Please warmly welcome these new APSA members who have joined us in the past month.   Abuhalaweh, Nadin Executive Coordinator New to SFU Centre for Dialogue VPA Engagement and Dialogue   Breckon, Jennifer Laura

Negotiations Joint University/Association Committee: JUAC has been meeting monthly to discuss and attempt to resolve such matters of mutual concern as may arise. These matters may include updates to legislation, flexible working conditions, and other items that can affect APSA members’ terms and conditions of employment and work life at SFU.

Our dedicated volunteers have worked tirelessly on behalf of you, our members! Their time involves attending committee meetings, creating proposals, writing negotiation points, meeting with senior administration and defending members via Zoom meetings, email and in person.

Subtle Signs of Bullying and Harassment In recent years, there has been increased awareness about bullying and harassment in various environments such as schools, workplaces, and online platforms. While many staff members can recognize overt acts of aggression, there are more subtle signs that can indicate a problem. Understanding these signs is crucial for preventing a toxic environment and supporting those affected.

Hello everyone, This month, I’m turning over my column to APSA’s member services officer, Aicha Etrew. Aicha writes about equity issues at SFU.

April Update

Please warmly welcome these new APSA members who have joined us in the past month.   Arnold-Wallinger, Joe Officer Building & Facilities  New to SFU  FAS Office of the Dean Faculty of Applied Sciences Bajracharya, Shovan Program Manager, International Education Temporary Promotion   Education Office of the Dean     Faculty Of Education Chen Donald, Gail Hui  Manager, Finance and Operation  

Negotiations Joint University/Association Committee: JUAC has been meeting monthly to discuss and attempt to resolve such matters of mutual concern as may arise. These matters may include updates to legislation, flexible working conditions, and other items that can affect APSA members’ terms and conditions of employment and work life at SFU.

Each month, our advocates answer your questions about workplace challenges, the AD 10 policies, and how they’re applied. Questions? Submit them anonymously here. These questions will be answered in a monthly advocacy corner issue. For an immediate answer, please contact APSA.

Quiet bullying or indirect aggression at work is hostile behaviour that harms another person without the aggressor being obvious. Some of the ways that this can occur is through reputational harm, like gossip, otherwise known as relational aggression. Relational aggression can be either a covert or overt way of hurting or damaging others due to relationships or group exclusion.

Hybrid Work and Accountability There are times in my role when I find myself still startled by apparent institutional thinking.  Let me explain.

March Update It has been a busy month for APSA. Here are some of the key updates over the past few weeks:

Hello APSA Members, You're invited to attend Conversations with the Board — Spring edition. Come by for a coffee and chat with an APSA board member at your campus. We'd love to discuss your work life and how APSA can help you.  Tuesday, April 15, from 11:30 - 1:00 p.m. at Burnaby Campus, Room HAL 114 Recently past Conversations: Tuesday, February 25, from 11:30 - 1:00 p.m. at Harbour Centre at Vancouver Campus, Room 2250 Tuesday, March 4, from 11:30 - 1:00 p.m. at Surrey Campus, Room SRYC 2746

As SFU's staff and faculty hiring freeze persists and APSA positions continue to be eliminated, some troubling issues surround SFU's people-centred approach in which these position eliminations are conducted. While there are HR Strategic Business Partners who conduct these meetings with the care and compassion necessary for the circumstances, there are far too many instances where our members feel like SFU’s treatment of them is more punitive and less like they were valuable employees whose positions had to be eliminated due to a budget crisis.

February Update

Transparency and SFU’s Budget

On January 23, 2025, the SFU Provost office announced the closure of the Vancity Office of Community Engagement and SFU’s Office of Community Engagement, eliminating several key positions in those programs. SFU has apparently made this decision without a well-communicated plan or approval by the Board of Governors. It was deeply disappointing to many of SFU’s staff and students that SFU did not present solutions on how the work of these vital offices, which evidently continues, will be supported.

We love our volunteers. Why volunteer for APSA? Volunteers are an essential part of the operation and culture of APSA. Every volunteer makes a difference to APSA members from all of SFU’s campuses. We would love for you to be one of them. Please have a look below for the volunteer opportunities, time commitment for each chance and details below. You could improve the workplace and work lives of over 1700 people. What’s in it for me?

APSA has been hearing more and more about issues with SFU's current Hybrid Work Arrangements. We wanted to learn about your concerns about returning physically to work at SFU and what you’re looking for in hybrid work arrangements. Below are the results from our recent survey on hybrid work arrangements at the University. *Please note that some questions remained the same as those in the 2021 survey for benchmarking purposes.

Please warmly welcome these new APSA members who have joined us in the past month. Chen, Winston C.Y. Senior Financial Analyst New to SFU Research Accounting

Tess Williams played a vital role as an APSA board member, advocating for the inclusion of gender-affirming care in the extended healthcare benefits for SFU employees. Her activism for gender-affirming health care extends beyond SFU. Tess is also a part of the Society for Advocacy for Gender-affirming Healthcare (SAGAH), which is currently calling for:

Please warmly welcome these new APSA members who have joined us in the past month. Abdullah, Amal Javed  Project Coordinator Rehire Centre for Dialogue VPA Engagement & Dialogue   Boehringer, Justin Associate Director, Indigenous Perspectives New to SFU MED Student Learner Affairs Medical School   Dhillon, Sandeep Senior Financial Analyst New to SFU MED Office of the Dean

Negotiations Joint University/Association Committee: JUAC has been meeting monthly to discuss and attempt to resolve such matters of mutual concern as may arise. These matters may include updates to legislation, flexible working conditions, and other items that can affect APSA members’ terms and conditions of employment and work life at SFU.

Hello everyone, Welcome back to a new year at SFU, and my best wishes to you and your family for 2025! I hope that your time of the holidays was peaceful and relaxing.

January Update

It's January and the start of a new year! Here's a quick list of benefits that reset each calendar year. 1. Vacation time AD 10.8 You now have access to your yearly vacation allotment. Here's a table below for reference. Number of Calendar Years of Employment Length of Vacation Entitlement

December Update

Please warmly welcome these new APSA members who have joined us in the past month. Acheson, Cassidy Lynnae Specialist, Knowledge, Mobility & EDI New to SFU VPRI Administration VPR VP Research Summary   Acierno, Chelsey Caroline Director, International Student Recruiter

Negotiations Joint University/Association Committee: As part of completing the Basic Agreement Bargaining, the parties will now begin the process of meeting to discuss negotiating non-monetary items for the APSA membership. JUAC is in the process of selecting an external mediator to support this committee. The committee met last month and will meet this month before our Winter closure.

Resources: https://www.bclaws.gov.bc.ca/civix/document/id/co… https://www.sfu.ca/policies/gazette/administrativ…

Hybrid Work and You

Register today for APSA's Winter Social 2025 When: January 15, 2025, from 3-5 p.m. Where: The Study, Burnaby Campus

  We’ve got you covered on what happened at the meeting.

APSA is pleased to announce the new officers for the APSA board of directors. Ben Boyle was voted in as the 2025 president, Kim O'Donnell was voted in as the new vice-president, and Patrick McClarty is your 2025 treasurer. Please take a moment to congratulate all the appointees. We know they are dedicated and will work hard to achieve the interests of APSA members.

Before heading off on holiday, have you taken note of these year-end items? Paid leave – Holiday closure AD 10.08 Once again, the University will be closed for the holiday break. Continuing members will be paid for this time. Temporary members will be paid for this time period if the last day of your temporary appointment is after the holiday closure.

Negotiations Joint University/Association Committee: As part of completing the Basic Agreement Bargaining, the parties will now begin the process of meeting to discuss negotiating non-monetary items for the APSA membership. JUAC is in the process of selecting an external mediator to support this committee.

Please warmly welcome these new APSA members who have joined us in the past month. Chartrand, Anik Colette Program Manager, Indigenous Grad Programs New to SFU Beedie Graduate Programs Beedie School of Business   Curtis, Danielle Marie Travelling Therapist

Should Sick Notes be Required for Short-Term Illnesses? The Canadian Medical Association is calling for sick notes not to be required for short-term or casual illnesses, citing the need for them as a 'human resource' issue rather than a medical one.

After a lengthy hiring process over the summer, APSA is pleased to announce our newest member of the APSA team, Aicha Araba Etrew.

The APSA team has received many questions from our members about this policy and the opportunity it presents for members to enrich their careers and bring new innovative ideas to the University.

Termination without Cause: Some Troubling Developments Before I let you know of a new development SFU recently introduced, a little background about what our collective agreement says about the subject of termination.