Inside the Circle – February 13, 2024

Your feedback matters! Please take a few moments to complete our Employee Engagement Survey by clicking the button below or scanning the QR code above. Your honest responses will help us understand how we can better support you and improve our workplace environment. Your input is invaluable in shaping our future initiatives and continuing to foster a positive work culture. This survey will close on March 1st.

Thank you for your participation and dedication to making our organization a great place to work!

Don’t forget to fill out your Attestations form before March 1! This form is mandatory to fill out. Visit https://psw.circleofcare.com/index.php/2024/01/30/policy-attestations/

If you haven’t already signed up for training, please do so by clicking the following link. There are still spots available: https://circleofcare.formstack.com/forms/elder_abuse_awareness_training_2024

Circle of Care requires that all PSWs and Homemakers be certified with valid and current CPR training, and that employees be properly fitted for N95 masks.

Upcoming sessions for both CPR and mask fit are available. Appointments must be booked through our vendor, First Aid Care, and can be booked online here: http://register.firstaidcare.ca/ or by calling 905-272-9214.

Important reminders – please read:

• Please arrive at the training session 15 minutes before the class begins.
• After you have booked your appointment, please speak to your Service Coordinator if you need any scheduling arrangements and have clients that you will need to be booked off from to attend the CPR and/or mask fit training. Please try to book a date/time where you do not have client visits scheduled.
• Your schedule will be blocked as ‘unavailable’ for you to attend the session. You do not need to use your phone to sign into the training.
• You will be paid a total of 4 hours for the training (CPR) and 1 hour for mask fit – this will be added to your schedule 1-2 weeks after the session has been completed and you will receive payment. The code will appear on your paystub as ‘Miscellaneous’
• All bookings/cancellations must be managed through the online portal. You will receive a confirmation email/text notification and will also receive a session reminder.

The Toronto Institute for Contemporary Psychoanalysis (TICP) is launching a ‘Pay what you can program’ for in-person weekly psychotherapy sessions with their Student Therapists. The clinic is located at 427 Vaughan Road (North of St. Clair). Through this program, prospective clients are recommended to pay between $5-$25 per session – but you are welcome to pay what you can.

For more information and to access the referral form, please click the button below.

Lunar New Year is the festival that celebrates the beginning of a New Year on the traditional lunisolar calendar. 2024 is the Year of the wood Dragon. This year is expected to be a transformative year that brings new opportunities for growth and reaching new heights. It is favourable for those who are ready to boldly go forward, overcome obstacles, and realize their dreams.

All employees are reminded that Circle of Care has policies and procedures in place that seek to reduce the risk, and the number of incidents, of Workplace Violence and/or Harassment, and Discrimination and/or Hate. It is important, that if you are experiencing any incidents of Violence, Harassment, Discrimination and/or Hate while at work or during working hours, that you are reporting this to your Supervisor, Manager, Director, or to Human Resources. We have established procedures to follow up with employees, clients, caregivers etc.

For more information, employees are encouraged to review our relevant policies:

• Workplace Violence Prevention Policy
• Workplace Harassment Policy 
• Discrimination Policy

If you prefer to report any incidents of Violence, Harassment, Discrimination and/or Hate anonymously, you can use this link to access a confidential form: https://circleofcare.formstack.com/forms/anonymous_reporting_incident. Your feedback is valuable and will be handled with respect and discretion.

I’m a full time worker and I want to apply for the health and welfare benefits. Can you give me the exact person and phone number whom I can speak to regarding this matter?

When you become eligible for the Group Benefits Program, you should receive a Welcome Package in the mail. You can also download a copy here (sign up form is on pages 4 & 5): https://psw.circleofcare.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/5937-CoC-Mbr-Announcement-Pkg-v211230-v2.pdf

If you have questions about the Group Benefits Plan, please contact SEIU Benefits at 416-635-6000 or email seiubenefittrust@globalben.com.

I think when a client has a doctor’s appointment, the PSW worker should get paid because it’s no fault of the worker. If the worker doesn’t get paid in full at least pay a portion of the hour. That’s just my take on the client appointments.

Thank you for your feedback. When a client provides notice that they have a doctor’s appointment, we cancel the visit in the system if the client does not want to reschedule. This action results in our funders being notified of a cancellation and removes that authorized funding for that day. Unfortunately we cannot bill our funder for the cancellation and that means that we cannot pay the staff for this cancelled visit either. We do encourage the clients to book appointments that do not overlap with their PSW visits but this is not always possible.

When a PSW travels an hour or longer going to client, is it supposed to be paid travel time? Many times I have had these clients and I only get paid .25 on some visits.

Thank you for your question. When staff are required to travel over 45 min there should be short travel pay entered into the schedule. This generates a short travel pay. If you have travelled over 45 minutes and not gotten paid for this, please reach out to your service coordinator to confirm that the short travel pay code was entered.

I’ve been working at Circle of Care for 4 years and I’m at 20 hrs for 2 weeks. How can that be fair? When you’re hiring new staff how can you justify that to other PSWs that have worked here for many years?

Thank you for your question. We encourage you to speak directly to your service coordinator to discuss your concerns with your hours. There could be a variety of reasons why you are not working your maximum hours, including but not limited to the following: Client preferences, client holds/cancellations/decreases/terminations and not enough clients within the geography whose visits match with your availability. We hire PSWs based on geographic specific business needs.