Carleton Admin Errs on TA Tuition Rebate: Some stand to lose upwards of $1,000

by Mat Nelson

CUPE 4600, the union representing nearly 2,500 teaching assistants (TAs) and contract instructors at Carleton University, learned on Feb. 2 that the university administration has made a significant error in the calculation of a tuition increase rebate currently in place for TAs.

The university informed the union that it intends to reduce future TA paycheques of those affected in order to account for the mistake. At the high end, some TAs could face deductions of $170.33 over six paycheques for a total of $1022.00.

Lise Labine, assistant vice-president of human resources, told the Leveller, “There has been a pay error and the university is taking measures to correct. All affected TAs will be advised accordingly. The university will consider all situations to ensure there is no undue hardship.”

“This is completely unacceptable. We refuse to stand by and let our fellow TAs suffer undue hardship and financial difficulty because of this error,” said CUPE 4600 Co-President James Meades in an email to the Leveller.

Tuition Increase Protection (TIP) is a mechanism which protects against increases in tuition in the form of a rebate that is paid out on the last paycheque of each term worked as a TA. TIP is outlined in section 23.04 of the collective agreement between the university and the union.

All TAs have a reference tuition fee based on the rate charged on the first day they began employment. The rebate constitutes the difference between the current tuition paid by the employee and the tuition fees that existed at the time of their initial hire.

For TAs hired prior to April 2009, tuition is frozen at 2005 tuition fee levels. During the 2008 round of collective bargaining, the rebate mechanism was renegotiated as a “rolling index,” whereby new TAs receive a reimbursement calculated on the basis of the time they were hired, rather than 2005 tuition rates.

Despite this change, Carleton’s Human Resource Department incorrectly applied across the board rebates based on 2009 levels for those TAs appointed after May 1, 2010.

Now the university wants this money back.

Human Resources has indicated that they will be seeking repayment from members who began as TAs on or after Sept. 1, 2010.

Commencing on Feb. 28, they are planning to retrieve the money over the next six pay periods.

Each TA is expected to receive an email explaining what is happening, and notifying them of an emergency loan system established to assist those TAs in financial difficulty.

In response to the proposed repayment scheme, CUPE 4600 has been in consultation with the legal department at CUPE National, and has requested a special meeting of the Joint Consultation Committee, a body consisting of representatives from both parties, to deal with the issue. The union has also asked for a report from the administration that indicates from whom they are planning to retrieve the money, and how much will be deducted. The university administration has refused to do so, citing privacy issues – an argument the union disputes.

According to an email the union sent to its members, “the union works to protect you and to advocate on your behalf. In terms of the employer attempting to deduct money from your paycheques, we are exploring every possible avenue to ensure that you don’t pay for their mistake.”

“It is our position that the employer, Carleton University, can begin enforcing your collective agreement properly as of now. That is, we understand that they want to extract the maximum amount of tuition dollars from students and are not willing to freeze the tuition of all TAs to 2009 levels. However, to repeat, we do not believe that they are entitled to take upwards of $200 off your next five paycheques because of their mistake.”

The email also indicates that the specific amount to be deducted will vary from person to person, based on factors such as when students began work as a TA.

In the meantime, union officials have indicated they are determined to fight back against the proposed repayment plan.

According to Meades, “Our members have expressed grave concern over the possibility that they should pay for an administrative mistake. We will use all the resources at our disposal to make sure TAs are protected against the negative effects of the university’s plan to take back  our members’ money.”

This article first appeared in the Leveller Vol. 4, No. 5 (Feb. 2012).

Message in a Bottle: Bottle economy makes positive contribution to local communities

by Erin Cummings

Our collective house is perched on a busy street corner, mere blocks from the Somerset Street Beer Store. Its make-up, like that of much of our neighbourhood, is decidedly eclectic.

Like any red-blooded group of disenchanted 20 somethings, we drown our sorrows and celebrate our victories with regular nights of beer drinking and the occasional epic soirée. On many a head pounding, bleary eyed morning I have gathered dozens of cans from table tops, mantlepieces, bathtub ledges, windowsills and counter tops and dumped them in our blue boxes, only to find them miraculously gone within the hour.

As my first summer in Centretown unfolded, this routine became a familiar scene. Eventually, I got to meet the good neighbours who carted away the mountains of cans and bottles that were the product of our debauchery.

The charming and ancient couple, who don’t speak much English, always greeted me with wide grins and many a “thank you” as I helped to fill their grocery cart. The kind gentleman with the scooter once brought us a huge bag of bread from Costco as a thank you for a particularly bountiful haul. And Bill, a friend of my neighbour, once cracked me a fresh beer in exchange for watching his cart of empties while he popped in for a visit next door.

I look forward to meeting these kind, gracious, grateful and smiling neighbours as I run errands around town or sit on my porch smoking cigarettes. The bottle collectors of Centretown are a reliable and welcome presence in my daily life. The more time I spend speaking with local collectors, the more respect I develop for their work.

Since 1927, the Beer Store has hosted a deposit return program for empty beer cans and bottles, as well as liquor, coolers and wine bottles. Today, Ontario residents can collect 10 cents for every can or bottle of 630ml or less, while those above 630ml bring a 20 cent return. In Gatineau, pop cans and bottles fetch 5 cents, while liquor, wine and beer cans and bottles over 450ml bring in 20 cents each.

This seemingly small monetary incentive has produced some remarkable results.

Throughout the province, the Beer Store’s Ontario Deposit Return Program (ODRP) recovers 98 percent of the containers and packaging materials sold in its stores. The material is turned into fibreglass insulation, aluminium sheeting and auto parts, reused as bottles and even transformed into miscellaneous plastic doodads. By recycling these materials, the ODRP claims to save 174,292 tonnes of green house gas emissions that the production of new bottles and cans would have generated. In other terms, these emissions amount to 477,453 barrels of oil, or the fumes puffed from the tail pipes of 33,325 cars over the span of one year.

These environmental figures are impressive, but are not the only impetus behind the emergence of such a thriving bottle economy in Ottawa and other urban centres across North America.

According to a 2011 study by environmental economist Bevin Ashenmiller, bottle returns are a significant source of income for urban residents with household incomes below $10,000. Among the respondents who participated in Ashenmiller’s research, most people earned between $340 and $428 per year from bottle and can returns.

Beau’s All Natural Brewing Company has begun to tap into the bottle economy’s socio-economic potential for the Ottawa Valley region through partnering with the Ottawa-based not-for-profit organization Operation Come Home. Established in December 2011, Beau’s Bottleworks home delivery service is fully staffed by the youth from the organization.

Offering a range of services to homeless youth, Operation Come Home hosts a drop-in centre, educational resources, job skills training, employment support and outreach programs. Paired with Beau’s Brewery, young employees deliver beer to the homes of customers and return their empty bottles to the brewery for recycling. Every cent of the $15 delivery fee is paid directly to Operation Come Home.

But aside from the partnership between Beau’s Brewery and Operation Come Home, the bottle collecting economy remains dominated by the Beer Store outlets rather than community-based recycling and employment projects.

By centering the Ontario Deposit Return Program at Beer Store retailers, it seems that a large portion of the income that can be gained from bottle returns will be funnelled back into the industry instead of serving the general socio-economic good.

As an individual pursuit, the bottle economy in Ottawa remains largely ad hoc. Some collectors have access to transportation, large carts and tag-along trailers for their bicycles, allowing them to travel greater distances and bring in bigger hauls of bottles and cans.

Physical mobility challenges and inclement weather may also limit some collectors’ efforts towards bringing in consistent and significant income from their work. Collectors also have to keep a close eye on their cache for risk of it being taken by others before it can be delivered to a Beer Store for refund.

Perhaps the development of a co-op could help overcome some of these collective issues, but it isn’t yet clear to me that one will emerge. The majority of collectors seem to take their jobs quite seriously.

A Beer Store employee I spoke with estimated that around 30 to 40 percent of collectors at their location take their deposits away from the store rather than spending it on more beer. Considering the abysmal state of social support payments in Ontario, residents who rely on disability support, welfare and public pension receive an income well below the poverty line. Even small profits from bottle collecting can offer valuable additional income for the city’s most economically and socially marginalized residents.

There remains a strong though undeserved stigma attached to bottle collectors. These folks make positive contributions to keeping their communities tidy and environmentally sustainable while pursuing alternative economic avenues and self-sufficiency. As an alternative, eco-friendly, grassroots economy however, it is undeniably an important part of the social fabric of this city.

This article first appeared in the Leveller Vol. 4, No. 5 (Feb. 2012).

Read All About It !!

Keystone Pipeline Rejected
TransCanada Corp’s proposal for an intercontinental pipeline to move tar sands oil from Alberta to the Gulf of Mexico was rejected by Washington on Jan. 18. The Obama administration ruled that a proper environmental assessment could not be conducted in the 60-day deadline set by Congress. This victory for “radicals” – what the Harper government has deemed opponents of the tar sands and its proposed conduits – comes with the caveat of inevitable future proposals. A statement released by the US State Department specified that, “denial of the permit application does not preclude any subsequent permit application or applications for similar projects.” Whimpering from industry and governmental officials in Canada signalled that new pipeline route proposals would be drawn up with a further need to diversify energy exports with an eye on Asia. Little doubt remains that the dirty energy lobby and their allies in Ottawa will increase efforts at pushing through the proposed Enbridge Northern Gateway pipeline from the tar sands through B.C. to the Pacific. However, with their confidence already shaken, government and industry have a tough fight ahead as thousands are speaking out against the proposal which crosses through the heart of unceded Indigenous territory.

NCC angers residents over highway expansion and road closures in Gatineau
Protesters rallied in early January against National Capital Commission (NCC) plans to extend Highway 5 through the Gatineau Park. The proposed six-lane expansion will link Gatineau to Wakefield. A Wakefield resident occupied a massive pine tree 100-feet up after negotiations broke down between the NCC and environmental groups. Opponents are worried that the eastern boundary of the park, home to mature forests and wetlands, will be destroyed in the course of the expansion. Meanwhile, plans to shut down a portion of Gamelin Road, a small road linking Hull motorists to the park, has residents questioning the NCC’s message of conservation in the face of large highway construction.

Gatineau encourages assimilation, issues values guide to new immigrants
In the wake of heightened immigration to Gatineau, the city recently issued a Statement of Values for newcomers. The 16-point guide offers a variety of pointers, ranging from encouraging new immigrants to be punctual, to refraining from cooking smelly food and engaging in honour killings. Although rightfully acknowledging that journalists in Canada have the right to openly criticize their government, critics have deemed the guide “redundant,” “infantilizing,” and “paternalistic.” Its emphasis on Quebec as a secular province –encouraging newcomers not to display their religion in public –may have been misinterpreted, as two mosques in Gatineau were vandalized on numerous occasions in recent weeks.