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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OTTAWA, February 25, 2019 – The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC) is marking the third anniversary of the Phoenix pay system failure with a National Week of Action. This week, members and union officials are organizing events across the country.

Phoenix has hit PIPSC members hard. The federal government must ensure that this is never repeated. Members deserve pay protections and PIPSC is bringing this issue to the bargaining table negotiation for language that provides pay protections and ensures that the Phoenix failure will not be replicated.

“We’re looking for pay protections in our new contracts and we’re expecting a strong funding commitment in the budget to ensure the timely and effective implementation of the new pay system,” says PIPSC President Debi Daviau. “After everything public servants have been through with Phoenix, I would certainly be very surprised if the federal government didn’t come through on these commitments.”

PIPSC is sending a clear message that the Phoenix failure has a personal face, and that face is their members. Members who are still forced to try to navigate a broken system to understand their pay stubs, back pay, repayment plans, to access promotions, change jobs or even to take sick leave.

PIPSC members will be available to speak to the personal hardship Phoenix has caused them.

Pushing on all fronts, PIPSC is organizing in the workplace, pushing at the bargaining table and laying our clear expectation for the federal budget. “We are pulling out all stops, our members need to see clear commitments from the federal government,” says President Daviau. “We work hard and we need our employer to do better.”

The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada represents 60,000 public service professionals across Canada.

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

Ottawa, February 21, 2019 – The federal government needn’t worry about a consumer backlash to a sales tax on Canadians’ Netflix accounts, if newly released results from an Environics Research poll and a separate survey of Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) tax professionals are any indication, says the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC).

When asked if “E-commerce companies such as Netflix, Google, Amazon and Uber, should be subject to Canadian taxes for business carried out in Canada,” almost 8 out of 10 Canadians (77%) agreed, more than half of them (54%) strongly. Professionals at the CRA went further, with almost 9 out of 10 (87%) agreeing and almost 7 out of 10 (67%) strongly agreeing.

“It’s clear that Canadians, including our own CRA members, believe it’s only fair that foreign e-commerce giants who do business in Canada be taxed,” said PIPSC President Debi Daviau. “In fact, it’s high time they were, and we hope the next federal budget includes measures to ensure they are.”

The findings are contained in a third and final report on tax fairness based on the two surveys. In addition to taxing e-commerce companies, the report, which examines the ways some companies have been avoiding taxes, recommends:

• Creating a publicly accessible “beneficial ownership” registry to curb the use of shell companies that redirect profits from one country to an offshore tax haven in another (Canada is particularly vulnerable to this practice, also known as “snow washing”), and
• Ending “profit shifting” – the strategic transfer of corporate profits from one country to another in order to minimize or eliminate paying taxes – a practice Canada and other member countries of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development are seeking (if too slowly) to end.

Over 7 out of 10 (75%) of CRA tax professionals surveyed believe that federal and provincial governments should require corporations to publicly identify "beneficial ownership" relationships. And over two-thirds (71%) believe that Canadian rules related to setting up offshore corporations or tax accounts are too lenient and should be reformed.

The public opinion survey by Environics Research was commissioned by PIPSC and conducted by telephone among 1,000 Canadians between July 3 and 8, 2018. The results can be considered accurate + or – 3.2%, 19 times out of 20.

Invitations to participate in the CRA professional employees survey were sent to 11,599 members of the Audit, Financial and Scientific Group (AFS) between February 20 and March 6, 2018, of which 2,170 (18.7%) responded.

The full report on the survey results, titled Shell Game: How Off-Shore Havens, Tax Loopholes, and Federal Cost-Cutting Undermine Tax Fairness, can be read here.

The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada represents approximately 60,000 public service professionals across Canada, including nearly 12,000 auditors, managers, forensic accountants and other tax professionals at the CRA.

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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

Ottawa, February 5, 2019 – Members of the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC) will be on Parliament Hill today to meet with Canada’s Parliamentarians on issues of critical importance to the delivery of public services – restoring Canada’s public science capacity, reducing over-reliance on the outsourcing of government services, ensuring the integrity of the country’s tax system, and replacing the troubled Phoenix pay system.

Led by PIPSC President Debi Daviau, Institute members will meet with dozens of Members of Parliament (MPs) and Senators, to advocate on behalf of public services and the professionals who deliver them.

“Canada’s public service is the best in the world”, said Daviau. “But right now it’s operating under a number of constraints that are limiting its ability to deliver to Canadians. Outsourcing of the work best performed by public servants, failure to pay them on time or at all, lack of resources to catch tax cheats and the need for more public science are all very serious concerns for our members that we will be discussing with MPs and Senators today”.

PIPSC representatives will call on the government to quickly find a fully-functional replacement for Phoenix; to reinvest in the Canada Revenue Agency; to increase funding for federal Research and Development; and to bring spending on outside consultants back to 2005/2006 levels, as promised during the last election campaign.

“We’re on the Hill today to remind Parliamentarians of the critical social and economic role that the public service plays in Canada. We’re here to remind them that we need to give public servants the tools they need to keep working effectively for Canadians”, concluded Daviau. 

The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada represents some 60,000 public service professionals across Canada.

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

Ottawa, February 4, 2019 – Members of the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC) will be on Parliament Hill tomorrow to meet with Canada’s Parliamentarians on issues of critical importance to the delivery of public services – restoring Canada’s public science capacity, reducing over-reliance on the outsourcing of government services, ensuring the integrity of the country’s tax system, and replacing the troubled Phoenix pay system.

WHAT: PIPSC on the Hill

WHEN: Tuesday February 5, 2019, from 9 am to 5 pm

WHERE: Parliament Hill, Ottawa

WHO: Debi Daviau, President of the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada, and other senior PIPSC representatives

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

Ottawa, November 3, 2018 – Members of the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC) on November 3 concluded their Annual General Meeting, and weeks of voting, by announcing the re-election of Debi Daviau as PIPSC President for a further three-year term.

Ms Daviau was first elected President for a two-year term in 2013 and again for a three-year term in 2015, following high-profile fights on behalf of federal scientists, IT experts and auditors.

In addition, PIPSC members elected 14 other board members, including:

Stéphane Aubry, Vice-President (full-time)
Norma Domey, Vice-President (full-time)

Gary Corbett, Vice-President (part-time)
Steve Hindle, Vice-President (part-time)

Robert MacDonald, BC/Yukon Regional Director (acclaimed)
Nancy McCune, Prairies/Northwest Territories Director (acclaimed)
Peter Gilkinson, Ontario Regional Director
Jennifer Carr, National Capital Regional Director
Jennie Esnard, National Capital Regional Director
Waheed Khan, National Capital Regional Director
Dave Sutherland, National Capital Regional Director
Yvon C. Brodeur, Québec Regional Director 
Kimberley Skanes, Atlantic Regional Director
Chris Roach, Advisory Committee Director 

The terms for all Board members begin January 1, 2019 and end December 31, 2021.

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For further information: 

Johanne Fillion (613) 228-6310 ext 4953 (office) or (613) 883-4900 (cell.) jfillion@pipsc.ca.

The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada represents over 55,000 professionals across Canada’s public sector.

OTTAWA, September 28, 2018 – As the federal Finance Committee prepares for cross-country public hearings on next year’s Budget, the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC) has released a fact sheet showing 72% of Canadians agree “in the next federal budget, funding for federal government science programs should be restored to what it was in 2011.” The finding, by Environics Research, is significant since overall funding for federal government science is in fact lower today than it was under the Harper government, in particular for research and development (R&D).

While Statistics Canada figures show overall funding of government science has increased from $10.4 billion in 2015/16 to $11.3 billion in 2018/19, actual spending is projected to be $112 million lower in 2018/19 than in 2014/15.

Worse, spending on R&D by government scientists has declined by $891 million compared to 2010/11 under the Harper government.

While some science funding has shifted to the private sector to encourage innovation, R&D by federal scientists has declined steeply.

“The strength of Canada’s R&D network depends on a robust federal government presence,” says PIPSC President Debi Daviau. “We cannot rely increasingly on the private sector alone to provide needed innovations. Often the very innovations we most need – for example, better weather forecasting, more resilient crops, improved pollution monitoring – result from R&D in areas of direct federal government responsibility, which is why we’re calling for more funding in next year’s budget.”

The StatsCan numbers reinforce the findings of a 2017 survey of federal scientists, which discovered well over half (58%) believe their departments do not have sufficient resources to fulfill their mandates. The problem is particularly pronounced in the Canadian Space Agency (79%), Natural Resources Canada (64%) and even Environment and Climate Change Canada, where 60% do not feel their department has sufficient resources.

The public opinion survey by Environics Research (commissioned by PIPSC) was conducted by telephone among 1,000 Canadians between July 3 and 8, 2018. The results can be considered accurate + or – 3.2%, 19 times out of 20.

Invitations to participate in the online survey of federal scientists, also hosted by Environics Research, were sent to 16,377 scientists, engineers and researchers in over 40 federal departments and agencies. Of these 3,025 (18.5%) responded between May 29 and June 27, 2017. The survey is considered accurate + or – 1.8%, 19 times out of 20. 

The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada represents 55,000 public service professionals across Canada, including approximately 16,000 scientists, engineers and researchers, most of whom are 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

The Canadian Alliance of Nuclear Workers (CANW), of which PIPSC is a member, issued this press release earlier today:

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Nuclear workers urge government to solve pension crisis and protect a vital industry

CHALK RIVER, ON – September 21, 2018 - The Canadian Alliance of Nuclear Workers (CANW) is calling on the Government of Canada to end uncertainty for nuclear workers by reinstating their right to contribute to public service pension plans.

In September 2015, employees of Canada’s nuclear facilities were given notice that following a transitional period of three years, they would no longer be able to contribute to their public service pension plans.

The transition period has now elapsed without any action from the federal government. Nuclear workers are vital to Canada’s energy sector, and as such, they should be granted the same benefits as their industry peers.

The federal government is ignoring hard working Canadians. Failing to return these workers to their public service pension plans will make it difficult to attract new talent to maintain existing nuclear facilities. Cutting edge research will move abroad, and CNL won’t be able to meet its commitments to the federal government.

CANW says the government must sit down with workers and their representatives to find a solution.

Contact:

Steven Schumann
Co-Chair, CANW
(613) 325-6433

Matt Wayland
Co-Chair, CANW
(647) 465-6167

OTTAWA, August 30, 2018 – What’s a “reasonable time to wait for a replacement to the Phoenix pay system to be implemented”? According to a recent Environics Research survey commissioned by the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC), nearly half (46%) of Canadians say six months is a “reasonable time to wait.” That number rises dramatically to nearly 9 out of 10 Canadians (88%) when one includes those who believe two years or less is a reasonable time to wait.

It’s a response the federal government should bear in mind as it marks Labour Day, and while tens of thousands of federal employees still struggle with errors due to Phoenix that have left them paid too little, too much or, too often, not at all.

“We’ve already waited well over two years for a solution,” said PIPSC President Debi Daviau. “Now that the government has committed to finding an alternative, it needs to speed up implementation of those alternatives. Our members can’t wait another two years.”

“As an active partner in finding a new system as soon as possible, we intend to push for alternatives to be tried as quickly as possible,” added Daviau, referring to the working partnership announced in June between PIPSC and the federal government. Among those alternatives is the Corporate Administrative System (CAS), an HR-to-Pay software program used by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) and the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) that, PIPSC says, can be readily updated to a full-fledged payroll system.

“We believe the CAS system can be adapted and brought online much more quickly than the government’s current (and vague) timelines for implementing an alternative system,” said Daviau. “That would ensure at least 55,000 CRA and CBSA employees could be removed from the Phoenix pay system and paid through a new, much more reliable system sooner.  The government needs to speed up implementation of viable alternatives now. Our members can’t wait.”

The public opinion survey by Environics Research was conducted by telephone among 1,000 Canadians between July 3 and 8, 2018. The results can be considered accurate + or – 3.2%, 19 times out of 20.

The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada represents approximately 55,000 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

OTTAWA, August 17, 2018 – Canadians who think it’s easier for the rich and corporations to avoid paying taxes have compelling new evidence to support their suspicions. An overwhelming nine out of 10 Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) tax professionals surveyed by the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC) agree “it is easier for corporations and wealthy individuals to evade and/or avoid tax responsibilities than it is for average Canadians.” That’s even more than the 79% of Canadians who agreed with the same statement in an Environics Research poll commissioned by PIPSC.

Moreover, only 16% of tax professionals believe there is adequate audit coverage to ensure tax laws are being applied fairly across the country. Eight out of 10 (79%) say training and technology advancements within the CRA have not kept pace with the complexity of tax avoidance schemes. Yet, 84% of tax professionals surveyed say the CRA can do more to increase revenues without raising taxes, simply by better enforcing existing tax laws.

“These findings highlight the difficulties our members face to ensure Canada’s tax system remains fair in the face of off-shore tax havens and other tax avoidance schemes,” says PIPSC President Debi Daviau. “While the current government has reinvested significant amounts in the CRA since 2016, there remains a $500-million annual gap in CRA funding compared to 2012, when the former Harper government announced massive cuts to the agency’s budget. That’s money that should be reinvested in next year’s federal budget to bolster employee training and technology and to strengthen additional efforts to ensure tax fairness.”

Among other findings in the survey:

• 81% say tax credits, tax exemptions and tax loopholes disproportionately benefit corporations and wealthy Canadians compared to average Canadians.
• Three-quarters (75%) agree multinational corporations shift profits to low-tax regions even when there is little to no corresponding economic activity taking place in that jurisdiction.
• Over one-third (37%) agree that internal restructuring at the CRA following the 2012 budget cuts resulted in average Canadians, charities and small businesses being targeted more relative to wealthy Canadians and corporations.
• Nearly half (45%) agree that the ability of the CRA to carry out its mandate has been compromised by political interference.

Invitations to participate in the CRA professional employees survey were sent to 11,599 members of the Audit, Financial and Scientific Group (AFS) between February 20 and March 6, 2018, of which 2,170 (18.7%) responded. The public opinion survey by Environics Research was conducted by telephone among 1,000 Canadians between July 3 and 8, 2018 and the results can be considered accurate + or – 3.2%, 19 times out of 20.

The full report on the survey results, titled Shell Game: How Off-Shore Havens, Tax Loopholes, and Federal Cost-Cutting Undermine Tax Fairness, can be read here.

A further two, more detailed survey reports examining challenges to CRA resources and possible changes to Canadian tax policy will be released in the coming months.

The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada represents approximately 55,000 public service professionals across Canada, including nearly 12,000 auditors, managers, forensic accountants and other tax professionals at the CRA.

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

For further information:

Pierre Villon, (613) 228-6310 ext. 4928 or (613) 794-9369 (cell), pvillon@pipsc.ca