35,000 Canada Revenue Agency Employees Remain on Strike

PSAC workers and supporters picket outside the Canada Revenue Agency office in Sudbury, Ont. on April 19, 2023. The Canadian Press/Gino Donato

A day after 120,000 Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) workers reached a tentative deal with the federal government, around 35,000 Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) workers remain on strike.

While most federal employees returned to work on May 1 following 10 days of strike action, the Union of Taxation Employees (UTE)—an arm of PSAC that represents CRA workers—has yet to negotiate a deal with the federal government. The union had sought a 22.5 percent pay raise over three years.

The union and the federal government met on May 1 and “late into the night,” but no agreement was reached, according to a May 2 press release from UTE.

“Our demands are reasonable and our members deserve a fair and reasonable contract. Meanwhile, the strike continues at CRA and our members are on the picket line,” PSAC said in a May 2 release.

On May 2, CRA members gathered at three picket locations in the Ottawa region, including at the Canada Post building and near Liberal MP Marie-France Lalonde’s office in Orléans.

May 1, 2023, was the deadline for the 2022 tax year. CRA said last week that despite its phone lines being closed or operating at “reduced agent capacity,” the filing deadline would not be changed and overdue taxes would still be subject to penalties.

PSAC Reached Deal

Treasury Board President Mona Fortier announced on May 1 that a deal had been reached with 120,000 PSAC members in the Education and Library, Program and Administrative, Operational Services, and Technical Services Treasury Board bargaining units.

“This wasn’t easy. We negotiated, we compromised, and we found creative solutions. And after many long days, nights, and weekends of hard work, we’ve reached fair and competitive deals for employees,” she told reporters.

PSAC workers will receive wage increases of 11.5 percent over four years. The federal government had initially offered a 9 percent wage increase over three years, as recommended by the Public Interest Commission, while the union had asked for 13.5 percent.

The negotiated wage increases for the larger PSAC group of Treasury Board workers total 12.6 percent compounded over the agreements’ four-year lifespan from 2021 to 2024.

PSAC said in a May 1 news release that it secured an additional fourth year in the agreement that “protects workers from inflation,” as well as a pensionable $2,500 one-time lump sum payment that represents an additional 3.7 percent of salary for the average PSAC member in Treasury Board bargaining units.

“During a period of record-high inflation and soaring corporate profits, workers were told to accept less – but our members came together and fought for better,” PSAC President Chris Aylward said in the release. “This agreement delivers important gains for our members that will set the bar for all workers in Canada.”