Minutes - January 18, 2006

Policy and P= rocedures Committee Meeting

Wednesday January 18, 2006 4-7pm

Agenda

Job Descriptions

Graffiti Space

Class 4 License

Vacation Pay / Time Taken

Wages / Pay Scale

Update on Community Living BC

Safety Committee:

WCB Claims in 2005

Training Suggestions

Job Descriptions: Annually, the Policy Committee reviews Job Descriptions. This year= , with CARF also reviewing them in April, we will provide input, but not make final changes until after getting CARF feedback as well.

Suggestions:

= &nb= sp; = ; &= nbsp; &nb= sp; = ; i. &n= bsp; Other Requirements: Ability to Cook, Knowle= dge of FoodSafe guidelines, Knowledge of Nutrition= al principles

= &nb= sp; = ; &= nbsp; &nb= sp; = ; ii. &= nbsp; Driver’s License: Should this be on a= ll job descriptions? How do peo= ple get exemptions? Most programs do= n’t have vehicles now.

Graffiti Program Space: Staff wonder if Spectrum is looking to get a bigger space for Graffiti as they expect to have even more participants and the 10 people today were getting pretty crowded= in the room. Perhaps they = could get a larger space that could also be the home base for the Bridges participants. Bridges m= ostly need a start and end place, not room for all of them to hang out.
Class 4 Drivers License Requirement: In a public vehicle modified for wheel= chair access, the driver must have a class 4 license (or class 2 license – bus driver). If the vehicle is privately = owned, then a Class 4 is not required, the owner can choose who to let drive= the van. Staff can be reimbursed for = their class four license fees after one year of employment.

Big Spectrum van sold – will it be replaced? The big van was used only o= nce or twice a month due to its size and the need for a class 4 license. We are looking at replacing= it with a smaller van.

Vacation Pay / Vacation Time Taken: Occasionally, employees face emergencies a= nd request some vacation pay be paid out in a lump sum. This lump sum is taxed as re= gular income. Employees must = take at least two weeks vacation each year.&= nbsp; How many days equals two weeks? If = an employee works 3 days per week, then two weeks of vacation time is six days. Employees do not = have to take the two weeks consecutively.&nb= sp; Payroll will only pay out excess vacation pay when the employe= e has taken, or has a plan to take two weeks of vacation time in the current year.
Wage Increase in 2006: Will Spectrum employees be getting a wage increase in 2006?&nbs= p; Some employees have friends at unionized agencies who say they= are getting a 1% increase on March 31, 2006. This would raise the s= tarting wage from $13.84 to $13.97. Then they have union dues of between 1.5% and 2.0% deducted. Spectrum will be reviewing i= ts wage grid with the policy committee in June 2006 (also the mileage rates) = and has always been committed to competitive wages and benefits for our employees. If there is = an increase, should it be focused on the starting employees or the senior employees (4,500 hour wage grid?).

STARTING CSW	$14.00 /hour
After 1,500 hours of work:	$14.50 /hour
After 3,000 hours of work:	$15.00 /hour
After 4,500 hours of work:	$16.00 /hour
Add $0.25 /hour to each = rate for Key Worker rate.

Benefits for employees who turn 65: Employees who turn 65 do not have to retire. They no longer = pay LTD premiums as they cannot claim LTD benefits. As well, they receive rebate= s on the CPP premiums at tax time. We are not clear on what benefits are available to employees after retirement. Can employees remain on the = health and dental plans after they retire?&= nbsp; Who pays the premiums? Ernie will check with SunLife in A= pril when we complete our annual review of Benefits coverage.
Employee Liability for Accidents: In the policy manual, it states employees are responsible for traffic ti= ckets that they get when they are driving spectrum vehicles, but it does not state what happens when they are responsible for an accident with a spectrum vehicle. Most = policy committee members felt that the employee should be responsible for pa= ying some of the costs of the accident, but felt that the Spectrum ICBC deductible of $1,000 per accident was a pretty significant penalty. One suggestion was that only= if an employee was also charged with an offence as a result of the accident (speeding, driving without due care and attention, negligence), would Spectrum require the employee to pay the deductible. The ICBC determination of fa= ult was considered not enough to determine the employee liability as they may determine it is the driver’s fault if the accident was caused by their inattention, but their inattention was caused by a program participant in the vehicle. Spectrum will draft a policy for review at the next Policy mee= ting in April.
Insurance for vehicles: When employees use their own vehicle, they are required= to have the manager’s permission in advance. They must have business use insurance and $3,000,000.00 third party liability. Should the policy require th= is for even occasional usage? = ICBC policies for driving to and from work allow business use up to six ti= mes per month so does this qualify as business coverage? Employees should consult the= ir insurance broker to ensure they have proper coverage.
Accreditation Update:

Survey in April / May 2006 – 3 to 5 people will review our policies a= nd procedures, interview managers, staff, families, individuals, funders, and visit programs to see consistent implementation of policies.
Focus is on Health and Safety and Continuous Quality Improvement (set goal= s, implement, evaluate, set new goals).
Each of the duplexes will be visited and a selection of the smaller homes= will be visited. The smaller homes, those controlled by the people living in them, have the abili= ty to refuse to participate in the survey. We will choose programs where the participants are interested= and willing to participate.

Community Living BC Update:

Community Living BC now is responsible for Commu= nity Living services in BC – delegated authority from the Ministry = of Children and Family Development.
www.communitylivingbc.ca

Each region of the Province is transitioning to new practices / new staff roles at different times. Vancouver = office will take on new roles in May 2006.=

Social workers are choosing between two new roles: Facilitators or Analysts=

= &nb= sp; = ; &= nbsp; &nb= sp; = ; i. &n= bsp; Facilitators assist individuals and families with planning for their needs, now and in the future.

= &nb= sp; = ; &= nbsp; &nb= sp; = ; ii. &= nbsp; Analysts review proposals, approve funding,= and review contracts and services.

Community members are very concerned about the low level of funding planned for CLBC in 2006 budget. T= here is not enough money to address the built up needs on waitlists across t= he province.

See Safety Committee Meeting Minutes at:

http://www.spectrumsociety.org/policy/SafetyMinutes/= 1/SafetyMinutesJan182006.mht

Next meeting: Wed April 26, 2006 4p - 7p

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