Tag Archives: FB

Strike action for more than 9,000 CBSA workers on hold as mediation continues until June 12

Strike action for more than 9,000 Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) workers across the country is on hold as the union and the government agreed to extend negotiations with the assistance of a mediator until June 12 to reach a fair contract for workers.

“We’ve paused all strike action as talks continue to reach a fair contract for workers,” said Sharon DeSousa, PSAC National President. “Our members keep our borders moving, goods flowing and our families safe, and deserve a contract that delivers fair wages, equitable retirement and makes CBSA a better place to work.”

All strike activities have been postponed as mediation continues into next week. A new strike deadline will be set in the coming days, and job action remains possible for CBSA workers if an agreement cannot be reached at the table.

“I’m hopeful we can reach a deal and avoid disruptions at Canada’s borders,” said Mark Weber, Customs and Immigration Union National President. “Our members are essential – protecting our borders, preventing auto theft and stopping illegal drugs and firearms from entering Canada – and they deserve a fair contract that treats them with respect and dignity in line with other law enforcement agencies across the country.”

Due to the sensitive nature of ongoing negotiations, the Public Service Alliance of Canada and the Customs and Immigration Union will not be providing media interviews during mediation.

This article was first posted on the PSAC website.

FB bargaining: Strike FAQ

The Border Services (FB) bargaining unit consists of over 9,000 PSAC-CIU members working at Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), who are responsible for protecting Canada’s borders and the planning, development, delivery, inspection and control of people and goods entering Canada.

The collective agreement expired in June 2022 and FB members have been without a contract for nearly two years.

The FB bargaining team is committed to reaching a fair contract that protects our hard-fought gains and provides new rights and protections for PSAC-CIU members.

Key issues at the bargaining table include:

Wage parity: FB members deserve fair wages that are aligned with other law enforcement agencies across the country – for both uniformed and non-uniformed members alike.
Stronger job security: CBSA’s approach to discipline is heavy-handed and leads to a toxic workplace culture. We need better protections for workers from management harassment and abuse of authority.
Access to telework: FB non-uniformed members deserve consistent and flexible access to telework options.
Protections from contracting out: The use of automated systems, untrained student workers and contracting out means higher costs, more risk, and reduced quality of services for Canadians. We need to end contracting out and fight for good, secure public service jobs.

We’ve also made it clear that if this government is serious about achieving a new collective agreement, Treasury Board President Anita Anand must honour the commitment made during the last round of bargaining and make equitable 25-and-out retirement a reality for FB members. Law enforcement personnel at CBSA deserve the same treatment and retirement benefits as their counterparts in other law enforcement agencies.

Following the release of our strike mandate, many of you are asking what happens now. Your bargaining team will be in mediation starting June 3rd.

To provide members with as much information as possible, we have compiled key questions and answers. This page will be updated periodically, check back for more information.

FULL FB FAQ ON PSAC WEBSITE CLICK HERE

Next steps

If you have any other questions, please contact your branch president, your PSAC regional office, or refer to the PSAC Strike Manual. You can also participate in a strike and essential services training session, which will expand on many of these themes in more detail. Training sessions are being scheduled. Stay tuned for more information.

We make tremendous gains when we exercise our right to strike. It’s one of our most effective tools to ensure the employer understands we deserve respect and listens to our demands. Keep these things in mind when you speak with your family, people in your community, and other union members. We are stronger together.

This article was originally posted on the PSAC website.

More than 9,000 Canada Border Services Agency workers begin job action Friday if agreement not reached

The clock is ticking to avoid a nationwide strike at Canada’s borders by more than 9,000 Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) employees. Members of the Public Service Alliance of Canada and the Customs and Immigration Union (CIU) will begin job action across the country starting June 7 at 4 p.m. ET if an agreement is not reached at the table with CBSA and Treasury Board this week.

“We are still hopeful that we can reach an agreement to avoid strike action and any potential delays at Canada’s borders,” said Sharon DeSousa, PSAC National President. “But the clock is ticking for Trudeau’s Liberal government to get to work on a fair contract for our members.”

PSAC members in the FB bargaining group have been without a contract for over two years. Key issues in this round of bargaining include fair wages that are aligned with other law enforcement agencies across the country, flexible telework and remote work options, equitable retirement benefits for CBSA law enforcement personnel and stronger workplace protections.

Job action by CBSA personnel in 2021 nearly brought commercial cross-border traffic to a standstill, causing major delays at airports and borders across the country and a marathon 36-hour bargaining session to reach an agreement.

“Our members have overwhelmingly told us they are prepared to fight for fair wages, equitable retirement and to make CBSA a better place to work,” said Mark Weber, CIU National President. “It’s time for the government to step up for CBSA employees.”

The two sides remain in negotiations this week with the assistance of a mediator in a last-ditch effort to reach an agreement.

This article was originally posted on the PSAC website.

Pending FB strike: A message from the National President regarding voluntary overtime

Anyone who has worked for CBSA will know how entrenched overtime is within the Agency. For the employer, it is the preferred tool for managing chronic staffing shortages. For many of our members, it provides an important percentage of their total annual compensation. Under normal circumstances, our members want to work overtime and the employer is happy to oblige — indeed, most grievances filed regarding overtime are about not getting enough of it.

But these are not normal times.

Within a few short days, as early as Thursday June 6, the FB bargaining unit will be in a legal strike position. Most of our FB members, however, are designated essential and will be on the job. While that means they will have a legal obligation to fulfill the duties of their position, this comes with absolutely no obligation to volunteer for overtime.

In fact, starting today and until a tentative agreement has been secured, we are asking all of our FB members to think carefully before volunteering to work extra hours. It’s one thing to be ordered to work overtime by management, who certainly has the right to issue such an order. It’s quite another thing altogether to volunteer to work overtime for an employer who systematically seeks to undermine our collective rights by pushing for concessions at the table, round after round.

Every member of the FB bargaining team will tell you that the employer has yet to agree to any of our key demands, and has certainly not volunteered to do so. Not on retirement, not on wages, not on telework, not on job security, and certainly not on detoxifying the workplace. Why then volunteer to help management deal with scheduling gaps, when CBSA won’t voluntarily address a single gap in our collective agreement?

Strikes are a last resort that succeed through solidarity and sacrifice. To get a fair deal, we all need to be in this together.

Thank you and in solidarity,

Mark Weber
CIU National President

Clock ticking on border strike as union representing CBSA personnel receives Public Interest Commission recommendations

A potential strike looms at border crossings across the country for more than 9,000 workers at Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) following the release of the Public Interest Commission (PIC) report.

The release of the report – outlining the Commission’s recommendations to reach a settlement – starts the clock on job action and puts workers in a legal strike position as of Thursday, June 6.

CBSA personnel represented by the Public Service Alliance of Canada and the Customs and Immigration Union (PSAC-CIU) voted 96% in favour of taking strike action earlier this month.

“The clock is ticking,” said Sharon DeSousa, PSAC National President-elect. “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.”

“Taking job action is always a last resort, but the overwhelming support for our strike mandate – with 96% of our members in favour – show that we are prepared to do whatever it takes to win a fair contract,” said Mark Weber, Customs and Immigration Union National President.

PSAC will be in mediated negotiations with Treasury Board and CBSA beginning June 3 in an effort to reach an agreement and avert job action. PSAC is hopeful the employer will return to the bargaining table with a renewed mandate to secure a contract that addresses the key outstanding issues at the table for members.

Workers have been without a contract for over two years, yet Treasury Board and CBSA are still not prepared to negotiate an agreement that protects workers, and continue to demand concessions at the bargaining table.

CBSA personnel are calling for fair wages in line with other law enforcement agencies across the country and equitable retirement benefits.

Almost all law enforcement and public safety workers — both provincially and municipally — receive early retirement benefits, with very few exceptions. This includes firefighters, air traffic controllers, RCMP constables, operational employees of the Correctional Service of Canada, and more. FB group members deserve access to the same retirement provisions.

“Treasury Board President Anita Anand and the Liberal government can make this right and put forward the legislative changes required to provide CBSA personnel the same early retirement benefits as other law enforcement agencies in Canada, allowing them to retire with dignity,” said DeSousa.

The full PIC report, containing non-binding recommendations for reaching a new collective agreement, is available at the Federal Public Sector and Labour Relations and Employment Board website.

This article was originally posted on the PSAC website.