Picketing federal government workers will have to do something on strike that they haven't been doing if they want strike pay — show up at the office.
Over 155,000 Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) working for the Treasury Board and the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) — many of whom work remotely from home — went on strike Wednesday after the union and the federal government failed to reach a deal Tuesday evening.
The union members, 35,000 from the CRA and 120,000 from the Treasury Board, which represents employees from 20 different services, including passport offices, voted last week to go on strike after failing to reach an agreement following negotiations that began in June 2021. A portion of those workers are legally deemed essential by the government and will continue to report to work.
PSAC has asked for an annual 4.5% increase in salary over three years while the federal government is offering 2.06%. The union website offers a list of other issues it is negotiating, ranging from job security, remote work, systemic racism, work-life balance, contracting out and privatization.
With the strike, the union requires the workers to do something that the employers do not, which is to leave their homes and come into the office, to work a real - not virtual - picket line. The union has a list of 250 picket lines across Canada on its website that workers are expected to report to during the strike.
Meanwhile, PSAC has told its members that any work done at home, including simply replying to work emails would be considered a violation of union rules, and constitute a crossing of the picket line.
“Continuing to work remotely during a strike is considered crossing the picket line and is a violation of Section 25 of the PSAC constitution,” the union wrote in a statement. “Members who normally work remotely should join their nearest picket line with their co-workers.”
About 60% of the PSAC workers are not located in Ottawa, so finding them a suitable spot to picket will be one of the challenges presented in the labour stoppage action.
Jagmeet Singh, who leads the New Democratic Party that has supported the Liberal-led minority government in maintaining power, expressed support for the workers in a tweet Tuesday, "I stand in solidarity with 155,000 public sector workers on strike across Canada tonight. The two-year fight of these workers for fair wages and dignity ... is a fight for every worker across this country," he stated.
Canadian Federation of Independent Business, which is Canada's largest association of small and medium-sized businesses with 97,000 members, expressed concern that the federal tax department will be understaffed during tax season.
"A strike by the CRA's unionized workers, in the middle of tax season, will cause significant stress for small businesses and taxpayers. With the CRA already indicating that tax filing deadlines won't be pushed back, the work stoppage could result in penalties and interest for small businesses and the inability to get their important questions answered," the group said in a statement.