Amid the high cost of living and edicts compelling workers to return to the office, public sector unions are turning to a Liberal government grappling with spending constraints to demand more.
OTTAWA—After a year in which pandemic-induced staffing shortages hammered a bevy of government services, Canadians could face more delays in the form of one of the largest public service strikes in the country’s history.— or already engaged in — collective agreement talks concerning hundreds of thousands of public servants, setting the stage for impasses over wage hikes, remote work and the potential for a huge chunk of workers to walk off the job.
But is a general strike truly on the horizon? And what are the political implications if talks turn sour?The most contentious battle Ottawa is contending with concerns 120,000 public servants in four of the Public Service Alliance of Canada’s bargaining units. For example, the National Police Federation, which represents nearly 20,000 RCMP members, told the Star it is currently in bargaining with the Treasury Board, but would not publicly comment on the state of those discussions.As of last week, both PSAC and Ottawa had agreed to resume negotiations.
Fortier has also argued that where public servants carry out their jobs is the right of the employer, not something that should be raised at the bargaining table. In December, the government ruled that public servants must work at least two to three days a week in person, starting at the end of March.PSAC’s decision to pursue strike votes — which will start Feb. 22 and end in April — doesn’t necessarily mean 120,000 workers will walk off the job.
Complicating matters is the timing of a potential strike, which could also see thousands of CRA employees step away from their desks in the middle of tax season.A general strike would undoubtedly create a pounding political headache for the minority Liberals, who are already contending with a Canadian public fed up with pandemic delays that gummed up air travel and passport processing.
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