Impacts to compensation when withdrawing services during a strike

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Withdrawing services during a strike

If your bargaining unit is in a legal strike position and you don’t occupy an essential position, you have the right to participate in a legal strike by, for example, withdrawing your services.

Check if your bargaining unit is in a legal strike position.

If you withdraw your services during a strike, it’s important to be aware of the impacts to your compensation.

Managers should also be aware of their responsibilities regarding pay procedures during a strike. For example, it is essential that managers record the dates and timing of withdrawn services for each employee, so departments can maintain official records.  

Impacts to pay

If you withdraw your services during a strike, you will not be paid for that time.

Pay during a strike

If you do not withdraw your services during a strike, you will continue to be paid normally.

Absences due to strike activity will be coded as leave without pay (LWOP) and will be deducted from your normal and regularly scheduled hours of work. Deductions will be made from the regular pay cycle and appear in a future pay period.

Consult Labour disruption impacts on public service pay

The Financial Administration Act (Section 155(3)) and the Directive on Terms and Conditions of Employment also provide more information.

Pay increments

Your increment date is not affected by strike activity.

Continuous service and continuous employment

Absences due to strike activity do not affect your continuous service or continuous employment dates.

Emergency salary advance

You cannot receive an emergency salary advance for time when you withdrew your services during a strike. An emergency salary advance is issued only for time worked in a pay period, but for which no salary payment was received through the normal processing of the pay. 

For more information, consult the Directive on Terms and Conditions of Employment.

Impacts to pension

Any period for which you have withdrawn your services in a strike scenario is not considered as pensionable service and contributions will not be made to your pension plan.

Canada and Quebec pension plans

Canada and Quebec Pension Plan deductions are based on actual earnings. Deductions will not be made if you are on LWOP.

Impacts to benefit plan coverage

If you are on Leave Without Pay, you continue to be covered under the

  • Disability Insurance plan
  • Public Service Health Care Plan
  • Public Service Dental Care Plan
  • Public Service Management Insurance Plan, including the Long-Term Disability plan, where applicable

Premiums and contributions are deducted from salary when you return to duty.

Supplementary Death Benefit

Deductions will be made if there are sufficient earnings in the month.

Where there are insufficient earnings and a deduction cannot be made, coverage will be maintained and deficiencies will be collected from future earnings.

If death occurs during the strike, any outstanding contributions will be collected from the Supplementary Death Benefit payment.

Directives

Isolated posts and government housing directive

Employees will not be entitled to Isolated Posts and Government Housing Directive allowances and benefits while on leave without pay.

Foreign service directives

Foreign Service Directives (FSD), with the exception of FSD 56 - Foreign Service Incentive Allowances and FSD 58 - Post Differential Allowance, continue to apply in a legal strike situation.

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