PSAC’s submission to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance, as part of the pre-budget consultation process, includes seven key recommendations to strengthen and improve public services by making federal government workplaces healthier and more productive:

1. Rescind the in-office mandate: The federal government should revoke its current unilateral three-day-per-week in-office mandate and assess all remote work requests on an individual, case-by-case basis.
2. Abolish the two-tiered pension plan: Immediate action is needed to rescind the two-tiered Federal Service Pension Plan, ensuring fairness for all employees.
3. Resolve Phoenix pay system issues: The government must address the ongoing Phoenix pay system backlogs and pay issues affecting federal public service workers. This includes providing additional Phoenix damages and extending the claims process.
4. Include unions in Care Economy consultations: PSAC and other labour unions should be actively involved in the Care Economy Sectoral Table consultation process to ensure worker representation in policy decisions.
5. End contracting out and temporary agencies: The government should stop contracting out work and eliminate the use of temporary agency workers by creating permanent positions within the public service.
6. Combat racism and discrimination: The government must work to prevent all forms of racism, discrimination, harassment, and violence in the federal public service. This requires providing robust resources to protect employees and ensuring proper support when such incidents occur.
7. Modernize labour relations laws: The Federal Public Service Labour Relations and Employment Act should be modernized to better reflect current workplace realities and to support fair and equitable treatment of workers.

Read the full submission.