Council voted unanimously Tuesday night to have Mayor Melissa Blake write to the province expressing the entire council’s support for a review of the 1995 amalgamation agreement that created the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo.
The request comes from the Rural Stakeholders Group who has made it clear they do not want to break apart the municipality but do want to ensure fair representation of rural residents on council and that the promises laid out in the agreement are being kept.
Council agreed that after 21 years it’s important to review the agreement that keeps the municipality functioning and make sure that all residents are being treated fairly.
Blake will write to the Minister of Municipal Affairs, Danielle Larivee, voicing the support of all of council for the request that an objective third party conduct the review.
Compensation for overtime in wildfire response
Councillor Sheldon Germain served a notice of motion at last night’s council to debate the issue of overtime compensation for municipal employees at the September 6th meeting of council.
He asks that council consider directing administration to fairly compensate all municipal employees for overtime worked in their response to the wildfire and community recovery efforts from May 1 until the end of the State of Local Emergency.
The motion would see people paid either according to their collective agreements or – if they’re not covered by one – at their regular hourly rate for hours above 35 a week but below 44 and at time and a half for hours above 44 worked in one week.
The move would also see time off in lieu as a possibility for overtime hours worked in response to the wildfire.
Germain’s motion – if approved – would require all employees understand what they’ll be paid for their overtime – and receive that pay or time off in lieu – by October 6.
It would also see administration seek reimbursement for the costs of paying the overtime as part of the Disaster Recovery Program – meaning it would be funded by the provincial and federal governments.
Administration would also be asked to develop a future plan for overtime pay in the event of an emergency.
Below is the motion in full:
I hereby serve notice of my intent to bring the following motion forward for consideration at the Council meeting scheduled to be held on September 6, 2016:
THAT Administration is hereby directed to fairly compensate with pay municipal employees, for overtime hours worked from May 1, 2016 until such time as the State of Local Emergency ends, including the time following May 1, 2016 during which a Provincial State of Emergency was in effect, such compensation to be:
(a) in accordance with the terms of collective agreements for all employees covered by collective agreements; and
(b) for employees at Director-level and below not covered by collective agreements at a rate equal to the employee’s regular hourly rate for any hour or portion of an hour worked in a calendar week above 35 hours up to 44 hours, and at a rate equal to 1.5 times the employee’s regular hourly rate for any hour or portion of an hour worked in a calendar week above 44 hours, as approved by the employee’s immediate supervisor.
(c) for employees to whom time off in lieu of pay for overtime hours worked in response to the wildfire emergency has been offered, the employee will have the option of accepting time in lieu of instead of overtime pay.
THAT Administration is further directed to submit the total sum of all such overtime payments made to municipal employees to the Government of Alberta as a claim for reimbursement under the Disaster Recovery Program so as to minimize the impact to Wood Buffalo taxpayers and in keeping with the principle of fiscal responsibility.
THAT Administration is further directed to ensure that the monetary overtime compensation is communicated to employees and that eligible employees are paid in accordance therewith no later than October 6, 2016.
THAT Administration is further directed to develop a policy for Council’s consideration respecting compensation for employees who are required to work overtime as a result of an emergency or disaster in the Municipality.
Conditional Develoment Permits
The by-law amendment needed to remove conditions placed on development permits for Abasand and Beacon Hill passed a first reading at council Tuesday night.
The conditions were originally put in place so that the permits could be issued but work couldn’t begin until the order preventing re-entry by the Chief Medical Officer of Health was lifted.
Any permits that were issued with this condition in place will allow rebuilding to begin in areas that are within the Phase 1 of re-entry but all new permits issued will still have the conditions placed on them for homes in the still-restricted areas.
Second reading of the by-law won’t take place until September 20, a process that legally cannot move any faster.
“Red tape wins again,” said Councillor Tyran Ault, on finding out there was no way to clear a path for the rebuilding to move ahead more quickly.
