PRESIDENT and VICE PRESIDENT MESSAGE
We are halfway through FY 2026/27, and what a significant time of change we have all been through.
The main focus for the National Executive has been addressing Work Force Adjustment (WFA) issues faced by our members. Fortunately for some of those with affected letters, other non-affected members opted to take the Early Retirement Initiative (ERI) or the Voluntary Departure Program (VDP), allowing for more opportunities, including alternation. To be certain, since the Federal Government’s implementation of the Comprehensive Expenditure Review (CER), there has been a significant increase in members requiring the assistance of union stewards, an increase in work-related anxiety, and some decrease in workplace morale.
The National Executive has been very involved in national committees that are working to improve employee work-life balance, employee mental health, and overall CSC culture. The implementation of new programs and guidelines across the IT, SH, and Technical Services branches has resulted in increased workload for PIPSC members – without also increasing the staffing model – leading to decreased workplace morale. PIPSC does not support “do more with less”!
Some PIPSC members have been at the office all along, but due to the pandemic, others were switched from in office to working from home. In July 2026, the federal government implemented return to office (RTO4) and mandated increased presence for all non-essential employees; they have returned to office hours four days a week. The challenge has been finding office space for everyone as during the pandemic, CSC gave up building space to save money… then Treasury Board mandated RTO4 – so it has been a lot of juggling for these members to have a dedicated work space, not to mention an increase in health and safety issues.
Your national executive has had the opportunity to meet with Commissioner Talal Dakalbab twice and we are optimistic that there will be some positive changes targeted at CSCs culture, infrastructure, technology, and overall efficiencies. He has been touring sites across the country and is very interested in speaking to front line staff directly – so if you hear that he’s coming to your site, please don’t hesitate to approach him!
We look forward to continuing to serve CSCs PIPSC membership. We are also always excited to have members become PIPSC stewards to help us better serve the membership – if you think this is something you are interested in, please get in touch with your regional president (see below). Many hands make light work, and united, we are strong. In solidarity,
Gary Desbiens, President National Consultation Team
Cindy Gagnon, Vice-President National Consultation Team
HEALTH SERVICES – Adrian Smith, SH representative, National Consultation Team
It is my pleasure to continue serving our members upon my re-election to the position of Health Services Executive by the National Consultation Team for the 2026-28 term. After extensive efforts from our team to demonstrate the inefficiency and negative impacts from the 24/7 Nursing Pilot, we received word this week that CSC Health Services is recommending the pilot be discontinued, in favour of some sites providing additional care hours between 06h00-23h00. The decision is subject to Commissioner and Minister of Public Safety approval, so while it is not a win yet, this is a massive shift in the right direction. We also welcomed our second opportunity to meet with Commissioner Talal, who among other discussions, committed that telework decisions are not to be a blanket denial for our members, but a discretionary decision. We engaged senior managers with regard to a myriad of topics including WFA, workplace health, changes in service provision and more. We will continue to push the employer to respect the CA, collaborate with members on implementing policy changes and demanding a respectful, healthy workplace.
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY – Rob Scott, National Consultation Team
WFA and RTO4 have been the top issues discussed at consultation over the recent period. We had many discussions with the employer on these issues and made sure to bring members’ concerns and questions forward. We worked to ensure that the processes put in place for WFA and RTO4 were fair and equitable and that information was shared widely and in a timely manner. Workforce adjustments were initially expected to occur over 3 phases. For IT, the bulk of WFA reductions occurred in phase 1 and the remaining few occurred in phase2 – there will be no phase 3. Despite our concerns about availability of workspace capacity for RTO4, we have been informed that CSC has been able to accommodate returning staff with assigned workspaces across the department. Please feel free to bring any IT related issues to my attention as they arise.
ONTARIO REGION – Jess Whidden, A/President Ontario Region National Consultation Team
Ontario Region has been transitioning the Regional Treatment Centre from Millhaven to Bath for the Health Centre of Excellence. There is a plan to place a transitional unit within Millhaven, however the working group and planning has not been initiated at this time. Offenders have been transferred to the Assisted Living Unit at Collins Bay Minimum and the move to Bath is around 50% completed.
There are concerns about expired staff training as well as national training standards and lack of contract to have this training completed. There are concerns with cleaning procedures with the loss of the USJE BUS-4 positions across the region with the comprehensive expenditure review and work force adjustment. These issues are being monitored regionally.
We continue to work with the employer to support work life balance for our members and are eagerly awaiting an update to the 24/7 nursing pilot program for the two sites in our region who are participating.
PRAIRIE REGION – Rachel Boyko, President Prairie Region National Consultation Team
Tech Services staffing has been decimated during CER. Sweeping changes to Health and IT without any real vision to share for the end state are causing anxiety and decreasing morale.
One small win our region has managed is that there was a region wide pest control issue and health staff were being asked to clean up dead animals, animal droppings and even to kill rodents themselves which was disturbing to say the least and so after numerous discussions tech services despite working through their CER responsibilities has created a draft document for their staff that clearly outlines roles responsibilities and procedures for their staff so that should no longer happen at the sites going forward.
Our regional consultation team is challenging to stabilize with retirements and maternity leaves but we are working hard to keep it functional and recently welcomed two new IT members and will continue to actively recruit for health members over the next few months. We will need a new Regional President in the new year and look forward to actively promoting that process to our engaged stewards.
QUEBEC REGION – Eric Massey, President Quebec Region National Consultation Team
Key Union Messages Identified From last regional consultation.
- Ongoing concern regarding Health and Safety relations between health professional and CX.
- Importance of respect and prevention of reprisals.
- Continuation of local bilateral meetings accross quebec.
- Monitoring of Phoenix pay system issues still ongoing.
- Vigilance regarding workload pressures linked to the rising inmate population.
- Concern about schedule stability at Port‑Cartier.
- Oversight of the implementation of the MSI model and medication‑related changes.
ATLANTIC REGION – Laura Kidd, President Atlantic Region, National Consultation Team
There continues to be significant change across Health Services in the Atlantic Region, with sites transitioning toward the new model of care. This includes changes to nursing rosters and the phasing out of traditional portfolios and Monday-to-Friday roles. Staffing, recruitment and retention, workload, and adequate coverage continue to be important concerns as these changes move forward.
There is also considerable growth and expansion being planned across the region. Springhill is planning a new Health Care Centre, a Substance Use Treatment Unit (SUTU), and an additional institutional unit that could increase the population by approximately 100 inmates to over 600. At Dorchester, plans are underway for an Assisted Living Unit (ALU), while the proposed Centre of Excellence, which would serve as a Regional Treatment Centre, remains in the planning phases. Questions remain around the staffing models and resources that will accompany these expansions.
Overall, Atlantic Health Services is going through a period of substantial transformation, with new models of care, changing roles and schedules, population growth, new infrastructure and expansion of specialized services all occurring or being planned. As these initiatives move forward, ensuring adequate staffing and resources and meaningful consultation with members will remain important.
PACIFIC REGION – President Alicia Lunz, National Consultation Team
Pi/rtc continues to attrition terms due to the RTC review. The regional hospital is now part of rtc and the new roster has taken effect as of September 7.
The ALU is currently being implemented and a new PI roster is being reviewed.
In August there was a flood at Matsqui institution leading to the evacuation of approximately 270 inmates across the region. Over the span of three weeks, the living units were dried and most of the inmates moved back to Matsqui.
A new RDC was announced and I look forward to meeting and working with her.
COMMUNITY – Melissa Wood, President Community Region, National Consultation Team
This summer the Commissioner attended various site visits to Parole Offices across Canada. Some Community Mental Health (CMH) staff were provided an opportunity to address the Commissioner directly to discuss their work in the community. Keep an eye out to see if the Commissioner intends to visit your office in the future. The CSC/ PIPSC Community Representative has attended two Advisory Committee on Community Corrections and Operations (ACCSO) meetings in February and June 2026. At these meetings there were ongoing discussions around staff safety, staff safety reporting and how community concerns are separate and unique from those in the institutions. The ACCSO committee will meet again in October 2026 to continue these discussions, and an update will be provided then. A great way to inform yourself of safety concerns and to take part in these discussions, is to join your site’s Occupational Health and Safety Committee. Please reach out if you would be interested in more information.
Other concerns that Community Consultation is keeping an eye on include office space and training opportunities for CMH staff. With the enforcement of Return to Office in July, this has created strain on office space and confidential service areas. We will be reaching out in hopes to hear back from CMH staff, about your personal experiences with this transition. Lastly, during discussions with the National Health Services consultation this week, there was extensive discussion about the working groups and training being offered to institutional staff to aid in the management of complex cases. Please know, that it has been brought to the attention of the NHQ Management Team that community staff are also addressing the increasingly complex needs of our offender population; with the added stress of public scrutiny, limited resources, and an obligation to straddle both the federal and provincial health care systems. Discussions will hopefully continue regarding training and support for CMH teams across the country.