Updates

OAGO union update: legal processes underway

Recently, AMAPCEO met with representatives from the Ontario Labour Relations Board (OLRB) and the OAGO employer to discuss the next steps in the process of determining which positions are included in the bargaining unit, and in the legal challenge to the right of OAGO employees to be in a bargaining unit at all.

AMAPCEO has also recently filed an Unfair Labour Practices complaint against the OAGO employer for their inappropriate actions throughout the period leading up to the vote.

We will continue to update you on the status of the legal proceedings as new information becomes available.

We also want to correct some misinformation included in the recent email from the OAGO employer. What the “freeze” on your current terms and conditions of employment means is that the employer cannot unilaterally change them without consent from the employees, as represented by the union.

In the period leading up to the vote, you heard repeatedly from the OAGO employer that planned improvements to your terms and conditions of employment had to be paused or even cancelled because employees took steps to form your union. This was one of several misinformation tactics the employer used to discourage you from voting in favour of your union.

The truth is that if the employer wants to improve your wages or the terms and conditions of your employment, they are—and always were—free to do so.

AMAPCEO wants the best possible working conditions for OAGO employees and would gladly consent to any improvements offered by the employer and supported by employees.

This freeze is part of Canadian labour legislation designed to protect, not punish, workers trying to form a union. Other legislation also prevents them from retaliating against you for supporting a union at the OAGO.

If you are experiencing any issues, have any concerns about reprisal, or if you have heard from the employer that they are unable to improve your working conditions, please contact us.

To ensure you have correct information and the latest updates on the processes mentioned above, we urge you to stay signed up to the OAGO union mailing list, and to encourage your colleagues to do so as well. We will keep you apprised of any developments as they happen.

Finally, we want to reiterate that OAGO employees' efforts to form a union are not over. AMAPCEO will continue to work to ensure accountability and a better workplace for OAGO employees.

June 8, 2022 - Message from AMAPCCEO President Dave Bulmer: Our fight continues

It is with great disappointment that I report the results of this week’s vote, that being 39 votes in favour of unionization and 54 against.

Obviously, this is far from what we had expected and from what we worked so hard toward.

Rest assured that, despite the results of this vote, our efforts are not over. The behaviour of your employer throughout this campaign was inappropriate, unjust, and unlawful. AMAPCEO is actively in conversation with our legal counsel right now about the unfair labour practices you were subject to throughout the past ten days, and the impact of those practices on the results of the vote.

Additionally, the results of the votes cast by the employees in positions whose inclusion in the bargaining unit were contested by your employer remain uncounted, as the Ontario Labour Relations Board has yet to make its ruling on the inclusion of these employees. We will keep you informed of these developments as soon as they happen.

To that end, we strongly encourage you and your colleagues to sign up and stay signed up for communication from your AMAPCEO team. We will be in regular communication with you and there will be more important updates to come as we have information to share.

Many of you gave your all for this campaign, and on behalf of your AMAPCEO organizing team, I want to thank you. Thank you for standing with your colleagues in support of one another.

I want to make one thing very clear: AMAPCEO is still in your corner. We remain committed to ensuring a better workplace for OAGO employees, and we will do everything in our power to ensure accountability, fairness, and due process for all.

Dave Bulmer

President & CEO

AMAPCEO

June 5, 2022 — What you and your colleagues are fighting for

Over the past few weeks, your AMAPCEO team has been proud to support OAGO employees and to get to know many of you one-on-one. Today, we, as a group, wanted to take the opportunity to address you all directly.

We know this has been a difficult week for many of you. You have been subject to a great deal of false information and illegal threats to your benefits, economic security, and to the integrity of your work at the OAGO. That never should have happened.

AMAPCEO has thirty years of experience in working with employees to unionize their workplaces and in negotiating with governments from all three major political parties and with several employers in the Broader Public Sector—what you have experienced over the past week is not normal.

AMAPCEO’s members are hard-working public service and public sector employees whose skills, effort, and expertise make a difference in their communities and for the province as a whole. Some are tasked with delivering accountability and transparency in the public sector—just like you. And all of these employees can carry out their duties with integrity and due diligence, while their union protects the terms and conditions of their employment.

AMAPCEO has a proud history as a non-partisan union dedicated to fiercely protecting the independence of our members. Knowing AMAPCEO is working for them gives our members the support they need to do their best work for Ontario.

We are aware that by now, many of you have seen correspondence from AMAPCEO’s legal counsel—some of the foremost labour law experts in the country—in which they identified the “gravity of the Employer’s violations of the [Labour Relations] Act.”

For the sake of transparency, we want to share that document with you all. AMAPCEO has nothing to hide.

Despite the challenges you have faced, OAGO employees have demonstrated incredible strength, determination, and courage. You know that you deserve better, and you are ready to stand together on June 6 and 7 to achieve that.

To that end, we want to share with all of you just a few of the messages OAGO employees have sent AMAPCEO giving their reasons for forming a union. You should know what your colleagues are fighting for:

“I love my job, but my workplace makes me anxious and exhausted. I really hope that having a union will change that!”

“Work-life balance is important to me and to so many of my colleagues. We have made that clear to management, yet management has been extremely hesitant to develop a fair work from home policy.”

“I have had to work on understaffed and inadequate audit teams, resulting in numerous unpaid overtime hours, all because management has an interest in completing as many value for money reports as possible in order to receive incentive-based compensation. That isn’t right and I want a change.”

"I want a to form a union because I want to be able to stay on at the OAGO, in good conscience, doing the work I'm passionate about with my amazing team. I have hope that, with a union, we can build a more fair, transparent, and respectful work environment."

The past few days may have been difficult, but your goal is in sight and AMAPCEO is with you every step of the way. Take strength in each other’s strength and vote YES to form your union.

James Wardlaw, Labour Relations Specialist

Jennifer Pacheco, Labour Relations Specialist and Team Lead

Inessa Peterson, Education Officer

Leah Rowlinson, Labour Relations Specialist

June 3, 2022 — Message from President Dave Bulmer

As a long-time public servant, fortunate to have been unionized throughout my career, I've experienced firsthand how valuable it is to have someone representing your interests and protecting your rights in the workplace.

And that includes your right to form a union. I want you to know that you have AMAPCEO’s full support in exercising that legal right. I hope you take pride in that decision and in your hard work and dedication in getting this far.

But the most important step is still to come:

On Monday, June 6 or Tuesday, June 7, I urge you to vote yes to forming a union with AMAPCEO.

All the information and instructions you need for voting are available on your dedicated website at amapceo.ca/oago.

AMAPCEO—Ontario's Professional Employees and the more than 15,000 professionals we represent are proud you have chosen us as your bargaining agent, and we look forward to repaying your faith and trust in us. We have a long-standing history of taking a principled, problem-solving approach to labour relations and of finding innovative, modern-day solutions to workplace issues.

A good job should be valued—it is your livelihood. Your workplace should be a fair and positive space—it is where you expend your knowledge and creative energy. OAGO employees deserve nothing less than fair terms of employment and respect in the workplace.

I believe we can accomplish that together. I urge you to stand with one another next week and to vote for a common purpose and a common good—each other and your livelihoods.

Dave Bulmer

President & CEO

June 1, 2022 — Vote scheduled for Monday, June 6 to Tuesday, June 7!

The exciting process of forming our union is underway, but the most important step is still to come: the secret ballot vote.

When:

The vote will take place from Monday, June 6 at noon ET to Tuesday, June 7 at noon ET.

Who:

All OAGO employees are eligible and have the right to vote, except “directors, persons above the rank of director, and persons employed in a confidential capacity in matters relating to labour relations.”

OAGO employees have said time and time again: we want to build a better workplace for everyone. To that end, our filing with the OLRB included as many employees as possible in the potential bargaining unit. The Employer has since requested to exclude the following positions: Executive Assistant to the Auditor General, Payroll Administrator, Human Resources Co-ordinator, Manager of Forensics, Supervisor of Forensics and CPA Student Auditors and Co-op Students.

However, if you occupy one of these positions, you are still eligible to vote. The final decision on who will be represented by the union will be made by the OLRB after voting has taken place.

The most important you can do now, regardless of your position, is to cast your ballot and vote YES to form a union.

Where:

The voting will be held online. Alternatively, you may choose to cast your ballot over the phone. The vote will be conducted by SimplyVoting, an experienced electronic voting provider with significant security measures in place to ensure the secrecy of the ballot. Your employer is required by the OLRB to provide contact information (i.e., email addresses) for all employees.

How:

You will receive an email from SimplyVoting containing detailed instructions on how to vote, including a phone number, a URL, and a confidential personal identification number (PIN). Your PIN is required to vote and can only be used once; do not share it with anyone.

Please ensure you check your junk/spam folder for the email from SimplyVoting.

A ballot will be provided either on your computer/mobile device screen or on a recorded message on the phone.

In the online vote, you submit your PIN and select a checkbox on the ballot displayed on your computer/mobile device screen. Vote YES to join the union.

By phone, you will receive automated prompts to submit your PIN and cast a ballot, pressing 1 or 2 to vote in response to the ballot question. Vote YES to join the union.

If you do not receive a PIN, or if you require any assistance to vote, contact the Ontario Labour Relations Board Help Desk at 437-488-2549. Leave a detailed message if you do not get an answer right away.

You can see the full copy of the OLRB’s decision regarding this vote here .

Your employer is also required to email copies of the OLRB’s decision and the "Notice of Vote" to all employees, and to post these documents in the workplace.

If your employer has not done so, or if you have any questions or concerns about the vote process, please contact us at amapceo@amapceo.on.ca.

May 30, 2022 — OAGO union: a better workplace for all

Since the announcement Friday, we have been heartened by the support and determination of our Office of the Auditor General of Ontario colleagues. We take strength from your strength, and we are looking forward to the exciting week ahead as we stand together to win the fight for our union.

From our very first conversations with each other and with AMAPCEO organizers, OAGO employees have returned time and time again to a single point: we want to build a better workplace for everyone. We want to protect the things we love about our jobs, and we want to work together to improve conditions for the entire team. 

The goal of our union at the OAGO is to unite all employees for a common purpose and a common good—a fair, transparent workplace with a process to resolve issues in which we are heard and represented.

Employees in workplaces represented by AMAPCEO, such as the Ontario Public Service, the Ontario Arts Council, and Public Health Ontario—employees including project managers, internal auditors, researchers, communications professionals, and many others—can bargain for things that are important to them from a position of strength and solidarity. They also have the support of highly skilled labour relations professionals—not to mention the country’s top labour lawyers—in the event of workplace issues.

OAGO employees deserve all that, too.

To get there, we need to stand together this week and vote YES for our union.

If you haven’t already signed up for email updates on the latest developments with our union, you can do so here.

Finally, if you have any questions or even concerns, or if you’d like to get involved with the campaign, please contact us at amapceo@amapceo.on.ca.

Together, we’re aiming to build better future for everyone at the Office of the Auditor General of Ontario.

May 27, 2022 — Application to form a union has been filed!

After a successful employee-led card-signing drive, the employees at the Office of the Auditor General of Ontario have officially filed to form a union with AMAPCEO. This marks the completion of the first step in the process of forming a union.

This also means that a “freeze” on your current terms and conditions of employment is in effect until your first collective agreement is negotiated. In other words, your employer cannot unilaterally change them to retaliate against you for unionizing.