TB bargaining: Upcoming strike votes for PA, TC, and EB groups
PSAC announces strike votes for 120,000 federal public service workers
October 21, 2026
PSAC announced nationwide strike votes today for 120,000 federal public service workers in response to Treasury Board’s insulting wage proposal, push for concessions, and refusal to address critical workplace issues.
Strike votes for members in the Program and Administrative Services (PA), Technical Services (TC), and Education and Library Science (EB)bargaining groups will take place from November 16, 2026, to January 22, 2027.
“We want to negotiate a fair deal, but by pushing pay cuts and refusing to discuss any of our key issues, Treasury Board has given us no choice but to take strike votes,” said Sharon DeSousa, PSAC national president. “Federal public service workers are the backbone of this country: protecting communities, supporting veterans, responding when disaster strikes, and delivering the benefits people rely on every day. We will not let this government find its budget savings on the backs of workers.”
While PSAC continues to bargain in good faith, Treasury Board has stonewalled our efforts on important issues, even though other federal employers have already included similar provisions in their contracts.
Strike information and voting sessions will take place between November and January. Dates, locations, and registration details for information and voting sessions will be shared on October 28. Members will receive an email containing their voting credentials from communications@psac-afpc.vote.
How we got here
For a year and a half, the employer has refused to negotiate key issues, including fair wages, job security, remote work, and protections against artificial intelligence.
In April, the employer tabled a wage offer that averages less than 1% per year — a pay increase of just $58 per month over the life of the agreement. That’s a clear pay cut for workers who continue to absorb rising costs for food, rent, transportation, childcare, and other essentials while their wages move in the opposite direction.
Additionally, the employer is pushing several concessions that would significantly weaken workers’ rights, including:
- Removing workforce adjustment and the dental care plan from collective bargaining, stripping away our ability to negotiate job security and benefits improvements in future rounds.
- Expanding the normal daily work-hour window, allowing management to schedule workers at unusual hours without providing additional compensation.
- Increasing management discretion and control, making it harder for members to access provisions and leave they are entitled to.
What’s at stake
Workers in the PA, TC, and EB bargaining groups deliver critical public services across Canada, including as wildland firefighters, passport and benefit officers, fishery officers, federal teachers and librarians, and administrative professionals.
In 2023, 155,000 PSAC members across federal bargaining units spent 12 days on the picket line to secure a fair deal. Members have proven they will do whatever it takes to strengthen worker protections and will not allow Treasury Board to erode what has already been won.
“A strike is always our last resort, but we aren’t going to let Treasury Board roll back the rights we’ve fought so hard to win,” said DeSousa. “The employer is underestimating the strength of our members. We are organized, united, and ready to do whatever it takes to get the fair deal workers deserve.”
Topics:
Employers:
Wear black this Wednesday for bargaining and wear red this Friday for Wainwright
In light of the devastating fire at CFB Wainwright over the weekend, our thoughts are with the families, military personnel, civilian workers, emergency personnel, and the entire community impacted by this tragedy, including the hundreds of PSAC members who work on this base.
After consulting with the Union of National Defence Employees (UNDE), the PSAC component representing our members working at National Defence and on military bases across the country, we will still proceed with our Day of Solidarity tomorrow, Wednesday, October 21.
We encourage members across Canada to wear black to show our Treasury Board bargaining teams that we have their backs.
Can we count on you to wear black and talk to your coworkers about bargaining?
We also invite all members to join the UNDE in turning our workplaces red this Friday, October 23. Let’s come together to show our support for PSAC-UNDE members working at CFB Wainwright, as well as the families, military personnel, civilian workers, emergency personnel, and the entire community impacted by this tragedy.
In moments like these, we are reminded of the strength of our union and the power of community. As we move forward with Treasury Board bargaining, we do so with the Wainwright community firmly in our thoughts.
Share your photos using #PSACTogether and #RedForWainwright so we can highlight our nationwide solidarity.
Two days of solidarity. One united union. We are stronger together.
#PSACTogether
#RedForWainwright
The math
We’ve heard concerns from members about affordability. It seems like everything is more expensive and it is hard or impossible to make ends meet.
A labour dispute is always a last resort. Our bargaining team is working hard to avoid that. They need our support to obtain the best deal possible for us.
Bargaining is about more than just wages, but they are a big part of the picture.
The attached spreadsheet can be used to see a rough (low) estimate of what accepting the treasury board’s offer would cost you. Today, and over time. Enter your annual salary in the green box, and the rest of the numbers will automatically calculate. The red totals are the cost of accepting the offer. The green numbers are the cost of each day spent on a picket line.
The numbers are shocking! Can you afford to the cost of accepting the treasury board’s offer?
Reminder: It’s tonight and you are invited!
October 7, 2026 at 7 pm
Please join your local 581 Executive for a general meeting on October 7, 2026 at 7pm. This meeting is taking place virtually on ZOOM, and will run from 7pm to 8:30pm.
We will have a special guest speaker – Mandy Forget. Mandy is on the bargaining team and is going to provide an update on how bargaining is going. We will also briefly address the trusteeship of the CEIU and have an update on our finances. One of the PSAC regional representatives will also be at the meeting.
This will be an interesting meeting and we encourage everyone to come out!
Your CEIU Local 581 executive
Zoom link shared on our private Facebook page and through internal email to ensure it is only available to members of our local.
PA bargaining: We need your support and solidarity as bargaining heats up
Our PA bargaining team is heading back to the table with Treasury Board and a third-party mediator on September 21–22 and 29–30.
Treasury Board continues to push concessions and an insulting wage offer that doesn’t keep up with the cost of living. PA members keep critical government programs running every day and deserve respect. Let’s show Treasury Board we’re united in the fight for a fair deal.
Send an email to your MP right now to demand they pressure the government to come to the table with a fair contract that respects federal public service workers. It takes less than two minutes and can create the political pressure we need to move the needle.
What are we fighting for?
Our bargaining team is committed to securing a fair contract and will continue pushing for improvements on key member priorities, including:
- Fair wages: Rejecting an insulting wage offer that amounts to a pay cut during a cost-of-living crisis.
- Job security: Protecting members against job cuts as nearly 15,000 PSAC members have received workforce adjustment notices — over 70% of whom are women.
- Remote work: Securing clear, enforceable protections in our collective agreement.
- AI guardrails: Establishing strict protections around artificial intelligence and workplace surveillance.
- Improved leave: Pushing for improved leave provisions and reproductive health supports.
- Mental health and safety: Winning enforceable language on workload, alongside mental health support and stress reduction measures for frontline and call centre workers.
Read our full bargaining proposals and review past updates on the PA bargaining page.
Show your support and solidarity
There are many ways to support our bargaining team in the fight for a fair agreement and stay involved:
- Send an email to your MP demanding a fair deal.
- Get informed with PSAC’s Treasury Board bargaining FAQ.
- Take action by wearing black for bargaining on the next Day of Solidarity.
- Show your support at work with our “I Support My Bargaining Team” materials.
- Get in touch with your PSAC regional office or local to arrange for information sessions.
- Connect with the team by inviting a bargaining team member to speak at your next union meeting or event.
This Wednesday, show the employer that workers are united
In two days, PSAC members across Canada will wear black to show support for our Treasury Board bargaining teams.
On Wednesday, September 16, wear black and encourage your coworkers to do the same to send a clear message to Treasury Board that PSAC members are ready to fight for the contract we deserve.
As bargaining and mediation ramps up this month, it’s time for us to come together and show the employer that workers are united. Can we count on your support?
Share your photos from the day using #PSACTogether so we can show the employer what solidarity looks like across the country.
Have questions about Treasury Board bargaining?
We’ve launched a new Treasury Board bargaining FAQ with answers to your questions about what we’re fighting for, what happens next, and how you can support our bargaining teams.
See you in black this Wednesday!
#PSACTogether
In case you’re looking for this petition and having trouble finding it:
e-7531 (Foreign affairs)
Petition to the House of Commons
Whereas:
- U.S Ambassador Pete Hoekstra has repeatedly made public statements undermining the Canada-U.S. diplomatic relations, including characterizing the 2025 Canadian federal election as “anti-American”;
- Ambassador Hoekstra has normalized the Trump administration’s threats to annex Canada as the “51st state,” describing such rhetoric as a “term of endearment”;
- Ambassador Hoekstra has accused Canada of interfering in U.S. domestic politics while himself making repeated interventions in Canadian political discourse inconsistent with diplomatic protocol;
- Ambassador Hoekstra has been linked to a Michigan-based voter identification app used by the Alberta separatist Centurion Project, while claiming no knowledge of its use; and
- The Alberta Prosperity Project met with U.S. State Department officials three times between April 2025 and January 2026, with Hoekstra claiming no knowledge of those meetings, raising serious questions about U.S. diplomatic interference in Canadian unity.
We, the undersigned, residents of Canada, call upon the Government of Canada to:
1. Formally declare Pete Hoekstra persona non grata and request his removal as U.S. Ambassador to Canada;
2. Raise with the United States the pattern of conduct by Ambassador Hoekstra inconsistent with the Vienna convention on Diplomatic Relations; and
3. Direct a parliamentary committee to review U.S. diplomatic interference in Canadian domestic affairs.
https://www.ourcommons.ca/petitions/en/Petition/Details?Petition=e-7531
July 15: Wear black to support your bargaining team
As bargaining and mediation continues, we need to show Treasury Board that our solidarity is unshakeable and that we are not going to back down.
On Wednesday, July 15, the day before the TC bargaining team begins mediation, join PSAC members across the country and wear black in support of our bargaining teams.
Can we count on your participation?
Uniform requirements?
If you can’t wear black due to workplace uniform rules, use one of our stickers to show your support.
These templates are designed for Avery 22830 white round labels and can be printed at home or requested directly from your PSAC regional office.
Other ways to support the Day of Solidarity
- Register for a national virtual town hall: Sign up now to discuss the current status of negotiations for your bargaining group, learn what to expect moving forward, and ask questions.
- Download your solidarity toolkit: Get your “I Support My Bargaining Team” or “Wear Black for Bargaining” virtual backgrounds, social media images, and posters.
- Share your feedback: Have you participated in a previous National Day of Solidarity? Take our brief survey here. Plus, mark your calendar for upcoming actions on the third Wednesday of every month: July 15, August 19, and September 16.
- See our solidarity in action: Check out photos of members mobilizing across the country.
- Stay informed: Visit your bargaining page for more information and resources.
Remember to use the hashtag #PSACTogether whenever posting about the Day of Solidarity on social media.
