Hospital pharmacists across BC are protesting a surprise unilateral announcement rolling back their wages and aggravating a critical recruitment and retention crisis.

HEABC served notice last week that it plans to eliminate a market adjustment for pharmacists effective April 1, 2012.

The market adjustment, introduced to address chronic issues of recruitment and retention, has effectively stemmed the flow of pharmacists away from hospitals in British Columbia since 2006.

-HEABCs notice to cut pharmacists wages by 9 to 14 per cent is short-sighted and ill considered," said Jeanne Meyers, HSAs Executive Director of Legal Services and Labour Relations.

The next HSA Annual Convention will take place April 19-21, 2012 at the Westin Bayshore Hotel in Vancouver.

All HSA members are welcome to attend and speak at the convention.  However, only delegates have the right to vote.

For chapters with 49 or fewer members, the HSA chief steward is the sole delegate.  If the chief steward is not attending convention, an alternate should be identified.  Chapters with more than 49 members are entitled to one additional delegate for each additional 50 members or portion thereof.

HSA members will soon be preparing for the 2012 HSA Convention, to be held April 19, 20, and 21, 2012 at the Westin Bayshore Hotel in Vancouver.

Conventions are the unions annual meeting where chapters from around the province determine the future direction of the union.  Policies, actions, constitutional amendments, structural changes are all discussed and debated at convention.

HEABC has denied the policy grievance in which HSPBA charged that the employer is refusing to adhere to the terms and conditions negotiated in the in 2010-12 HSPBA collective agreement, and the grievance has been referred to arbitration.

HSA, on behalf of the Health Science Professionals Bargaining Association, says HEABC has contravened the collective agreement by failing or refusing to work towards fulfillment of the objectives outlined for the Joint Classification Committee, negotiated in the 2012-2012 collective agreement.

HSA is offering scholarships and bursaries to all members and their children.  Ten scholarships will be awarded for full-time studies, twenty bursaries for full-time studies and four bursaries for part-time studies.  Two aboriginal scholarships will be awarded to aboriginal students in BC.

The criteria and details are set out on the application forms.  To obtain a copy please see the HSA website.

The Municipal Pension Plan has scheduled seminars for HSA members as follows:

• Tuesday, March 27, 2012: Dawson Creek
• Wednesday, April 18, 2012: Terrace

Two seminars will be offered at each location, with one geared to new and mid-career members, and the other geared to members nearing retirement.

4:30 ... 6 p.m. Your Pension, Your Future seminar provides information for new and mid-career members.  This seminar will provide information to help you understand your pension plan, and the options your plan affords you for the future.

December 6 marks the anniversary of the Montréal massacre of 14 young women at the École Polytechnique.

Violence against women continues to be a serious issue in Canada:

In 2009, a global survey found that fifty per cent of educated youths admit they dont know enough about HIV and AIDS, according to AIESEC International, the worlds largest student organization.

However, in the decade since the United Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS was signed in 2001, HIV infections have been reduced by 17 per cent, according to the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the World Health Organization.

HSA members working to support people living with HIV and AIDS know that there are more people than ever living with HIV in BC.

After three days of working through proposals from members and developing direction for 2012 bargaining, HSAs health science professionals elected members to the negotiating committee with a mandate to demand respect at the bargaining table.

HSA President Reid Johnson said the Liberal governments -net zero" mandate of 2010 has been renamed a -cooperative gains" mandate.

-HSA members served notice at the beginning of this year that continuing to fall behind our counterparts in other provinces is not an option.