(Ottawa) Almost one in ten federal public servants still had not completed a vaccination certificate within two days of the October 29 deadline, but the government has no intention of extending the deadline. Meanwhile, members of the Conservative Party are challenging the requirement to be fully immunized to enter parliamentary buildings.
The Treasury Board Secretariat said Wednesday that “more than 240,000” of the 268,000 public service employees subject to the policy, or about 91% of the total number of public servants, had disclosed their immunization status as of October 27.
To those who resist, the President of the Treasury Board, Mona Fortier, sent a warning on the airwaves of the local radio station of Radio-Canada: “No”, she ruled, it is not. no question of leaving more time.
The ax will fall on November 15. From this date, the recalcitrant will be suspended without pay. This date is also “firm”, as indicated to Press a government source who requested anonymity to speak freely.
At the Treasury Board Secretariat earlier this week, they did not want to specify whether certain employees had asked to be exempted on the basis of medical or religious reasons.
For its part, the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC), which had criticized the federal government for not having consulted it sufficiently before announcing this measure, refused to say whether members had filed grievances or demonstrated. an intention to go to court.
On the other hand, in a written declaration sent to PressUnion National President Chris Aylward noted that if PSAC members “choose not to get the vaccine and look to [le syndicat, celui-ci examinera] their case ”.
And “in situations where the policy is applied unreasonably or if their rights are violated, we will represent them,” added the union leader.
Unanswered questions
What impact could the departure of thousands of civil servants have on the smooth running of the State, or on government services to the population? Is there a contingency plan? These questions remain unanswered.
Unvaccinated public servants who do not benefit from any exemption will remain on leave until their immunization status changes or the policy is no longer required, while those who have obtained one will need to be tested twice a week.
When he announced the measure, on October 6, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau warned that exemptions would be “rare” and difficult to obtain, and that an anti-vaccine “personal conviction” would not constitute a valid reason for it. prevail.
Conservatives resist
Where compulsory vaccination does not pass, it is in the Conservative Party.
Chief Erin O’Toole signaled Wednesday, after his caucus meeting, that the decision to impose this constraint, which was taken by the Board of Internal Economy (BIS), would be challenged as soon as possible when work will resume in the House of Commons.
“A question of privilege will be raised as quickly as possible […] to challenge the inappropriate conduct and the precedent set by the Board of Internal Economy, because only the House of Commons can determine its composition and conduct, ”he said at a press conference in parliament.
Hammering that Justin Trudeau should “be really ashamed of politicizing the issue of vaccines and dividing Canadians,” Erin O’Toole argued that he encouraged “all Canadians, all Quebecers” to get vaccinated against COVID- 19.
However, he declined to say what will happen to MPs who are not vaccinated, simply saying that “all MPs are going to be vaccinated in the House of Commons. [parce que] it is very important ”, and he once again ruled out the option of a hybrid format for the conduct of parliamentary business.
The other favorable parties
The BIS announced a little over a week ago that from November 22, the opening day of the 44e legislature, no one will be able to enter a building in the parliamentary precinct without being fully vaccinated, arousing the ire of the official opposition, which denounced the opacity of the decision-making process.
The Liberals, the Bloc and the New Democrats are all in favor of mandatory vaccination of elected officials.
It is therefore already clear that the Conservatives would be in the minority if the question were put to a vote.
Asked to say what would happen, Erin O’Toole confined himself to repeating that his deputies would “respect all the rules and sanitary instructions in place”, before and after a verdict of the House or its president.