January 23, 2025

To All Employees

The recent policy updates include important updates to Section E: Human Resources. These focus on providing clarity in E.2 Recruitment & Retention and E.4 Working Hours. Additionally, for employees in Saskatchewan, there are updates in Section F: Employee Health and Safety, with revisions to F.1 Health & Safety Commitment and Definitions (SK), and F.10 First Aid (SK).

Here are a few key highlights of the updates:

Redundancies/Reduction in Staffing/Temporary Layoffs (ON E.2.13 and SK E.2.12)

Policies related to redundancies, reduction in staffing, and temporary layoffs have been updated to provide clarity, including information on notice periods, recalls, comparable and non-comparable employment, and re-employment. All of these outline Karis’ commitment to retain employees and return them to work whenever possible.

On-Call (ON and SK E.4.7)

Providing leadership support outside of typical office hours is important as Karis employees provide support on a 24-hour basis in many communities. Policy E.4.7 has been amended in Ontario and added to Saskatchewan policy to outline on-call expectations and compensation for on-call coverage.

Employee Health and Safety Definitions (SK F.1.2) and First Aid Requirements (SK F.10.2)

It is essential that Karis’ Policies and Procedures reflect current legislation and related standards. Employees in Saskatchewan will attest to reviewing a new definition of harassment that aligns with the Occupational Health and Safety Regulations 2020 and the Saskatchewan Employment Act in policy F.1.2(SK). The policy F.10.2(SK) First Aid Requirements has be re-written to match Canadian Standards Association.

Many other policy changes in Section E: Human Resources reflect processes that are now accomplished within the Human Resource Information System (UKG). The efficiencies of the new system have eliminated several forms. For example, Employee personal information such as name, address, and banking information can be updated in UKG. The new system allows for streamlined and paperless processes that are noted in the recent policy updates.  

Please note that these policy updates apply to all employees, except where a collective agreement with different provisions is in effect. In such cases, the provisions outlined in the collective agreement will apply. Employees represented by a trade union should refer to the Chart of Policy Updates available in PolicyManager to view the specific amendments applicable to them.

You can connect with your supervisor about these changes, or you can reach out to humanresources@karis.org if you have additional questions.

Thank you, 

Laura Watson, Director of Recruitment & Retention