October 8, 2024
Dear members:
You will have recently received a request from the employer to volunteer for UFV's Open House (October 26th). This exciting community event provides opportunities for us all to share the work we do on behalf of the university and encourage people in the Fraser Valley to attend UFV as future students. This is a recruitment event and, therefore, should be seen as work time.
If you are interested in participating in the UFV Open House, I encourage you all to speak to your leadership to confirm how you will be compensated for giving up this time on your Saturday.
For our staff members, the Collective Agreement is clear when it comes to overtime on your first day of rest:
Article 17.6.b.ii: "Time and one-half (1 ½ times) the staff employee's regular hourly rate for the first three (3) hours worked on the first day off of the employee's scheduled two (2) consecutive days off."
You have the right to instead take time in lieu, but that requires mutual agreement between you, as the employee, and your supervisor as per Article 17.6.c.ii. Time in lieu should be calculated by following Article 17.6.b.ii above.
Please let the FSA know if your supervisor refuses to approve overtime (with a timesheet) and will only allow you to take time in lieu or insists that this is voluntary and unpaid.
Further, you are not obligated to work on a Saturday and can refuse as per Article 17.6.c.i.
For our faculty members, if you wish to participate in the Open House, those hours are considered service hours, but you have no obligation to work that day.
If you are a faculty member and want to participate in the Open House, but have a class on Monday, please connect with your department head or dean to discuss how those hours will be compensated, as you are required to have two consecutive non-working days in a row (as per Article 18.3.f):
"Teaching faculty will be expected to work regular schedules, with no less than two (2) consecutive days off per week, to meet the needs of the employer in general and, specifically, of the department or work group to which the faculty employee is assigned. In special circumstances exceptions to the following guidelines may be made by the employer after consultation with the employee affected and other employees in the area."
Again, I hope that you will participate in the Open House if your personal time allows and you are willing to do so. However, this is not volunteer time — your labour requires fair compensation, especially on a day when you do not owe UFV your time, energy, or presence.
Warm regards,
Greg Mather
FSA President
