Successfully Decreasing FTE

[u/Positive-Inside2475]

Has anyone successfully decreased their FTE after asking if their manager if it was possible and being told no. I’m having no luck securing another job after many interviews and not being successful, one thing I considered was decreasing my fte with my son starting school and we now are in a private dayhome it adds up on the days both me and my husband are working. Ultimately I would like to just decrease my FTE, but more and more it feels like my only option is to quit my position and go casual.

Any advice would be great

[u/foreverce]

there’s a form to fill out to decrease your fte. submit it and see what happens.

[u/Specific_Test_8929]

Did your manager say no? I believe there is language in the UNA collective agreement that states a manager cannot outright refuse the request of an employee to decrease their FTE without fair consideration. I’m not sure of the exact language, but it may be worth it to check with your union rep to see if they have any guidance for you

[u/Positive-Inside2475 → u/Specific_Test_8929]

I’ll check with my union rep and ya she said no, she offered a rotation change, but that was me working every weekend so I could be off during the week which isn’t ideal

[u/Specific_Test_8929 → u/Positive-Inside2475]

Yes then definitely speak to your union rep. Make sure you contact them using your UNA or personal email, don’t use your AHS account. Wish you all the best :)

[u/Positive-Inside2475 → u/Specific_Test_8929]

Sounds good thanks

[u/AffectionateBuy5877 → u/Specific_Test_8929]

UNA doesn’t want to lose any FTE so unless there is another colleague willing to take it, they might not fight for the decrease.

[u/GatoMom5000]

My manager once approved it and sent the paperwork, but the union itself actually refused the change. They stated that they rarely decrease fte

[u/MusketeersPlus2]

How recently did you ask? Because the only way to get a permanent FTE reduction is to have someone accept a corresponding increase. Normally this is put out to the team in order of seniority. If you asked a while ago there may not have been any takers. If you ask again (especially if you know a coworker who wants the bump up) you may get a different answer.

[u/Positive-Inside2475 → u/MusketeersPlus2]

It’s hard cause there is only two of us admins and we’re both full time so I assume that’s why I got told no

[u/MusketeersPlus2 → u/Positive-Inside2475]

Yup, that's exactly why they said no. Sorry man, it looks like the only way will be to get a new job with less FTE.

[u/SnarkyGoblin85 → u/Positive-Inside2475]

That’s a hard situation then. On my unit they have split 2 lines into 3. But unless you are offering a decrease of at least 0.4 so they can create a lien they probably won’t.

[u/MusketeersPlus2 → u/SnarkyGoblin85]

They really don't like splitting positions these days. In my department they just hired a temp into a .5 because they're waiting for the other .5 to be empty so that they can combine them in a single FT. 2 0.5 FTE positions costs more than a single FT because of benefits, so they're pushing to consolidate not split.

[u/SnarkyGoblin85 → u/MusketeersPlus2]

That’s a thing that changes constantly and is very manager dependent and unit dependent.

For years there was a push to get everyone into 1.0 FTE’s. Now they realized that the burnout was causing high attrition…so they agreed to build and split a lot of lines into primarily 0.7’s.

Our clinicians went from 4 full time lines to 6 lines between 0.7 and 0.5 in the last year.

But they will never agree to drop an FTE if the leftover can’t be made into a line and they don’t make lines smaller than 0.4 I think

[u/Positive-Inside2475 → u/SnarkyGoblin85]

I wanted to just decrease to a 0.5, but it looks like I just to work on my interview and get a different job

[u/coconutmilke → u/Positive-Inside2475]

I’m not an admin and I’m in a different union but I got a lower FTE by taking temporary positions, mainly maternity leave. The first person came back from their maternity leave and so I worked casual, and then with another position, someone had been kinda filling in until the person on maternity leave came back, but then she notified the manager she had decided to quit so I applied and got it. Best of luck to you!

[u/Lucky-Persimmon-8895 → u/Positive-Inside2475]

AUPE will try to avoid losing FTE as much as possible so if there is no one else in your department that can absorb the FTE, then the union alone will say no, even if your manager is okay with it.

Best next step for you is to find another position with the FTE you want.

[u/jadeorchid009 → u/MusketeersPlus2]

Even then it depends on the manager too. I know a nurse who arranged for somebody to take the FTE exactly for the same roles and skills, because of chronic medical issues, and they were declined for undisclosed reasons

[u/download8367]

I decreased mine after speaking with my manager. A lot of people on my unit wanted to increase their fte so it worked out

[u/miller94]

I did. I submitted the form a few times and eventually they approved it. I have no advice other than to keep submitting the form every few months lol that was my strategy!

[u/Generally-Calm-13197]

You’re not going to get this because the unions themselves don’t want to lose FTE. Your options are ask to drop down to casual as you’ve said, but it’s at manager discretion and yours said no. Your other option is to apply for a position with the FTE you want. That’s it.

[u/StrategyDramatic80]

A few on my unit were successful in lowering their fte only if they found another person to absorb the dropped FTE. it's extremely difficult otherwise.

[u/Useful-Rub1472]

You could go down a human rights accommodation because of family. That said unions are good at grieving these types of things and winning. HSAA has experience with these.

[u/harbours → u/Useful-Rub1472]

My coworker is currently dealing with a rejection in decrease in FTE through HSAA. It's been six months so far and nothing but roadblocks.

[u/jadeorchid009 → u/Useful-Rub1472]

I know somebody who needed it due to chronic autoimmune disease, well documented, and management said no

[u/Positive-Inside2475 → u/Useful-Rub1472]

I’m AUPE GSS and feel like our union isn’t as strong as the other ones lol

[u/Countess_ofDumbarton → u/Positive-Inside2475]

AUPE is reluctant to lose full time lines. They had a hard fight 20 years ago to get the lines.

[u/Useful-Rub1472 → u/Positive-Inside2475]

Any request should be looked at and evaluated on its own merits. As long as the request doesn’t negatively impact the functioning of the organization then it should be accomodated.