Workers with the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) have voted overwhelmingly in favour of taking strike action, should a strike be determined necessary, after a two-month-long voting process.
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Canada Revenue Agency workers vote in favour of taking strike action
The union and the CRA previously agreed to resume negotiations with talks scheduled for April 17-20
The deadline for members to submit their votes was noon on Friday.
“We’re getting a strong strike mandate and it was fully expected, so I’m happy to see that our members have supported their bargaining team and our union,” said UTE National President Marc Brière in an interview with this newspaper. “It’s getting more expensive out there and people are having a hard time, and they have obligations to meet and they deserve to have a contract.”
PSAC and UTE launched nationwide strike votes for over 35,000 workers at the CRA in January after talks broke down with the government over wages and remote work, with the union declaring an impasse last September after eight months of negotiations. Union members, according to Brière, have been without a contract for almost a year and a half.
Tax collectors and auditors used to work alongside border services workers inside the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency, but that agency was split into two separate agencies in 2003.
Since then, Brière said in a previous interview with this newspaper, CBSA employees enforcing the Excise Act have opened a nine per cent wage gap with CRA employees who administer the Income Tax Act.
The CRA has in the past rejected that job comparison.
“We’ve been at the bargaining table with CRA for a little over a year now and things in that year haven’t gone well,” said PSAC National President Chris Aylward in an interview, stating that the government has yet to put a wage offer on the table. “The workers at CRA have sent a powerful message to the employer that they’re ready to take a stand and show the government that we’re prepared to fight for a decent contract for workers.”
Aylward could not share the exact results of the vote for and against strike action, but noted that more than half of the 35,000 CRA members took part in the process.
Last week, it was announced that PSAC-UTE and the CRA agreed to resume negotiations with the assistance of a third-party mediator to reach a fair contract for workers, with talks scheduled for April 17-20. While PSAC-UTE had asked the CRA to resume negotiations as early as April 11, the agency wanted to meet with the assistance of a mediator, who was unavailable until the following week.
Brière said the union is still open to going back to the table earlier, noting that the strike vote announcement should serve as a notice to both the CRA and the Treasury Board, which dictates the CRA’s bargaining mandate.
The earliest CRA members could go on strike is next Friday, according to Aylward, 30 days after the signing of an essential services agreement. That means that a strike could technically begin before negotiations resume.
Brière said he will have a “watchful eye” on another set of negotiations between the Treasury Board and PSAC that will continue to take place next week, as he said they will likely provide insights on how negotiations will go with CRA members. Strike votes for over 120,000 Treasury Board members end on April 11.
“If (negotiations) go really badly, nothing’s preventing us from going out on the Friday,” he said. “It’s possible but right now, it’s far from being sure, we’re looking to go back to the table.”
The agency is confident both sides can find “many areas of potential compromise and trade-off, requiring honest discussions and concessions by both sides.”
The deadline for most Canadians to file their taxes is on April 30. Aylward said going on strike is not the union’s first choice, though they will be leveraging the time of year in hopes of coming to an agreement with the federal government.
“We’re on the verge of having an unprecedented number of people with a strike mandate at the same time, especially during the tax season,” Brière said. “If they don’t want to deal with these issues and aren’t willing to work with us to hammer out a deal then we’re going to have to flex our muscles.”
With files from Andrew Duffy
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TORONTO – MLSE president and CEO Keith Pelley and Toronto FC’s top officials have promised change at the ailing MLS club, which is sitting out the playoffs for the fourth straight season.
Pelley says while the franchise’s entire organizational structure is under review, it is going to take some time to find the right answers.
Coach John Herdman says he is looking for young, athletic and durable talent to help turn around a club which he said started the season strongly but finished weakly.
Toronto (11-19-4) was eliminated from playoff contention in a 1-0 loss Oct. 5 to visiting Inter Miami. It will watch the regular season finale from the sidelines, with a bye the final weekend.
Toronto has not made the playoffs since 2020, when it exited at the first hurdle in an upset loss to expansion Nashville. Its regular-season record since then is 30-75-21, with coaches Chris Armas and Bob Bradley fired along the way.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 17, 2024
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
HAMILTON – There’ll be no playoff games this year for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats but head coach Scott Milanovich feels the club can get a head start on changing that narrative in 2025.
Hamilton hosts Calgary on Friday night in a battle between two non-playoff teams. The Ticats will finish fourth in the East Division while the Stampeders remain fifth in the West, three points behind idle Edmonton with two regular-season games remaining.
“There’s momentum that can be built at the end of the season,” said Milanovich, who’s completing his first season as Hamilton’s head coach/offensive coordinator. “I’ve been part of situations where momentum was built and then the following season it took off.
“What I don’t want to have happen is have a lull where you lose what we’ve kind of started building over the last six weeks. I want to take that into the off-season and training camp.”
Hamilton (6-10) played itself back into playoff contention with four straight victories before suffering a 31-10 home loss to Winnipeg on Oct. 4. The Toronto Argonauts (9-7) eliminated the Ticats from post-season contention with a 14-11 road win over the Blue Bombers last Friday.
For some coaches, that would present an opportunity to audition new players under game conditions. But Milanovich said his priority is to field the best team possible in order to secure the victory, although he did leave the door open to getting backup quarterback Taylor Powell some reps down the stretch.
“He may not play, I’m not making any promises,” Milanovich said. “But other than him we’re playing the best guys available.”
With that in mind, rookie Greg Bell will start at running back ahead of veteran James Butler, who’ll come off the roster. Cornerback Jamal Peters (neck) is out while defensive lineman Nick Usher (ankle) returns.
For Calgary (4-11-1), receiver Cam Echols (head) comes into the lineup while receiver Cam Tucker (hamstring) goes off.
Hamilton starter Bo Levi Mitchell will get a second shot at earning his first win over his former team. Mitchell, who spent his first 10 CFL seasons with Calgary before joining the Ticats in 2023, completed 27-of-38 passes for 300 yards with a TD and interception in a 32-24 season-opening road loss to the Stampeders on June 7.
Mitchell leads the CFL in passing yards (4,576), touchdowns (26) and interceptions (16). The 34-year-old Texan, a two-time Grey Cup champion and twice the league’s outstanding player, is closing in on his third 5,000-yard passing campaign.
The contest is Hamilton’s last this season at Tim Hortons Field, where it is 3-5. But the Ticats have won three of their last four home games against Calgary.
Life on the road has been miserable for the Stampeders, who’re 0-7 this season away from McMahon Stadium. In fact, they’re just 1-12 in their last 13 games away from home.
Having said that, though, Calgary is looking for its first season sweep of Hamilton since 2018.
“We’re trying to win, that’s the first priority and will always be,” Dave Dickenson, Calgary’s head coach/GM, told reporters in the Alberta city this week. “We’ll probably rotate more, for sure we will … but we still expect the same performance and the same execution no matter who plays.”
American Matt Shiltz will start at quarterback for Calgary. He was 18-of-33 passing for 215 yards with a TD an interception in the Stamps’ 23-18 home loss to Edmonton (6-11) last week while rushing five times for 64 yards.
Shiltz spent two seasons in Hamilton (2022-23) before joining the Stampeders in free agency.
“I think he did some good things for us (versus Edmonton),” Dickenson said of Shiltz. “He’s going up against his former team and probably has some familiarity there but different coaches.
“Hopefully he feels good with how our offence is structured and can make plays.”
Calgary is riding an eight-game winless streak (0-7-1) and sports a 2-4-1 record against East Division teams. Hamilton is 2-7 versus the West Division.
Both teams will finish their season on the road. Hamilton travels to Ottawa on Oct. 25 while Calgary visits Saskatchewan the following night.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 17, 2024.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
TORONTO – Immanuel Quickley is questionable for the Toronto Raptors final pre-season game.
The guard has missed Toronto’s first four tune-up games with a sprained thumb.
Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic says that Quickley has been cleared for all practice and team activities but that the team would be cautious about putting him into an actual game.
Toronto visits the Brooklyn Nets on Friday to close out its pre-season, then hosts the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday in its home opener.
Quickley moved over to point guard after the Raptors acquired him on Dec. 30 in a trade with the New York Knicks.
He averaged 18.6 points, 6.8 assists and 4.8 rebounds in 38 games for Toronto in that new role last season.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 17, 2024.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
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