Supporting our UTA colleagues at the CRA

Bob Hamilton
Commissioner,
Canada Revenue Agency
555 MacKenzie Avenue, 7th Floor Ottawa ON K1A 0L5
By email: bob.hamilton@canada.ca

February 19, 2021

Dear Mr. Hamilton,

I am writing today regarding the Canada Revenue Agency’s (CRA) recent decision to hire a third-party contractor to answer questions from taxpayers about emergency benefits and their impact on returns in the weeks ahead.

While I agree that various programs introduced to help Canadians during the pandemic may well result in a substantial increase in the number and complexity of questions fielded by the CRA during the upcoming “tax season”, I do not understand why public service professionals have not been asked to perform this work.

Private call centre staff are much likelier to provide incomplete or inaccurate information to taxpayers than CRA personnel. Their training is not of the same calibre and they are not held to the same standard of confidentiality as public service employees. Many Canadians may not realize they are not speaking to a CRA professional and may inadvertently provide confidential information to these private-sector call centre agents. And I don’t have to remind you of the complete fiasco that ensued when hundreds of hastily-prepared call centre agents were hired to provide assistance to federal employees experiencing complex pay problems caused by Phoenix.

The Agency had many options to provide these services internally, including the hiring of Term employees, and I see no good reason why it chose to look to an external provider to do so.

On behalf of the thousands of PIPSC members employed by the CRA, I support the Union of Taxation Employees on this matter and I call upon you to immediately reverse this decision. Canadian taxpayers deserve the best service possible. Contracting out this critical work will once again prove more expensive and less effective than if it were performed by knowledgeable and experienced public service professionals.

Sincerely,

Debi Daviau
President

Published on 1 March 2021

24 April 2018

PIPSC mourns victims of the senseless tragedy in Toronto

Like all Canadians, members of the Institute are shocked by the senseless deaths and horrific injuries that occurred yesterday afternoon in Toronto. Our thoughts are with the victims and their families.

6 April 2018

President Daviau meets with National Capital Region Liberal Caucus

Last week I had the opportunity to meet with the National Capital Region Liberal Caucus. I was grateful for the warm reception I received and know that many of the Members of Parliament rearranged their schedules to be able to attend. I used this opportunity to raise PIPSC’s continued concerns with the disastrous Phoenix pay system.

14 March 2018

Important news regarding the recovery of overpayments, Emergency Salary Advances (ESAs) and priority payments for members affected by Phoenix

Following tremendous pressure on the part of public service bargaining agents, the government has finally introduced some much-needed flexibility in the recovery of overpayments caused by Phoenix.

28 February 2018

Federal budget includes a glimmer of hope on Phoenix

I am pleased to report that yesterday’s federal Budget committed $16M towards the building of an alternative pay system to replace the disastrous Phoenix.

27 February 2018

Government updates information on financial claims linked to Phoenix

With “tax season” fast approaching, the government has recently updated the information available online regarding three types of financial claims linked to the Phoenix pay system: requesting an advance for government benefits; reimbursement for tax advice; and claims for out-of-pocket expenses.

20 February 2018

President Daviau delivers strong message on Phoenix to Cabinet Ministers tasked with fixing Phoenix

Last week I was invited to meet with the Cabinet level working group on the Phoenix pay system to discuss potential solutions. I last met with the Cabinet committee in June 2017 and since then we have sadly seen little to no progress – in fact the problems continue to mount.