A group of government workers is putting Ottawa on notice concerning their current contract talks.
Dozens of Canada Revenue Agency employees, represented by the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC), spent their lunch hour on the street in front of their building on University Avenue West Tuesday afternoon, holding a rally to call attention to their ongoing contract negotiations with the government of Canada. Members of PSAC's regional and national leadership spoke at the event.
The employees have been working without a contract for two years and PSAC National President Chris Aylward said continued fallout over the Phoenix pay system is not helping matters much.
"This government has come to the table with nothing but insulting offers, so we're hoping that the federal Liberal government understands that federal public sector workers, after four years of the Phoenix debacle, deserve a respectable offer at the bargaining table," said Aylward.
Aylward added that the stress caused by the Phoenix system, from which some employees have complained about being paid incorrectly or not at all, is taking its toll on workers and their families.
"They don't understand that when someone wakes up in the morning and wonders 'How am I going to cope financially and I work for the government of Canada and I don't know if I'm going to get a paycheque or not?' That is a tremendous amount of stress and anxiety," said Aylward.
PSAC has not been happy with the offers put to them as far as wages are concerned, claiming that the offers don't cover the cost of living, but the Canada Revenue Agency says progress has been made in other areas and more talks are coming.
"During the mediation session, the parties made some progress on certain points, including leave for Alliance business," said the CRA in an update posted on its official website. "Given that a considerable number of outstanding issues still need to be addressed, the CRA and the PSAC-UTE agreed to meet again for another mediation session. The parties intend to meet in May and will confirm the date in the coming weeks."
The union will continue with rallies across the country for now, since it will not be in a legal strike position until at least this coming fall, and a new federal government may be in power following the coming federal election.
Canada Revenue Agency employees rally outside their building in downtown Windsor, May 7, 2019. Photo by Mark Brown/Blackburn News.