Wednesday, January 31, 2018
In another example of what can be achieved through strong advocacy and the building of good will, AMAPCEO is pleased to share a positive outcome for its members in the Client Services Branch of the Office of the Public Guardian and Trustee (OPGT) – Ministry of the Attorney General (MAG).
Over the past decade, AMAPCEO’s 200 members at the OPGT, like a lot of OPSers, have seen their staffing numbers shrink while their workloads have grown. AMAPCEO represents a variety of front line workers charged with overseeing some of Ontario’s most vulnerable populations, in roles such as Client Representative, Senior Client Representative, Treatment Decision Consultant, Investigator, and Team Lead. OPGT members in cities like London, Hamilton, Toronto, Ottawa, Sudbury have had their caseloads almost triple – something troubling not only for them as dedicated public servants, but also for the citizens they serve who got less and less professional attention as a result.
After several years of unfruitful attempts at resolution, a fresh strategy was put in place wherein MAG’s AMERC (Employee Relations Committee) led by Co-Chair Harold Haynes and Dispute Resolution Officer Michaelin Scott worked in tandem with the President’s Office to advocate for greater staffing and work flow optimizations. After regular contact with senior levels of the Ministry’s strategic business unit, multiple Deputy Attorney Generals, and the Secretary of Cabinet, concerns were finally heard. Through the Government’s implementation of a Seniors Strategy, human resources have been increased across the board with 8 of those positions being AMAPCEO-represented. Additional workflow improvements identified for implementation will follow in coming months.
AMAPCEO would like to thank its OPGT members for their support, solidarity and patience. Relief has been a long time coming and we applaud their demonstrated dedication to public service over this difficult time. And, though we’ve achieved substantial progress with this outcome, we’ll continue to monitor promised improvements as they are instituted.
Stronger together,
Dave Bulmer
President