Welcome to Alberta Precision Laboratories (APL)

The following resources are to help you start your career with Alberta Precision Laboratories.

Follow the items outlined in the APL Pre-Hire Checklist and review the Onboarding Process to prepare for your career at APL. If you have any questions, please connect with your leader.

The Overview for New Employee Orientation provides an in-depth view inside APL.

Policies

Alberta Precision Laboratories (APL) is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Alberta Health Services (AHS). AHS provides certain corporate and administrative services to APL within a Shared Services Agreement (SSA) and within that SSA is a requirement for APL to comply with AHS policies. A list of AHS policies applicable to all APL personnel.

Communicable Disease Assessment

All new employees have a responsibility to protect themselves and others from communicable diseases. A communicable disease is a highly infectious illness that is spread from one person to another. As a healthcare worker, sharing your immunization history with AHS Workplace Health and Wellness is crucial to protecting you from potential communicable disease exposures and supporting safe, healthy work environments.

If your duties involve providing health services or working in an AHS/APL facility/clinic, you are required to submit a completed Communicable Diseases and Immunization Screening History Form (within 90 days of your start date) to whs.cda@ahs.ca. This requirement is outlined in your Offer Letter and is a condition of your employment. As a last resort, your employment may be terminated if you do not submit the Communicable Diseases and Immunization Screening History Form within 90 days of being hired by APL.

Submission Process & Next Steps

Please submit the completed Communicable Diseases and Immunization Screening History Form to whs.cda@ahs.ca, along with any available immunization records as soon as possible.

Note: Submit the form even if you’re waiting for immunization records that you’ve requested or cannot obtain them.

Once AHS Workplace Health & Safety reviews your records, you may be contacted for an appointment with an Occupational Health Nurse for follow up.

Criminal Record Check

Please Read Carefully

Your employment is conditional upon receipt of a criminal record check (CRC) and/or Vulnerable Sector Search (VSS) that is satisfactory to APL. APL has a legal responsibility to ensure every person who provides care or support services to patients/clients provides a criminal record check before starting their position at APL as legislated in the Alberta Protection for Persons in Care Act (PPCA).

As an employee, you have an ongoing requirement to disclose any new charges or convictions to your manager.

For your new position, you will need to upload a copy of your Criminal Record Check and Vulnerable Sector Search (if applicable) in our online onboarding system.

Candidates who apply for a CRC through the Calgary ePIC Online System must choose the option “share your results with Alberta Precision Laboratories." When your CRC is received by APL it will be entered in the system on your behalf.

IMPORTANT:

• You must apply at your local law enforcement office for a criminal record check and/or Vulnerable Sector Search
• Your checks must be dated no more than 90 days prior to the date on your written offer and prior to your start date with APL
• Any costs related to getting these checks are your responsibility

Network Access & Email

Your manager will give you your network username and password to access all the APL systems, including your APL email, Insite (APL Intranet), and e-People (Employee Self Service).

e-People - Employee Self Service

e-People is the human resources and payroll system used by Alberta Precision Laboratories. The Employee Self Service component allows employees to view and update personal, payroll, and benefits information online. You are encouraged to complete the e-People Employee Self Service training module (via MyLearning Link) once you start.

To access e-People:

Once you start your position and have access to the APL network you can log in to e-People using your network access information (username and password).

For security reasons and to protect your personal information, you must complete the Employee Verification the first time you log in to e-People. During this process, you will be challenged randomly with 2 of 4 possible questions:

• Day and month of your birth
• The 8-digit employee ID assigned to you
• Your home city
• Your home postal code.

IMPORTANT: The first time you access e-People, you have to be at an AHS/APL site connected to the APL network.

For detailed information on your self-service features, check out the e-People Employee Resources on Insite.

Employee Groups - Collective Agreements & Terms and Conditions

Familiarize yourself with your employee group’s Collective Agreement (unionized employees) or Terms & Conditions of Employment (non-unionized employees) as it forms an important part of your employment contract with APL.

TIP: Your employee group is indicated on your offer letter.

Non-Union Exempt Employee Terms & Conditions (last updated August 31, 2022)

Collective Agreements by Employee Group:

HSAA

• Alberta Precision Laboratories

CUPE

• APL and CUPE Local 8 Collective Agreement

Benefits

APL provides group benefits coverage. To determine if you are eligible and how to enroll, review the Benefit Plan Booklet applicable to your position.

• NUEE – Benefits-At-A-Glance
• HSAA – Benefits-At-A-Glance

Pension

Services provided by Alberta Pensions Services Corporation (APS).

Saving for retirement is supported by a defined benefit pension plan through the Local Authorities Pension Plan (LAPP) in which APL pays just over half the contributions. You can reasonably rely on how much pension you receive from LAPP because the monthly benefit, payable for life after you retire, is specified by a formula based on your age, pensionable salary and pensionable service. LAPP at a Glance.

Eligibility

Mandatory: If you are regularly scheduled to work an average of 30 hours per week or more over a complete shift cycle you are required to participate in LAPP.

Optional: You may choose to enroll in LAPP at any time if you are a:

• Regular part-time employee and are regularly scheduled to work an average of 14 hours or more and less than 30 hours per week over a complete shift cycle; or
• Temporary employee and are regularly scheduled to work an average of 30 hours per week or more over a complete shift cycle for a term of six months or longer.

If you have the option to enroll in LAPP, participation starts upon enrolment and payroll setup. If you enroll after you first became eligible, contributions cannot be backdated to your eligibility date. However, you may purchase the service to your enrolment date as Optional Service.

Enrolment

Mandatory - You are automatically enrolled in the plan by APL. LAPP will send a welcome package to your home mailing address with forms to complete.

Optional - You can enroll by submitting the LAPP Optional Enrolment Form.

Once enrolled in LAPP you must remain in the plan unless you become ineligible to participate (refer to LAPP Standard).

LAPP may allow a transfer from your previous employer's pension plan to increase your LAPP Pension.

Note: Certain transfers have a one year deadline to apply for the transfer.

To obtain other important Local Authorities Pension Plan information once you have your APL employee identification number, visit Insite (APL's intranet site) and search 'Employee Resources'.

Privacy & Security Training - Mandatory

All APL employees are accountable for protecting the privacy and security of patient and confidential information. Everyone at APL must complete the Required Organizational Learning Privacy and Information Security training module "InfoCare – On Our Best Behaviors" via MyLearningLink. This course is 30 minutes and you must complete this course upon hire and at least once every three years.

At the end of this course, you must electronically sign the Confidentiality and User Agreement. This agreement describes how you, when acting as an APL affiliate (defined under the Health Information Act), must handle APL information, including APL information systems, and will help you comply with relevant policies.

TRACCESS Learning Management System & MyLearningLink

TRACCESS is the Learning Management System used by APL that contains an extensive menu of specific laboratory training and competency tasks.

MyLearningLink (MLL) is the AHS Learning Management System that provides a variety of corporate and other instructor-led and eLearning courses. Many training resources developed by AHS are applicable to APL, so when you are hired you will be provided with a username and login for both MLL and TRACCESS and will be assigned a set of mandatory tasks to be completed. Within each TRACCESS task are instructions for where the task is completed. Tasks do not need to be completed in both systems – within 3 weeks of completing any mandatory tasks in MLL, the record will automatically appear as complete in TRACCESS with no intervention required by you or your supervisor.

On your first day, please ask your Supervisor about your TRACCESS/MLL login information and complete the assigned Day 1 tasks (e.g., Safety Orientation).

Notice of Resignation

Should you terminate your employment with APL it is an expectation that a minimum of one (1) months' notice will be provided in writing.