The Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) announces tentative contractual agreements with Treasury Board for more than 120,000 federal government employees across Canada.
The national strike is now over for these workers. Most are scheduled to return to work this Monday at 9:00 a.m. EST.
However, the strike of some 35,000 employees of the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) continues, although contract negotiations are still ongoing.
The PSAC says it has won cumulative wage increases totaling 12.6% over the duration of the agreements, which will run from 2021 to 2024. The agreement also includes a one-time lump sum of $2,500.
For union members approaching retirement, the lump sum will increase the average salary of their best five years of salary, which will increase their retirement benefits.
The union adds that a letter of agreement according to which managers must evaluate telework requests individually, and not by group, has been signed.
Protections will allow members, according to the union, not to lose their jobs if they can perform the tasks of a contractor working for the government.
PSAC National President Chris Aylward says the tentative agreements represent huge gains for members and set the bar for all workers in Canada.
On April 19, public servants picketed across the country in what the Alliance called one of the biggest industrial actions in Canadian history.
Service disruptions were significant during the strike. There have been delays at Canada’s borders as well as in the processing of new applications for employment insurance, immigration and passports, in particular.
The first negotiations on a new collective agreement began in June 2021.