This week members across the country are holding events in their workplaces to call on the federal government to Do Better on family leave. Lunch & learns, information sessions and family events are bringing members together to show strength and solidarity with the Central Bargaining Team.

Members are also joining webinar trainings on Wednesday, April 10^th for a central bargaining update from President Debi Daviau and Director of National Labour Relations Richard Beaulé.

It is not too late to join a webinar.

English Session: 11:00 – 11:30 AM (Eastern Daylight Time. Looking for your time zone?)

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French Session: 12:30 – 1:00 PM (Eastern Daylight Time. Looking for your time zone?)

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English Session: 3:00 – 3:30 PM (Eastern Daylight Time. Looking for your time zone?)

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Our public service is the best in the world. You give your best at home and in your community. Every day you challenge yourself to do better.

Isn’t it time for your employer to do the same?

The Canadian Labour Congress has released a must-read report on Islamophobia in the workplace. Islamophobia at Work: Challenges and Opportunities explores the rise of anti-Muslim attitudes and discrimination in Canada. It provides recommendations for employers, trade unions, and governments on how to address this pernicious phenomenon.

The report comes just weeks after the horrific terrorist attack at mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand. Those attacks were a stark reminder of the urgency of addressing Islamophobia in our communities.

There has been a steady rise in hate crimes targeting Muslim communities in Canada over the past several years. In 2017, a young man consumed by hatred killed six men attending prayers at a Québec City mosque. His name was even cited by the New Zealand terrorist. 

That same year, reported hate crimes targeting Muslims rose by 151 percent across the country, which is alarming since many such crimes are often not reported due to a fear of backlash and reprisal. Meanwhile, members of far-right groups continue to mobilize online and offline, organizing anti-Muslim and anti-immigrant rallies which further demonize these communities.

This report aims to address the impact of this harmful climate on Canadian workplaces with specific recommendations aimed at reinforcing the responsibility of employers to educate management and staff about legal obligations around human rights and religious accommodations. It further encourages governments to do more to support anti-racism awareness campaigns and develop strategies to address online hate. According to the report, trade unions must play an important role in championing fairness, equity and social justice for Muslims in Canada.

As a champion of the Joint Union/Management Task Force on Diversity and Inclusion, PIPSC contributed to the development of the report Building a Diverse and Inclusive Public Service, which makes recommendations to identify and address barriers to racialized people joining and advancing in the public service, and contributing their talents to serve Canadians. We continue to encourage the Treasury Board Secretariat to implement each of these recommendations as soon as possible.

We at PIPSC join the collective labour movement in denouncing all Islamophobia and racism and encourage our members to take part in anti-harassment and inclusiveness initiatives in their workplaces. We are now at the bargaining table fighting for stronger anti-harassment measures to ensure the public service is a safe and healthy workplace for everyone.

If you have any questions, please contact the Human Rights Committee, chrd-cdpd@pipsc.ca.

The PIPSC Central Table Bargaining Team met with Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS) representatives from March 26 - 28, 2019. The two parties are beginning to narrow their focus.

The parties discussed a number of proposals and received presentations from two external groups. Specifically, representatives from Treasury Board and Public Services and Procurement Canada presented their proposed methodology to calculate retroactive payments in an effort to avoid the Phoenix related issues caused by the implementation of our last contracts.

The second presentation was by PIPSC representatives from the Domestic Violence PIPSC-TBS Joint Committee tasked with studying the best way for the employer to support employees affected by domestic violence. The presentation included powerful testimony of a survivor from within our membership.

PIPSC research staff presented the Treasury Board a detailed analysis of various situations under QPIP (Québec Parental Insurance Plan) and EI (Employment Insurance) to identify inequities in the various parental leave provisions to be addressed. The two sides engaged in significant discussions related to addressing harassment in the workplace.

Discussions will continue on all of these issues at our next bargaining session scheduled for April 24 - 25, 2019. Your comments and support of the Do Better campaign are greatly appreciated.

We invite you to continue building momentum by participating in the upcoming week of action.

Join an event

PIPSC Central Bargaining Team members:
Robert Scott (Bargaining Coordinator), CS
Louis Poirier (Communications Officer), NRC-RO/RCO
Mehran Alaee, RE
Adam Fenwick, SH
Stéphanie Fréchette, CFIA-S&A
Dale Hudson, NR
Kim McGuire, AV
Elizabeth Ptasznik, SP
Robert Trudeau, AFS
Suzelle Brosseau and Pierre Ouellet, PIPSC negotiators

The Chief Science Advisor of Canada, Dr. Mona Nemer, recently released her 2018 Annual Report, in which she highlights the close working relationship she enjoys with the Professional Institute.

Dr. Nemer is particularly proud of our joint work on the Model Policy on Scientific Integrity, which provides a framework for science-based decision-making in the federal government, and guidelines for the unmuzzled public discussion of the research our members are conducting.

As the Report elegantly summarizes: “Communication of science is vital to ensuring an informed citizenry and healthy and engaged society.  It underpins our democratic processes.  Yet moving science from the field or lab and into the public discourse requires considerable time, effort and resources. It is important that researchers understand their obligations to convey the results of their work and participate in public dissemination of their research”.

The Chief Science Advisor is also committed to supporting the federal science workforce on matters of critical importance to thousands of PIPSC members: “(…) significant effort will be required to chart workforce dynamics, bring disparate information sources together, and collect new qualitative and quantitative information for developing effective strategies for workforce renewal, ensuring equity, and supporting career and continuous skills development”.

PIPSC is honoured to work with Dr. Nemer and her staff.  We look forward to many more years of fruitful collaboration on issues of vital interest not only to our members, but to all Canadians.

With the 2018 tax season upon us, it is critical for PIPSC members to have accurate information as they prepare to file their tax returns. Unfortunately, Phoenix has caused innumerable pay errors for tens of thousands of our members. 

The government publishes a substantial amount of online material about Phoenix and taxes. Please see the following Treasury Board and Canada Revenue Agency web pages for guidance should you have any questions about your specific pay and tax situation:

https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/campaigns/about-canada-revenue-agency-cra/frequently-asked-questions-tax-implications-phoenix-payroll-issues.html

https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/about-canada-revenue-agency-cra/complaints-disputes/taxpayer-relief-provisions.html

https://www.tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca/remuneration-compensation/services-paye-pay-services/centre-presse-media-centre/mise-a-jour-trop-paye-overpayment-update-eng.html

https://www.canada.ca/en/treasury-board-secretariat/services/pay/submit-claim-fees-tax-advisory-services.html

https://www.tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca/remuneration-compensation/services-paye-pay-services/centre-presse-media-centre/index-eng.html

PIPSC members are reminded that the government has implemented a program that provides for the reimbursement of up to $200 per year for tax advice linked to a Phoenix issue. The government is encouraging its employees to contact their departmental claims officer if they have any questions in this regard and is evaluating each situation on a case by case basis, so our members are encouraged to look into this initiative even if they have incurred more than that amount in seeking the help of a tax expert to address a Phoenix-related matter.

PIPSC members can also call on our Phoenix specialists if they are experiencing pay problems. Our team can be reached at https://www.pipsc.ca/news-issues/phoenix-pay-system/phoenix-help-form. Please visit the PIPSC web page at https://www.pipsc.ca/news-issues/phoenix-pay-system for more information about Phoenix and what the Institute has been doing to support its members throughout the crisis.

OTTAWA, March 19, 2019 -- Budget 2019 makes a significant investment in fixing the problems of the current Phoenix pay system, but falls short in announcing new funding for the government’s replacement, says the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC).

“Despite a commitment in the Budget to replace Phoenix, the absence of any major funding to ensure it happens without delay is a disappointment to our members,” says PIPSC President Debi Daviau. “Funds to help employees with their pay problems are welcome but provide only a short-term plan to deal with what remains a three-year-old crisis. Our members need to know there is light at the end of this nightmarish tunnel. The government is still paying for the mistakes of the past rather than investing in a fix for the future.”  

In its final Budget before the next election, the federal government has also left undone much of the job of restoring the public service to levels that would ensure tax fairness and adequate investment in public science.

While the Budget invests an additional $77 million a year in the Canadian Revenue Agency (CRA) to, among other things, combat tax evasion and aggressive tax avoidance, the Agency’s budget remains almost $500 million less than in 2012. “The Budget’s investment at the CRA will not go far to address much-needed training and technological improvements to catch offshore tax cheats and enforce tax fairness,” says Daviau. 

The government deserves praise for replenishing the ranks of federal scientists, engineers and researchers over the past three years – 1,500 of which positions had been lost due to cuts under the former government. But actual spending – in particular, on government R&D – is lower today than it was under the Harper government. “Canada needs more, not less, federal government science and we are very disappointed that this budget makes little investment in government research and development,” said Daviau.

With collective bargaining underway and many public servants still stung by Phoenix and the impacts of Harper-era budget cuts, the government needs to do better to ensure the public service is restored and that our members’ demands for better pay protections, improved family leave and stronger safeguards against workplace harassment are among its own priorities. The current budget leaves a lot to be desired.

The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada represents approximately 60,000 public service professionals across Canada, most of them employed by the federal government.

Follow us on Facebook and on Twitter (@pipsc_ipfpc).

For further information: Johanne Fillion, 613-228-6310, ext 4953 or 613-883-4900 (cell), jfillion@pipsc.ca

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PIPSC marked the third anniversary of Phoenix, in February 2019, with a National Week of Action. Members organized events in their workplaces, hosted meet and greets, and President Debi Daviau made our voices heard loud and clear in her call for sufficient funds in the next budget to ensure Phoenix’s replacement proceeds without delay.

“President Debi Daviau held a press conference Monday on Parliament Hill to provide an update on the third anniversary of the failed Phoenix pay system. Daviau called for the proper funding allocation in the federal budget 2019 to ensure a smooth implementation of the overhauled pay system.” reported Global News.

CTV News reports, “civil servants this month are marking three years since the initial roll-out of Phoenix, which resulted in more than half of federal employees being overpaid, underpaid or not paid at all.”

“The Phoenix system was launched three years ago across a limited number of government departments with the goal of streamlining what had become a cumbersome, out-of-date structure. It was also supposed to save taxpayers $70 million annually by eliminating the jobs of thousands of pay advisers,” reports Canada’s National Observer.

The article continued, “the combined cost of implementing the system and subsequently trying to stabilize it is now estimated to exceed $1 billion.”

The Star reported, “unless cash is earmarked this spring for a new system to pay federal employees, the tens of thousands of workers affected by the current system’s problems could be left in limbo for months, or even years, the head of the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada warned.”

“Daviau said the government appears to be on a “fast track” toward finding a new system to replace Phoenix, having trimmed the list of prospective vendors down to three,” reported The Globe and Mail.

You can see President Daviau’s complete press announcement on CPAC.