The pandemic has radically changed the way many PSAC members work. We have experienced the challenges of working remotely from home or having to work onsite with new protection measures; the impact of technological changes; the effect of an uncertain economy on job security; and the major inequalities that remain for women, racialized workers, and many other marginalized groups. These are some of the key issues that can be addressed in the next round of bargaining that begins this summer.
This next round of talks will be all about the future of work in the federal public service and you can help decide what your union bargaining team brings to the table by completing our member surveys.
Take 15 minutes to fill out our Parks Canada survey or CFIA survey to make sure we address your workplace concerns at the table. Your input is essential. We need to hear directly from you about what has changed over the last year. And we need to know more about you so that we can make the case for a contract that equitably addresses our members’ diverse needs.
Your participation in the Parks Canada survey or CFIA survey and the broader bargaining process is key to our success in the next round of talks.
Your component union and PSAC will review your proposals and they, along with the survey’s results, will be discussed at a bargaining conference of member delegates from across the country who will decide the bargaining priorities.
The current collective agreements expire on the following dates:
Parks: August 4, 2021 CFIA: December 31, 2021
Please keep your contact information up to date via the member portal to receive more updates as we prepare to negotiate your next contract.
Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs (CIRNAC), Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) and Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency (CanNor) still operate on a postcolonial-based approach.
The dramatic staffing situations and the abject lack of career progression opportunities that our Indigenous members are facing, while working in these departments, and regional development agencies, illustrate a disconnect with realities of Indigenous peoples in Canada’s public service and lack of recognition of their work.
UNE will always be there to defend their members against racism, discrimination and any form of harassment within these federal workplaces.
Promoting Indigenous voices to deliver services in Indigenous communities across the country will be a breath of fresh air within the federal public service and UNE offers to be involved in the planning process to make it happen, at all of these work locations throughout Canada; from coast to coast, to coast.
COVID-19 is the most serious public health crisis that Canada has faced. It is showing us where there are fundamental gaps in our society and shown us where it is impacting our already vulnerable and struggling populations. They are hurting and in need, many of those impacted are women and children. Women have been in the front line of this crisis, many facing job losses and many taking on more extra family responsibilities. More women are in essential jobs in this crisis, exposing them to infection and high stress. This pandemic is not over and what we need right now is just a little kindness and a little help while we see the inequality.
We can all choose to challenge and call out gender bias and inequality. We can all choose to seek out and celebrate women’s achievements. Collectively, we can all help create an inclusive world.
I would like to challenge us all at UNE to commit to calling out inequality when we see it. Standing up for what is right. Maya Angelou said ‘’Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.” It all starts with one step and we can make a difference. If COVID-19 has shown us anything, it has shown that there is still a long way to go with fighting against gender bias and promoting equality.
As the Twister Sister song We’re Not Gonna Take It says:
We’re not gonna take it No, we ain’t gonna take it We’re not gonna take it anymore!
Diana Walker UNE National Equity Representative for Women
Retired or former employees who meet the eligibility criteria will receive financial compensation for each fiscal year in which they are eligible. However, you will not receive compensation automatically. To receive Phoenix general damages, retired or former employees will have to file a separate claim form through Treasury Board. This will include the estates of deceased employees.
Despite numerous requests by PSAC, Treasury Board has yet to set up this claims process. We are continuing to press them for information on the implementation plan and will post the information on our website and social media accounts once the form is available.
PSAC members will receive their Phoenix general damages in one lump sum payment on March 3 with their regular pay and it will be taxed at source. PSAC is deeply disappointed with the government’s decision to move ahead without a decision from CRA on taxability and continue to pursue the issue with CRA directly. We have also raised the recurring issue of not separating special payments from regular pay – as was recently the case with retro payments.
Individual details about your Phoenix general compensation payment will be available in MyGCPay (only available on the Government of Canada’s internal network).
If you have any questions about your Phoenix damages payment amount, please first contact your Human Resources specialist for the payment breakdown. If members still have concerns, they can reach out to the Client Contact Centre. For other information about Phoenix general damages, please visit our frequently asked questions.
Current PSAC members who were granted compensatory time under another union’s Phoenix settlement agreement may not receive the full amount ($2,500) on March 3 and may receive additional payments at a later date. Consult the federal government’s webpage for more information on how your Phoenix damages payment may be calculated if you were under multiple bargaining agents or an excluded employee during any of the fiscal years of the Phoenix agreement.
PSAC will monitor the situation closely to ensure that all our members receive complete and detailed information about the settlement implementation.
PSAC has been informed that the federal government plans to move forward with taxing Phoenix general damages on March 3rd and that they will not provide the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) with information they requested in order to revisit their initial opinion on taxability.
It is completely unacceptable for Treasury Board to deny CRA the information they need to provide a revised opinion before issuing the general damages payments. Their own letter to PSAC confirms that CRA is willing to work with them to revisit their opinion based on the facts raised by PSAC – information that CRA was not provided by Treasury Board originally. This is a crass attempt to interfere with the review by CRA and to expedite the claw back of the Phoenix damages settlement.
On the very week of Phoenix’s 5th anniversary, the government has found yet another way to hurt PSAC members impacted by years of pay problems.
CRA relied on information from Treasury Board when it issued an initial opinion about the tax implications of the Phoenix settlement. The opinion contained a number of errors and when these errors were pointed out by PSAC, particularly with regards to general damages for pain and suffering, CRA agreed to re-issue an opinion if Treasury Board joined us in clarifying the facts. Treasury Board has refused to cooperate, denied that they even understood this mutual agreement between the three parties, and are openly stating to members that general damages are to be taxed – despite the fact that they are blocking CRA’s ability to revisit their opinion.
If their disregard for our members continues, it could ultimately lead to thousands of unnecessary tax challenges and lengthy retroactive payments.
Next steps: Going to CRA directly
With the government refusing to cooperate, we have decided to submit our own declaration of facts to CRA directly, along with case law addressing the awarding of damages and those damages not being subject to taxation. CRA traditionally only engages with employers to provide opinions of taxability, but it is possible that they may choose to consider the new facts that we provide them.
We will report back to the membership as soon as we have an update to share on this front.
Why wasn’t taxability negotiated in the settlement itself?
The short answer is: we can’t do that.
The union and employer, the parties to the agreement, cannot dictate to CRA how it interprets tax laws. The taxability of damages is determined by what the money is intended to compensate for. The parties added specific language in the agreement to specify that the general damages were for “stress, aggravation, pain and suffering” in recognition of the impact on members lives. There is a strong precedent of damages for those purposes being deemed non-taxable.
What if CRA maintains its opinion in light of the government’s actions?
In the coming weeks, if CRA refuses to issue a new or different opinion due to the government’s inaction, members will have to force an official ruling from CRA by making individual appeals.
PSAC is doing everything we can to avoid this outcome as it puts the burden on our members to file the appeals, but if it becomes our last option, we will develop streamlined systems to support members in making the claims quickly and easily.
It is our top priority that PSAC members receive the full compensation that we negotiated, and which they deserve. We will continue to update members as we work to bring this to a conclusion.
PSAC’s Statistical Survey Operations bargaining team will be holding online bargaining information sessions across the country to bring members up to speed on the issues at the table.
Negotiations between PSAC (Regional Offices and Field Units at SSO) and the employer kicked off in early December, with bargaining continuing January 27-28. New dates have also been set for the first week of March.
Negotiations were delayed in part due to the pandemic and the lengthy hiring process of a new employer negotiator.
During the information sessions, SSO members will have the opportunity to discuss the bargaining proposals put forward by both PSAC and the employer.
PSAC’s core bargaining demands include:
Better job security, hours of work and schedules;
Improved maternity and parental leave benefits;
Greater protections against harassment and abuse of authority;
10 paid days of domestic violence leave;
Improved shift premiums for evenings and weekend;
Leave improvements for sick leave, family leave, vacation leave and compassionate care and caregiving leave.
Discussions continue on these and other proposals as the negotiation process gets underway.
PSAC national negotiator Hassan Husseini is working with bargaining team members across Canada to organize the online bargaining information sessions over the next few weeks. Please stay tuned for announcements from your local about upcoming meetings in your region.
We encourage you to make every effort to attend and stay informed about the issues at stake.
The Parks Canada agreement expires on August 4, 2021. It is time for you to submit bargaining demands, as part of the 2021 round of negotiations for the Parks Canada Agency.
How can I submit Demands?
Locals should schedule a membership meeting to discuss their priorities and proposed bargaining demands.
Once bargaining demands are agreed upon, members are encouraged to submit their bargaining input by completing the PSAC online form.
KEY DATES
Deadline to submit bargaining demands: March 12, 2021
Deadline to submit your application to be a delegate at the virtual National Bargaining Conference: March 26, 2021
Virtual National Bargaining Conference: May 31 to June 2, 2021
As we are celebrating Black History Month, we invite you to take this quiz by UNE National Equity Representative for Racially Visible People Hayley Millington to learn more about the legacy of Black Canadians.
Question #1: The first black man to set foot on Canadian soil was a free man. True or False?
Answer: True. His name was Mathieu Da Costa, a free man who was hired by Europeans to act as a translator.
Question #2: Where did the first shipload of enslaved Africans arrive in British North America (BNA)?
Jonestown
Jamestown
Georgetown
Trenchtown
Answer: The first shipload of enslaved Africans arrived in Jamestown.
Question #3: What is the connection between Father Paul Le Jeune and Olivier Le Jeune?
Answer: Olivier Le Jeune was the first enslaved African of New France. Olivier was 6 years old when he arrived in New France and was the property of Sir David Kirke. He received his education by Jesuit priest Father Paul Le Jeune. Father Le Jeune was his last owner.
Question #4: In which code was slavery for economic reasons stipulated?
Answer: Louis XIV’s Code Noir permitted slavery for economic purposes.
Question #5: This King of France permitted colonists of New France to own Black slaves and Pawnees, Aboriginal slaves. True or False?
Answer: True. For more information on slavery in New France: Slavery.
Question #6: This slave set fire to her master’s Montreal home and destroyed 50 homes in Montreal. She was tortured and hanged as an object lesson for all blacks. Who is she?
Answer: Her name was Marie-Joseph Angélique. She allegedly set fire to her master’s Montreal house and destroyed nearly 50 homes.
Question #7: Runaway slaves fled to Canada via:
Greyhound bus
Via rail
Underground Railroad
Horse and buggy
Answer: The Underground Railway was created in the early 19thcentury by a group of abolitionists based mainly in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The term Underground Railway began to be used in the 1830s. It was a complex, clandestine network of people, secret routes and safe houses.
Question #8: What was the Imperial Statute?
A. A statue of King Louis XIV
B. A statute about the enslaved only having to be fed and clothed
C. A statute about any child born of enslaved parents be free at 25
D. Anyone released had to ensure that she/he could be financially independent
E. A only
F. All the above
G. Number B-D
Answer: G
Question #9: This group of Blacks left Halifax to relocate to which African nation?
Answer: Black Loyalists realized they would never find true freedom, so they left Halifax, almost 1200 of them, to relocate in Sierra Leone.
Question #10: Upper Canadians were shocked when Chloe Cooley, an enslaved woman from Queenstown, was beaten and bound by her owner and transported across the Niagara River to be sold in the US. This incident convinced Lieutenant-Governor Simcoe that the abolition of slavery was necessary. True or False?
Answer: True. Upper Canadians were shocked when Chloe Cooley, an enslaved woman from Queenstown, was beaten and bound by her owner and transported across the Niagara River to be sold in the US. English law made prosecution impossible and the incident convinced Lieutenant-Governor Simcoe that the abolition of slavery was necessary. The Act to Limit Slavery in Upper Canada was enacted in 1793.
Question #11: Who were the maroons and where, in Canada, did they settle?
Answer: A group of 600 freedom fighters landed in Halifax in 1796. These immigrants, called Maroons, came from a Jamaican community of escaped slaves who had guarded their freedom for more than a century and fought off countless attempts to re-enslave them.
Question #12: Slavery was abolished everywhere in BNA in 1834, and in 1793, Upper Canada (now Ontario) passed the Anti-Slavery Act. True or false?
Answer: True. Slavery was abolished throughout the British colonies by an Imperial Act, called the Slavery Abolition Act, which became effective as of August 1834.
