Senate shows the way with Phoenix pay system

Finally, after two years of payroll glitches for tens of thousands of federal civil servants, the Senate has moved to scrap the Phoenix pay system for its employees and issue a request for proposals for a new service provider.

The Phoenix saga has been a long nightmare for our federal workers. They have been going to work every day without certainty they will be paid accurately, on time, or even at all; there have been privacy breaches that have exposed federal civil servants’ private information; and, although left with this poorly thought-out lame duck by Harper Conservatives, some of those responsible for the project were rewarded with taxpayer-funded bonuses.

The new federal Liberal government has been throwing money at the problem with smouldering results. Since its launch, 82,000 government workers have had issues with their pay, and 720 workers were not paid at all. These are people who cannot take maternity leave, pay their mortgages or even get paid for the work they do daily to keep our country operating and safe.

The Trudeau administration has been claiming fixing Phoenix is a top priority, yet so far only the Senate has taken action to get it replaced. Even then, this fix would only be for Senate employees.

It’s about time our federal government recognized the worth of the rest of Canada’s civil service, found a payroll system that works, sued the company that failed to deliver and let Phoenix burn.

Phil Venoit Business manager/financial secretary IBEW 230 Vancouver Island