PIPSC's Three R's for Fall Session: Revitalize Science, Reduce Outsourcing, Restore Tax Fairness

OTTAWA, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Sept. 15, 2016) - As Members of Parliament prepare to return to work next Monday, the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC) has released its priorities list for the fall session of Parliament.

"The Trudeau government clearly has some homework to do after the abject failure of the Phoenix federal pay system, the ongoing problems with Shared Services Canada and the gutting of federal science over the past ten years, to name just a few," says PIPSC President Debi Daviau. "The government has already committed to repealing blatant anti-union laws introduced by the Harper government. We have another three R's we feel that they should revisit."

The Professional Institute is specifically calling on the government to:

• Revitalize Public Science
  
  Substantial reinvestment in science-based departments is necessary in order to restore evidence-based decision-making and make Canada a global innovation leader. This requires the hiring of an additional 1,500 federal scientists to reverse the impact of past cuts to science programs and staff. The federal government must also immediately appoint a Chief Science Officer, an indispensable advocate for science and scientific integrity within the public service.
  
  
• Reduce costly outsourced services and increase training for public servants
  
  The Phoenix fiasco is only the latest example of the unacceptable impact on public service employees, taxpayers and the government of the latter's over-reliance on outsourced products and services. It must make good on its promise to reduce the government's dangerous dependence on external Information Technology, and other, contractors by returning to their 2005-06 spending levels. Enhancing its internal capacity is the obvious solution, which would allow the government to reinvest some of the savings into training and eliminate internal barriers that serve to justify outsourcing, such as internal hiring freezes and onerous staffing requirements.
  
  
• Restore tax fairness by adopting a world-class tax fairness initiative
  
  PIPSC also urges the government to reinvest in Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) staff and structure to recoup unpaid taxes from international tax havens, to restore the public's trust in Canada's tax system, and to ensure that Canadian tax laws are applied fairly and impartially. The reopening of regional CRA offices is also needed to improve services to Canadians.

The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada represents PIPSC represents some 55,000 public-sector scientists and other professionals across Canada, most of them employed by the federal government. Follow us on Facebook and on Twitter (@pipsc_ipfpc).