Posted on

PSAC launches letter-writing campaign aimed at Trudeau

writetotrudeau

The largest union representing federal public service workers is launching a letter campaign urging Prime Minister Trudeau to make good on his word.

When Trudeau was elected, he said he wanted to be a “partner” to public service workers and not an adversary.

One year later, thousands of public service workers are either not getting paid, or being paid improperly, thanks to the government’s mishandling of the Phoenix pay system. And more than 90,000 PSAC members have spent the last two years trying to negotiate a fair contract with Treasury Board, to no avail.

“This is about fairness and respect – and this is what was promised to public service workers by Mr. Trudeau,” said Robyn Benson, National President of PSAC.

PSAC members work hard to deliver quality public services to all Canadians, but the government needs to support these workers properly so they can do their jobs.

“Teachers in First Nations communities have fewer resources than their provincial counterparts. This is unfair to Indigenous children, who deserve a quality education,” said Benson. “Service Canada workers don’t have enough resources to process EI and disability claims in a timely manner, leading to lengthy wait times for Canadians who depend on these services. These are only two examples.”

Send a letter to Prime Minister Trudeau today, and tell him to make good on his word to support public services and the people who deliver them.

Posted on

October 31st: PSAC members to send Liberal government a message

oct31

On October 31, PSAC members across the country will be reminding Prime Minister Trudeau to make good on his word to respect public services and the people who provide them.

“Last year, Mr. Trudeau wrote to all public service workers promising to treat them with respect and restore the cuts made by Stephen Harper,” said Robyn Benson, PSAC National President. “It has been a year since the election. The tone has changed, but it’s now time for action.”

Liberal government, Conservative agenda

Instead of moving forward in bargaining, the government has continued to push the Conservative agenda.

“Under the Liberals, Treasury Board has had five meetings with us, and almost a year to improve their offer to reflect Mr. Trudeau’s promise to show respect for the public service,” said Benson.

Haunted by Phoenix

As negotiations with Treasury Board for over 90,000 PSAC members remains unresolved, Phoenix continues to haunt public service workers. The pay system, launched in January of this year, is still causing problems for thousands.

The government had promised that by October 31, the 80,000 case backlog reported in June would be cleared. However, the government announced on October 19 that it would not meet this deadline.

In addition to this backlog, many more PSAC members have had pay problems since June that are also outstanding. The exact number is not clear, as the government has been unwilling to disclose this figure.

Public service workers deserve to be paid correctly and on time for the work that they do.

Come out on October 31

On October 31, join with other PSAC members across the country to deliver a strong message:

  • Dump the Conservative bargaining agenda
  • Start talking to us about real change for a better public service
  • Make good on your word – Canadians are counting on us

We encourage all PSAC members in the federal public service to participate. Please contact your local, or the closest PSAC regional office, to find out how you can participate.

Posted on

You said you’d be different

trudeaudifferent

Justin Trudeau said he’d fix public services and repair the relationship with the workers who deliver them. Now is the time for action.

Visit http://psacunion.ca/makegoodonyourword to listen to the radio ad and download a shareable meme for your social media pages.

 

Posted on

Update: Employer Challenges PSAC and UNE Salary Protection Grievance Win

SalaryProtectionUpdate

A long-awaited decision was handed down by the Public Service Labour Relations and Employment Board (PSLREB) on July 4, 2016. It upheld the right to salary protection for members who transferred to the Department of Canadian Heritage from the National Capital Commission (NCC) in September 2013.

We now have confirmation that the employer has filed a judicial review of the decision before federal court. This is not an appeal, but rather the employer must prove that the PSLREB decision was unreasonable.

The PSAC will be fighting the judicial review and has retained the same legal counsel used to present the grievance. This win was especially important for defending the larger principle of salary protection for employees forced to change employer as a result of government restructuring.

In the meantime, the decision of the adjudicator stands, despite the review application. The PSAC will be working with UNE to ensure that affected members get answers to any questions they may have about the decision, the judicial review application and the implementation of salary protection.

The policy grievance, filed by the PSAC on December 12, 2013, involved 44 members who were transferred by government order and then told they would be paid under the Treasury Board’s classification system, meaning that they would see their salaries reduced by up to $12,000 per year.

The PSLREB decision gave affected employees entitlement to full salary protection under the PSAC and Treasury Board collective agreements effective from the date of transfer.

 

 

Posted on

UPDATE: OLG arbitration hearing will be rescheduled for Sept. 13

OLGPostponedUpdate

Unfortunately, the arbitration hearing scheduled for August 29 to hear the outstanding contract issues for Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation workers at Rideau Carleton Raceway in Ottawa will have to be rescheduled as the arbitrator was called away at the last minute.

The hearing has been rescheduled for Sept. 13, 2016.

On August 28, the arbitrator advised he was unable to attend due to unforeseen circumstances. He apologized to PSAC, acknowledging the issues are very important and members have already waited a long time for this hearing.

At the end of May, the union and the employer agreed to binding arbitration to resolve contract issues still in dispute after OLG locked out our members.

Posted on

Parks bargaining team raises pay issues, rejects short term disability proposal

ParksBargainUpdate

Our Parks negotiating team met with the employer’s team on June 28 and 29, 2016.

We opened our discussions by expressing our dismay and anger toward the agency regarding the ongoing pay issues. We concluded our discussion by advising the agency that pay day should be not be a stressful event. Meanwhile, PSAC, along with other federal government unions representing thousands of federal government employees filed a Notice of Application with the Federal Court directing the Respondent to implement a pay administration system that meets its obligations under the FAA and the Directive on Terms and Conditions of Employment.

The agency tabled a revised short term disability proposal to replace our current sick leave provisions. Similar to the proposals tabled with other groups recently, the agency’s proposal would remove sick leave provisions from the current collective agreement and short term disability would be administered as an agency policy. Our negotiating team remains committed to resisting this concession and rejected the agency’s proposal.

Negotiations are set to resume on October 24-27 and November 14-17, 2016.

Our negotiating team thanks you for your ongoing patience and support.

Posted on

June 8th Day of Action – Is Your Local Ready?

June8Today

By now, you have heard that PSAC and other federal public service unions are calling on all members to help send a message to the Liberals by participating in a national action day on June 8th.

So what does your local have planned?

Visit our website here and leave a comment – we want to know. Tell us what you have planned for your local and we will share it on social media.  If you have a page set up, let us know and we will post links. We also hope you will send us photos of members in action!

If you haven’t already, click here to download a customizable PDF that you can use as a poster.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Posted on

Members at Museum of Nature ratify new collective agreement

MuseumNatureRatify

The members of PSAC Local 70395 recently voted in favour of the agreement negotiated with the Canadian Museum of Nature. The Local had been in negotiations for the last 2 years.

Highlights of the four-year contract, which expires June 14, 2018, include:

  • a 1% wage increase per year,
  • an increase in standby pay, and
  • a change in the definition of part-time employees.

Just as importantly, the Local was able to achieve its bargaining mandate of no concessions in the collective agreement / bargaining process.

“Reaching an agreement was a long process and the negotiation team worked hard to protect and improve our collective agreement,” said Local President Roger Bull. “We offer them sincere thanks for their efforts on behalf of all members.”

Local 70395 represents approximately 100 workers employed by the Canadian Museum of Nature in Gatineau and Ottawa. They work in the areas of administration, advancement, collections, experience and education, facilities, finance, human resources, IT, marketing and media relations protection services, research and visitor services.

Posted on

PSAC and OLG set to go to binding arbitration

OLGArbitrationSince December 16, 2015, PSAC members employed by the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (the OLG) have demonstrated tremendous and overwhelming solidarity in the face of a brutal five-month lock out imposed by the OLG.

Today, following the successful lobbying efforts of our members, including their direct conversations with the Premier of Ontario, the union and the employer agreed to a process of binding arbitration to resolve all outstanding issues between parties.

PSAC members at the OLG will return to work starting Thursday, June 2, 2016.

We congratulate our members for the tremendous courage and determination they brought to the picket line and the bargaining table.