Union of Taxation Employees Urges April 29 Black Clothing for Canada Public Sector Wage Proposal
Union of Taxation Employees members are being asked to wear black clothing on April 29 as Treasury Board bargaining teams representing other members of the Public Service Alliance of Canada return to the bargaining table on the canada public sector wage proposal. The union says the gesture is meant to show support for bargaining teams returning after eight months of negotiations with no meaningful progress.
The Union of Taxation Employees said the April 29 action is aimed at showing the employer that it continues to underestimate the collective power of the membership. The union said workers deserve better wages and improved working conditions, and it said it is time to demonstrate that it is running out of patience.
April 29 bargaining return
Treasure Board bargaining teams representing other members of the Public Service Alliance of Canada will be back at the table on April 29, while the Union of Taxation Employees bargaining team will not return until May 5. The union strongly encouraged its members to support colleagues taking part in the April 29 action by wearing black clothing.
The timing matters for members watching the broader dispute because the two groups are not moving together. One set of bargaining teams is returning on April 29, while the Union of Taxation Employees is holding its own action a week later, on May 5.
May 5 Union action
On May 5, the Union of Taxation Employees will ask its members to display red and black colours in the workplace. The union said that action is intended to send a clear message to the employer about the collective power of the membership.
The union also said both bargaining tracks are facing the same employer intransigence throughout their negotiations. After eight months of talks, the union said there had been no meaningful progress, leaving its members in a waiting pattern that now includes two separate dates for public displays of support.
Public Service Alliance talks
The dispute sits inside a broader public sector bargaining round involving members of the Public Service Alliance of Canada. For workers, the immediate takeaway is practical: April 29 calls for black clothing, and May 5 calls for red and black in the workplace.
That leaves the next steps in the hands of the bargaining teams and the employer, with the union signaling that patience is wearing thin and that it will keep pressing for better wages and improved working conditions.
