155,000 Public Service Alliance of Canada Members Begin Strike

Besides a pay hike, remote work protections and mandatory anti-racism training are among union's demands

Canada Revenue Agency workers form a picket line as over 150,000 Public Service Alliance of Canada federal employees go on strike across the country, in Montreal on April 19, 2023. The Canadian Press/Ryan Remiorz

More than 155,000 members of the Public Service Alliance of Canada union began striking on April 19, in what could be the largest federal public service work stoppage since 1991.

“We truly hoped we wouldn’t be forced to take strike action, but we’ve exhausted every other avenue to reach a fair contract for Canada’s Federal Public Service workers,” said PSAC National President Chris Aylward.

“Now more than ever, workers need fair wages, good working conditions and inclusive workplaces. And it’s clear the only way we’ll achieve that is by taking strike action to show the government that workers can’t wait.”

Following the passing of a 9 p.m. strike deadline on the night of April 18, over 35,000 Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) workers and 120,000 Treasury Board workers set up picket lines at more than 250 locations across Canada, including eight in the Ottawa-Gatineau region.

Around 47,000 of the workers are considered essential and will continue to report to work during the strike.

Both PSAC and the government have warned that the strike will likely impact a number of federal services, leading to disruptions to tax season, slowdowns at the border, and interruptions to employment insurance, immigration, veteran support, and passport applications.

Negotiations

Negotiations between the federal government and each of PSAC’s two groups—the Treasury Board group and the CRA group represented by PSAC and its subcomponent, the Union of Taxation Employees—began back in June 2021.

PSAC paused negotiations in May 2022, calling the proposed 1.7 percent wage increase proposed by the Treasury Board “insulting” and “entirely out of touch with record-high inflation.”

On Jan. 13 this year, the Treasury Board filed a complaint with the labour board, claiming PSAC was “bargaining in bad faith” by flooding the bargaining talks with “costly proposals.” In response, PSAC called the move a stalling tactic.

In a statement released April 18, the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat said while the federal government had done everything it could to reach a deal, PSAC had put forth “unaffordable” demands that would “severely impact the Government’s ability to deliver services to Canadians.”

The Treasury Board said it had offered PSAC a “competitive” 9 percent raise over the course of three years, as well as proposals on other PSAC priorities like telework, shift premiums, improved leave with pay, and supporting employment equity and diversity and inclusion. But the union has asked for annual raises of 4.5 percent for 2021, 2022, and 2023, which it argues is needed to keep pace with the rising cost of living.

“We call on the PSAC to work with us to build on the progress we’ve already made so workers can get back to delivering the important services Canadians rely on,” the Treasury Board said.

Besides a pay hike, other key demands by PSAC include job security improvements, remote work protections, mandatory anti-racism training and building a more diverse public service, curbing contracting out and privatization, and more consideration for employees’ work-life balance.

‘Consistent Efforts’

The CRA said it had made a fair, competitive offer of 9 percent over three years to PSAC.

“The CRA has made consistent efforts to address the PSAC-UTE’s main priorities and we remain confident that the parties can continue to find areas of potential compromise and trade-off, through honest discussions and concessions by both sides,” it said on April 19.

The CRA said while it has no plans to extend tax filing deadlines, it will continue to accept all tax returns. It said those that are filed digitally, which represent the vast majority of T1 and T2 returns, will largely be processed automatically by its systems “without delay.”

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters on April 18 that the unions “need to get back to the negotiating table right now.” He added that Canadians have “every right and expectation” to see the delivery of government services.

“We understand it’s really important to respect labour rights, and the labour disruption right now, it’s the first day,” Trudeau said.

“Let’s make sure that while this is going on, we are at the negotiating table. That’s where we expect both managers and unions to sit down and keep up the hard work for Canadians.”