Hello,
Strike action by 9,000 border personnel is on hold with mediation set to continue until next Wednesday.
The Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) announced the development today at a 4 p.m. ET strike deadline that could have seen workers with the Canada Border Services Agency begin a walkout.
Mediation had been under way since Monday.
“Picket lines will not be in place until further notice. Stand by for further details,” said a PSAC statement.
Earlier today, Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland said the government was seized with and focused on the situation.
“The parties are at the table working hard and our view is the best deals are reached at the table. That’s what we are very much working towards and hoping for,” Freeland told a news conference in Brampton, Ont.,
Sharon DeSousa, PSAC national president, said, earlier today, that the union representing federal public servants is focused on winning a fair contract for members.
“I’m hopeful we can get a deal and avoid disruptions at Canada’s borders,” DeSousa said in a statement.
“No worker wants to strike. Our members keep our borders moving, and our families safe, and they deserve a contract that delivers fair wages, equitable retirement and makes CBSA a better place to work. But the clock is ticking.”
The union says key issues include pay parity with other law enforcement agencies, remote-work options, pension benefits and stronger workplace protections.
The government says 90 per cent of front-line border officers are designated as essential, which means they can’t stop working during a strike.
But union members could use work-to-rule, a tactic where employees do their jobs exactly as outlined in their contracts.
This is the daily Politics Briefing newsletter, written by Ian Bailey. It is available exclusively to our digital subscribers. If you're reading this on the web, subscribers can sign up for the Politics newsletter and more than 20 others on our newsletter signup page. Have any feedback? Let us know what you think.
TODAY'S HEADLINES
Google signs deal with organization to distribute $100-million to Canadian news companies: Google agreed to pay the money annually, indexed to inflation, in order to be exempt from the Online News Act, which compels tech companies to enter into agreements with news publishers.
Canada’s unemployment rate rises to 6.2% in May as labour market disappoints jobseekers: Statistics Canada’s latest labour force survey showed that the economy added 27,000 jobs last month – too modest of a gain to keep the unemployment rate from rising by a tenth of a percentage point.
Calgarians urged to do better in curbing water use during unprecedented main break: “If we do not reduce our water use even further, we’re at risk of running out,” said Nancy Mackay, the city’s director of water services.
Premier Doug Ford unveils cabinet shuffle as Ontario legislature breaks until October: Stephen Lecce, who has served as education minister for five years, is becoming minister of energy and electrification. Todd Smith, who was energy minister, is taking over education. Story here.
Last-minute settlement averts TTC strike: Toronto’s public transit system will continue to operate normally after the TTC and its main union, the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 113, reached a deal to avert a strike.
Canada worst in G7 for targeted killings of Muslims, MPs told: MPs on a committee investigating Islamophobia and antisemitism have heard that more Muslims have been killed in targeted attacks in Canada in the past seven years than in any other G7 country, and that Islamophobia has increased exponentially since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war last October. Story here.
TODAY’S POLITICAL QUOTES
“Well, I trust the RCMP and our policing services to do their job and I assume that if there is sufficient evidence to charge somebody, they’ll be charged, and we’ll all know who that is.” – Liberal MP Anthony Housefather, after Question Period today, on the question of naming the parliamentarians that a report this week linked to foreign interference.
“Fortunately, it was never used for its intended purpose.” - Christine McGuire, executive director of the Diefenbunker Cold War Museum, a four-storey underground bunker, now a museum, built between 1959 and 1961, as a shelter for officials during a nuclear war. Today, Families Minister Jenna Sudds announced $977,000 in federal funding to make the Ottawa-area complex more environmentally friendly in its operations.
THIS AND THAT
Today in the Commons: Projected Order of Business at the House of Commons, June 7, accessible here.
Deputy Prime Minister’s Day: Private meetings and Chrystia Freeland toured a transit facility in Brampton, Ont., with Ontario Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria and deputy Brampton mayor Harkirat Singh, announced $17.4-million in joint investment to improve public transit to buy more buses and install new fare-payment systems and automatic vehicle-location technology.
Ministers on the Road: In the Newfoundland town of Torbay, near St. John’s, Rural Economic Development Minister Gudie Hutchings, also responsible for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, announced $460,000 in federal funding to boost municipal housing capacity.
GG in New Brunswick: On the last day of Mary Simon’s first official visit to the province, she visits the former Royal Canadian Air Force training station of Pennfield Ridge to deliver remarks and unveil a monument.
New Parliamentary Librarian nominated: Christine Ivory has been nominated the next Parliamentary Librarian, with the responsibility for overseeing the management of the Library of Parliament, established in 1876, to support the activities and decisions of Parliament and parliamentarians. The Prime Minister’s Office announced the nomination today of Ivory, most recently assistant deputy minister, collections sector, at Library and Archives Canada.
Redford appointed: Former Alberta premier Alison Redford, who resigned amid controversy in 2014, has received a provincial appointment. According to an order-in-council document, Redford, who led the Alberta Progressive Conservatives from 2011 to 2014, has been appointed a member of the board of directors of the Invest Alberta Corporation through January, 2027.
Warning for Tory MP: Noted political strategist Nicholas Kouvalis is taking issue with a Conservative MP’s criticism of Ontario’s former education minister. On social-media platform X, Kouvalis quoted a post by Jamil Jivani regarding Stephen Lecce, shuffled out of his education cabinet post and into energy this week after five years on the job. Jivani said in his post that Ontario has desperately needed a new education minister for years. In response, Kouvalis urged Jivani to “be careful” because Lecce is under the strategist’s protection.
PRIME MINISTER’S DAY
In Calgary, Justin Trudeau met with the Big City Mayors’ caucus of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities and delivered remarks at the FCM annual conference and trade show. He also participated in a moderated Q&A.
LEADERS
Green Party Leader Elizabeth May participated virtually in the House of Commons sitting from Calgary where she was scheduled Saturday to be a keynote speaker at a Federation of Canadian Municipalities meeting.
No schedules released for Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh.
THE DECIBEL
On today’s podcast, Globe business reporter Josh O’Kane speaks to the challenges facing Canadian cultural institutions, including theatre companies and documentary festivals, and what hope the arts industry can look towards. The Decibel is here.
PUBLIC OPINION
Canadians hoping for new Liberal leader: Canadians are three times more likely to prefer someone other than Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to lead the Liberals in the next election, a new Nanos Research survey for CTV News shows.
OPINION
Name those parliamentarians who collude against us
“It is a solemn moment when a member of Parliament or a senator takes their seat. Each parliamentarian must first pledge to “be faithful and bear true allegiance” to the sovereign, a literal oath of loyalty. That is the heart of the matter over the actions of the unnamed MPs or senators who colluded with foreign powers for their own benefit, according to this week’s report on foreign interference from the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians.” - The Globe and Mail Editorial Board.
Ottawa could raise the GST to help fund its defence commitments
“The federal government should consider raising the Goods and Services tax to meet Canada’s defence commitments. On the other hand, it might want to transfer GST tax points to the provinces, to properly fund health care. No, that’s not a contradiction. Let’s explore why.” - John Ibbitson.
Deporting Jaskirat Singh Sidhu lessens us as a country
“It’s difficult to imagine anyone in this country who has carried as much guilt with them over the past six years as Jaskirat Singh Sidhu. The name might not immediately resonate with you, but the tragedy he’s linked to certainly will: the Humboldt Broncos bus crash. Mr. Sidhu was the truck driver who blew through a stop sign and caused the collision that killed 16 members of the Saskatchewan junior hockey team.” - Gary Mason.
Got a news tip that you’d like us to look into? E-mail us at tips@globeandmail.com. Need to share documents securely? Reach out via SecureDrop.