[Canada] Call for ongoing damages on Phoenix pay system’s 8th anniversary

In Canada, unions representing more than 260,000 federal public sector workers have urged the government to negotiate ongoing damages for workers who continue to be impacted by the Phoenix pay system disaster, Cision reports.

The Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC), The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC) and the Canadian Association of Professional Employees (CAPE) formally requested the Treasury Board to begin negotiating an extension of the Phoenix general damages agreements and the severe damages claims process to compensate workers until they are paid properly and on time – every time.

Despite federal unions reportedly negotiating Phoenix general damages settlements in 2019 and 2020, there is no end in sight for federal workers who continue to experience pay issues years later and see the same problems paycheque after paycheque.

"As we mark the 8th year of the disastrous Phoenix pay system, tens of thousands of workers continue to endure endless pay problems," Chris Aylward - PSAC National President - said. "Workers deserve to be compensated for the pain and suffering they still face at the hands of a broken pay system."

Canadian households are all battling the rising cost of living. However, the 380,000 federal workers impacted by Phoenix cannot guarantee they will be able to pay their rent, cover their mortgage or pay for groceries due to significant and ongoing errors on their paycheques.

There are reportedly 444,000 transactions ready to be processed by the Public Service Pay Centre with an escalating Phoenix backlog that is leading to frustration and hardship for workers. 

"Public servants – like all Canadians – deserve to be paid accurately and on time," Jennifer Carr - PIPSC President - said. "Despite promises to 'fix Phoenix', eight years later the federal government can only meet its own service standards 25% of the time, not even close to their own 95% target. That is completely unacceptable." 

Phoenix's issues continue to plague federal workers as they are overpaid, underpaid or not paid at all by the broken system and each pay period reportedly brings further uncertainty, with many putting off advancing their career or retiring from the public service.

The growing backlog of pay issues and wait times to fix pay issues are also harming the mental health of workers and have damaging tax implications, as pay problems follow them long after they've changed jobs, left the public service or retired.

"The Phoenix pay system marks one of the most expensive and harmful pay system modernization failures in the history of the Canadian federal government," Nathan Prier - President of CAPE - said. "Federal public sector workers deserve better than having their contracts broken on a biweekly basis for eight years. We will not rest until all workers fully compensated and this issue is resolved once and for all."

Source: Cision

(LInks and quotes via original reporting)

In Canada, unions representing more than 260,000 federal public sector workers have urged the government to negotiate ongoing damages for workers who continue to be impacted by the Phoenix pay system disaster, Cision reports.

The Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC), The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC) and the Canadian Association of Professional Employees (CAPE) formally requested the Treasury Board to begin negotiating an extension of the Phoenix general damages agreements and the severe damages claims process to compensate workers until they are paid properly and on time – every time.

Despite federal unions reportedly negotiating Phoenix general damages settlements in 2019 and 2020, there is no end in sight for federal workers who continue to experience pay issues years later and see the same problems paycheque after paycheque.

"As we mark the 8th year of the disastrous Phoenix pay system, tens of thousands of workers continue to endure endless pay problems," Chris Aylward - PSAC National President - said. "Workers deserve to be compensated for the pain and suffering they still face at the hands of a broken pay system."

Canadian households are all battling the rising cost of living. However, the 380,000 federal workers impacted by Phoenix cannot guarantee they will be able to pay their rent, cover their mortgage or pay for groceries due to significant and ongoing errors on their paycheques.

There are reportedly 444,000 transactions ready to be processed by the Public Service Pay Centre with an escalating Phoenix backlog that is leading to frustration and hardship for workers. 

"Public servants – like all Canadians – deserve to be paid accurately and on time," Jennifer Carr - PIPSC President - said. "Despite promises to 'fix Phoenix', eight years later the federal government can only meet its own service standards 25% of the time, not even close to their own 95% target. That is completely unacceptable." 

Phoenix's issues continue to plague federal workers as they are overpaid, underpaid or not paid at all by the broken system and each pay period reportedly brings further uncertainty, with many putting off advancing their career or retiring from the public service.

The growing backlog of pay issues and wait times to fix pay issues are also harming the mental health of workers and have damaging tax implications, as pay problems follow them long after they've changed jobs, left the public service or retired.

"The Phoenix pay system marks one of the most expensive and harmful pay system modernization failures in the history of the Canadian federal government," Nathan Prier - President of CAPE - said. "Federal public sector workers deserve better than having their contracts broken on a biweekly basis for eight years. We will not rest until all workers fully compensated and this issue is resolved once and for all."

Source: Cision

(LInks and quotes via original reporting)