Transformation of Pay Administration Initiative

The Conservative government’s Transformation of Pay Administration Initiative has started. This project that will see all pay services positions across federal departments relocated to Miramichi, New Brunswick. When completed, 553 jobs will be created at a new Centre of Expertise (COE). A parallel project will see the current pay system replaced by one based on commercially available, off-the-shelf software. The new pay system is to be rolled out in 2015.

The consolidation of pay services project will be rolled out in two phases. All affected members of the Agriculture Union are covered in the first phase involving departments using the PeopleSoft software that underlies the government’s existing Human Resource Management System (HRMS). Transfer of work from GC HRMS Departments to the COE will be done over the next five years in four waves, with the following proposed start dates, each lasting approximately 18 months:

          • Wave 1 – January 2011;
          • Wave 2 – June 2012;
          • Wave 3 – April 2014; and
          • Wave 4 – April 2015.

Phase II will consist of a feasibility study with respect to consolidation of Non-PeopleSoft Departments.

It is not known at this point which Departments will be in which wave. Anticipatory staffing for Wave 1 began in January. Deployment opportunities were offered to the current compensation community. Travel relocation directives will apply. We are aware that a problem with the deployment opportunities was identified for members working for CFIA. This issue was raised at the meeting with Treasury Board and it was recognized that CFIA employees should not have been screened out of the process. Internal and external (for AS-1 Trainee) recruitment processes have also been run.

The Agriculture Union is having discussions with management at all Departments where we have members employed in pay services to ensure that their rights are fully protected during this process. A Union/Management Committee between our bargaining agent, the Public Service Alliance of Canada, and Treasury Board level has been struck and an initial meeting took place on February 16, 2011.

The PSAC is very interested in setting up an AS Advisory Group and is looking for union activists from the compensation community to participate. If you are interested, please get in touch with our National Office. There is also a need to get home e-mail addresses for members of this community in order that the union can communicate directly with affected members to provide them with the latest information as it becomes available. If you have a home e-mail address and would like to be added to the mailing list, please let us know.

More information about this project will be posted as it becomes available.