Retro pay occurs when a new collective agreement is negotiated and time has lapsed since the expiration of the old one.

Your bargaining team negotiated pay increases back to the first day of the contract and assigned specific dates to these increases. As a result, additional compensation accrues.

Retro pay starts accumulating on the first day of the new contract and stops when your salary has been adjusted to reflect the new rates of pay in the new contracts.

Retro Pay Period

The Basic Pay on your pay stub corresponds to an annual salary in your collective agreement. To see what your Annual Salary is, multiply your Basic Pay by 26.088 (26.088 is a standardized number equal to the average number of pay periods in a year). The correct annual salary should align with the correct pay step based on your personal situation.

Full-time employee:

Annual Salary = Basic Pay x 26.088

Part-time Employee:

Annual Salary = (Basic Pay x 1956.6) ÷ (Number of hours worked)

Please note: we do not expect the implementation of the new pay rates to fix ongoing Phoenix related pay issues. If you were not receiving the proper rate of pay before implementation, it is unlikely the implementation process will correct the issue. As the implementation process progresses, we do expect everyone will receive pay increases corresponding to higher rates of pay in the new collective agreements.

The employer has 180 days from the date of signing your new collective agreement to raise your pay according to the new rates and issue your retro pay. In most cases your pay will have to be adjusted first before the employer starts calculating retro pay. 

For complex cases that require manual intervention, the employer has warned it may take longer than 180 days. If the process takes 181 days or longer, the employer is subject to additional financial penalties.

Important Dates

For employees paid by the Phoenix System, if the implementation of the new agreement is delayed beyond 180 days, you will be owed $50 on day 181. And $50 every subsequent 90 days.

Treasury Board Groups

Separate Agencies

The amount owed is highly personalized to you. The total includes factors such as base pay, acting pay, overtime as well a variety of other elements of compensation.

The two most important factors are the time that has elapsed since the expiry of your old contract (the length of the retro period) as well as your base pay.

The longer the retro period, the more the retro pay. The higher your salary, the more your retro pay.

Yes, retro pay and the $500 penalty payment are both taxable.

Your payment may come all at once but there is no guarantee. Payments may be staggered for more complex cases. 

The employer has 180 days from the date of signing to provide you with the sum total of the retro amount owed before additional penalties apply.

Each retro payment received will be accompanied by a detailed breakdown in the Collective Bargaining Agreement Retro Adjustment of your online Phoenix account. These records will allow you to keep track of what’s been paid and identify what’s still owed.

Phoenix/Compensation Web Applications (CWA)
Main Menu
                   → Self Service
                        → Payroll and Compensation
                             → Retroactive Payroll
                                  → Retro Details

Mass retroactive payments processed by Phoenix prior to the Retro Redesign Solution are still available in the pay system. To access, follow this menu path:
Main Menu → 
        Self Service→ 
            Payroll and Compensation Retroactive Payroll → 
                Archived→ 
                    View Mass Retro Payments / CBA Retro Payment 

Information about these payments will be accessible in the same place as your pay stubs. Each retro payment received will be accompanied by a detailed breakdown in the Collective Bargaining Agreement Retro Adjustments of your online Phoenix account.

Phoenix/Compensation Web Applications (CWA)
Main Menu
                   → Self Service
                        → Payroll and Compensation
                             → Retroactive Payroll
                                  → Retro Details

Mass retroactive payments processed by Phoenix prior to the Retro Redesign Solution are still available in the pay system. To access, follow this menu path:
Main Menu → 
        Self Service→ 
            Payroll and Compensation Retroactive Payroll → 
                Archived→ 
                    View Mass Retro Payments / CBA Retro Payment 

Each retro payment received will be accompanied by a detailed breakdown in the Collective Bargaining Agreement Retro Adjustments of your online Phoenix account. These records will include substantial information about the origin of the payment. These records will allow you to keep track of what’s been paid and identify what’s still owed.

Phoenix/Compensation Web Applications (CWA)
Main Menu
                   → Self Service
                        → Payroll and Compensation
                             → Retroactive Payroll
                                  → Retro Details

Mass retroactive payments processed by Phoenix prior to the Retro Redesign Solution are still available in the pay system. To access, follow this menu path:
Main Menu → 
        Self Service→ 
            Payroll and Compensation Retroactive Payroll → 
                Archived→ 
                    View Mass Retro Payments / CBA Retro Payment 

Yes. You are owed retro pay based on 93% of your new salary as determined by the effective dates in the new collective agreement. The total amount may be paid in two steps:

More information and examples available here. 

• those who are on an extended period of leave without pay (e.g. maternity/parental leave)
• those who have leave with an income averaging arrangement
• salary protected employees
• employees on pre-retirement transition leave
• employees paid below minimum, above maximum or in between pay steps

This payment is in recognition of certain challenges caused by the Phoenix System. If you were in the bargaining unit at any point between the first day of the new collective agreement and the date your agreement was signed then you will qualify for the $500 payment.

RCMP Civilian Employees: Most new members from the RCMP will not qualify because they were not paid using the Phoenix System.

Please note: if you worked in two or more eligible bargaining units during this qualification period you will only receive one $500 payment.

You will qualify for additional payment once 181 days have passed since the signing of your collective agreement and if:

• your salary has not been adjusted to reflect the new rate of pay

OR

• you have not received your retro pay based on a snapshot of your Historical Salary Record*

RCMP Civilian Employees: Most new members from the RCMP will not qualify because they were not paid using the Phoenix System.

*Please note: Because of the Phoenix backlog, the Historical Salary Record does not need to be 100% perfect for this condition to be met.

No.

A modified implementation process was agreed to for this contract that allows the employer to work around Phoenix.

The employer will use the Historical Salary Record from the HRMS system and apply percentage increases to these amounts.

The lump sum amount owed will be paid out by Phoenix but the system will not be required to perform calculations it can’t handle.

A similar approach was used in 2018 to implement the contracts for 40,000 employees at the Canada Revenue Agency. The results were extremely positive.

We do not expect all Phoenix-related problems to be resolved within 180 days. If your pay is incorrect because of Phoenix, it may be the case that there will be outstanding retro amounts owed after 180 days.

The retro payment the employer is required to provide within 180 days will be determined by a snapshot of your Historical Salary Record on a specific day. There may be inaccuracies in the Historical Salary Record because of the Phoenix backlog. Once corrected, retro pay will be accounted for, but it may not be within 180 days.

As long as you receive retro pay based on your Historical Salary Record and you receive your pay increase within 180 days, no further financial compensation will be awarded.

There is a separate process for recuperating out-of-pocket expenses and damages related to Phoenix. If this is a new problem, please visit pipsc.ca/phoenix for information about what to do next.  

We do not expect implementation of the new pay rates to fix ongoing Phoenix-related problems. If you were not receiving the proper rate of pay before implementation, it is unlikely the implementation process will correct the issue. However, as the implementation process progresses, we expect everyone to receive pay increases corresponding to higher rates of pay in the new collective agreements.

Accordingly, the amount of retro pay you are owed within the 180 days is determined by the amount listed in your Historical Salary Record. If you are not being paid correctly, the Historical Salary Record will be inaccurate. When the mistake is corrected in Phoenix, any retroactive amounts owed will be accounted for, but it may not be within 180 days.

Unfortunately, this is a Phoenix issue, not an implementation issue. When the mistake is corrected, any retroactive amounts owed will be accounted for and paid to you. 

In most cases, this will not result in additional penalties connected to late implementation.

There is a separate process for recuperating out-of-pocket expenses and damages related to Phoenix. If this is a new problem, please visit pipsc.ca/phoenix for information about what to do next.

The date that determines an employee’s parental allowance is the date on which the employee starts parental leave, regardless of when a maternity or parental leave period was requested or approved.

The new parental allowance provisions in the 2018 - 2022 collective agreement will take effect on November 18, 2019. Employees who start parental leave before this date will be subject to the allowance provisions of the 2014 - 2018 collective agreement, those who start parental leave on or after this date will be subject to the allowance provisions of the 2018 - 2022 collective agreement.

The employee will be subject to the provisions of the collective agreement under which they first started their leave regardless of the timing of the second part of their leave.

If an employee selects the extended parental leave option under E.I. and starts the leave on or after the November 18, 2019 implementation date they will receive the combined amount of 55.8% for all weeks they are on parental leave and in receipt of E.I. The employee’s allowance ceases on their return to work.

If an employee elects the extended parental leave option under E.I. and starts leave prior to the November 18, 2019 implementation date, they will receive the combined amount of 93% for all weeks they are on parental leave up to a maximum of 37 weeks. The allowance ceases on their return to work. If the employee remains off work on extended parental leave, the allowance ceases after a maximum period of 37 weeks (if eligible for the waiting period and additional week), however E.I. will continue until the employee returns to work or the E.I. benefit runs out.

A single employee electing the standard 35 week parental option under E.I. will experience no change in the benefits of their collective agreement. The changes, comprised of the extended parental leave option and the additional five (standard option) or eight (extended option) shared weeks are available to take as leave under the collective agreement as of signature date, however the parental allowances associated with the new parental leaves will be implemented on November 18, 2019.

In circumstances where employees have differing collective agreement language, each employee will be subject to the provisions of their respective collective agreement for their parental allowance eligibility and amount.

Yes. Treasury Board will implement on the same day for all agreements that have the same parental allowance provisions (including ACFO, CAPE, IBEW and AJC). Employees should check with their union to ensure they are covered by the new parental allowance provisions.

Employees apply under the regime of the province in which the employee is a resident. For Quebec, an employee would apply to QPIP, for all other provinces an employee would apply to E.I.

The election of either the standard or extended parental leave option happens with E.I. and must be done prior to the start of the parental leave period. The election of parent 1 (the first to take leave) determines the leave option for parent 2.

The standard parental leave under E.I. is 35 weeks to be taken within a 52 week period. Under the collective agreement an employee is entitled to a parental allowance of up to a maximum of 37 weeks. This covers the waiting period and an additional week. These additional two weeks are subject to not have already been taken by a parent while on maternity leave for the same child. The additional week also requires both parents be employed in the public service.

The five additional weeks available to parents who share the standard E.I. parental benefit are eligible for a further parental allowance if both parents are employed in the public service. This would extend the parental allowance from a combined amount of 93% for 35 weeks to 40 weeks. One parent cannot take more than 35 weeks to be eligible for the additional weeks under E.I. and the allowance.

The extended parental leave under E.I. is 61 weeks to be taken within a 78-week period. Under the collective agreement an employee is entitled to a parental allowance of up to a maximum of 63 weeks within the 78-week period. This covers the waiting period and an additional week. These additional two weeks are subject to not have already been taken by a parent while on maternity leave for the same child. The additional week also requires both parents be employed in the public service.

The eight additional weeks available to parents who share the extended E.I. parental benefit are eligible for a further parental allowance if both parents are employed in the public service. This would extend the parental allowance from a combined amount of 55.8% for 61 weeks to 69 weeks. One parent cannot take more than 61 weeks to be eligible for the additional weeks under E.I. and the allowance.

No. The QPIP regime does not offer an extended parental leave benefit; however, employees are eligible to take the extended parental leave (time) as provided in the collective agreement without the allowance. Their allowance will then be as if they had taken the standard leave, for up to 52 (one parent working for the public services) or 57 (both parents work for the public services).

For an employee who is in receipt of EI:
The total amount of maternity and shared standard parental leave eligible for a top up allowance is 57 weeks if both parents are employed in the public service. This includes 15 weeks of maternity leave, one week waiting period, one additional week and a shared parental benefit of 40 weeks. One parent must take a minimum of 5 weeks to be eligible for the additional 5 weeks sharing benefit (bringing standard parental from 35 weeks to 40 weeks).

For an employee who is in receipt of QPIP: The total amount of maternity, shared parental and paternity leave eligible for a top up allowance is 57 weeks if both parents are employed in the public service. This includes 18 weeks of maternity leave, a shared parental benefit of 32 weeks and a paternity benefit of 5 weeks. Under certain conditions an additional two weeks could be available, please refer to your collective agreement for eligibility.

The total amount of maternity and shared extended parental leave eligible for a top up allowance is 86 weeks if both parents are employed in the public service. This includes 15 weeks of maternity leave, one week waiting period, one additional week and a shared parental benefit of 69 weeks. One parent must take a minimum of 8 weeks to be eligible for the additional 8 weeks sharing benefit (bringing extended parental from 61 weeks to 69 weeks).

An employee returning from a standard parental leave, having received a parental allowance of 93%, is required to work an equivalent amount of time to the parental allowance received.

An employee returning from an extended parental leave, having received a parental allowance of 55.8%, is required to work 60% (at full time hours) of the parental allowance received.

This work may be fulfilled in the original position or a new position within the core public administration, an agency or another eligible public sector employer. Please contact your union to ensure a new position remains eligible for this purpose.

Yes. You are owed retro pay based on 93% of your new salary as determined by the effective dates in the new collective agreement. The total amount will be paid in two steps:

1. The first payment will be determined by applying percentage increases to the allowance that you’ve already been paid. This step can be done more quickly as part of an automated mass payment operation. 
2. The next step requires the employer to go into each employee’s file and manually adjust for the difference between everything you’ve already been paid and 93% of the applicable salary. This step will take longer to complete.
   
   More information and examples available here. 

You can choose whether or not you earn pensionable service during your extended parental leave. This is an all-or-nothing choice – you can’t choose to earn pensionable service for only part of your leave.

If you choose not to earn pensionable service, you do not have to make any pension contributions.

If you choose to earn pensionable service, you must make pension contributions as follows:

• pay your regular contribution for the first 52 weeks of leave
• pay double your regular contribution for the remaining weeks of leave (to cover the employer’s contribution)

You can choose to pay your pension contributions when you return to work rather than when you’re on leave. There is no interest or other penalties. Your repayments are made over twice the amount of time you were off. For example, if you were on leave for 18 months, your repayments would be made over 3 years.

PIPSC has requested that the employer continue to make its pension contribution throughout your leave so that you don’t ever have to make double payments. We will keep you posted on our progress.

Under the health plan, you will continue to be covered during extended parental leave, unless you notify the employer that you don’t want coverage.

You don’t need to do anything to maintain your coverage.

You will continue to pay your regular contribution for the first 52 weeks of leave. For the remaining weeks of leave, you pay your regular contribution as well as the employer’s contribution.

For dental coverage, the employer pays the full cost for the first 52 weeks of leave. To maintain your coverage for the remaining leave, you must make arrangements to pay your contribution before you take your leave.