More than 155,000 public sector workers in Canada began a strike on Wednesday, a day after a deadline to reach a wage deal with the federal government was missed.
The Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) union had set a deadline of 9 pm ET (0100 GMT) on Tuesday to reach a deal, after which it called for its members working for the Treasury Board and Canada Revenue Agency to begin strike action from midnight.
“We truly hoped we wouldn’t be forced to take strike action, but we’ve exhausted every other avenue to reach a fair contract for Canada’s federal public service workers,” PSAC president Chris Aylward was quoted by Reuters news agency.
Most of the striking workers earn from CAN$40,000 to CAN$65,000 annually. They demand a pay increase of 13.5% for the last three years collectively, but the government offered 9% in total.
“We are still here at the table,” Aylward asserted. “We will remain at the table. We will remain for as long as it takes during the strike and we will remain on strike until the government addresses our key issues at the bargaining table.”