Canada’s public service is here for you.

Learn more about the accomplishments and continuous work of Canada's largest union of professional employees in this year’s Annual Report.

Read the report online

The report includes a message from President Debi Daviau addressing some of 2020s most pressing issues including the COVID-19 response, Phoenix, outsourcing, defending public science, bargaining, and more.

A report from the Chief Operating Officer & Executive Secretary Edward Gillis outlines how the COVID-19 pandemic has challenged PIPSC but ultimately made the union stronger.

This year’s report features the stories of six dedicated PIPSC members from across Canada highlighting the work they do to represent and support members.

If your browser doesn’t support the online version, please download the PDF version.

In its November 30, 2020 Fall Economic Statement, the government announced a simplified tax process for Canadians claiming home office expenses:

“The CRA will allow employees working from home in 2020 due to COVID-19 with modest expenses to claim up to $400, based on the amount of time working from home, without the need to track detailed expenses, and will generally not request that people provide a signed form from their employers.” (Fall Economic Statement, section 4.8.3)

The CRA has provided more information about the simplified process for claiming the home office expenses for Canadians working from home due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The tens of thousands of PIPSC members who have been working from their homes since March may incur substantially more than $400 in expenses in the 2020 fiscal year. For this reason and until more details are provided by the CRA, members should continue to save their receipts and track work-related expenses. Proper accounting of these expenses is essential should additional tax measures be announced in the future. Please remember, employees must seek prior approval before purchasing work-related equipment. The Treasury Board has published guidelines on which telework tools can be provided and on the procedures to request them.

We will communicate more information to our members on this important matter as it becomes available.

You asked, we advocated, and the government delivered! We’re pleased that, starting November 16, 2020, the Government of Canada is implementing MyGCPay stub, which provides clear and detailed information to understand your pay stub.

ACCESS GCPAYSTUB

Important: you must be connected to the government’s network to access MyGCPay.

In past years, PIPSC members have requested clearer information about pay stubs. Whether it was in the PIPSC member survey, or in the Public Service Employee Survey, you made it clear that understanding your pay stub is especially important with all the uncertainty caused by the failed Phoenix pay system. 

The message was heard loud and clear through consultations and then in a pilot phase. MyGCPay stub is now accessible to all employees working in federal departments and agencies. Earnings, taxes and deductions are separated into distinct tabs. Commonly-used terminology is defined and acronyms are explained.

We salute the government’s willingness to complete this project. We’re looking forward to further collaboration to keep members informed about pay stubs, especially when we transition to the NextGen HR and pay system.

The PIPSC Human Rights and Diversity Committee held an anti-Black racism webinar on September 30, 2020. The event was opened by Jennie Esnard, PIPSC NCR Regional Director and Chair of the Human Rights and Diversity Committee, and moderated by the PIPSC Education staff.

The panelists were:

• Emilie Nicolas, award-winning Human Rights advocate and anthropologist
• Larry Rousseau, Vice-President of the Canadian Labour Congress

Participants got a sense of how anti-Black racism impacts Black families throughout Canada. We were reminded of the importance of listening to Black voices who speak up about injustice, and combating systemic racism in our institutions by standing up and demanding change. 

A rich question and answer period ensued. 

Watch the video recording of the session below. 

You may need to disconnect from the employer’s VPN to view the video, or try accessing the page from a personal device. 

Have questions about how to combat anti-Black racism in your workplace? Contact the PIPSC Black caucus.

As the PIPSC Vice-President responsible for the implementation of the Canadian Psychological Health Standard in our members’ workplaces, I encourage you to attend the upcoming Canada School of Public Service webinar, Bill C-65 and Its Impact on Workplace Harassment, Violence and Safety, which will be held on November 16^th from 1:30 pm to 3pm (Eastern).

Register for this important virtual event and don’t miss this excellent learning opportunity for members at all levels and occupations.

In these challenging times, our mental health must remain a priority. Be sure to look after yourself or reach out if you need help!  

Norma Domey
Vice-President, PIPSC

Members of the public service pension plan and benefits plans can sign up for a newly launched email notification system.

SIGN UP

This service will provide subscribers with important updates to the Public Service Pension Plan, the Public Service Health Care Plan, the Public Service Dental Plan, the Pensioners’ Dental Plan, and any other important employee or retiree benefit offered by the Treasury Board to federal public servants.

This notification service only provides general updates, not personalized information. If you have questions about your individual account, please review our pensions and benefits page for more information. PIPSC recommends that you consult the Treasury Board benefits information page before making any financial decision with respect to your pension, dental, and healthcare plans.

This new service is available for current and retired PIPSC members who belonged to a Treasury Board pension or benefits plans. If you are employed outside of the federal service, please visit our pensions and benefits page for more information.

On November 2, National Joint Council bargaining agents sent a strongly worded letter to Treasury Board President Jean-Yves Duclos expressing their anger over the recent introduction of new guidelines on the use of “Other Leave With Pay (699)”.  

This is our third letter to senior government ministers on this issue over the past few weeks. We first brought it to their attention in late August, and followed up in early October. While some improvements were made to the original draft guidelines, they still fail to take into account the very difficult circumstances that so many of our members still find themselves in. 

As unions, we have a responsibility to stand up for all our members, particularly the most vulnerable amongst us. We are asking the employer to hold off implementing these changes until at least January 2021 so our members can carry on with their existing parental or caregiver commitments, and to allow for further discussions with bargaining agents over that period.

If the government fails to address our remaining concerns over Code 699, public service bargaining agents will have little choice but to pursue formal recourse. We remain hopeful, however, that what should have been an entirely avoidable dispute will be resolved soon. Our members’ focus should be on continuing to serve Canadians, not on having to choose between work and personal or family obligations.