In the last few weeks, the pace in the office seemed to have suddenly picked up as I became involved with a whole new array of responsibilities and tasks.
Apprenticeships testing were finally all completed as interviews and meetings housed much discussion and decisions on who the top candidates would be. It was definitely an eye opening experience to witness the process, to understand what the superintendents were looking for, to be involved with the interview process, sit in on the discussions that went on behind closed doors, and to listen to different opinions and how these opinions were resolved as a team.
November was a crazy month for recruitment. We had requisitions signed off for 2 LPO’s, 8 HD Mechanics, 1 Electrician, 1 Mechanic, and 22 Haul Truck Drivers. I became responsible for scheduling, setting up interviews, organizing medicals and reference checks to be done, and initiating a feedback session for the LPO’s and Haul Truck Drivers. I also got to sit in on the interviews and was involved in asking questions. While it was all under a whole lot of pressure as these positions were pushed to be filled in a very short time, I felt a sense accomplishment and satisfaction after it was all completed. It was very nice to be involved in a project where I was able to witness and do a lot of the work from the beginning to the end.
A harassment investigation also took place this month as I was involved with the interviewing of multiple parties in order to fully understand the details of the situation. I was responsible for compiling documents, taking down minutes and updating summaries to keep superintendents in the loop. Being able to just witness the process, the events that unfolded, and how the HR department dealt with a complaint and investigation was definitely a educational experience.
Lastly, I have become more heavily involved with labor relation cases. Not only has my role in communicating with the Union increased, I have also been more exposed to the collective agreement between the mine and the Union. It was very interesting to work with the Union as my understanding behind the nuts and bolts of being unionized continues to grow. Not only was I expected to review letters of agreement that were to be placed in the collective agreement, I was also given the opportunity to do a lot of background work for arbitrations and appeals. For the arbitration cases, I have been involved with compiling a lot of background information as I research and look for complications. I have been taught that for every complication, we have to work to build a case, to interpret it to our own cause and to have everything documented. Finding information can at times be very difficult here at the mine, especially information that are dated very early in time. When this happens, it makes me appreciate the good job that we are currently doing with organizing our information so that things can be found and done in an efficient manner.
