The federal government indicates in its latest budget there will be an eventual move away from its Phoenix pay system, which has caused issues of overpayment, underpayment, and sometimes no payment for workers.

The Public Service Alliance of Canada held rallies in some Canadian cities today, including in Winnipeg. PSAC was marking the two-year anniversary of Phoenix's implementation. The union wants compensation for its members who've experienced pay issues with the Phoenix system. PSAC Prairies region executive vice president Marianne Hladun also says the government should be filling compensation advisor positions.

"Our members deserve to be able to go and talk to somebody in person and do an audit of their file to see are they overpaid, underpaid, and who owes what," says Hladun.

Hladun says the government has a responsibility to pay its employees. She says the payment issues affect more than the employees themselves, but families too.

"Federal employees who may have worked for three months or three years or thirty years, who suddenly are saying, 'You know what, I'm not going to buy that new car, I'm not going to look at buying a house, I'm not going to look at going on vacation.' Because there's no confidence that they will get paid," says Hladun.

Yesterday's budget includes $16-million over two years for the government to find a way to ditch Phoenix. It also includes more than $431-million over six years "to continue making progress on Phoenix
issues," including hiring more staff to support the system, for pay centres and satellite offices, and more human resources staff to better assist with payroll issues when they arise. This new investment is on top of $460-million already spent.

Hladun says while the government is signalling it intends to move away from Phoenix, "at the end of the day (PSAC has) members right now that are owed money." Hladun also says overpaid members will suffer tax implications.

The Government of Canada says the ongoing public service pay problems are unacceptable and its doing everything possible to ensure no employee remains out-of-pocket. It says employees who are underpaid or missing paycheques can request priority or emergency payments from their departments, which can usually be processed in 24-48 hours.

More information on making pay claims can be found here, and the government's plans to stabilize the pay system can be found here.