The Countdown Begins

In an historic move just over two months ago, the Senate voted to delay a final vote on Bill C-78 until shortly after the Senate reconvened on September 7, 1999, and referred the Bill "back to the Standing Senate Committee on Banking, Trade and Commerce so that the Committee may monitor discussions between Treasury Board and affected unions".

With the September 7^th deadline fast approaching, the Senate Banking, Trade and Commerce Committee scheduled hearings on August 23^rd and 24^th.

On August 23^rd, Treasury Board President, Lucienne Robillard, was given a rough ride by the Committee for her, and her predecessor’s failure to convene a meeting, or engage in serious discussion of the outstanding pension issues.

From the outset, the PSAC believed that it was possible, if not probable that the government would ignore the Senate’s request that the parties meet in an attempt to resolve the outstanding issues. As a result, we were proactive on many fronts.

• On four occasions since June 17^th, we have written to Treasury Board requesting that the Consultative Committee be reconvened and meet, and that the discussions "should take place without precondition, and with all parties free to put any of the issues addressed in the Senate Committee report on the table for discussion and a hopeful resolution".

• We organized a fax, e-mail and letter writing campaign by Alliance members that has let individual Senators know where you stand on the issue.

• We organized a demonstration to greet the Liberal Caucus during their summer meeting in Halifax.

• We commissioned a public opinion poll from Environics Research Group and released the result to the Senate Committee. 

But more needs to be done if the government is to abandon its attempt to pass Bill C-78 through the Senate unchanged in early September.

• The PSAC started the countdown August 24 with a presentation to the Senate Committee that outlined the results of the Environics public opinion poll and questioned the government’s failure to meet as the Senate had requested. Immediately following the PSAC's appearance before the Senate Committee, a press conference was held, and letters were sent to Treasury Board President, Lucienne Robillard, and the leaders of all political parties.

• The National Executives of the PSAC's Agriculture Component, Union of Public Works Employees/Supply and Services Union, Canada Employment and Immigration Union and Union of Veterans' Affairs Employees will present Emergency Resolutions to their Conventions this week calling on the Senate to respect the wishes of the Canadian public and defeat Bill C-78.

• A new set of sample letters to Senators that outlines the result of the Environics poll has been prepared, and all PSAC members and retirees are being asked to write to the Senators who represent their province or territory.