OPSEU/SEFPO

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Region 5 Weekend Educational

How to challenge discrimination in the workplace. The best way to file a grievance. Making your work safer.

As an OPSEU/SEFPO member, these are just a few of the free educational workshops you can take during the union’s Region 5 Weekend Educational taking place on Saturday, November 29 and Sunday, November 30, 2025.

The deadline to complete the application form was Friday, October 17, 2025 by 4pm.

In-person-only courses

  1. Stewards 1: Making a Difference in the Workplace
  2. Stewards 2: Facing the Employer, Building Member Involvement
  3. Stewards 3: Dealing with Discipline
  4. Health and Safety: Level Two
  5. Basic Grievance Handling for Union Building
  6. Human Rights, Union Rights and Global Solidarity
  7. Challenging Discrimination in Everyday Union Work
  8. Let’s Start Meeting Like This! Running Meetings that Build the Union

If you’d like to take any of these courses, your union provides a variety of supports that can help, including family and child care and human rights accommodations. If you take part in the in-person event, you are also eligible for cash advances, and potentially the full reimbursement if you need to travel and stay in a hotel.

Event details

Location:

  • Courses take place at the Chelsea Hotel, 33 Gerrard St W, Toronto, ON M5G 1Z4

Dates:

  • Saturday, November 29, 2025 – 9 am to 5 pm
  • Sunday, November 30, 2025 – 9 am to 1 pm

Application deadline:

  • Friday, October 17, 2025, at 4 pm

On-site child care:

  • OPSEU/SEFPO on-site child care will be available Saturday from 8:30 am to 5 pm and Sunday from 8:30 am to the end of classes. Parent/Guardians must be on site at all times when using childcare provided by OPSEU/SEFPO.

Off-site child care:

  • Family Care/Attendant expenses will be reimbursed per OPSEU/SEFPO

In-person-only course descriptions

We are pleased to offer the following in-person courses:

Stewards 1: Making a Difference in the Workplace

Prerequisites: None

This updated version of Stewards 1 includes a more detailed description and history of OPSEU/SEFPO’s equity-seeking groups. The course continues to support stewards through a range of tools and practical activities. The key aims are to strengthen steward skills to orient a new employee to the union, have effective one-on-one conversations with a cross-section of members, develop a communications strategy to enlist diverse member involvement, and develop approaches to everyday workplace problems.

Throughout the course, participants are supported as they develop a profile of their members, clarify the tasks of the steward, find the resources and information in OPSEU/SEFPO, and understand the grievance process and their role in it. Stewards 1 is a prerequisite to Stewards 2 and must be completed before taking Stewards 2. Participants should bring their Collective Agreements to the course.

Stewards 2: Facing the Employer, Building Member Involvement

Prerequisites: Stewards 1

This revised follow-up to Stewards 1 focuses on investigating and writing a grievance, facing management, and involving members in worksite action. Participants will use their own collective agreements to identify grievances. They will become immersed in an evolving case study in order to interview a grievor, write up a grievance, face the employer at a step 1 and make a presentation on safety issues to the union side of the Joint Health and Safety Committee. They will examine the elements of effective mobilization and develop a campaign strategy for a local. Participants should bring their collective agreements to the course.

Stewards 3: Dealing with Discipline

Prerequisites: Stewards 1 & Stewards 2

This is an advanced level steward course. It is suggested that participants take Stewards 1 and Stewards 2 prior to signing up for this program. Dealing with Discipline is a skills and knowledge focused workshop that will assist union activists in their duties representing members that are facing discipline up to and including dismissal.

The course bridges concepts from Stewards 1 and 2, Basic and Advanced Grievance Handling and Workplace Investigations. Participants should bring their Collective Agreements to the course.

Health & Safety: Level 2

Prerequisites: Health & Safety Level 1

This course is designed for Health and Safety committee members and union activists with a strong interest in Health and Safety. Participants learn how to be more effective members of their JHSC’s as they work in small groups learning how to better identify, categorize, and control hazards.

Using case studies and examples from their own workplaces, participants learn how to improve workplace inspections, and how to begin accident and illness investigations.

The course offers the opportunity to prioritize and strategize around health and safety problems and to address problems specific to participants’ own workplaces.

The course builds on the material in OPSEU/SEFPO’s Level 1 course and assumes that participants have a basic knowledge of the Occupational Health and Safety Act.

Basic Grievance Handling for Union Building

Prerequisites: None

This course is designed to examine the grievance process from a workplace organizing perspective. Grievances are opportunities to build the union. This hands-on course helps members analyze situations to decide whether a grievance is the best approach.

Participants will learn about different types of grievances and the remedies available through the grievance/arbitration process. They will develop technical skills in writing, processing grievances and practice communication to assess whether a member’s rights have been violated. Participants should bring their Collective Agreements to the course.

Human Rights, Union Rights and Global Solidarity

Prerequisites: None

Faced with governments pushing austerity around the world, global solidarity is more important than ever. Why do we find ourselves fighting the same fights fought more than 30, 50, or even 100 years ago? This course explores what our roles are as individuals, union members, and community citizens, in the ongoing fight for fairness, equality, and justice.

Participants will draw critical links between human rights, union rights, and global solidarity, and will be asked to commit to collective action to build solidarity locally and globally. By the end of the course, participants will be able to recognize and challenge privilege and oppression, know the differences between charity and solidarity, and will be better able to challenge the current austerity agenda.

Challenging Discrimination in Everyday Union Work

Prerequisites: None

This course looks at everyday situations in our workplaces and union where inequality and racism are at work, and where people can take effective action. It uses case scenarios and analysis to examine different forms of discrimination – race, gender, age and disability – and its divisive effects. And it draws from videos and role play to get people to practice responding practically to situations.

The course helps us to see equity and human rights as basic union work for all. And it strengthens our skills as effective allies and advocates to build more inclusive workplaces and locals.

Let’s Start Meeting Like This! Running Meetings that Build the Union

Prerequisites: None

Have you ever been confused at meetings about when you can speak and when you can’t? Perhaps you have tried to run a meeting where there was no quorum, or where people kept interrupting each other and getting off track. Maybe you’re discouraged because you’re not sure how to make meetings a good use of anyone’s time.

This course examines the potential of meetings to tap into diverse members’ energy and interest, and to build union capacity. Practical, hands-on activities will help you a) develop an interesting agenda and get members to the meeting; b) understand how to write and put forward a motion and use basic rules of parliamentary procedure effectively; c) facilitate an effective meeting discussion; d) deal with meeting “nightmares” who often look like members who won’t stop talking, or who can’t agree. Materials include templates for committee reports and meeting minutes, as well as step-by-step guidelines on running different kinds of meetings.

Important Information

  • The Participant and Course Selection Process will be carried out in accordance with OPSEU/SEFPO Education
  • Confirmation will only be sent to applicants who are
  • As a reminder, in accordance with OPSEU/SEFPO policy, full attendance is mandatory for participants at the educational. If you are unable to attend with full attendance without an acceptable reason, you will not receive credit for the course and your expenses (if any) may not be paid.
  • Lost Wages will not be provided for this
  • Application forms must be signed by one (1) Local Executive Officer (OPSEU/ SEFPO Policy 2.2) and received by r5educationals@opseu.org no later than October 17, 2025, by 4:00PM.
  • Late applications may not be acknowledged

If you’re attending in-person

  • Single accommodation is approved for this Educational.
  • OPSEU/SEFPO’s 60km rule will be enforced – this means that if you live further than 60km from the hotel you are entitled to single accommodations. For this event, members living outside 60 kms of the hotel will be entitled to room accommodation for both Friday and Saturday nights of the weekend educationals per OPSEU/SEFPO Members living within 60 kms of the hotel will be entitled to room accommodation for Saturday night only, as required. Members will be reimbursed for the cost of a single room.
  • You are responsible for booking your own accommodations directly with the hotel, if An online direct booking link for rooms in the Event Group Block will be issued to successful applicants at the following rates: Single $229.00 (taxes not included). Individuals may also call the hotel directly, toll free 1-800-CHELSEA (243-5732) or 416-595-1975. These individuals must also identify themselves as part of OPSEU/SEFPO November Educationals to take advantage of the discounted group rate.
  • Valet parking will not be covered.
  • As a reminder, in accordance with OPSEU/SEFPO policy, full attendance is mandatory for participants at the educational. If you are unable to attend with full attendance without an acceptable reason, you will not receive credit for the course and your expenses (if any) may not be paid.
  • Persons attending OPSEU/SEFPO meetings are requested to refrain from using perfume, cologne and other fragrances for the comfort of other participants.
  • Participants are also to refrain from bringing nut products, bottled water and Coca Cola products to OPSEU/SEFPO
  • All applications must be approved/signed by a Local Executive Committee member from the applicants Local, per OPSEU/SEFPO Policy 2.2. Applications without the required signatures will not be processed.

Accommodation

  • A block of rooms has been reserved at the Chelsea Hotel, 33 Gerrard St W, Toronto, ON M5G1Z4
  • Members are responsible for making their own Accommodation and Payment Accommodations must be booked no later than October 29, 2025.
  • All unreserved rooms will be released for re-sale after this OPSEU/SEFPO Policy states that members are responsible for their own rooms and paying for same, you are also responsible for any cancellation. Failing cancellation, you are responsible for the room charges.
  • An online direct booking link, and telephone instructions for reserving a hotel room will be issued to successful Educational applicants prior to the hotel-booking deadline of October 29, 2025.
  • OPSEU/SEFPO’s 60km rule will be waived on Saturday – this means that if you live further than 60 km from the hotel you are entitled to single accommodations on Friday and Saturday; if you live within 60 km of the hotel you are entitled to single accommodations on Saturday night only.

Cancellations

  • Notification by a member to cancel course attendance should be received by both the local president and the Regional Office no later than 48 hours prior to the Weekend Educational (no later than 9:00 M. on the Thursday prior to the Educational). When a member does not attend and the Regional Office has not been notified forty-eight (48) hours prior to the Weekend Educational, the member will be assessed a Fifty Dollar ($50.00) penalty. Extenuating circumstances will be taken into consideration.
  • A member cancelling participation must notify r5educationals@opseu.org and their local president on or before 9:00AM on November 27, 2025.
  • All hotel reservations must be cancelled by 4 pm EST 48 hours (2 days) prior to the day of arrival. Late cancellations will result in a charge of a 1-night stay plus A valid credit card is required at time of booking.

Child/ elder/ dependant care

  • Use of OPSEU/SEFPO’s on-site child care is encouraged – please complete this child-care registration form to participate.
  • Members who arrange their own child care will be reimbursed at $15 an hour to a maximum of $220 per 24-hour period, per OPSEU/SEFPO Policy 4.2.2.
  • Child care claims will be honoured for children up to and including age 16, for whom the member is the parent/guardian.
  • Friends, family, or professional or Commercial Services or any other arrangement satisfactory may provide care to the member making the claim. Claims may be verified and must be signed by the service provider.
  • Members seeking childcare through OPSEU/SEFPO for this educational must include the completed Childcare Registration paperwork with their Application.
  • If child care is requested, the child/dependant must be in attendance with the
  • Off-site Family/Attendant care will be reimbursed at the rate of $15.00 per hour to a maximum of $220.00 per 24-hour period and must be signed by the care provider(s). Please complete this Family/Attendant Care form and specify hours claimed for each This policy covers the expenses for persons over the age of 16, permanently residing with, and under the care of a member, who are differently abled and/or aged.

Transportation

  • If you are participating in person, you will be reimbursed for the actual cost incurred for travel by public transportation. As per the policy of the Union, the most economical means of transportation should be used.
  • Where a member is required to use their private vehicle, they may claim for such travel at the current The total distance travelled, and destination points are to be indicated on the expense form.
  • Members must arrange their own travel and are encouraged to
  • Transportation/ Kilometric Rate will be as follows:
    • One (1) OPSEU/SEFPO member travelling alone $0.60/km.
    • Two (2) OPSEU/SEFPO members, $0.65/km.
    • Three (3) OPSEU/SEFPO members $0.70/km.
      • Any transportation/kilometric expense claim form involving OPSEU/SEFPO members as passengers must have the members name and address on the expense form.
  • All expenses must be submitted on proper Expense Claim Forms or via the Member Portal

Lost wages

  • Lost Wages will not be provided for this Educational as per OPSEU/SEFPO Policy; this means that time-off letters are not being issued for this Educational.

Meals

  • Breakfast: Members who stay at the hotel or had to be present for an OPSEU/SEFPO event before 0800 hours (8:00 a.m.) are eligible to claim twenty-three dollars ($23.00).
  • Lunch: Members attending this educational may claim thirty-one dollars ($31.00) lunch on both Saturday and
  • Dinner: Members who stay at the hotel or had to be present for an OPSEU/SEFPO event past 1700 hours (5:00 m.) are eligible to claim forty dollars ($40.00).

Festive Dinner Event (For members only) Saturday, November 29, 2025.

Dinner is provided on Saturday, November 29, 2025. There will be no expense claim for this dinner event.

Meal options are – non-vegetarian (halal), vegetarian and vegan. If you have any dietary restrictions, please let us know in advance.

Human Rights Accommodation

Complete the attached Human Rights Accommodation Form for any specific accommodation needs. Please email completed form directly to the OPSEU/SEFPO Equity Unit at equity@opseu.org and copy r5educationals@opseu.org.

Advance

Application

Applications are now closed.

Forms