Public service union seeks more relief for workers affected by Phoenix pay system

OTTAWA – The largest union in the federal public service is hoping the government uses this week’s budget to set aside money for workers still facing issues from the Phoenix pay system.

Chris Aylward, president of the Public Service Alliance of Canada, says some government workers still find themselves overpaid or underpaid some six years after the new pay system was launched.

He says the federal government needs to hire more advisers to sift and address thousands of outstanding pay cases sitting in a government backlog.

Some of those cases date back to 2016 when the government turned the switch on Phoenix.

The new system was supposed to consolidate dozens of separate and antiquated pay systems and save the government millions annually but resulted in massive upheaval and problems getting people properly paid.

Aylward says that there are still issues for workers transferred between departments and agencies who have to wait months for their pay to catch up to their job change.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 5, 2022.