Community Social Services Awareness Month
The month of March is recognized as Community Social Services Awareness month and I’d like to take this opportunity to recognize those working in this sector, tirelessly serving vulnerable British Columbians in need of support, compassion and a sense of community. The work you do is important and this recognition by the province is well deserved.
Bargaining Update and Confirmation of Primary Contacts
CSSEA’s Bargaining Team and the Community Social Services Bargaining Association will return to the bargaining table at the end of March; the parties have dates scheduled into mid-April.
To prepare for the ratification process when the collective agreements are ultimately settled, CSSEA will be undertaking a confirmation of primary bargaining contacts next week. Members who are CSSEA’s current primary bargaining contact on file will receive an e-mail on Tuesday, March 24 confirming that is still the case; if they are no longer the primary contact, there will be an ability to update an online form with the correct contact. If agencies do not receive the e-mail on March 24, they are asked to contact cssea@cssea.bc.ca so we can update our files manually.
Health Sector Outreach
CSSEA is aware that some members with assisted living and long-term care programs have been contacted by health authorities to explore if their health funding results in agencies meeting the criteria to become HEABC members. CSSEA has clarified with government and HEABC that this outreach is preliminary and is not intended to capture CSSEA members. We ask agencies that are contacted to advise the health authority that they are already members of CSSEA and to notify their HRLR Consultant or Advocate.
Upcoming HR Practitioners Meeting
Members are invited to attend a virtual HR Practitioners’ Meeting on April 23 from 10 am to noon. The meeting will feature presentations on duty to accommodate, as well as preparing a termination file for arbitration. The presentations will be delivered by CSSEA staff and Najeeb Hassan, a lawyer, mediator and adjudicator with over 30 years of labour relations experience. Registration for the event is complimentary and can be completed here.
2026 Compensation and Employee Turnover Report Orientation Sessions
Members are advised that the 2026 Compensation and Employee Turnover Report template and user guide is available for completion as of today, March 18, and members should expect to receive a copy via both e-mail and mail. To support the completion of this year’s report, CSSEA’s Research and Knowledge Management team will be offering a number of webinar and in-person sessions from March 30 to May 28 that will provide guidance on completion and answer any questions members may have. The schedule is as follows:
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Date
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Time
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Place
|
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Vancouver
Monday, March 30
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1:00 pm - 3:00 pm
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Woodland Room, Renfrew Centre
3rd floor, 2889 East 12 Ave.
|
|
Surrey
Wednesday, April 1
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1:00 pm - 3:00 pm
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Room 507, Kwantlen Civic Plaza, 13485
Central Avenue
|
|
Burnaby
Wednesday, April 8
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1:00 pm - 3:00 pm
|
Room 252, Alexander College’s Burnaby Campus
4805 Kingsway
|
|
Webinar 1
Wednesday, April 15
|
10:00 am - 12:00 pm
|
Virtual Session
|
|
Kamloops
Tuesday, April 21
|
10:00 am - 12:00 am
|
Rivers West Room, Delta Hotel Kamloops
540 Victoria St
|
|
Vernon
Wednesday, April 22
|
10:00 am - 12:00 am
|
Columbia Room, Prestige Vernon Lodge
& Conference Centre
3914 32nd street
|
|
Kelowna
Thursday, April 23
|
9:00 am - 11:00 am
|
Ramada by Wyndham
2170 Harvey Ave, Kelowna
|
|
Victoria
Tuesday, April 28
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9:00 am - 11:00 am
|
Galiano Room 233, Hotel Grand Pacific,
463 Belleville Street
|
|
Nanaimo
Wednesday, April 29
|
9:00 am - 11:00 am
|
Departure Bay Room A/B, The Vancouver Island
Conference Centre, 101 Gordon Street
|
|
Castlegar
Wednesday, May 6
|
9:00 am - 11:00 am
|
Super 8 Hotel, 651 18 Street
|
|
Webinar 2
Thursday, May 7
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1:00 PM - 3:00PM
|
Virtual Session
|
|
Dawson Creek
Tuesday, May 12
|
1:00 pm - 3:00 pm
|
Hunter Room, George Dawson Inn,
11705 8th Street
|
|
Webinar 3
Thursday, May 14
|
9:00AM - 11:00AM
|
Virtual Session
|
|
Prince George
Wednesday, May 20
|
9:00 am - 11:00 am
|
Gathering Place A, AiMHi, 950 Kerry Street
|
|
Webinar 4
Thursday, May 28
|
9:00 am - 11:00 am
|
Virtual Session
|
If you have any questions, please contact: research@cssea.bc.ca
Community Social Services Awards of Excellence Nominations Now Live
Nominations for this year’s Community Social Services Awards of Excellence are now open and we invite all members and associates to consider recognizing an outstanding individual working at their agencies. The awards are a powerful way to acknowledge the wonderful work carried out in our sector by the dedicated professionals who often go unnoticed. Full details on nomination criteria and access to the online nomination form can be found on the Awards of Excellence website. In addition to new nominations, we are accepting updated nominations for individuals who were previously nominated and not selected to receive an award. We remind nominators that while they may complete their nominations in increments, drafts should be saved frequently, as the system does not automatically save drafts on your behalf. Nominations will be accepted until 5pm on April 17. We look forward to honouring this year’s recipients in Vancouver on October 15 and thank Telus for their continued support.
Continuation of Funding for Learning Hub
As members are aware, CSSEA is offering complimentary access to labour relations courses on the MyLeadershipHub online platform until this summer, thanks to generous funding from the BC Social Care Leadership Training Grant, managed by the Association of Service Providers for Employability and Career Training (ASPECT BC). In an effort to gauge participation, effectiveness and to request future funds, we ask all members whose staff have used the resource to complete this brief evaluation on the program. Your responses will directly impact funding extensions and we thank all members in advance for their feedback.
Those who are interested in taking the self-paced online LR and leadership courses are still able to do so on a complimentary basis. Simply go to https://cssea.myleadershiphub.com/ and register for an account on the homepage. Existing Learning Hub members can continue accessing courses by using their login credentials. If you have any questions, e-mail: cssea@myleadershiphub.com