Pay-system fix climbs to $70M threshold

Still more than 74,000 issues on log

OTTAWA • The cost to fix the federal government’s troubled Phoenix pay system keeps climbing and could eat into much of the $70 million in savings the ill-fated project was supposed to deliver to this year’s bottom line.

Marie Lemay, deputy minister of Public Services and Procurement Canada, said Wednesday she doesn’t know how much the expected savings will be left after the department resolves the major problems, clears the backlog of cases and moves into a smooth “steady state” of operations.

“We are progressively increasing the number of cases being addressed and, moving into September, we expect to make a significant dent in the backlog as additional resources join our temporary pay units,” said Lemay.

Last week, Public Services Minister Judy Foote said the fix has already cost $25 million and counting. Lemay said the price tag will be higher and the department is working on those estimates now.

Lemay said there is a steady decline in new cases reported, with only 69 new cases of public servants who were left unpaid in Wednesday’s paycheques. There are still more than 74,000 with unresolved pay problems on the backlog, which is a drop from the 82,000 on backlog in early July.

Lemay said the department is sticking to its Oct. 31 target to eliminate the backlog — a deadline that many, including many compensation advisers, say is unlikely. Lemay said the government has hired new recruits, many of whom will be joining the various temporary pay centres created to support the main Miramichi centre, in September.

She admitted that how quickly the new recruits get on board, learn the system and the complexity of the cases they be handling will determine whether the October deadline can be met.

She warned, however, that even when the system is fixed, there will still be problems. “Our goal is to eliminate all pay problems, but it is important to acknowledge that the complexity of public service pay and the opportunities for human error mean that the potential for pay issues will always be present.

“That was the case prior to the implementation of Phoenix. The hope is that through the pay transformation initiative, including the implementation of Phoenix, there will be fewer pay issues than before once we reach our steady state.”

Lemay said the department doesn’t have a handle on the cost of reimbursements it promised employees who faced out-of-pocket expenses as a result of not being paid.

She said Treasury Board is setting up a claims process for September. Employees can file claims through their own departments, submitting receipts and documents to prove the financial hardship they faced.