Federal unions fighting back against three-day in-office mandate for public servants
Over 15 union leaders demanded 'an immediate revocation' of the policy change, as well as a meeting with the minister and 'an unequivocal apology'
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Several unions representing federal public servants have come together to express their “vehement opposition” to the government’s decision to require its employees to work in-office three days a week, sending open letters to federal officials and holding a joint press conference.
The federal government updated its policy on remote work last week, requiring public servants to spend three days a week in the office by mid-September.
The decision has been met with frustration from both employees and unions, many of whom have stated that they plan to file unfair labour practice complaints.
From a media conference room in the West Block on Wednesday, union heads from the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC), the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CAPE), the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC) and the Association of Canadian Financial Officers (ACFO), said the government should prepare for a “summer of discontent.”
“We will be using every recourse we have available to fight this mandate,” PSAC national president Chris Aylward said, arguing that the surprise policy update was “anti-worker” and “fundamentally breaks the trust of workers and unions with the Trudeau government.”
Aylward said the union was encouraging members to file “tens of thousands” of individual grievances, adding there would be “concerted, coordinated actions across the country.”
Details of the planned tactics were being “designed” by the unions, said CAPE president Nathan Prier, who argued that the government had zero evidence to show how working on-site can improve productivity or employee wellbeing. Prier argued that feds are “just catering to downtown’s business coalitions, to municipal politicians and to (Ontario Premier) Doug Ford.”
The Treasury Board Secretariat has confirmed that it did not undertake any studies on productivity or collaboration before making the decision.
Prier also added that workers have run into issues with finding unoccupied work stations in federal office buildings and that several government buildings have had a presence of pests like bats and mice.
Despite the government’s recent budget announcement, providing $1.1 billion over 10 years for Public Services and Procurement Canada to reduce its office portfolio by 50 per cent, the department said in an email to this newspaper that it has “a sufficient amount of non-assigned office space in the NCR and in the regions to accommodate employees returning to the office 3 days a week.”
“This is going to be a major issue for millions of unionized federal workers across this country come bargaining time, but we’re not going to wait until then to start escalating and defending our members’ rights on this,” Prier said. “We’re not just looking to go back to two days, we’re gonna say we’re ready to fight and scrap the entire in-office policy.”
PSAC has already filed two unfair labour practices complaints against the government this week, and two policy grievances — one for its workers under the Treasury Board, and one for those under the Canada Revenue Agency. Aylward said it was also considering making an application to the Federal Court on the issue.
PIPSC has filed a policy grievance and an unfair labour practice. CAPE and ACFO have yet to take legal action, though they plan to shortly.
In a letter to Treasury Board president Anita Anand dated Wednesday, obtained by this newspaper prior to the media conference, more than 15 union leaders demanded “an immediate revocation” of the work-from-office policy change, as well as a meeting with the minister and “an unequivocal apology.”
The unions involved include ACFO, CAPE, PIPSC, PSAC and the Professional Association of Foreign Service Officers.
NDP critic calls on Liberals to fix the ‘mess’
Meanwhile, in another letter, the groups took a political stance, asking New Democratic Party of Canada leader Jagmeet Singh to withdraw his party’s support for the Liberals.
“What is particularly troubling is that the New Democratic Party of Canada continues to support a government that engages in such flagrant disregard for the rights and well-being of workers,” the letter said, arguing that the policy change both affected members and undermined the principles of fair labour relations and democratic governance. “We urge you, Mr. Singh, to reconsider your party’s stance and take decisive action by utilizing the mechanisms of power in the Liberal-NDP Confidence and Supply Agreement to hold them accountable.”
In an interview, Aylward said the PSAC union is not asking the NDP to break their agreement or call for a snap election, but to use “every mechanism they have” to get the government to reverse the mandate.
Blake Desjarlais, NDP critic for the Treasury Board, said in a statement that the Liberals “created this mess” by failing to consult and collaborate with unions and workers.
“We call on the Liberals to take a step back and get working with the union to fix this,” Desjarlais said. “The NDP will continue to fight for workers every step in the way.”
In a news conference Wednesday afternoon, Singh said the NDP had “lots of tools” at its disposal to put “a lot of pressure” on the Liberals, which he said the party intended to do.
When asked if the NDP was ready to break its agreement with the Liberals, Singh said not at the moment. He said, however, that the NDP had concerns, raised by the unions, and would use its power to support workers.
Workers oppose the three-day in-office mandate
More than 55,000 PSAC members have responded to a survey on telework, with 85 per cent of respondents indicating they “strongly oppose” the policy.
With members’ biggest concerns being commute times and work-life balance, 83 per cent of respondents said they were “willing to take action,” 66 per cent said they were likely to file grievances and 49 per cent said they were prepared to give the union a strike mandate in the next round of bargaining over the issue.
PIPSC vice-president, Sean O’Reilly said that union had concerns about recruitment and retention, adding he had heard from members who felt they had been “betrayed,” some indicating they planned to leave the public service.
A ‘pattern of disrespect’
In their letter to Anand, the unions said the decision marked “the pinnacle of a years-long pattern of disrespect towards bargaining agents.”
“It has shattered whatever semblance of trust and confidence remained in this government’s ability to engage in fair and meaningful labour relations,” the letter said, noting that Anand signed letters of agreement committing to collaboration on remote work.
The letter argued that Anand chose to “engage in backroom dealings with provincial and municipal politicians, business leaders, and management,” actions which it said “reek of betrayal and contempt.”
In an email statement sent to this newspaper before the release of the letters, Anand said the decisions on remote work “rested with deputy heads and departments.”
“These decisions must continue to prioritize the delivery of high-quality services to Canadians and prudent management of taxpayer dollars,” Anand said, adding that the policy change was a decision taken by the Treasury Board Secretariat, working with the Privy Council and deputy ministers from across the government “who are supportive of this change.”
Anand said in an email Wednesday that the policy change was “not a political decision.”
She said her team was reviewing the joint letter and would provide a written response to unions “as soon as possible.”
Politicians respond
Calgary Centre Conservative MP Greg McLean said “getting people back working is part of a productive economy.”
“There’s pluses and minuses to (being back in the office), but making sure you’re downtown, making sure you’re in your office is one of those issues where you’re focused on work all day long,” McLean said.
When asked by Desjarlais during Question Period whether the federal government had consulted with unions on the changes, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the decision was “a reflection on the need to continue to deliver high-quality services for Canadians” and “move beyond the pandemic.”
“We know that Canadian public service members stepped up to extraordinary degrees to help Canadians through the pandemic,” Trudeau said. “We will continue to ensure that our public service is delivering at the level necessary for all Canadians and we will work with unions and all public servants to make sure that happens in the right way.”
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