The new year brought new bargaining dates for our FB team as we returned to the table with Treasury Board/Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) from January 31 to February 2, picking up where we left off in December. With the last day of this bargaining session coinciding with the FB day of mobilization on Feb 2, the team was re-energized with support from members across the country. 

During bargaining, our team proposed the reintroduction of paid firearm practice time. We also discussed our proposal concerning paid time for members to tool up and tool down at the beginning and end of each shift. Unfortunately, no progress was made on these issues, even though grievances have been filed.   

While at the table, we took the opportunity to once again rebuke Treasury Board’s flawed hybrid work policy, against which PSAC has now filed a freeze complaint to halt the policy, and policy grievances on behalf of members. Our team reiterated that we need telework language that allows us to grieve in our collective agreement, because the government’s botched rollout of their policy has made it abundantly clear that Treasury Board and CBSA are not to be trusted. 

CBSA continues to propose concessions 

Meanwhile, CBSA continued to push for significant concessions, including their proposal to add new restrictions to Article 41, leave without pay for the care of family. We believe any restrictions on this leave will lead to management rejecting all requests, as ‘no’ is the default with CBSA management. The employer also wants to water down our variable shift schedule agreement (VSSA) and hours of work rights. Our team rejected these proposals and told the employer we are only interested in improving our collective agreement, not going backwards. 

Next steps   

We are in the process of setting additional dates with the employer. In the meantime, we encourage you to read our bargaining proposals to ensure you know what we’re fighting for:  

• PSAC proposals package    
• Employer proposals package   

Please be sure to keep your contact information up to date to receive all the latest updates about bargaining. If you have any questions, please contact your branch president or your PSAC regional office.