My support for the teachers. A reasonable increase is warranted after years of zero. The disgusting display of getting around true negotiating is embarrassing.

Lol this is Cupe ballsy not teachers!

The Liberals are rally great at rewarding a select few of their friends. The eight BC Ferry Board members receive an average of $42000 for their part time work. Why do we even need a boar?

Read Michael Smyth’s column in The Province in which he compares BC Ferries to Washington State Ferries. It really highlights how BC does a terrible job of running the fery system, yet gives its execs hugh performance bonuses when they are already really well paid.

Whether reachers or support workers, the employer has an obligation to bargain in good faith. The problem is that the Liberal politicians are not allowing that to happen. They say here is the contract, 0 and if you don’t like it tough. We have taken away your right to strike

“Read Michael Smyth’s column in The Province in which he compares BC Ferries to Washington State Ferries”

Now, I find that extremely interesting because I have heard the exact opposite from the word of WDOT – Washington Department of Transportation. One of the State Senate Committees dealing with transportation was hearing a report from WDOT about 6 months ago. I happened to be watching that on one of the several local government broadcasting stations in Whatcom County.

They explained how they went to visit the BC Ferries office in BC to discuss the possibility of partnering with ship building projects since they share the type of coastal island hopping needs, etc.

They were flabbergastered, to say the least at the efficiency of the BC system compared to theirs. They described the BC Ferries operations control room to be NASA-like. They knew where ships were at any given time, but mainly, they knew where the crews were at any given time.

One of the problems Washington Ferries has is the poor management of crews. A person reports in sick and they do not know in sufficient time to be able to locate an alternate for the trip. Thus, their trip cancellation or delay is extremely high compared to BC Ferries.

To them, BC Ferries was their envy.

Building ships jointly. That was interesting too. They had not realized that the BC system required an open bid process. Both the USA and the state of Washington have a protected ship building industry which requires them to build the hull in Washington but can contract the fittings to out of state and out of country.

This report ended up all over the place, from CUPE education workers Maintenance) to the BC Ferry workers, to the BC Ferry management, where’s it gonna end. Read the story and stick to the bi-line, not make up your own bi-line! aye?

This is from the 2012 workplan of WSDOT:

“The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) has elected to implement a configurable off the shelf time, leave and attendance (TLA) software system ….

“WSDOT will …… be the pilot agency for the enterprise effort.

“By using a leading hosted 3rd party solution, the agency will benefit from external subject matter experts and a proven software solution.

“In addition to providing time, attendance, and leave tracking, the system can support the myriad of complex business rules currently being managed by the agency.”

It is a system that BC Ferries already had.

In addition, they thought the BC Ferries reservation system was superior to theirs.

Those are the opinions from a group that is in the same business, not a reporter.

“Read the story and stick to the bi-line, not make up your own bi-line! aye?

Who appointed you chief cook and bottle washer?

Someone merely made a statement which implied that money was available for people working for the government but not others. A statement which was on topic since it relates to an employment contract negotiation and the lack of money supposedly available.

In doing so, the individual made matters worse by suggesting that the people getting the money were overseeing a shoddy business.

I then came in to state otherwise.

As I have stated over and over again, this is the way a natural conversation goes.

Now, for automaton such as yourself, you may have a different outlook. You are allowed that in this room. But please do not direct conversation.

If you have anything salient to contribute, by all means feel free.

So gus, does that mean the Washington State Ferry system could be as efficient as BC Ferries if they paid their executives huge wages as BC apparently does?

“Wages are the main issue in the contract talks.”

With public section overall pay packets over 35% more than a similar position in the private sector if they want more money then it might be time to give up some other perks.

Studies have shown that they take almost three times the sick days of the average worker, likely because they get so damn many if I am not mistaken some can accrue two sick days a month.

In some unions they even get a day off with pay if they do not call in sick for a certain amount of time- a “wellness” day. Really? Ever heard of work ethic????

As to the topic of CUPE and the BC School System …. what other time does one expect possible job action other than when contracts are not signed in time (seems fairly normal no matter who is in power or who is potentially striking) and, in this case, when school is about to start?

This is not the first time and not the last time. If someone came up with a solution to that …. THAT would be an important story. This is just run-of-the-mill stuff IMO.

Sort of like “yawn”.

Whaaaa, whaaaaa, Whaaaaaa eh Dodo! Still crying about others benefits. The ones that you don’t get.

Stress leave ……

Also prevention ….. sniffles? Stay home for a quick recovery and less chance of infecting someone else …. not realizing, of course, that they already did so before they got the external indicators of a cold.

I am very happy with what I make …bates.

You still being paid under industry average(or maybe they are paying you what you are worth)?

Better go on stress leave.

I like your posts gus.
I haven’t really looked into Wash. State Ferries other than Smyth’s column. I was more interested in the money to the directors and management part. The board members, include a former Liberal MLA ; being on the board is an “extra”. It seems to me being on the Ferry board is rewarding friends by giving them a “free pass” to the trough.
The there’s the senior execs:
$300,000+, the a 6 figure bonus???? And the 6 figure pension contribution.

Total actual hours worked in mainly OECD counties:

Netherlands1,382
Germany1,406
Norway1,421
France1,482
Ireland1,541
Denmark1,548
Belgium1,576
Luxembourg1,600
United Kingdom1,625
Sweden1,636
Switzerland1,636
Slovenia1,649
Finland1,680
Spain1,685
Australia1,693
Austria1,696
Canada1,698
Portugal1,711
Japan1,728
Iceland1,731
New Zealand1,762
Italy1,772
United States1,787
Russian Federation1,979
Greece2,039
Chile2,047
Korea2,090
Mexico2,250

Time Canada became more productive and moved up in the ranks by actually working on the job rather than daydreaming …. the more efficient they become, the more vacation and stress leave they can get.

Remember the mantra from 40 years ago about the amount of time we would have to ourselves to enjoy by 2000? Well, some countries actually got there. ;-)

Another year, another strike threat. Yawn.

Private sector slave wages and conditions. Those at the pulp mills should try and get run by government and get a 35% raise.

The figures on hours worked are interesting but there isn’t a simple relationship between hours worked and the health of the economy. Greece,for example, has major economic problems in spite of being high on the list. Mexico, at the top, is not in wonderful economic shape either. And although the Dutch work fewer hours than anyone else on the list, their economy is in pretty good shape. It helps to have a good educational system that produces skilled workers and to have low levels of corruption.

You assume to know what I do and earn for a living Dodo. You know what assuming does to you right?

I believe you said on this site that you are a mechanic in the employ of some branch of government and earn less than industry average. Correct …bates?

Billposer.

“Greece,for example, has major economic problems in spite of being high on the list.”

That was my point with showing those figures. Working more hours is no guarantee of productivity which shows up in a country’s economic and social well being.

When a significant number of countries who have few natural resources, other than their own people and brains, have both a high standard of living and low working hour input with more leisure time, while another set of countries has the reverse, one can see that some countries have found ways to work smart.

Then there are those countries in the middle who may have relatively high standards of living, but still have a high level of work hours they are putting in with much less leisure time to enjoy a high standard of leisure time. They may be on the way to working smart, but they are not.

In the case of Canada, which has significant oil reserves and is essentially living on a petro dollar, the same as Norway is, there is no excuse, other than stupidity, for having to work such long hours.

We can ALL have the same benefits that the public workers have whether they are union or excluded.

But we do not. So the big question is, why not????

Heyyyy Everyone forget the POTHOLES??? AND City Hall ???? hehehe

BTW, as far as Greece goes, the country may be in financial trouble, but Greece has by far the highest personal equity ownership of residential property than any other European country.

It is one of the many points made by the German government when Greece came with a hand out to the rest of the EU. Greece, of course, did not like that info being used.

http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/wealthy-greeks-still-dodging-taxes-despite-crisis-a-864703.html

“wealthy Greeks still dodging taxes”. Perhaps a similar situation exists in Canada and the USA with tax leakages in other areas such as large corporations?

Netherlands 1382 hours worked? where do these nr come from, teachers work more hours than that even with six weeks summer holidays, of all the people I know there none even get close, and some work second jobs for cash, and things aren,t as rosie, they have a hard time competing as busineses with in the EU

I think the key word is “actual”. I max out my time off/vacation etc. I figure 1680 hrs. More time off would be nice, but I feel pretty lucky.

this lucky Gus? lol :

There are 365 days per year available for work. There are 52 weeks per year in which you already have 2 days off per week, leaving 261 days available for work. Since you spend 16 hours each day away fron work, you have used up 170 days, leaving only 91 days available. You spend 30 minutes each day on coffee break which counts for 23 days each year, leaving only 68 days available. With a 1 hour lunch each day, you used up another 46 days, leaving only 22 days available for work. You normally spend 2 days per year on sick leave. This leaves you only 20 days per year available for work. You are off 5 holidays per year, so your available working time is down to 15 days. You then get 14 days vacation per year which leaves only 1 day available for work.