Question Period Note: PAY – COLLECTIVE BARGAINING

When does the Government expect to conclude collective agreement negotiations for the 2018 round of bargaining? How does the negotiation impasse declared by the Public Service Alliance of Canada impact this round of negotiations?

• The Government of Canada is honouring its commitment to negotiate in good faith with all public sector unions to reach agreements.
• To date, 34 agreements have been signed that cover close to 70,000 federal public service employees.
• We hope to continue to reach agreements for all employees that are reasonable for taxpayers and offer fair wage adjustments and provisions reflective of today’s work environment.
• We are disappointed that PSAC rejected a fair offer that included wage adjustments and provisions in line with the recent agreements signed by 34 other bargaining units.
• The Government of Canada remains open to returning to the bargaining table with the Public Service Alliance of Canada.

Core Public Administration (CPA)
To date, 26 out of 28 groups covering 99% of the represented employees in the Core Public Administration (CPA) have served notice to bargain for the 2018 round. The Aircraft Operations (AO) and Ships’ Officers (SO) groups have not yet served notice to bargain.
On May 8, 2019, the PSAC declared impasse for a second time and filed a request for conciliation (Public Interest Commission (PIC)) with the Federal Public Sector Labour Relations Board (FPSLREB).
In summer 2019, the Government reached agreements with 17 groups representing approximately 53,000 employees in the CPA.
Between August 31 to September 6, 2019, TBS and the PSAC re-entered negotiations in an effort to reach a new collective agreement for the PA group and to discuss an agreement on damages caused by the Phoenix pay system for all PSAC members. The PSAC decided not to accept the Employer offers on either matter. The PIC proceedings are therefore continuing.
Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS) is preparing for the PIC hearings, scheduled as follows:
• PA group (December 4-7, 2019)
• EB group (December 9-12, 2019)
• TC group (December 17-19, 2019)
• SV group (January 22-24, 2020)
The parties may continue negotiating at any time during the PIC process toward reaching a settlement in advance of any recommendation by the PIC chair.
According to the Federal Public Sector Labour Relations Act (FPSLRA), the PIC chair must issue non-binding recommendations within 30 days of the hearing date. Taking into consideration a traditional Holiday period closure at the FPSLREB, the earliest date a PIC recommendation could be made is mid-January 2020, after which the parties may resume negotiations.
The government will prepare for all possible outcomes, including failure to reach an agreement. TBS and departments are ensuring that there are contingencies in place, including Essential Services Agreements (ESAs), should labour action be taken by the PSAC.
The PSAC cannot strike until seven days after the issuance of the PIC report and the conduct of a strike vote. The FPSLREB could release non-binding reports as early as one month after each hearing so PSAC should not be in a strike position until late January at the earliest. More likely, reports would be released in the spring of 2020. Nevertheless, they are able to engage in demonstrations and marches at any time.
Separate Agencies
Notice to bargain has been served by all groups in Separate Agencies (32 groups in total). Most negotiations commenced in the fall of 2018 or the winter of 2019.
To date, six Separate Agencies have reached 17 tentative agreements with groups representing close to 17,000 employees, or approximately 28% of the population in Separate Agencies.
The PSAC has also declared impasse for four separate agencies with PIC dates scheduled as follows:
• Union of Taxation Employees (UTE): January 6 & 20, 2020
• Union of National Employees and the Union of Canadian Transportation Employees: January 27-30, 2020
• Communications Security Establishment: March 24-25, 2019
• Canadian Food Inspection Agency: March 30-31, 2019

KEY FACTS • To date, 34 agreements have been signed that cover close to 70,000 federal public service employees.

• No agreement has been reached with the Public Service Alliance of Canada; Public Interest Commission hearings are scheduled throughout this month.
• The government will prepare for all possible outcomes, including failure to reach an agreement.