Sharon DeSousa was elected as the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC)’s national president at their convention this week.
DeSousa is the first person of colour to be elected PSAC national president.
“I am honoured by the support and confidence members have placed in me to lead our union through the challenges ahead,” said DeSousa. “Our solidarity makes us stronger, and we will need to be more united and resilient than ever before as we fight to uphold justice and the rights of workers so that every member, in every corner of the country, is treated with dignity and respect.”
She previously served as national executive vice-president from 2020 to 2024 and as PSAC Ontario’s regional executive vice-president from 2011 to 2020.
DeSousa will be taking over from Chris Alyward, who has been a union member for 40 years and has served as PSAC national president since 2012.
Taking over from DeSousa as national executive vice-president will be Alex Silas.
Silas previously served as regional executive vice-president for the National Capital Region (NCR). He is also the first young person and first person to be a member of a Directly Chartered Local to be elected to PSAC’s executive team.
“It has been a privilege to serve PSAC members in the NCR, and I am humbled that members have now put their faith in me as I take on this new role to represent our diverse membership coast-to-coast-to-coast,” said Silas. “Together, we will organize, fight for workers’ rights, and defend those whose voices need to be heard.”
Remote work, Border Services contract, and healthcare top issues for PSAC
As PSAC’s new executive team prepares to take the lead, there are several issues that the union is currently facing.
Representing over 245,000 workers, PSAC is one of Canada’s largest public sector unions.
Many of their members are federal employees and in recent weeks, remote work or telework has become a topic of contention between the union and federal government.
The Treasury Board headed up by Liberal MP Anita Anand recently announced that in June, federal employees based in Ottawa will now have to work in the office at least three days a week.
Federal employees, like many other office workers, were shifted towards a remote work setup during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many new employees were also hired with the understanding that they would be able to work remotely.
Last year, the Treasury Board required that employees whose jobs were based in Ottawa would be required to come into the office twice a week. Anand announced earlier in the spring that this in-office requirement would be raised to three days a week, something that PSAC says does not make sense for workers and was not done in consultation with the unions representing those workers.
“Every worker’s job and situation are unique, and a cookie cutter approach to telework can’t be applied to Canada’s diverse public service. Overwhelming evidence proves that telework improves work-life balance and increases productivity for workers,” reads a statement from PSAC.
Alyward has also stated that telework helps the economies of the smaller communities where many Ottawa workers now live, and is also better for the environment.
“This flexibility significantly benefits the environment by reducing daily commutes, which lowers greenhouse gas emissions and traffic congestion. Home offices often use less energy than large, outdated office buildings, and urban areas benefit from improved air quality and reduced noise pollution. Additionally, the reduced need for office space can slow urban sprawl, preserving natural habitats,” Alyward wrote in a statement.
Another major issue facing PSAC is a potential summer strike action by Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) workers.
In May, CBSA workers who are members of PSAC voted overwhelmingly in favour of strike action.
One of the key issues for the union is the implementation of early retirement benefits for their members, something they point out that other law enforcement workers in the RCMP and other organizations already receive.
“The clock is ticking,” said DeSousa. “At every opportunity, Trudeau’s Liberal government has refused to put the needs of workers first, and time is running out to avoid sweeping job action.”
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