FAQ’s

The Employer will reimburse one or several uniforms for an amount of $100 per year with conditions mentioned in the article 59 below. It is possible to get multiple uniforms reimbursed if it falls under the $100 per year.

Article 59 in the Collective Agreement about Uniform allowance states:

Upon submission of original receipt(s) for an employee’s purchase of a uniform or lab coat with the RN/NP logo embroidered on it, the Employer will reimburse the employee up to one hundred dollars ($100.00) per year, provided the employee is not provided a uniform by the Employer. Employees who do not wear a uniform or a lab coat embroidered with the RN/NP logo or who are provided a uniform by the Employer, are not eligible to receive the uniform allowance. The allowance will be available beginning in the April 1, 2019 – March 31, 2020 year.

One day’s special leave with pay for serious illness in the immediate family on the Employee’s certification of illness shall not be unreasonably withheld. Where special leave in excess of one day is needed, a medical certificate signed by a qualified medical practitioner is required.

Maximum to be allowed is three days without loss of pay. Where the illness occurs outside the province, an additional extension not to exceed two days provided that entitlement shall depend on particular circumstances.

Leave of absence without pay for compassionate care reasons shall be provided according to the PEI Employment Standards Act.

You can refer at the article 30.2 (b) in the Collective agreement, Leave for seriously Ill Family Member

In the Employment Standards Act, all details in Article 22.3 “Compassionate care leave” are explained.

Members are invited to call 902-368-5550 or toll-free at 1-800-333-4362 to contact Labour and Industrial Relations for more information.

As a permanent RN, first, you should share with your Manager about your interest to be involved in the Mentorship program for New Graduates. If accepted, at the end of your mentoring role (usually period of 6 weeks), fill a form and obtain payment.

If the conditions relating to the Appendix H in the Collective Agreement have been met:

• Where the Employer assigns a Nurse to mentor a new graduate hired under this program, the Nurse shall receive payment of $550 upon the successful completion of the mentorship period. In the event that more than one nurse is assigned to mentor a new graduate, the $550 payment shall be prorated between the assigned nurses.

The Union is not involved in the processing of the payments. If Members have a question about compensation after the successful completion of the mentorship period, they must contact their Manager or the payroll department.

Because Members make the decision on their own to leave their Employer, there is no severance pay that the Employer must pay to the Employee.

Other information about resignation from employment are available in the Collective Agreement under Article 32 Resignation from Employment and Article 35.4 No Retirement allowance for Dismissal or Resignation.

Employees are not eligible for severance pay or a retirement allowance if they resign from the employ of the Employer.

Yes – if you wear a lab coat and it is not provided by the Employer, you are eligible for the Uniform Allowance. To apply for reimbursement:

1. Ask your Manager for a copy of Health PEI’s Uniform Reimbursement Request Form;
2. Make a copy of the Form and Receipt(s) for your records;
3. Submit the completed Request Form with the Original Receipt(s); and
4. Provide proof of the embroidered RN/NP logo (if requested).

See Article 59, “Uniform Allowance” page 83 of the Collective Agreement.

The answer is ‘Yes and No’ …

Yes – Sick Days are reinstated when an Employee is re-employed in a permanent position within 90
days. They are also entitled to reinstatement of your salary step and increment date, accumulated
Retirement Allowance days, and length of Vacation entitlement.

See Collective Agreement Article 32.2 Benefit Reinstatement upon Re-employment (page 60)

No – Seniority cannot be reinstated after an employee resigns from Health PEI,
regardless of whether they are re-employed by Health PEI.

See Collective Agreement Article 19.5 Forfeiture of Seniority (page 28)

Overtime must be approved by the designated Employer representative(s). For the purpose of applying article 21.1 in the case of Casual employees or part time employees who work in more than one work unit or worksite, the Employee shall indicate to the Employer prior to acceptance of the shift that the shift will place the Employee in an overtime situation.

See Article 21, pages 34-38 for different situations on this subject in the Collective Agreement.

If you are pre-retirement you are eligible to reduce your hours from full time to part time without going through an interview process.

Refer to Appendix J in the Collective Agreement.

Due to numerous vacancies and staffing issues across the Island, RNs may be placed in positions where they are asked to work extra hours, and in some cases pressured into working “double shifts”.

Please follow the Practice Directives:

1. Duty to Provide Care
2. Working Extra Hours
3. Abandonment

Note that the Employer has a responsibility to provide safe staffing, and when aware of vacant shifts in advance, this does not make you responsible to stay beyond the end of your shift.

Visit The College of Registered Nurses of Prince Edward Island for practice directives.

Overtime hours are not used towards calculation of leave, seniority, pension, sick time, etc.

You can apply to the Education Fund for salary replacement when attending workshops such as the upcoming Education Day. The Union does not issue checks directly to members for salary replacement. Payment occurs through the payroll system and salary compensation is as per the guidelines established by the Education Fund Committee.

Salary compensation, to a maximum of 15 hours annually as follows:

a) Full-time employees, whether they are working or not on the day of the Education activity, will receive salary replacement or may choose to bank this as time in lieu. At the time of application, they will be required to specify the date(s) they need to be replaced and this replacement must occur within thirty (30) days of the course date(s). If the Education activity is less than 6 hours’ duration, they may bank the actual hours attended, if the Education activity is between 6 and 7.5 hours’ duration, they may bank 7.5 hours, if the duration of the Education activity is more than 7.5 hours, they may bank the actual hours attended.

b) Part-time employees who are replaced on the day of the Education activity will be paid salary on that day and the employer will be eligible for replacement costs.

c) Part-time employees not scheduled to work on the date of the workshop will be paid salary for that day and the employer will be reimbursed from the education fund. If the Education activity is less than 6 hours duration, payment will be for the actual hours attended, if the Education activity is between 6 and 7.5 hours duration, payment will be for 7.5 hours, if the duration of the Education activity is more than 7.5 hours, payment will be for the actual hours attended.

d) Casual employees, who have worked a minimum of 500 hours in the previous year (July 2019-June 2020) and new casual employees who have worked a minimum of 300 hours in the current year will be paid salary for that day and the employer will be reimbursed from the education fund. If the Education activity is less than 6 hours’ duration, payment will be for the actual hours attended, if the Education activity is between 6 and 7.5 hours’ duration, payment will be for 7.5 hours, if the duration of the Education activity is more than 7.5 hours, payment will be for the actual hours attended.

As per Article 10.8 in your Collective Agreement, Retired Nurses who have returned to fill roles temporarily (ie. Vaccine Clinics) may be entitled to a $500 bonus.

To be eligible, you must work 375 hours between January and December, or 180 hours between June 15 and September 15.

Keep track of your hours and let your Nurse Manager know when you reach the above requirement to be eligible for a $500 bonus.