The National Human Rights Committee is a national committee of the Union of Veterans Affairs’ Employees (UVAE). The committee reports to the National Executive of the UVAE on any Human Rights issues that confront all equity members of the UVAE.
The committee shall represent members in employment equity groups as is defined by the Public Service Alliance of Canada.
The UVAE National Human Rights Committee will:
- meet at least twice a year in person in conjunction with the in person UVAE National Officers meetings and at least twice a year by teleconference in between the UVAE National Officers meetings and will also meet at the request of the UVAE National President;
- work to eliminate discrimination in our union, our workplaces and in society;
- represent the interests of equity seeking partners through internal and external consultations with equity seeking partners, identify and recommend means to make our union a more accessible and inclusive organization to the full range of our membership;
- encourage and support participation of equity seeking partners among our members within UVAE;
- make recommendations to the National President and National Executive Officers (NEO) on union policies, procedures and practices as they relate to equity;
- liaise with the employer to engage in the development of policies, procedures and practices with an equity lens;
- liaise with other UVAE committees to provide the input of equity seeking partners regarding our union’s programs, procedures and communications strategy; and
- promote equity and human rights education;
- promote the awareness of equity and human rights issues and initiatives, provincial and national human rights legislation, the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in our union, our workplaces, and the labour movement;
- develop and make recommendations to the National Executive on resolutions to the UVAE, Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) and to organizations to which we are affiliates and to those body’s conferences and conventions;
- ensure that the work of the committee is communicated to our union’s membership through the component;
- consider equity concerns and issues raised by the UVAE component national and local representatives on behalf of their executives and members to support and find solutions to bring about real change in the equity sphere;
- encourage and promote UVAE local members to create and maintain local human rights committees and/or attend local PSAC Human Rights Committees;
- and liaise with UVAE representatives who participate on relevant external committees, working groups and community organizations to promote Human Rights to these entities.
These terms of reference shall be reviewed and amended at the request of the UVAE National Executive and/or the UVAE National President.
Structure and Functions
This committee shall consist of the Equal Opportunity Coordinator (EOC) of whom shall chair the committee and at least two equity seeking members of the UVAE National Executive as appointed by the UVAE National President. The UVAE National President shall be an ex-officio member of this committee.
The Equal Opportunity Coordinator shall represent the committee to the Veterans Affairs Canada National Employment Equity and Diversity Advisory Committee (NEEDAC), the PSAC National Human Rights Committee (NHRC) and any other National, Regional and Local Human Rights Committee that attendance has been requested and approved by the UVAE National President.
The committee shall report to the UVAE National Executive Officers through the UVAE National President.
Each Equity Committee Member shall be aware of Equity Activities in their PSAC and Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) regional structures and participate if possible, on the committees and in the activities of those structures.
Terms of Reference approved on May 11, 2020.