Public service notebook: Strike votes and a policy grievance

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From the launch of strike votes for thousands of public servants to a moratorium on converting term employees to permanent workers, here are five federal public service updates you need to know.

1) Strike votes begin for border services workers

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2) PSAC files policy grievance as members re-enter a probationary period, see hours reduced

3) Shaila Anwar named Clerk of the Senate and Clerk of the Parliaments

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4) CRA “stops the clock” for term employees

5) Pay equity committees release updates on progress

1. Strike votes begin for border services workers

After almost two years of unsuccessful contract negotiations, strike votes for more than 9,000 Canada Border Services Agency employees began Wednesday.

Virtual strike sessions will run until mid-May.

The Public Service Alliance of Canada declared an impasse in bargaining in September after it said CBSA wouldn’t budge on key issues like wages, job security, access to telework and protections from contracting out.

Workers are also seeking the ability to retire after 25 years, according to national president of the Customs and Immigration Union Mark Weber, matching other law enforcement and public safety workers.

Workers have been without a contract since 2022. PSAC and CBSA were scheduled for Public Interest Commission hearings on April 10 and 22, while strike votes take place.

“We’re hoping to get a recommendation from the chair of the PIC within 30 days,” Weber said. “If the strike votes are in favour of strike, we would be in a position to go on strike within seven days after those recommendations come out.”

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Weber said members are tired, but the union is ready to negotiate whenever the government is ready to come to the table. He said the union planned rallies throughout the strike vote process.

“What we did back on Aug. 6 in 2021, we had land borders that had six-, seven-hour wait times and a work-to-rule campaign,” Weber said. “That’s kind of what members are looking at possibly having to go to again, unfortunately, to get us a deal.”

The Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat said in a news release on April 5 it was “disappointing” to see a call for strike votes, adding there was “ample room” to reach a “fair and reasonable agreement.”

2. PSAC files policy grievance as members re-enter a probationary period, see hours reduced

PSAC has filed a policy grievance claiming the federal government “mishandled” the transfer of members to their new bargaining unit.

In the fall, around 1,350 members in the Statistical Survey Operations group were transferred to the federal core public service at Statistics Canada as part of the Program Administrative Services bargaining unit under Treasury Board.

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While PSAC said the change was “a welcome move,” allowing members to be included in the collective agreement negotiated last year, the union said employees were now facing several issues because of the government’s “inconsistent interpretation and violations” of the contract.

Problems include that part-time employees are now classified as shift workers with fewer hours and “erratic” schedules and that members are required to complete a one-year probationary period despite their work history, PSAC says.

Alisha Campbell, national president of the Union of National Employees, said two employees had already been rejected on probation.

“Usually rejections on probation happen anywhere between the six-month and the nine-month mark, so I’m expecting if there are going to be more that we’re going to hear about them in the next few weeks,” Campbell said, adding it was looking “suspiciously” like the government was using the transfer as an opportunity to reduce employee numbers. “It’s shameful what’s happening.”

“My members are extremely fearful about the kind of data they’re going to be able to collect and provide Canadians … and their own ability to support themselves.”

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Carter Mann, spokesperson for Statistics Canada, said the bargaining unit representing SSO employees was regularly consulted during the transition.

Mann said the probationary period was mandated by the Public Service Employment Act, adding that rejections on probation were in line with guidelines for termination or demotion for unsatisfactory performance, for reasons other than breaches of discipline or misconduct and for termination of employment during probation.

“One of the primary objectives of the transition was to provide employees with more consistent hours and a stable salary,” Mann said, adding that, before the transition, employees’ pay fluctuated every two weeks depending on workloads. “Under the PA collective agreement, employees now have access to their schedule 56 days in advance, which allows for better planning and confirms the salary they will receive for that period.

“The numbers of hours an employee may have in a 56-day schedule is dependent on the planned collection work available and it has no relation to the transition of SSO to PA group.”

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3. Shaila Anwar named Clerk of the Senate and Clerk of the Parliaments

In just under a month, longtime Senate of Canada employee Shaila Anwar will take on the role of clerk of the Senate and clerk of the Parliaments.

Formerly in roles such as deputy principal clerk and clerk assistant of the Senate committees directorate, effective May 6, Anwar will be responsible for operations like swearing in new senators and advising the speaker on parliamentary procedure and interpretation of the rules.

According to the prime minister’s office, as clerk of the Parliaments, Anwar will also “ensure the stewardship of some of Canada’s most important legal archives.”

4. CRA “stops the clock” for term employees

Canada Revenue Agency has implemented a “moratorium on term conversions” beginning April 8. What that means, according to the union representing CRA workers, is that term employees working at the agency will no longer have their work count towards the three years of cumulative service time they need to become permanent employees.

“People are extremely upset,” said Marc Brière, national president of the Union of Taxation Employees, adding that the union understood that CRA was concerned about possible budget cuts. “That doesn’t mean that automatically should trigger a moratorium.”

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Brière said the moratorium didn’t mean a stop to hiring at CRA, but a stop to the accumulation of workers’ time. “What people are fearing, obviously, is that the employer is stopping them from becoming permanent.”

Sylvie Branch, a spokesperson for CRA, said the agency implemented a moratorium on its practice of converting term employees to permanent tenure after three years of work after “careful analysis and review of current and future business requirements.

“This temporary measure is expected to help effectively manage the growth of the permanent workforce, while balancing financial stewardship,” Branch said.

5. Pay equity committees release updates on progress

The pay equity committee for the government’s core public administration says it’s making progress in developing a pay equity plan.

In 2021, the Pay Equity Act came into effect, requiring that pay equity plans be established by employers, with salaries adjusted as needed.

In late March, the committee comprising employees, government and union representatives stated that it had “finalized terms of reference” and “begun work on identifying job classes” in the CPA.

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Next, it said, the group will review data from “hundreds” of job classes.

Other pay equity committees also recently shared updates.

The Library of Parliament pay equity committee said that, since the beginning of the year, it had been working to review data on gender predominance using “current employment data, historical data, as well as stereotypes.” The team said it had also undergone job evaluation training and established job categories.

The Office of the Parliamentary Budget Officer pay equity committee said it had been meeting regularly to review job evaluations conducted late last year. It’s now working to determine the weighting of each factor in the job evaluation tool to ensure “an accurate reflection of organizational priorities.”

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