The Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) union briefly took over the lobby of the building that contains the office of Treasury Board President Mona Fortier Wednesday morning June 8. Dark red shirts with the word “Respect” printed on the front were worn by most members of the crowd as they chanted for fair wages.
PSAC members in the crowd began calling out to Fortier saying they deserve a fair contract. Fortier is the Liberal MP for Ottawa-Vanier and has served as Treasury Board President since 2021. As Treasury Board President, Fortier oversees the contract for public sector employees.
The PSAC held this rally after declaring an impasse in talks with the federal government in May. The wage offer from their employer of 1.75 per cent increase per year and their rejection of demands for mandatory anti-racism training are what pushed PSAC to walk away from the bargaining table.
The Treasury Board has said that they are committed to bargaining in good faith with PSAC.
“We will continue to take constructive steps to advance negotiations and continue to believe that a fair agreement can be reached at the bargaining table,” the Treasury Board said in an email to rabble.
Satinder Bains, a member of the Operational Services bargaining group, which is responsible for people such as firefighters, trades workers, storespeople, cooks, hospital workers and more, said that bargaining has been very frustrating. He said that the team is dealing with an employer that does not listen to members’ demands.
“I can’t express enough the importance of members demonstrating their support to the bargaining team,” Bains said to the crowd. “It’s what keeps us moving forward and gives us a lot of courage as well.”
Though the union still hopes to avoid a strike, they are beginning to hold actions to pressure the government to take them seriously at the bargaining table, according to Alex Silas, the PSAC Regional Executive Vice-President for the National Capital Region.
“We’re showing the employer today and with actions that will be happening over the next months that PSAC members are organized, mobilized and ready to fight for a fair contract. We’re ready to take that fight as far as we need to take it, up to and including a strike. We hope to avoid a strike but that is in the employer’s hands,” Silas said.
Silas said the Liberal government has committed to anti-racism in public but not in their contracts with employees. The action at Fortier’s office building is about “turning up the heat,” Silas said.
PSAC National President, Chris Aylward, said the action at Fortier’s office was a great show of support for the 160,000 federal public service employees who are just looking for respect. Aylward said the action also highlighted that the frustration expressed at the bargaining table represents the frustration of a large number of employees.
“Our members do support us in our bargaining demands that we currently have on the table. They agree that they just want a fair and decent collective agreement.,” Aylward said.
Aylward, like Silas, said the union wants to avoid a strike. He said that while the rally looked similar to what strike actions would look like. If the union is pushed to strike, it could mean hardship for many Canadians.
“We don’t want to withdraw our services,” Aylward said, “but if that’s what it comes down to, then you’re going to see delays at airports, border crossings and food won’t be inspected. It will be very inconvenient for Canadians coast to coast.”
Editor’s Note June 9: This story was updated to correct the year in which MP Mona Fortier became Treasury Board President.
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