On June 18, 2019, PIPSC President Debi Daviau had the honour of addressing members of the Federal Black Employee Caucus (FBEC), an organization dedicated to combatting career obstacles in the public service such as racism, harassment, and under-representation.

Black employees, and other visible minorities, continue to face barriers after being hired in the public service, even though the educational qualifications of visible minorities are often higher than those of the average population.

That’s why PIPSC is proud of the fact that some outstanding visible minority candidates were recently elected to its Board of Directors. In particular, we saw the first Black woman elected to the Board, NCR Regional Director Jennie Esnard, and the first Black woman elected to the PIPSC Executive in its almost 100 year history, Vice-President Norma Domey.

The inclusion of underrepresented groups in the PIPSC leadership structure ensures that decisions, strategies, projects and member engagement reflect the needs of all our members.

The Institute values the diversity of the Canadian population and the unique talents and strengths that are inherent in a diverse workforce. Diversity makes our union stronger and we will continue to work toward increased active involvement and improved representation of visible minorities in Institute leadership roles. If we do not reflect our workplaces and communities, we will not survive as a union.

We are committed to working with our employers to create workplaces that are inclusive and barrier free. As a union, we have an active role to play in identifying and removing barriers that prevent any member from fully participating in all workplace activities and fulfilling their personal and professional dreams.

One key strategy pursued by PIPSC to achieve these objectives was to actively participate in the Joint Union/Management Task Force on Diversity and Inclusion, which consulted with over 12,000 public servants and invested over a year in drafting its report. NCR Regional Director Waheed Khan was co-chair of its Technical Committee.

The Task Force provided 44 recommendations to promote diversity and inclusion in the public service. We need to ensure, however, that this important report doesn’t just gather dust on a shelf. PIPSC is keeping a close eye on developments on this front, and was pleased when the government announced the establishment of a Centre of Diversity, Inclusion and Wellness, which is similar to the Centre of Excellence recommended by the Task Force. The Institute will be happy to work with the Treasury Board to ensure that the proposed Centre is action-oriented and that all employees, particularly Black employees, benefit from tangible results.

In addition, PIPSC supports the key “Asks” that the FBEC has identified.

We agree that data gaps must be filled and that a support network be created permitting Black community members to accomplish their professional goals, i.e. to obtain senior government positions.

We also believe that the federal government should assign Champions in each of its Departments.

And of course that the federal government show respect for the International Decade for People of African Descent.

We have communicated our support for this Caucus’ objectives in a letter to Treasury Board President Joyce Murray. 

On May 1, 2019 President Debi Daviau communicated our strong opposition to moving RCMP civilian members to the failed Phoenix pay system. RCMP Commissioner Lucki responded May 16 indicating her plans to go ahead. 

We are not backing down, and President Daviau has responded making that clear below:
 

Brenda Lucki,
Commissioner Royal Canadian Mounted Police
RCMP National Headquarters
73 Leikin Drive
Ottawa ON K1A 0R2

July 25, 2019

Commissioner Lucki,

Thank you for your prompt reply to my May 1, 2019 letter regarding the eventual transfer of some 1300 Civilian Members (CMs) of the RCMP represented by the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada to the Phoenix pay system.

I recognize that the RCMP, the Treasury Board Secretariat and Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) have taken a number of steps to mitigate the effects of the disastrous Phoenix system on federal employees. These actions have proved insufficient in resolving the pay issues experienced by hundreds of thousands of public servants across Canada. Progress in this regard has been incremental at best.

The size of the backlog of unresolved pay issues at the Public Service Pay Centre, the recent signing of several large collective agreements without the last round of agreements even yet being fully implemented, and the government’s own ongoing search for a replacement system unmistakably signal the need to stay away from Phoenix, not to add to its already unmanageable workload.

Given this sad state of affairs, I can only disagree in the strongest terms with your statement that “it would be premature to make decisions concerning the pay system”. On the contrary, the ability to pay its employees correctly and on time should be an immediate concern for the RCMP, not an afterthought.

Nearly 600 PIPSC members working at the RCMP have emailed you urging that all plans to switch Civilian Members to the disastrous Phoenix pay system be abandoned. I hope you will take into consideration their grave concerns and make the right decision.

This issue must be resolved as soon as possible, and I have asked my staff to contact your office in order to set-up a meeting in the days ahead. 

Sincerely,

Debi Daviau
President
The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada

If you receive disability payments currently or have received disability payments in the past, you may be entitled to a retroactive benefit payment adjustment from the Sunlife or Industrial Alliance disability plan. 

New collective agreements mean retroactive salary increases for many members. This entitles some members to retroactive increase in disability pay.

This retroactive payment will be automatically calculated and you do not need to apply.

MORE INFORMATION

The retroactive payment project is extensive and will run to the end of the year. If you have not received a retroactive payment that you believe you are entitled to, it may be issued later this year.  

Should you not have received an expected adjustment by January 2020, please reach out to your union representative. 

The RCMP Civilian Member (CM) bargaining team has finalized a memorandum of agreement to transition RCMP CMs into PIPSC collective agreements upon deeming.

On July 19, a webinar was held to go over the highlights of the agreement and answer your questions. If you were unable to join us live, watch the recording.

RCMP Civilian Member Webinar - July 19, 2019 - 11 AM session.

RCMP Civilian Member Webinar - July 19, 2019 - 3 PM session.

Webinaire avec les membres de la GRC - 19 juillet 2019.

The recent adoption in Québec of Bill 21, which is ostensibly aimed at imposing “secularism” on the province’s public service and on the people who receive them, is a disgrace and a blatant violation of civil liberties and basic human rights. The law should immediately be repealed.

While current employees have been given some exemptions, the law prohibits the wearing of religious symbols by new public servants in positions of “authority”, such as teachers and police officers.

Not only does this law create two classes of pubIic servants, it violates unionized workers’ collective agreements by permitting discrimination based on prohibited grounds. Worse, it can only lead to further isolation and marginalisation of visible minorities in the province.

Canadians know that legal cover does not legitimize systemic discrimination of minorities on one pretext or another. That is why Canada has acknowledged the dark chapters in our history and has apologized for the Residential Schools of the 19^th and 20^th centuries, the head tax on Chinese immigrants under the Chinese Immigration Act (1885), the turning away of the Komagata Maru with 376 South Asians in 1914 and the internment of Canadians of Japanese origin in the 1940s. In the 21^st Century, Canada can ill afford to enact and implement a regressive and discriminatory law like Bill 21 that targets Canadians of Jewish, Muslim and Sikh faiths, who are guaranteed the freedom of practicing their religion and culture by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

As a staunch supporter of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI), PIPSC applauds the campaign led by progressive organisations and labour unions who refuse to accept second-class citizenship for thousands of individuals across the cultural and religious spectrum.

Each year the Treasury Board undertakes the Public Service Employee Survey (PSES) of employees across the federal public service. You now have the opportunity to provide feedback on engagement, leadership, workplace well-being, harassment, compensation and other important areas.

Because informed data is useful to effect change, we support the full participation of our members in the 2019 PSES.

The 2019 PSES will be conducted from July 22 to August 30, 2019. The survey will be administered by Advanis, on behalf of the Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer, Treasury Board of Canada. Responses will be treated in a confidential manner.

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This data is useful in our work advocating for you. For example, consistently survey respondents indicate that there are high levels of harassment in the workplace, this data was very useful for us in the last round of collective bargaining negotiations. You may be interested to review the results of the 2018 survey.

PIPSC welcomes the landmark class action win for current and former employees who experienced harassment, assault, and discrimination while working at the Department of National Defence, Canadian Armed Forces, Non-Public Funds or Canadian Forces.

We hope this class action will bring closure and acknowledge the pain and suffering of all those who experienced a toxic work environment. This is a strong reminder that we must continue advocating for workplaces free from harassment and violence. This case is one step forward in recognizing that all workers should be treated with respect at work.

This class action lawsuit may affect you if:

• You are a current or former employee of the Department of National Defence, a current or former member of the Canadian Armed Forces or Staff of the Non-Public Funds, Canadian Forces.
• You have experienced sexual harassment, sexual assault or discrimination based on your sex, gender, gender identity or sexual orientation in connection with your military service or employment.

For more information or to find out if you’re included in the proposed settlement:

Visit: https://www.classaction.deloitte.ca/en-ca/Pages/CAF-DNDsexualmisconductclassaction.aspx

Email: cafdndmisconduct@deloitte.ca

Call: 1-888-626-2611

The Institute is saddened to report the untimely passing of our friend and colleague Christine Lemay.

Christine’s commitment to Institute members was deep and unwavering. We will miss her very much.

A loyal and hard-working member of the AFS Group, Christine liked to come to the aid of her colleagues. Christine helped members deal with issues such as difficult work situations, getting answers to their questions and obtaining information concerning issues that affect them.

Christine served Institute members with distinction in a number of capacities over many years, notably as a union steward in the Laval, Sherbrooke, and Montréal Tax Services offices of the Canada Revenue Agency.

Christine was president of the AFS Laval Sub-Group and vice-president of the Laval Branch.

For many years, Christine served as a delegate to the PIPSC AGM.  She also served on the Professional Recognition and Qualifications Committee and on the Elections Committee.

Professional Institute members extend their heartfelt condolences to Christine’s family and to the many friends who were privileged to know her.

More information can be found on this web page.

Together with the Canadian Labour Congress and other unions, President Debi Daviau wrote to the Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food with respect to last month’s decision by the Chinese government to halt imports of Canadian pork and beef.

We urge the Canadian government to work quickly and diligently to restore exports to China.

The letter calls the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) to ensure that food safety inspectors, veterinarians and food scientists are adequately staffed and resourced to restore trust and confidence in the high quality of Canadian exports.

Support must be provided to workers impacted by this ban. We are calling on the government to work with unions to prepare employment benefits and labour adjustment measures to protect affected private-sector workers in the event of a protracted dispute that results in plant closures and layoffs.

READ THE LETTER

The Canadian Labour Congress has also submitted specific recommendations to the federal government to inform their response to this ban. It is essential that work-sharing, extension of EI benefits, training and employer assistance services and industry assistance all be employed to support workers and impacted communities (especially newcomers and Indigenous Canadians).

After years of collaboration between governments, employers and workers, the International Labour Organization adopted a new framework to end violence and harassment in the world of work. This will be a global minimum standard to prevent and address violence and harassment in the world of work.

Governments that ratify the treaty will be required to:

• develop national laws prohibiting workplace violence
• take preventive measures
• require employers to have workplace policies on violence.

The treaty also obligates governments to monitor situations of harassment and violence as well as provide complaint mechanisms for those who experience it. Additionally they must create protections and services to workers experiencing harassment or violence.

The Canadian Labour Congress’ Secretary-Treasurer Marie Clarke Walker served as Worker Vice-Chair for the negotiations. We are proud of the Canadian labour movement’s contributions to this historic work. We continue to fight to ensure safe and healthy workplaces for all of our members.

Previously, there was no international standard specifically addressing violence and harassment in the world of work. In 2018, the World Bank found that 59 out of the 189 countries studied had no specific legal provisions covering sexual harassment in employment.[i]

The new ILO convention and recommendation provide an opportunity to shape a future of work based on dignity and respect, free from violence and harassment.

The convention will enter into force one year after at least two countries have ratified it.