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CAMA E-Brief
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November 13, 2020 |
| CAMA Launches CAO Employment Contract Toolkit |
Recognizing the importance of an employment contract for municipal administrators, the Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators (CAMA) developed a CAO Employment Contract Toolkit which is available to members by visiting the Member’s Section (Resources area) of the CAMA website.
The toolkit was released during a virtual launch that provided an overview of this document by President Jake Rudolph along with Glen Davies, CAMA Member and CAO for the Town of Gravenhurst, Ontario sharing some of the lessons he has learned over the years in the public and private sector that have helped him succeed and survive the challenges when negotiating a contract. Don Lidstone, Q.C., Managing Partner of Lidstone & Company, a local government law firm with offices in British Columbia and Alberta, also shared his expertise on this subject.
This toolkit is meant to be a resource to support our members whether they are existing CAOs (or senior administrators) with past experience in the role or potential future CAOs with no experience as a CAO when negotiating their contract with elected officials. The toolkit provides guidance and support to our members along with recommendations and best practices that are a win-win for both parties.
The Toolkit offers information on how to assess the political environment and culture of the community, how to negotiate an employment contract, important provisions to include, the different legislation requirements between Provinces and Territories, pension/portability and benefits, the importance of having a performance evaluation, legal advice - just to name a few. It also provides some sample contracts, a sample CAO Bylaw with a job description and sample contract clauses for each topic.
There will be sections of the toolkit that make more sense for a CAO or Senior Administrator of a different sized community, a rural versus urban community or a community in another Province, so while the Committee made every effort to ensure the toolkit covers all potential situations, it is again important to ensure you have done your local research to understand what the norms are for that particular community or region.
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| Expression of Interest for CAMA Members to Sit on CAMA Human Resources Toolkit Committee |
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The Board of Directors has been considering several opportunities to assist our members through the lifecycle of their careers. What is CAMA’s next toolkit you ask? A recent survey to our membership in September 2020 revealed that the topic of
human resources is one that the members feel that CAMA can assist them with.
The goal of this initiative is to prepare a Human Resources Toolkit that will support Chief Administrative Officers, direct reports and managers working in local government in all size municipalities with or without a Human Resources Department. The Toolkit will include advice on important themes including, but not limited to, the following:
- Leadership & Building a Successful Team
- Recruitment & Hiring Practices
- Employee & Labour Relations
- Compensation & Benefits
- Correction & Discipline
- Development and Training
- Promotion
- Health & Wellness
- Performance Management
The Committee work can be accomplished by virtual meetings and e-mail. They will meet monthly or more frequently at the call of the Chair to ensure the work can progress on schedule. We anticipate the time commitment to be approximately 3 hours per month in reviewing material and participating in meetings. The goal would be to have the toolkit prepared, approved and ready for presentation in November 2021. The work of the Committee will take place between January 2021 and October 2021 and a consultant will be hired to assist with this project.
The Committee members are Jack Benzaquen, Marc Melanson, Brenda Orchard, and Beverly Hendry. The Board would like to have two additional non-board members on the Committee – one that has a background in human resources and the other from a small municipality that has the responsibility of human resources. The following criteria will be used when selecting CAMA members to sit on this Committee (including consideration of the Board members already on this Committee) :
- interest and expertise of the applicant in the subject matter
- a balanced geographic representation
- a balanced municipal size representation
- a gender, language and ethnic diversity that is representative of the membership
If you are interested in serving, please send an e-mail to Jennifer Goodine, CAMA Executive Director ([email protected]) outlining the reasons why this Committee is of interest to you. The deadline for applications is Friday, November 27th, 2020.
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| Dalhousie University’s College of Continuing Education: Free Webinar: Wicked Civic Challenges - Collective Action |
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| Municipal Cybersecurity Best Practices Event: Free to Municipal Employees |
 Everyone welcome to attend to listen, learn or engage in feedback discussion. No cybersecurity expertise needed!
We are excited to share information about an upcoming Municipal Cybersecurity Best Practices Development event, partially funded by the Government of Canada and hosted by TECHNATION – Canada’s leading technology industry association. The event includes an initial context-setting presentation from Ben Smith, RSA followed by a working session where participants will collaboratively develop cybersecurity best practices for the municipal context, facilitated by industry leaders in the following areas:
Breakout Sessions:
1. Threat and Risk Assessment – Ashley Lukeeram, Tenable
2. Organizational Governance & Planning – Ruth Promislow, Bennett Jones
3. Cybersecurity Incident Management – Eldon Sprickerhoff, eSentire
4. Third-Party Arrangements – Tyson Johnson, CyberNB
If you are a municipal leader interested in improving the cybersecurity and resilience of your community, we look forward to your participation in this upcoming session. This is the only session of its kind to be offered to municipal leaders this year. Please be advised that participation will be capped at 100.
Government Employee/Municipal Association Member - Free
Non Member - $50.00 + HST
Register today! For information on the Event, Sponsor, and Facilitators click here
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| PEI Members: Active Transportation Fund Calling for Year Two Applicants |
 The Active Transportation Fund (AT Fund) was announced in late 2019 as part of the Sustainable Transportation Action Plan.
The AT Fund helps build new walking and bike paths, install paved road shoulders and better connect existing walking and cycling trails to improve and grow PEI's active transportation network. The AT Fund is part of a five-year program that will provide $5 million per year for active transportation projects across PEI. Communities, groups and municipalities are encouraged to apply for 2021 project funding before December 4, 2020. To apply or learn more, visit Apply to the Active Transportation Fund. |
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| NEWFOUNDLAND & LABRADOR: Call for Applications Open for the Age-Friendly Communities Program |
 Budget 2020 allocates $95,000 for the program, which assists incorporated municipalities, local service districts, and Indigenous governments in planning for changing demographics, as well as in implementing activities, programs and/or infrastructure that can make communities more inclusive. The Age-Friendly Newfoundland and Labrador Communities Program is application-based. It provides up to $10,000 to establish an age-friendly community committee, complete a needs assessment, and develop an age-friendly action plan, or up to $15,000 for regional initiatives. For communities that have completed this process, the program also provides funding to support activities, programs and/or infrastructure identified in the action plan to support the goal of making communities more accessible. Applications will be accepted for the Age-Friendly Newfoundland and Labrador Communities Program until January 22, 2021. The guidelines and application for the Age-Friendly Newfoundland and Labrador Communities Program, are online and more information can be provided by calling toll-free 1-888-494-2266. |
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| The 2020 CAMA Awards Recipients |
| We are pleased to feature the 2020 Award Winners over the next few editions of e-Brief. |
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| Congratulations to the Town of Saugeen Shores - Winner of 2020 Willis Award for Innovation - Population Category Under 20,000 |
Meet Ross. Ross is a (fictional) Resident Of Saugeen Shores (R.O.S.S.) who is interested in learning more about his municipality. In discussions about our Corporate Communications Strategy, we kept returning to the question of how a municipality deals with difficult-to-explain topics in an easy-to-understand and engaging way. From some creative thinking combined with a team open to trying new things, Ross was born. In 2019, we launched our first in a series of informative whiteboard videos featuring Ross. These quarterly videos are a fun and accessible way to present a range of topics to a wide and varied audience. So far, Ross has learned about the following topics with a cast of real-life characters, from our Treasurer to our Planner to the Mayor himself!
• The municipal budget
• Development charges
• The legacy fund
• Staying informed on what's happening in his community
And Ross has taken on a life of his own, as he has been featured in a range of other communications pieces, from the launch of our film plastics recycling program to Council meeting announcements and beyond. To learn more about this project watch the video. |
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| Congratulations to the City of Richmond - Winner of the 2020 Professional Development Award – Population Over 100,000 |
The City of Richmond offers a unique Engineer-in-Training (EIT) Program for those new to the profession. Over four years, EITs are exposed to a variety of teams, projects, and objectives as they rotate annually through the City of Richmond’s Engineering & Public Works and Transportation departments. This highly-focused program is designed expertly by experienced City professionals and results in participating engineers becoming well-rounded, versatile, and effective in the municipal setting while preparing for their professional designation.
Reinforcing the City’s EIT program is the Engineers and Geoscientists of BC (EGBC) Accredited Employer Member-in-Training (MIT) Program, which accelerates the professional registration of engineers who participate in a recognized training program. In 2017, the City of Richmond became the first municipality to gain accreditation with EGBC for its MIT program, and EITs with the City now have even greater access to education, developmental resources, and mentorship opportunities.
This program develops well-rounded and adaptable professionals, resulting in far-reaching benefits to both participants and the City. For more information watch the video.
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| WELCOME NEW MEMBERS! |
- Jen Fretz, Civic Operations Director, City of Kamloops, BC
- B. Christopher Read, Director of Community Services, Yellowhead County, AB
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CAMA e-Brief is published every two weeks. Watch for the next issue on: The week of November 23, 2020
To view the last CAMA e-Brief, visit: http://www.camacam.ca/archive |
Job Scene is distributed every week. The Next issue will appear on: November 16, 2020
To view the latest Jobs go to: http://www.camacam.ca/jobs |
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To unsubscribe from this list simply reply to this email, or send an email to [email protected], Subject: UNSUBSCRIBE. |
| CAMA is a non-profit association open to all senior managers dedicated to improving municipalities in Canada. |
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Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators
PO Box 128, Station A
Fredericton, NB E3B 4Y2
CANADA |
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