Remote Work Clause Not Included In Canada’s Collective Agreement

What’s going on:        

The largest labor strike in Canada’s history concluded with the government and The Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) reaching an agreement regarding federal workers’ wages Sunday night. The two parties agreed on compounded wage increases of 12.6 percent over four years, “settling a dispute involving 120,000 federal workers”, according to the National Post.   

While wage increases were agreed upon, the union’s highly desired remote work clause was not included in the collective agreement. While PSAC acknowledged that not every job can be performed remotely, it stated that it wanted to stick up for those that can. The union kept the conversation alive and thousands of federal workers were holding out on the government to include a clause that directly addressed the topic in the deal.  

It’s important to note that the Canadian government does have a hybrid work policy in place that allows workers to work from home for up to three days out of the workweek.   

According to the National Post, both the government and the union included language regarding remote work in a letter of understanding – laying the precedent for revisiting the topic in future negotiations.   

Specific language for remote work guarantees was not included in the collective agreement. However, according to an official statement from PSAC, “PSAC members will now have access to additional protection when subject to arbitrary decisions about remote work. We have also negotiated language in a letter of agreement that requires managers to assess remote work requests individually, not by group, and provide written responses that will allow members and PSAC to hold the employer accountable for equitable and fair decision-making on remote work.    

Reportedly, the Treasury Board President of Canada Mona Fortier told the media that the government will also be reviewing its directive on telework, which hasn’t undergone an official review since 1993.  

Why it matters:    

One of the most important bullet points for Canada’s federal workers on strike – right after wage increases – was remote work guarantees. The strike in Canada represented a major example of the increasing number of employees worldwide who desire flexible work arrangements – like hybrid and remote work.  

The deal struck here is that the federal government will review its “telework directive” and there will be departmental panels set up to advise senior management on employee concerns.   

A labor negotiation of this size has a tremendous influence on labor negotiations in other countries and has implications for employees both in the public and private sectors.   

How it’ll impact the future:        

The recent agreement between the Canadian Government and PSAC shined a major light on the growing importance of remote work in modern labor negotiations. An agreement of this size – where thousands of federal workers are impacted – suggests that the topic of remote work will continue to be a key component in labor negotiations in both the private and public sectors, not only in Canada but also for the rest of the world.