As tax season approaches, many PSAC members are concerned about the effects of Phoenix pay problems on their taxes.
If you have questions about the tax implications of an overpayment or underpayment, or about your T4, here are two useful links:
The federal government has updated its Phoenix general damages webpage with new timelines for current PSAC members and former and retired members:
Sisters, Brothers and Friends,
For several months now, I have been following up with PSAC to find out if they had reached an agreement with CRA with regard to the taxability of the Phoenix general damages compensation. Treasury Board treated Phoenix general damages as taxable income – deducting tax from the payment UTE members received – but we maintain that these damages should be tax-free just like other damages agreements.
We are happy to announce that the federal government has updated its Phoenix general damages webpage and that the claims process for former and retired members is now available.
The general damages compensation covers our members who were employed between 2016 and 2020. Entitlement to compensation is as follows:
Now that current PSAC members will be receiving Phoenix general damages on March 3, retired and former PSAC members may be wondering when they will receive their portion.
In response to pressure from PSAC, the federal government has finally agreed to halt recoveries of overpayments, emergency salary advances (ESA) and priority payments until employees’ pay files have been cleared of all outstanding transactions. This means employees will receive any and all funds they are owed before they must reimburse the employer for any overpayments or emergency pay.
After months of waiting, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has rejected our request to review the taxability of Phoenix damages. This is directly due to Treasury Board’s refusal to provide CRA with a joint statement of facts which corrects CRA’s understanding of the purpose of our damages settlement agreement.
In an April 27 letter from the CRA, the Agency states:
After almost two years after launching the disastrous Phoenix pay system, the government has finally rolled out basic training for all employees.
“This is the kind of training that should be provided before rolling out a new pay system, not two years after the fact,” said PSAC National President Robyn Benson. “Now that it is finally available, the employer must act to ensure all employees are given the time and resources to do the training.”
PSAC reminds our members that they are entitled to take the training during their work hours.
PSAC is doing everything in its power to ensure that the pay system is fixed so that our members in the federal public service get paid correctly and on-time. We are also demanding the government address the difficulties our members are facing because of Phoenix.
PSAC meets regularly with the employer to advance the concerns of our members and to find concrete solutions.
Most recently, PSAC has demanded that employees affected by Phoenix be:
