Welcome back (sort of)
Last semester, teachers at Vanier were obliged to adapt, with very short notice, to forms of teaching with which many of us were unfamiliar. After completing the academic year, when it became obvious that we would find ourselves in a similar situation this semester, many of you probably spent time at the end of last semester, and before the beginning of this one, adjusting your course preparations for the autumn. It is important that we remind ourselves that we are faced with exceptional circumstances, and that there is much that is beyond our control. The College is responsible for ensuring that you have that which is necessary for you to do your job, so do not hesitate to contact your dean if you have questions or concerns.
Since the declaration of the health emergency last spring, representatives from our union federation, FNEEQ, have been meeting with representatives from the Ministry of Education and Higher Education to draw attention to the challenges faced by college teachers in the present context, and to demand clearer direction and additional resources to deal with these challenges. It looks as though their efforts are beginning to bear fruit, and we will keep you informed of further developments.
Welcome to new teachers!
As a new teacher at Vanier, you probably have a few questions as you get settled in. We have prepared an FAQ document, which you will find attached to this bulletin, that might help. Do not hesitate to contact the VCTA for any concern. We are here to defend your rights.
Do you need to get in touch with the VCTA Executive?
Although members of the VCTA Executive, and our employee, will have some physical presence on campus this semester, meetings with a member of the VCTA Executive will be by appointment. If you e-mail the VCTA address and state your availability, a member of the Executive will get back to you as soon as possible.
We are working on a digital application process for PD requests. We will inform you when it is ready. For the moment, all PD applications and expense reports must be delivered to our employee in C-101. Masks are obligatory in C-101, and we ask that teachers respect social distancing when waiting in the lounge to see our employee or a member of the Executive. We thank you for your cooperation.
Data breach
We mentioned in an e-mail that we sent earlier this month, after many of you received a letter from the Ministry of Education in which you were informed that some of your personal information may have been compromised during a data breach on a government website, that we would consult FNEEQ to see if they had any advice beyond that which is offered you in the letter. The item was discussed at a FNEEQ meeting recently. Because the Ministry of Education was not able to determine precisely which teachers have been affected, the letter appears to have been sent to all those whose information may have been on the ministry’s website. If you do your banking with Caisses Populaires Desjardins, you may have already registered with Equifax, and do not necessarily need to register again. Some of you may remember that Equifax itself was the victim of a data breach a few years ago, so we will let you decide whether or not you wish to take advantage of their services.
More information from the MES:
https://www.quebec.ca/en/education/data-breach-ministere-education/
For additional information on data and identify theft, you may consult the following article:
https://www.protegez-vous.ca/technologie/donnees-personnelles
Insurance – Travel Reimbursements
Exceptionally, La Capitale has decided to reimburse travel purchases made through a Québec travel agency, before 13 March 2020, and cancelled due to COVID-19. More information can be found in the newsletter (in French):
http://app.dialoginsight.com/T/OFSYS/SM2/693/2/S/F/5655/45599/2SjFcU3B/742333.html
Working from home
If you have any question related to expenses for working from home and available funds or tax deductions, please contact your dean. They will be able to help you with any measure taken by the college to help during these unusual times.
As a reminder, here are links to information from the governments we have shared in a previous bulletin.
Provincial (TP-64.3-V)
https://www.revenuquebec.ca/en/coronavirus-disease-covid-19/faq-for-individuals/
Especially section “Employment expenses related to teleworking”.
Federal (T2200)
Negociations
See the attached Info-Négo, in French and English. This will be discussed at the General Assembly of September 2nd.
Upcoming meetings (all online)
September 2 — 12h30 — General Assembly
September 10 — 13h00 — Association Council
September 11 — 13h00 — Academic Council
September 24 — TBD — CRT