Over 150,000 federal workers set up Picket Lines across Canada on 6th Day of Strike

Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) members are on their sixth day of strike after weekend talks failed to reach an agreement. With over 150,000 federal workers walking off the job, this is the largest strike in Canadian history. According to a new report, the two parties made some progress toward reaching an agreement.

More than 150,000 federal workers and members of PSAC from the Treasury Board and the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) are on their sixth day of legal strike as the PSAC and the government failed to reach an agreement over the weekend. As per the PSAC website, picket lines are set up at several locations in the Ottawa-Gatineau area between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. These include:

1. Treasury Board headquarters at 90 Elgin Street

2. The Prime Minister’s Office on Wellington Street (picket 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.)

3. Tunney’s Pasture

4. Treasury Board President Mona Fortier’s office on Montreal Road

5. The Canada Post building on Heron Road

6. Liberal MP Marie-France Lalonde’s office on Centrum Boulevard

7. Liberal MP Greg Fergus riding office on Promenade du Portage in Gatineau

8. Liberal MP Steve McKinnon’s office on Boul. de l’hopital in Gatineau

Chris Aylward, PSAC national president, said on Sunday, “I’m hopeful that we’re going to be able to get a deal. I’m still hopeful that a deal is achievable and that we’re going to get our members back to work. We’re apart on a couple of the key issues but we’re going to continue working at it.”

He added that the two parties made “some progress” towards an agreement but they have not reached the end goal. The PSAC and the government are negotiating over wages, hybrid work arrangements, and job security. While talks with the Treasury Board have made progress, the same is not true for talks with the CRA.

The strike is affecting several government services including passport and immigration applications, as well as tax returns.

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