.

In such cases, for the purposes of applying clause 30.19, the last weeks of employment before the employee’s departure are used as a reference period for completing the period of fifty-two (52) calendar weeks.

At the end of the period of three (3) months of continuous service mentioned in 30.01 b)-2), a new part-time employee or employee who does not hold a position who works twenty-five per cent (25%) or less of full-time must apply to be covered under the insurance plans provided for in this Article. The application must be made in writing within ten (10) calendar days of receiving written notice from the Employer indicating the percentage of time worked during the period of three (3) months of continuous service.

An employee whose hours of work went down to twenty-five per cent (25%) or less of full-time during the period from November 1 to October 31 of the previous year ceases to be covered by the insurance plans set out in this Article unless they apply for coverage in writing within ten (10) calendar days of receiving written notice from the Employer indicating the percentage of time worked during the reference period. The requested coverage becomes effective on the following January 1.

A part-time employee or an employee without a position who works twenty-five per cent (25%) or less of full-time and who decides in accordance with these provisions not to apply for coverage under the insurance plans provided for in this Article may modify this choice and apply for coverage by November 30 at the latest. The requested coverage becomes effective on the following January 1.

Notwithstanding the above, and subject to the provisions of clause 30.16, participation in the basic health insurance plan is mandatory.

30.02

For the purposes of this Article, dependants, spouses, an employee’s dependent children and persons with a functional impairment are defined as follows:

i) spouse: as defined in Article 1 of the collective agreement. However, the dissolution or annulment of a marriage or civil union results in the loss of the status of spouse, as does a de facto separation for more than three (3) months in the case of a common law marriage or the dissolution or annulment of a civil union. A married person who does not live with their spouse may designate that person as their spouse for the insurer. They may also designate another person instead of a legal spouse if the other person corresponds to the definition of spouse set out in Article 1.

ii) dependent child: as defined in Article 1 of the collective agreement.

iii) person with a functional impairment: a person who is legally an adult and does not have a spouse who has a functional impairment as defined in the Regulation respecting the basic prescription drug insurance plan (CQLR c. A-29.01, r. 4) that occurred before they turned eighteen (18), who receives no other benefits under a last-resort financial assistance program provided in the Individual and Family Assistance Act (CQLR, c. A-13.1.1) and who resides with an employee who would have parental authority over them if they were a minor.

30.03

Definition of disability
Disability means a state of incapacity resulting from an illness, including an accident or a complication of pregnancy, a tubal ligation, vasectomy or similar forms of family planning or an organ or bone marrow donation, that is being monitored medically and that renders the employee totally incapable of performing the usual duties of their job or any comparable job with similar remuneration that the Employer offers them.

30.04

A period of disability is defined as any continuous period of disability or a series of successive periods separated by a period of actual full-time work or availability for full-time work, unless the employee establishes to the satisfaction of the Employer or the latter’s representative that a subsequent period should be attributed to an illness or accident that is completely unrelated to the cause of the preceding disability.

This period of actual full-time work or availability for full-time work is:

• i) less than fifteen (15) days if the duration of the disability is less than one hundred and four (104) weeks;
• ii) less than ninety (90) days if the duration of the disability is equal to or greater than one hundred and four (104) weeks.

30.05

Periods of disability resulting from illness or injury voluntarily caused by the employees themselves, from alcoholism or drug addiction, from active participation in a riot, insurrection or criminal acts or from service in the armed forces, are not recognized as a period of disability for the purposes of this Article.

However, a period of disability resulting from alcoholism or drug addiction during which the employee receives treatment or medical care aimed at their rehabilitation is recognized as a period of disability.

30.06

In return for the Employer's contribution to the insurance benefits provided below, the total rebate authorized by Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) in the case of a registered plan accrues to the Employer.

30.07

The provisions on life, health and disability insurance plans in the last collective agreement remain in force until this agreement comes into force, except for employees who were disabled on that date, who remain covered by the disability insurance plan described in the last collective agreement.

The basic health insurance plan and supplementary insurance plans established in accordance with the provisions of the last collective agreement that exist on the date on which this collective agreement is signed are extended until they are replaced by new plans established in accordance with the provisions of clause 30.10 of this collective agreement.

SECTION II INSURANCE COMMITTEE

30.08

The union insurance committee is responsible for establishing the basic health insurance plan and the optional life, health and disability insurance plans, which are part of the insurance contract.

The contract must stipulate that the CPNSSS (management bargaining committee for the health and social services sector) is allowed to obtain all useful and relevant information or statistical compilations that the insurer provides to the union committee.

The CPNSSS receives a copy of the book of specifications, the list of insurance companies bidding on the contract and a copy of the contract. The CPNSSS is informed of any change to the contract, and any changes affecting the administration of the plans must be agreed upon by the negotiating parties. There must be a period of at least sixty (60) days after written notice is given to the CPNSSS before any change in premiums can become effective.

The CPNSSS and the APTS meet as needed to resolve problems related to the administration of the basic health insurance plan and optional plans.

The Employer carries out the work required to establish and implement the basic health insurance plan and optional plans in accordance with the terms of the contract concluded between the insurer and the union committee. The Employer co-operates on any campaign regarding the insurance plans. More specifically, the Employer performs the following operations:

• providing information to employees;
• handling employee enrolment and withdrawal;
• forwarding to the insurer employees’ applications to join a plan and information that is relevant for the insurer to keep employees’ files up to date;
• forwarding to the insurer requests to withdraw from insurance plans;
• collecting the necessary contributions and remitting to the insurer the premiums deducted or received from employees, as the case may be;
• giving employees application and claim forms, bulletins, pamphlets and insurance certificates supplied by the insurer;
• providing information normally required from the Employer by the insurer to settle certain claims;
• providing the insurer with the names of employees who have informed the Employer of their decision to retire.

30.09

The insurance contract must be with an insurance company whose head office is located in Québec.

30.10

The insurance contract may establish a maximum of four (4) supplementary plans, the costs of which are borne entirely by participants. The number of plans with a given Employer is, however, limited to three (3), unless a majority of employees with a given employer opt to implement four (4) plans, in which case the four (4) plans apply, without any possibility of combining them.

Terms of supplementary plans

• If one or more supplementary plans are established, they may involve health, salary or life insurance benefits.
• Supplementary disability insurance coverage must meet certain specific criteria:
  • the waiting period cannot be less than twenty-four (24) months;
  • after-tax benefits payable to the beneficiary cannot exceed eighty per cent (80%) of the person’s after-tax pay, including benefits that they may receive from any other source, in particular under the Automobile Insurance Act (CQLR, c. A-25), the Act respecting the Québec Pension Plan (CQLR, c. R-9), the Act respecting industrial accidents and occupational diseases (CQLR, c. A-3.001) and the various laws on pension plans; this maximum must not be interpreted as setting the same limit for benefits that an employee may receive from other sources.

SECTION III BASIC LIFE INSURANCE PLAN

30.11

An employee covered by 30.01 a) is entitled to $6,400.00 of life insurance.

An employee covered by 30.01 b) is entitled to $3,200.00 of life insurance.

The Employer pays the full cost of premiums involved in this clause.

30.12

Employees who on the date the 1972 collective agreement was signed were entitled, under a group plan to which the Employer contributed, to a greater amount of life insurance than that provided herein and who remained insured during the last collective agreement for the difference between the higher amount and the amount provided by the plan then in force, as well as retired employees who on that date were entitled to such insurance and who continued to be entitled to it during the same period, may continue this coverage providing that:

• they apply in writing to their Employer on the prescribed form no more than six (6) months after the collective agreement comes into force;
• they pay each month the first $0.40 of the cost of each $1,000.00 of this insurance.

SECTION IV BASIC HEALTH INSURANCE PLAN

30.13

1. The basic plan covers, in accordance with the terms of the contract, medication prescribed by a physician or dentist and sold by a licensed pharmacist or duly authorized physician.
2. Depending on the Employer and employee contributions still available, the terms of the basic plan may be structured, again in accordance with the terms of the contract, so as to include part or all of the following benefits:
   • transportation by ambulance;
   • medical and hospital expenses not otherwise reimbursable when the insured employee is temporarily outside Canada and their condition requires hospitalization outside Canada;
   • purchase of an artificial limb following an accident that occurs during the insured period;
   • other supplies or services prescribed by an attending physician and necessary for treating the illness;
   • hospitalization charges up to the equivalent of the cost of a semi-private room.

30.14

The Employer’s contribution to the basic health insurance plan for any employee cannot exceed the lesser of the following amounts in each pay period:

• For participating employees insured for themselves and dependants:
  • pay every 14 days: $29.44
  • pay every 7 days: $14.72
• For participating employees insured for themselves alone:
  • pay every 14 days: $12.92
  • pay every 7 days: $6.46
• The maximum amount for coverage provided to participating insured employees by the basic health insurance plan, excluding the cost of a semi-private hospital room.

30.15 

The contract must stipulate that the Employer’s contribution is waived as of the one hundred and fifth (105th) week of an employee’s disability.

30.16

Participation in the basic health insurance plan is mandatory.

If employees are on a leave of absence without pay, they must pay the full cost of all the necessary contributions and premiums.

By giving the Employer advance notice, employees may refuse or cease to participate in the basic health insurance plan, providing that they establish that they are insured under a group insurance plan or an employee benefit plan offering similar benefits or, if the contract allows, the RAMQ’s basic prescription drug insurance plan.

30.17

Employees may continue to participate in the group insurance plan while on suspension or after being dismissed until an arbitration award is rendered, if they themselves pay all the contributions and premiums necessary for this, subject to the clauses and stipulations of the insurance contract in effect. The Employer is, however, no longer responsible for collecting premiums and contributions in the case of an employee who has been dismissed.

Subject to the provisions of clause 30.16, however, an employee’s participation in the basic health insurance plan is mandatory during a suspension, and employees must pay all necessary contributions and premiums themselves.

30.18

An employee who has refused or who ceases to participate in the health insurance plan may participate once again in accordance with the terms set out in the contract.

SECTION V DISABILITY INSURANCE

30.19

Subject to the provisions of this agreement, employees are entitled to the following for each period of disability during which they are absent from work:

1. Payment of benefits equal to the salary they would receive if they were at work, up to the number of accumulated days of sick leave credited or five (5) working days, whichever is the lesser number.
   If, however, an employee must be absent from work because of illness without having enough days credited to cover the first five (5) working days of absence, they can use in advance the days that they will accumulate up to November 30 of the current year. An employee who leaves the position before the end of the year, however, must reimburse the Employer out of their last pay, at the rate prevailing at the time of their departure, for the days of sick leave taken in advance and not yet earned.
2. Payment of benefits equal to eighty per cent (80%) of the regular salary they would receive if they were at work, from the sixth (6th) working day on, for up to one hundred and four (104) weeks.
   For part-time employees and employees who do not hold positions, the amount of benefits is prorated to the amount of time worked in the fifty-two (52) calendar weeks preceding the disability compared to the amount of benefits payable on a full-time basis. Weeks during which a period of absence has been authorized for illness, annual vacation leave, maternity, paternity or adoption leave or protective leave or for an absence without pay provided for in the collective agreement are excluded from the calculation.
   The calculation must, however, be based on a minimum of twelve (12) weeks. If this is not the case, the Employer takes into consideration weeks prior to the period of fifty-two (52) weeks until the calculation can be done on the basis of twelve (12) weeks.
   If the period between the employee’s last date of hiring and the date of disability does not allow the calculation to be based on a minimum of twelve (12) weeks, the calculation is then based on the said period.
3. For any period of disability stipulated in a) and b) above, the employee accumulates experience for purposes of advancing on the salary scale.
4. Rehabilitation
   Throughout the entire period of disability up to a maximum of thirty-six (36) months from the start of this period, employees who receive disability insurance benefits may, on the recommendation by the physician designated by the Employer or at the employee’s request and on the recommendation of their attending physician, benefit from one (1) or more periods of rehabilitation in their position or, if this has ended, in another assignment.
   This rehabilitation is possible with the Employer’s consent, providing that it can enable the employee to perform all their usual tasks.
   On the recommendation of the Employer’s designated physician, the Employer may extend a rehabilitation period. The Employer and the employee may also agree to extend a period of rehabilitation on the recommendation of the attending physician.
5. Temporary assignment
   During the entire period of disability and up to maximum of thirty-six (36) months from its start, subject to the provisions of clause 15.01, the Employer may, on the recommendation of the employer-designated physician or with the consent of the attending physician, temporarily assign an employee receiving disability insurance benefits to duties corresponding to their residual abilities, ahead of employees on the availability list. Such an assignment must not be hazardous to the employee’s health, safety or physical well-being.
   The Employer may extend a period of temporary assignment if the employer-designated physician so recommends. The Employer and the employee may also agree to extend a period of temporary assignment on the recommendation of the attending physician.
6. During any period of rehabilitation or temporary assignment, employees continue to be covered by the disability insurance plan. They are entitled to salary for the proportion of time worked, on the one hand, and to the applicable benefits for the proportion of time not worked, on the other.
   In the case of a part-time employee or an employee who does not hold a position, the time not worked is equal to the difference between the number of days corresponding to the average established for the purposes of calculating benefits and the number of days worked.
   A period of rehabilitation or temporary assignment does not have the effect of interrupting the period of disability or extending the period during which full or reduced disability insurance benefits are paid beyond one hundred and four (104) weeks of benefits for a given disability.
   At the end of a period of rehabilitation or temporary assignment, employees may return to their position if they are no longer disabled. Similarly, employees who do not have a position continue their assignment. If the assignment has ended, employees are entitled to any other assignment in accordance with the provisions of the collective agreement. If their disability persists, employees continue to receive benefits for as long as they are eligible.

30.20

Employees continue to participate in their plan as stipulated in Article 41 (Pension plan) as long as benefits under 30.19 b) continue to be payable, including the waiting period, and for one (1) additional year if they are disabled at the end of the twenty-fourth (24) month, unless they return to work, die or retire before the end of this period. Employees are exempted from contributing to the pension plan without any loss of pension rights as soon as the benefits under 30.19 a) cease to be paid or when the period of time stipulated in the second (2nd) paragraph of 30.34 expires, as the case may be. The provisions on contribution waivers constitute an integral part of the provisions of the pension plan. Subject to the provisions of the collective agreement, payment of benefits must not be interpreted as conferring employee status on the person receiving benefits or as enhancing their rights as such, particularly with respect to the accumulation of sick days.

30.21

Disability insurance benefits are reduced by the initial amount of all disability compensation payable under any legislation, in particular Québec’s Automobile Insurance Act, the Act respecting the Québec Pension Plan, the Act respecting industrial accidents and occupational diseases and the various laws on pension plans, disregarding subsequent increases resulting from cost-of-living clauses. The following provisions apply more specifically:

1. If the disability entitles an employee to disability compensation payable under the Act respecting the Québec Pension Plan or the various laws on pension plans, disability insurance benefits are reduced by the amount of such disability compensation.
2. If the disability entitles an employee to disability compensation payable under Québec’s Automobile Insurance Act, the following provisions apply:
   1. For the period covered by 30.19 a), if the employee has days of sick leave banked, the Employer pays the employee, if applicable, the difference between their net salary and the compensation payable by the SAAQ. The accumulated bank of days of sick leave is reduced in proportion to the amount thus paid.
   2. For the period covered by 30.19 b), the employee receives, if applicable, the difference between eighty-five per cent (85%) of their net salary and the compensation payable by the SAAQ.
3. In the case of an employment injury entitling an employee to the income replacement indemnity paid under the Act respecting industrial accidents and occupational diseases, the following provisions apply:
   1. The employee receives ninety per cent (90%) of their net salary from the Employer until their injury is consolidated, without, however, exceeding one hundred and four (104) weeks from the start of the period of disability.
   2. If the date of consolidation of the injury comes before the one hundred and fourth (104th) week from the start of the period of continuous absence caused by an employment injury, the disability insurance plan provided under clause 30.19 applies if the employee is still disabled within the meaning of clause 30.03 as a result of the same injury, and in such a case, the date of the start of such an absence is deemed to be the date of the start of the disability for disability insurance purposes.
   3. Benefits paid by the CNESST for the same period accrue to the Employer, up to the amounts stipulated in i) and ii). The employee must sign the forms required to allow this reimbursement to the Employer.

The employee’s bank of days of sick leave is not affected by such an absence, and the employee is deemed to be receiving disability insurance benefits.

No disability insurance benefits may be paid for a disability compensated under the Act respecting industrial accidents and occupational diseases when the employment injury entitling the employee to compensation occurred with another Employer, subject to the provisions of clause 15.13 in this agreement. In such a case, the employee is required to inform the Employer of such an event and the fact that they are receiving an income replacement indemnity.

To receive benefits under clause 30.19 and this clause, an employee must inform the Employer of the amount of weekly benefits payable under any law.

30.22

Payment of benefits ceases with the payment provided for the last week of the month in which an employee effectively retires. The amount of the benefit is adjusted, if need be, by 1/5 of the amount stipulated for a full week, for each working day of disability during the regular week of work.

30.23

No benefits are payable during a strike unless it is for a disability that began before the strike.

30.24

Benefits payable both as days of sick leave and as disability insurance are paid directly by the Employer, but conditional on the employee submitting reasonably required supporting documents.

An employee is entitled to reimbursement of the fee charged by a physician for any request for additional medical information required by the Employer.

The employee is responsible for ensuring that all supporting documents are duly completed.

30.25

Regardless of the length of an absence, whether or not it is compensated and whether or not an insurance contract has been taken out to underwrite the risk, the Employer, or the insurer or government agency chosen by the employer party to represent the Employer for this purpose, may verify the reason for the absence and monitor the nature and duration of the disability.

If requiring an employee to undergo an expert medical assessment, the Employer provides a copy of the resulting medical report upon request.

30.26

To allow for this verification, the employee must notify the Employer immediately when unable to report for work because of illness, and promptly submit the supporting documents required under clause 30.24. The Employer or the latter’s representative may require a statement from the employee or the latter’s attending physician except in cases in which, given the circumstances, no physician was consulted. The Employer may also have the employee examined for any absence. The cost of such an examination is not to be borne by the employee and reasonable travel expenses are reimbursed in accordance with the provisions of the collective agreement.

30.27

The verification may be done on a sampling basis or as needed when the Employer deems it appropriate, given an accumulation of absences. If an employee makes a false statement, or if the reason for the absence is something other than the employee’s illness, the Employer may take the appropriate disciplinary measures.

30.28

If the nature of the illness or injury prevents the employee from notifying the Employer immediately or submitting the required proof promptly, the employee must do so as soon as possible.

30.29 Procedure for settling a dispute regarding a disability

1- The Employer must notify the employee and the Union in writing of management’s decision to refuse to recognize or to no longer recognize the disability or to require the employee to undergo or extend a period of rehabilitation or temporary assignment. The notice sent to the employee must be accompanied by the report(s) and expert opinion(s) directly related to the disability that the Employer will send to the medical arbitrator or arbitrator, as the case may be, or that will be used in the arbitration procedure set out in 30.29-3 or 30.29-4.

2- An employee who does not report for work on the day indicated on the notice stipulated in 30.29-1 is deemed to have contested the Employer’s decision by grievance on that date. In the case of an employee who does not hold a position, who is registered on the availability list and has not been assigned, the grievance is deemed to be filed on the day the Union receives the Employer’s notice indicating that the employee has not reported to work for an assignment offered to them, or at the latest seven (7) days after receipt of the notice provided in 30.29-1.

3- If the disability falls within the field of practice of a physiatrist, psychiatrist or orthopedist, the medical arbitration procedure applies.

a) The local parties have ten (10) days from the date the grievance is filed to agree on the appointment of a medical arbitrator. Should they fail to reach an agreement on the relevant specialty within the first five (5) days, the specialty is determined within the next two (2) days by the general practitioner or the latter’s alternate on the basis of the reports and expert opinions provided by the attending physician and the first (1st) physician designated by the Employer. In such a case, the local parties have the number of days remaining in the ten (10)-day period to agree upon the appointment of the medical arbitrator. Should they fail to agree on the choice of a medical arbitrator, the registrar of the CPNSSS registry appoints one from the list provided herein in 3 a), choosing the one who is next in line based on the relevant specialty determined and the geographic sector.

b) To be designated, the medical arbitrator must be able to render a decision within the prescribed period of time.

c) Within fifteen (15) days of the relevant specialty being determined, the employee or union representative and the Employer hand over to the medical arbitrator the files and expert opinions directly related to the disability that have been provided by their respective physicians.

d) The medical arbitrator meets with the employee and examines the latter if the medical arbitrator deems it necessary. This meeting must take place within thirty (30) days of when the relevant specialty is determined.

e) Reasonable travel expenses incurred by the employee are reimbursed by the Employer in accordance with the provisions of the collective agreement. The employee is not obliged to travel if the state of their health does not permit it.

f) The medical arbitrator’s mandate covers only the following matters:

• the non-existence of a disability;
• the date a disability ceases to exist;
• the employee’s ability to undergo a period of rehabilitation or its prolongation;
• the employee’s ability to undergo a period of temporary assignment or its prolongation.

If the conclusion is that the employee is or is still disabled, the medical arbitrator may also rule on the employee’s ability to undergo a period of rehabilitation or perform a temporary assignment.

g) The medical arbitrator renders a decision on the basis of the documents provided in accordance with the provisions of 3-c) and the meeting stipulated in 3-d). The medical arbitrator must decide, subject to the rules of professional conduct, in favour of the opinion of the attending physician or that of the physician designated by the Employer. The medical arbitrator must render a decision within no more than forty-five (45) days of the date the grievance was filed, and this decision is final and enforceable.

4- If the disability does not fall within the field of practice of a physiatrist, psychiatrist or orthopedist, the arbitration procedure set out in 3 applies, by replacing 3-a) by the following:

The local parties have ten (10) days from the date the grievance is filed to agree on the appointment of a medical arbitrator. Should they fail to reach an agreement on the relevant specialty within the first five (5) days, the specialty is determined within the next two (2) days by the general practitioner or the latter’s alternate on the basis of the reports and expert opinions provided by the attending physician and the first (1st) physician designated by the Employer. In such a case, the local parties have the number of days remaining in the ten (10)-day period to agree upon the appointment of the medical arbitrator. Should they fail to agree on the choice of a medical arbitrator, the Employer notifies the general practitioner or the latter’s alternate, who then has five (5) days to appoint a physician in the field of practice identified.

If contesting the cessation of the employee’s disability, the Employer must notify the employee and the Union in writing. The employee has thirty (30) days from the date of the Employer’s decision to file a grievance. The provisions of 30.29-3 or 30.29-4 apply, as the case may be.

Until the date of the employee’s return to work or the medical arbitrator’s decision, the employee is entitled to the disability insurance benefits provided for in this Article.

The Employer cannot require an employee to return to work before the date indicated on the medical certificate or until the medical arbitrator decides otherwise. If the decision is to the effect that the disability does not exist or no longer exists, the employee reimburses the Employer at the rate of ten per cent (10%) of the amount paid per pay period until the debt has been paid off in full.

The expenses and professional fees of the medical arbitrator are not borne by the union party.

Under the provisions of the collective agreement, employees cannot contest their ability to return to work in cases in which a competent body or tribunal constituted under any law, such as the Automobile Insurance Act, the Act respecting industrial accidents or occupational diseases or the Crime Victims Compensation Act has already rendered a decision on their ability to return to work in relation to the same disability and diagnosis.

30.30

Days of sick leave credited to an employee on April 1, 1980 and not used under the provisions of the previous collective agreement remain credited to them and may be used, at the regular salary rate at the time they are taken, in the following way:

a) to cover the waiting period of five (5) working days when an employee has exhausted their 9.6 days of sick leave in the year under clause 30.31.

b) for pre-retirement leave purposes.

Employees who wish to take pre-retirement leave must notify the Employer in writing at least thirty (30) days before the start of this leave. The notice must indicate the effective date of retirement, which is irrevocable.

The date on which the pre-retirement leave starts is the date that provides a number of days between the effective date of retirement and the date of the start of the pre-retirement leave that corresponds to the number of days of sick leave credited to the employee.

When employees leave on pre-retirement leave, the Employer pays them the number of days of annual vacation leave accumulated up until then as well as the days of sick leave accumulated under clause 30.31.

As of the date on which the pre-retirement leave begins, employees are no longer entitled to the benefits of the collective agreement, just as if they were not employed by the institution, except for the life and health insurance plans, the pension plan and salaries set out in the collective agreement, as well as grievance rights with respect to the above mentioned benefits.

c) to use to buy back years of service for which contributions were not made to the Government and Public Employees Retirement Plan (Chapter II, Division III of the Act). In this case, the bank of sick leave is used in full, as follows:

– first, the first sixty (60) days are used at their full value;

– and subsequently, the remaining days, without any limit on the number, are used at 50% of their value.

d) to make up the difference between the employee’s net salary and the disability insurance benefits provided under clause 30.19 b). During this period, the bank of sick leave is reduced in proportion to the amount thus paid out.

The same rule applies when the one hundred and four (104) weeks of disability insurance benefits expire. For the purposes of applying this clause, net salary means gross salary minus federal and provincial income tax and contributions to the Québec Pension Plan, the Employment Insurance Plan and the pension plan.

e) when the employee leaves, the accumulated cashable days of sick leave are paid day by day up to a total of sixty (60) working days. Days over and above sixty (60) working days of accumulated sick leave are paid at the rate of one half-day per working day accumulated, up to thirty (30) working days. The maximum number of days that can be cashed in when leaving is never more than ninety (90) working days under any circumstances.

f) at the end of each year, the Employer informs each employee in writing of their balance of accumulated sick leave before the disability insurance plan comes into force.

30.31

Every full-time employee is entitled to 9.6 working days of sick leave in each year of service, six (6) of which may be taken separately for personal reasons after twenty-four (24) hours of advance notice. Taking days off for personal reasons must not result in causing serious detriment to the activity centre’s operations.

Leave for personal reasons may be taken in advance from the days of sick leave that employees accumulate by November 30 of the current year. It may not, however, be taken in advance between December 15 and January 15 unless the Employer agrees. If the employees leave before the end of the year, they reimburse the Employer for days of leave taken in advance and not yet earned at the rate that is current at the time of their departure, out of their last pay cheque.

These days are accumulated at the rate of 0.80 working days per complete month of service. Any authorized absence of more than thirty (30) days interrupts the accumulation of sick leave; any authorized absence of thirty (30) days or less does not interrupt the accumulation of sick leave.

Any period of more than twelve (12) months of continuous disability interrupts the accumulation of days of annual vacation leave, regardless of the reference period stipulated in clause 23.01.

30.32

Employees who have not used all the days of sick leave to which they are entitled under clause 30.31 is paid by December 15 each year for the days thus accumulated and not used as of November 30 of each year, or, at the time of their departure, for the days accumulated as of the date of departure, at the regular salary rate.

30.33

Periods of disability in progress on the date the collective agreement comes into force are not interrupted.

30.34

Instead of accumulating days of sick leave as stipulated in clause 30.31, part-time employees and employees who do not hold positions receive the remuneration stipulated in 38.03 c) with each pay.

Part-time employees and employees who do not hold positions who are covered by 30.01 a) or b) are entitled to the other provisions of the disability insurance plan, except that benefits for the period of disability only become payable after seven (7) calendar days of absence from work due to a disability, starting from the first (1st) day on which the employee was required to report for work.

The preceding paragraph does not apply to part-time employees or employees holding positions who have chosen under clause 30.01 not to be covered by the insurance plans.

30.35

Unless the Employer and the Union agree otherwise, employees who suffer an employment injury as defined by the Act respecting industrial accidents and occupational diseases may return to their position, or go back on the availability list if they do not hold a position, if they establish that they are again fit to perform the usual duties of their job. If such a position is no longer available, the provisions on bumping and/or layoffs apply.

30.36

The employee concerned retains this right to return to work for three (3) years from the start of the employment injury.

If the employee has not returned to their position by the end of this period, or if they have become permanently unfit to hold it during the same period, the position becomes vacant.

30.37 

Unless the Employer and the Union agree otherwise, during the period stipulated in clause 30.36, the Employer may temporarily assign an employee, even if the injury is not consolidated, to either the employee’s original position or to a position temporarily without an incumbent, ahead of employees on the availability list, subject to the provisions on the replacement team. Such an assignment cannot be made if it involves a risk to the health, safety or physical well-being of the employee concerned, given their injury. If such an assignment is made, it must be in accordance with the conditions agreed upon by the employee’s attending physician and the Employer’s physician. It must not have the effect of extending the period stipulated in clause 30.36 either.

30.38

During the period stipulated in clause 30.36, employees who are still unable to resume their usual work, despite the consolidation of their injury, are registered on a special team if their residual abilities enable them to perform certain duties. The Employer sends the Union the names of employees put on the special team.

30.39

Unless the Employer and Union agree otherwise, employees put on the special team are deemed to have applied for any vacant or newly created position whose duties can be performed with their residual abilities, without a risk to their health, safety or physical well-being, given their injury.

Subject to the provisions of clause 15.05 on the reassignment of employees, the position is awarded to the employee on the special team with the most seniority if they meet the normal requirements of the job.

30.40 

An employee who, without a valid reason, refuses a position offered in accordance with clause 30.39 is deemed to have resigned.