Letter or agreement no16 - Regarding work-time arrangements
- Scope
The provisions of this Letter of Agreement apply to employees holding a full-time position with a regular work week that is distributed over five (5) days, and who work on the evening or night shift or on rotating shifts. They also apply to employees working on the day shift who have fifteen
(15) or more years’ experience.
Work-time arrangements are made on an individual and voluntary basis.
- Rules for work-time arrangements
The local parties, or the employee and the Employer, may agree to establish work-time arrangements by reaching an agreement on the following rules, in particular:
- the implementation date;
- the duration of requests for the work-time arrangement.
When it is not possible to give access to the work-time arrangement to all employees who volunteer for it, the Employer takes seniority into account in deploying that arrangement, unless the local parties come to a different agreement.
A. Day or evening shift
An employee holding a full-time position on the evening shift who wishes to have a schedule of nine (9) days of work per fourteen (14)-day period obtains one (1) paid day off per fourteen (14)-day period by converting twelve (12) statutory holidays, ten (10) days of annual leave and three (3) days of sick leave into time off.
The same provisions apply to an employee holding a full-time position on the day shift who has fifteen (15) or more years of service.
B. Night shift
a) An employee holding a full-time position on the night shift who wishes to have a schedule of nine (9) days of work per fourteen (14)-day period obtains one (1) paid day off per period of fourteen (14) days by converting the night-shift premium into time off. In such a case, the provisions of 37.02 A) and B) apply.
b) An employee holding a full-time position on the night shift who wishes to have a schedule of eight (8) days of work per fourteen (14)-day period obtains two (2) days of paid leave per fourteen (14)-day period:
i) by converting part of the night shift premium into the equivalent of twenty-five (25) days of time off, and
ii) by converting eleven (11) statutory holidays, ten (10) days of annual vacation leave and four (4) days of sick leave into time off.
iii) An employee who can obtain more than twenty-five (25) days by converting all of their night shift premium may:
- convert all the surplus days so as to reduce by a corresponding number the days of annual vacation leave converted under ii). If applicable, the residual amount representing a fraction of a day that does not constitute a full day is paid;
or
- be paid the part of the night shift premium that is not converted, within a maximum of thirty (30) days following each anniversary date for the implementation of the work-time arrangement for the employee in question.
For the purposes of applying iii), surplus days are established as follows:
- 14% of the premium is equal to 2 days for an employee with 0 to 5 years’ seniority;
- 15% of the premium is equal to 3.7 days for an employee with 5 to 10 years’ seniority;
- 16% of the premium is equal to 5.3 days for an employee with 10 or more years’ seniority.
iv) During any absence for which an employee receives remuneration, benefits or an allowance, their salary or the salary used to establish the benefits or allowance, as the case may be, is reduced during their absence by the percentage of the night shift premium that would be applicable under 37.02 A) of the collective agreement.
The provisions of iv) do not apply to the following absences:
a) statutory holidays;
b) annual vacation leave;
c) maternity, paternity or adoption leave;
d) absence for disability from the sixth (6th) working day on;
e) absence for an employment injury recognized as such in accordance with the provisions of the Act respecting industrial accidents and occupational diseases (CQLR, c. A-3.001);
f) additional days of leave or time off paid under i) and ii).
C. Rotating shifts
An employee holding a full-time position on rotating shifts may take advantage of the work- time arrangement only for the portion of time worked on the evening or night shift. Applicable rules are those provided for full-time positions on evenings or nights, prorated to the time worked on those shifts.
Notwithstanding the above, an employee with fifteen (15) or more years of service may take advantage of the work-time arrangement for the portion of time worked on the day shift as well.
D. Reconciliation of time
When an employee ceases to be covered by this Letter of Agreement in the course of the year, the reduction in the number of days of sick leave and annual vacation leave provided for in A or in B-ii) is prorated to the time that has elapsed between the last anniversary date of the implementation of the Letter of Agreement for the employee in question and the termination date, in relation to a full year.
In such a case, the Employer also pays the employee working on the night shift an amount equal to the part of the premium that has not been converted, prorated to the number of days worked between the anniversary date of the implementation of the Letter of Agreement for the employee and the termination date, in relation to the number of days of work included in that period. For the purposes of this clause, days of leave stemming from the application of B-i) and B-ii) are deemed to be days worked.
E. Status of a part-time employee who replaces a full-time employee on the shifts freed up
An employee holding a part-time position who replaces a full-time employee on the shifts freed up continues to have the status of part-time employee, unless the local parties agree otherwise.
F. Ending implementation of the work-time arrangement
If the day or days freed up by the employee benefiting from the work-time arrangement are no longer worked by someone else for a period of at least fifteen (15) days, the Employer may terminate the work-time arrangement after giving the employee fifteen (15) days’ notice.