Tag Archives: phoenix

Get reimbursed for Phoenix-related tax issues

As the tax filing deadline quickly approaches, we know that Phoenix has made tax season extra stressful for many public service workers. PSAC has long-secured measures to help alleviate some of the tax-related financial losses caused by Phoenix pay problems.

Frequently Asked Questions: 2018 Tax Implications of Phoenix payroll issues

Reimbursement for tax advice

Public service workers impacted by Phoenix can reach out to tax experts to help determine if there are errors on their T4s and determine whether there are tax implications for those errors. Members can be reimbursed for this tax advice up to $200 per year (taxes included).

To file a claim, complete this online form.

More information can be found at Claims for expenses and financial losses due to Phoenix: reimbursement for tax advice.

Claim for impacts to income taxes and government benefits

Those who have been impacted by Phoenix may also be facing financial loss due to the incorrect reporting of their salaries. Often this is due to:

overpayments put an individual into a higher tax bracket, causing them to owe more in income taxes, or
the increased income caused an individual to be ineligible, or eligible for less, government benefits and credits such as the Canada child benefit.

To find out if you are eligible to be reimbursed for these types of financial losses, go to Claims for expenses and financial losses due to Phoenix: Claim for impacts to income taxes and government benefits.

Claim out-of-pocket expenses

Anyone who has been financially impacted by Phoenix, tax-related or not, may also be eligible to claim out-of-pocket expenses. Out-of-pocket expenses include things like penalty fees, interest charges, or NSF (non-sufficient funds) charges.

Visit Additional Financial Expenses Incurred Because of Phoenix Pay System Errors to get more information and fill out the claim form.

The original version of this article was first posted on the PSAC website.

Phoenix: PSAC Launches Here for Canada National TV Ad Campaign

The Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) is launching a national television ad campaign to highlight the dedication of public service workers throughout the Phoenix pay system disaster, which has now been going on for two and a half years. Despite missed paycheques, fending off debt collectors, and managing endless uncertainty, PSAC members have continued to be here for Canada.

“Most people would quit their job if their employer stopped paying them properly, but federal public service workers keep showing up to work day after day,” said Chris Aylward, PSAC National President.

“They continue to protect our borders, ensure our food is safe, and provide other vital functions like getting out pension cheques, child benefits, and EI. We want to make sure Canadians understand their unwavering commitment to keep providing the services they depend on,” said Chris Aylward, PSAC National President.

PSAC is also launching a second video online as part of the Here for Canada campaign. It features testimonials of the damage caused by Phoenix.

“So many families have suffered major hardships because of Phoenix. It’s important to share their stories and ensure that everyone knows about the toll it has taken on people’s lives,” said Magali Picard, PSAC National Executive Vice-President. “Phoenix is still causing problems for thousands of our members and the government needs to do more to end this nightmare.”

A version of this article was posted on the PSAC website.

Phoenix: New Training Must Be Accessible to All Employees

After almost two years after launching the disastrous Phoenix pay system, the government has finally rolled out basic training for all employees.

“This is the kind of training that should be provided before rolling out a new pay system, not two years after the fact,” said PSAC National President Robyn Benson. “Now that it is finally available, the employer must act to ensure all employees are given the time and resources to do the training.”

PSAC reminds our members that they are entitled to take the training during their work hours.

“While this comes two years too late, we nevertheless encourage all of our members to take the training,” said Benson. “But, the employer must ensure all employees timely access to the training and that they are given sufficient time to complete the training at work.”

Important information for everyone paid by Phoenix

Whatever your position, occupational group or employment status (for example, indeterminate, term or student), if you are paid through Phoenix, this training is for you.

These courses are intended to explain how human resources information that affects your pay (such as your work schedule, leave and overtime) is fed into Phoenix, and how to ensure you enter the correct information into the system.

Courses will be tailored for employees, managers, human resources staff, and compensation advisors.

The initial courses will be web-based and are available through GCpedia, on the government’s intranet. Additional courses will be delivered in person.

More information

All employees should be receiving a message with information about the training, including links to the online courses. Treasury Board has prepared a Frequently Asked Questions document with additional information.

If you have trouble gaining access to this training, or if you are not being given sufficient time during work hours to complete the training, please contact your local PSAC representative.

This article was first published on the PSAC website.

Treasury Board Changes Compensatory Leave Cash Out

This year, employees must request the cash out.

Treasury Board has issued an information bulletin to departments regarding the automatic cash out of compensatory leave. Departments are directed to temporarily change the process so that employees must request the cash out. If they do not ask for the cash out, the compensatory leave credits will remain in their leave bank and be useable until September 30, 2018.

The change is another result of the flawed Phoenix pay system that cannot cope with a large automatic payout at this time. PSAC is continuing to work with the government to address Phoenix problems. Extending access to compensatory leave over a longer period of time is necessary to prevent further problems with pay.

Normally, any banked compensatory leave credits would automatically be cashed out as of September 30 each year.

A version of this article was also published on the PSAC website.

Phoenix: PSAC Negotiates New Measures to Attract and Retain Compensation Advisors

PSAC has negotiated a Memorandum of Understanding with Treasury Board to address recruitment and retention of compensation advisors. The aim is to ensure the government has enough staff resources to deal with the many problems related to the Phoenix pay system.

Recruitment and retention incentives

To address the staff shortage, we have negotiated measures to improve recruitment and retention of compensation advisors who work under Treasury Board. The measures include:

Compensation advisor retention allowances for current staff, new recruits, and former retirees who return to work
Improvements to overtime, carry-over or cash-out of vacation leave, and compensatory leave
An independent job content and classification process for all PSPC compensation Advisor employees at the AS 1, 2 & 3 levels

Shortage of compensation staff

When the former Conservative government consolidated the federal public service pay system, hundreds of compensation advisors were laid off. The expertise and experience of those workers was lost. When Phoenix went live in 2016, there were not enough staff to deal with the problems it caused.

Although the government has tried to bring back former compensation staff, the pay centre in Miramichi and the satellite pay offices remain understaffed.

“We hope that these measures will bring in more compensation staff so that Phoenix-related problems are addressed more efficiently. All federal public service workers deserve to be paid on time and correctly,” said Robyn Benson, PSAC National President.

Additional information:

Q&A on Compensation Advisor Memorandum of Understanding [PSAC website]
Memorandum of Understanding regarding incentives [PDF]

A version of this article was also published on the PSAC website.