Mar 16, 2020 COVID-19: Update for public service members (March 16)

Note: The situation regarding COVID-19 is changing rapidly. Please ensure you read the most up to date notices on www.acfo-acaf.com and understand that older information may become outdated quickly.

Over the past several days, ACFO-ACAF has met with our fellow bargaining agents and with the Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer (OCHRO) to share information and to ensure that OCHRO is aware of issues with departments who are not complying with the recommendations made on Friday regarding flexible working arrangements. ACFO-ACAF has also followed up directly with non-compliant departments and managers to ensure that ACFO-ACAF members who are not in critical positions are not being required to go into work.

At this point it should be clear to all managers based on OCHRO’s communications: Any employee whose role is not critical should not be coming into work.

If your department or manager has issued a general call for employees to come into work, we encourage you to explicitly ask your manager if you can stay home. If your manager refuses to allow you to stay home, tell them that your union has encouraged you to get the request to come into work in writing, as well an explanation of why you are deemed to be in a critical position. In this case, we also urge you to contact one of our Labour Relations Advisors at labourrelations@acfo-acaf.com as soon as possible. Our Advisors will contact management directly and will help take steps right away to ensure that you can stay home.

One thing ACFO-ACAF has stressed during these conversations is that the recommendation made by OCHRO for departments to be as flexible as possible applies to all federal public servants, not just those in the National Capital Region.

We have also received word that Treasury Board has activated their COVID-19 Management Decision Tree for employees at TBS. This policy outlines the steps that should be taken for employees in three distinct situations and we believe it should be broadly applied across all departments.

Employees who have been asked by health authorities to self-isolate should: Telework if able Otherwise be granted other leave with pay (code 699)

Employees who have to stay home as a result of school or day closures should: Try to find alternate arrangements Telework if possible Otherwise be granted other leave with pay (code 699)

Employees who are well should stay at home and: Telework if possible Otherwise be granted other leave with pay (code 699)

and:

We understand that the situation is fluid and rapidly changing and that information from different sources has sometimes been unclear and contradictory. Know that ACFO-ACAF will continue to work to ensure that our community is getting the most accurate, up-to-date information available regarding their working conditions and that no ACFO-ACAF members are being required to go into work unless absolutely necessary. Finally, we want to thank you again for your professionalism and patience during this very challenging time.

If you have any questions or require any advice, please feel free to contact us at labourrelations@acfo-acaf.com.