Our PA bargaining team returned to the table with Treasury Board on January 21–22, pressing the employer for responses to some of our key proposals. What we heard was a resounding no on some of the issues that matter most to members.

The employer outright refused to discuss most our proposals because they don’t fit within their newly invented bargaining framework. We reject this premise outright and strongly disagree with their position.

By refusing to engage on priorities like job security, service levels, discrimination, harassment and abuse of authority, technological change, artificial intelligence and surveillance, and remote work, the employer is making it clear that budget constraints and overall control matter more to them than the needs, safety, and working conditions of workers. These are real issues members face every day, and they belong at the bargaining table.

We also pressed the employer for a response to our full monetary package, submitted in December, but they have yet to provide a fulsome response or counter proposal.

Employer refuses to negotiate workforce adjustment

As thousands of PSAC members are receiving workforce adjustment notices day after day, the employer refuses to negotiate ways to reduce the impact on members. Though they acknowledge that these are challenging times, it offers little comfort when they aren’t actually willing to discuss meaningful improvements to the workforce adjustment process.

Our team has proposed cost-effective solutions, including maximizing remote work, which would help members stay employed while reducing disruption, office space requirements, and relocation costs. We’ve also tabled proposals to increase transparency and fairness, such as clear, equitable processes for reasonable job offers. Though we have yet to receive a response, we’ll continue to push the employer to discuss these practical proposals that would make a real difference for members.

More than 9,700 PSAC members have received workforce adjustment notices in the last year, including 6,900 this month alone. That doesn’t include the 5,500 term employees who were terminated early or not renewed. And with the government planning to cut 30,000 more jobs, we know many more members will be affected this year.

Remote work back on the agenda

Prime Minister Carney said he would consult unions in January and clarify changes to in-office guidelines after speaking to Ottawa’s business community in December. Though it has yet to actually happen, our team used the meeting to remind the employer that remote work is a priority for members, no changes are to be made under a statutory freeze, and the bargaining table is the perfect place for this consultation.

Our proposal would make remote work fair, transparent, and employee-centred by requiring managers to genuinely consider each request on a case-by-case basis and prohibiting arbitrary caps.

In a recent win for PSAC members at the Library of Parliament, the Federal Public Sector Labour Relations and Employment Board ruled that the employer cannot avoid negotiating telework into the collective agreement. This could be a useful precedent as we continue to fight for remote work at the bargaining table and pushback against management control.

New proposals for maternity leave, reproductive health, and job-specific supports

Our team tabled a proposal to increase extended parental leave top-ups, ensuring that all families have a fair chance to take extended parental leave without financial hardship. 

We also highlighted our proposal to strengthen reproductive health support, ensuring members are supported with dignity, flexibility, and compassion for a range of reproductive and gender-related health needs. This includes menstruation, menopause, polycystic ovarian syndrome, endometriosis, fertility treatments, pregnancy loss, and gender-affirming care.

The proposal helps to reduce the stigma and strengthens support for pregnancy loss by providing paid leave depending on the stage of pregnancy, allowing members time to heal physically and emotionally without financial penalty. It also includes paid reproductive health leave for managing symptoms or attending appointments, helping members care for themselves without sacrificing pay or job security.

Additionally, we submitted several proposals addressing specific job classifications within the PA group. This includes a new appendix for RCMP employeest, as well as proposals for data collection clerks and an occupational group structure review.

Next steps

Our PA team meets with the employer again on March 11–12. We’ll continue to keep members informed as negotiations progress. Here’s how you can support our work now: 

• Read the full proposals to find out exactly what we’re fighting for. 
• Get to know your bargaining team so you know who represents your interests. 
• Talk to your coworkers about what’s on the table and why it matters to you. 
• Get involved early by attending rallies, info pickets, lunch-and-learns, and mobilization events in your area. 
• Subscribe to our mailing list for the latest bargaining news as it happens. 
• Download bargaining graphics to show visible support at work and online.

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