PM hails workers dealing with wonky Phoenix pay system

The prime minister thanked public servants Wednesday for the work they’ve done for months to help federal employees affected by the government’s problem-plagued pay system.

Justin Trudeau met with employees at the federal pay centre in Miramichi, N.B., the epicentre of complaints about the Phoenix system.

Trudeau was inside one of the centre’s facilities in the city for more than an hour, but said nothing to reporters when he left.

At least one public service union leader has suggested that the pay centre should not have been located in Miramichi in the first place, prompting demands from the community’s mayor for an apology.

But earlier in the day in Moncton, the prime minister commended employees at the pay hub for taking innovative approaches to the challenge of resolving payroll issues for workers who have been either overpaid or underpaid, or weren’t paid at all for months.

“People are working with a tremendous level of creativity and excellence to get ahead of this problem,” Trudeau told a news conference.

Trudeau also praised the unions that represent public servants, some of which have been lending money to members faced with dire personal financial circumstances as a result of the pay problems.

“I have to thank not just the public servants, and obviously the ministers who’ve been engaged in this, but I specifically want to thank the public service unions who have been essential partners in getting a handle on this issue.”

The prime minister also reiterated what he’s said repeatedly in recent months: that the pay system issues were inherited by his Liberal government from the previous Conservative regime, which adopted the Phoenix system as a way to standardize how federal employees are paid across the country and save money by streamlining transactions.

“It’s unacceptable that people be working hard, particularly public servants, and not being paid what they are owed.”

The Conservatives have said that, while their government adopted Phoenix, it was the Liberals who launched the pay system despite complaints from the unions and bureaucrats that it wasn’t ready. On Monday, Trudeau appointed a new minister — B.C. MP Carla Qualtrough — to oversee the department responsible for the Phoenix system.