UNA
If your employee group is part of UNA, you are covered under the terms and conditions of the UNA collective agreement. Ensure you are familiar with this agreement, particularly the local conditions specific to your site. You must also follow all Covenant Health policies and procedures.
Benefits
If you are eligible, you must enroll in benefit offerings within the first 31 days of initial eligibility as per your employee grouping. We will email you when you are able to elect benefits.
Benefits resources
Probation period
See Article 11: Probationary Period and Orientation in your collective agreement.
If you transfer to a new position within the bargaining unit, see Article 14: Promotions, Transfers and Vacancies for information about trial periods.
Previous experience, portability and site transfers
Recognition of previous experience
We may recognize relevant work experience hours from previous positions to determine your salary placement. This only applies to time worked before your start date with us. See Article 27: Recognition of Previous Experience in your collective agreement.
You will be placed at Step 1 of the salary grid for your job classification. To have your rate of pay reviewed, you must submit your previous experience. See experience, education and portability for more information.
Portability
You may port the following entitlements provided you meet the conditions of the collective agreement (e.g., termination from Alberta Health Services [AHS]):
- Seniority, Article 12.06 (Contact your Covenant Health site UNA Local office to request recognition of seniority dates.)
- Vacation with Pay, Article 17.02 (e), which applies to vacation accrual date only
- Sick Leave, Article 19.10
Email questions about eligibility and requests to port entitlements to HRBusinessSupport@covenanthealth.ca. We will create a case for your request in the HR Contact Centre ServiceHub.
Site transfers
(Edmonton only ― Previous Capital Health and Caritas sites)
You may be eligible to transfer entitlements to Covenant Health from AHS providing conditions are met under Addendum X.
You must make any requests before your start date or transfer date with us. To confirm eligibility or submit a request, email:
- AHS at sitetransferahs@albertahealthservices.ca
- Covenant Health at HRBusinessSupport@covenanthealth.ca
When leaving your position, make sure your manager is aware since so they can ensure your banks are not paid out.
Temporary practice permits
Once you have completed your exam, you must submit your full practice permit, a completed license and practice permit cover form and, where applicable, a copy of the results of your exam.
You must submit any requests to HRBusinessSupport@covenanthealth.ca. We will create a case for your request in the HR Contact Centre ServiceHub.
Education allowance
To be eligible for payment of an education allowance, you must submit original documents of a relevant degree or clinical course for review. We will assess the documentation you provide as per the language in the collective agreement. We may need copies of transcripts and course descriptions to assess if the degree/course is acceptable for the purpose of the education allowance.
To receive payment for your educational credentials, you must email a completed Education and Certificate Cover form with a copy of your educational credentials to HRBusinessSupport@covenanthealth.ca. We will create a case for your request in the HR Contact Centre ServiceHub.
Long service pay adjustment
The UNA collective agreement provides for a long service pay adjustment (LSPA) for nurses who have maintained licensure with a professional body for 20 years or more. We will determine your eligibility for the LSPA on receiving satisfactory proof of licensure. You must submit requests at time of hire or upon achieving 20 calendar years of nursing service.
To receive payment for an LSPA, email a completed 2 per cent special long service pay retention date request form with reasonable proof that you have been registered with a nursing licensing body for at least 20 years to HRBusinessSupport@covenanthealth.ca. We will create a case for your request in the HR Contact Centre ServiceHub.
Recognition of concurrent experience
Part-time or casual employees who also work at another site covered by the multi-employer/UNA collective agreement may, once a year, provide proof of hours worked at the basic rate of pay for the other employer or at another Covenant Health site and have those hours applied for the purpose of achieving further increments on the salary grid, up to the maximum increment. You can only advance one step per year through this provision.
You are responsible for tracking and submitting a Concurrent Service Hours letter for review and to confirm your eligibility. You can access the Concurrent Service Hours letter through e-People Employee Self Service. See the UNA Increments and Concurrent Service Quick Reference Guide on the e-People Resources pages on CompassionNet for more information.