Federal budget targets public service for cuts, PSAC will defend members, jobs, services

The March 4 federal budget freezes federal departmental spending.   The government announced they want to balance the budget on the backs of public service workers – a direct threat to our jobs and the services we deliver.

Our hard-won collective agreements are protected and are in force.  PSAC members will receive their scheduled wage increases of 1.5%, as well as increments and all other benefits that they are entitled to.

Our federal employers have a legal responsibility to bargain in good faith, and our union is already preparing for the next round of bargaining.  We can expect employers to come to the table looking for concessions, and we must prepare to fight back.

Management will likely propose layoffs and job cuts to deal with the budget freeze.  Our union will fight any cuts and any proposed reduction in workforce.   We will enforce our job security rights in our collective agreements.

We must speak out against cuts.  Speaking out works.  We saw this when the budget did not cut our pensions because we took action in the workplace.   More than 50,000 people signed our petition calling on the government to protect our pensions and ensure retirement security for all.

But our actions to protect our pensions must continue, even as we begin our campaign against the spending freeze. While the budget did not announce cuts to our pensions or changes to our contribution rates, it did say that the government would assess compensation, including pensions, against other jurisdictions to determine if our “compensation is reasonable”. 

Take action now:

1. Go to psac-afpc.com/federal-budget and sign up to receive updated information on the impact of the budget.

2. Sign the pension petition and help collect more signatures.  Our actions may have stopped the government for now, but the fight is far from over.   

3. Report to your local executive any cuts or proposed reduction in workforce by management in your workplace.

4. Get involved in PSAC’s campaign to protect quality public services. Stay posted for future workplace and community actions.

5. Write letters to the editor and participate in online forums – help us send the message that this economic crisis wasn’t caused by workers and won’t be solved on our backs.