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2009-10
Report on Plans and Priorities



Public Service Labour Relations Board






The original version was signed by
The Honourable James Moore
Minister of Canadian Heritage and Official Languages






TABLE OF CONTENTS



Chairperson’s Message

Casper Bloom, ChairpersonAs chairperson of the Public Service Labour Relations Board, I am pleased to present the Board’s Report on Plans and Priorities for 2009-2010.

Established on April 1, 2005 with the enactment of the Public Service Labour Relations Act (PSLRA), the Board replaces the Public Service Staff Relations Board established in 1967 and delivers an expanded mandate consisting of adjudication, mediation and compensation analysis and research services. The Board is also responsible for the administration of the Parliamentary Employment and Staff Relations Act and acts as the labour board and grievance system administrator for all employees of Parliament (House of Commons, Senate, Library of Parliament and Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner) and for the Government of Yukon.

Being charged with the responsibility of administering the PSLRA, the Board is at the core of the object of the Act, set out in its preamble, which is to foster harmonious labour relations in the federal Public Service and support effective relations between public servants and their employers, a cornerstone of good human resource management and a high performance public service. In carrying out its mandate, the Board contributes to minimizing the possibility of labour unrest that can lead to disruption in the delivery of government programs. The Board assists the parties in their collaborative efforts — through communication and sustained dialogue— to improve the ability of the public service to serve and protect the interests of Canadians. A system within which parties can have their disputes dealt with by an impartial third party is critical to the sound functioning of the Public Service and Parliament in our democratic society.

The expeditious handling of proceedings referred to the PSLRB for adjudication remains a priority in 2009-2010. We will continue to conduct hearings in accordance with the law and the principles of natural justice, render timely decisions and assist the parties, where possible, to resolve their differences on their own. We will engage in further consultations with the parties to collective bargaining and other stakeholders in addressing their compensation data requirements and ensuring the results of compensation studies are released in time for collective bargaining. We will also continue to consult with the parties to facilitate and improve our processes while sustaining our efforts in educating our clients and the public on the Board’s role, services and jurisprudence. Internally, we will promote and uphold a work environment that fosters the development of a knowledgeable and co-operative workforce, and ensure the efficient and effective use of our resources.

Finally, I have recently been apprised that favourable consideration has been given to providing the Board, through Budget 2009 and subject to Parliamentary approval, with more stable and permanent funding to enable it to carry out its statutory mandate. I am delighted that the sustained efforts by many over the past several years to obtain an adjustment to the Board’s funding has now provided a solution allowing for the Board to improve its ability to fully implement the PSLRA in the years ahead.

Casper Bloom, Q.C., Ad. E.
Chairperson
Public Service Labour Relations Board

Section I — Departmental Overview

Raison d’ĂȘtre

The Public Service Labour Relations Board (PSLRB) is an independent quasi-judicial tribunal mandated by the PSLRA to administer the collective bargaining and grievance adjudication systems in the federal public service. It is also mandated by the Parliamentary Employment and Staff Relations Act to perform the same role for the institutions of Parliament.

The PSLRB is unique in that it is one of the few bodies of its type in Canada that combines both adjudication and labour relations functions. Through its role in adjudicating grievances and complaints, mediating disputes, supporting the collective bargaining process, and performing compensation analysis and research, the PSLRB helps foster harmonious labour relations and good human resource management in the federal public service. This benefits Canadians by supporting a productive and effective workplace that delivers government programs in the public interest.

Responsibilities

The PSLRB came into being on April 1, 2005, with the enactment of the PSLRA. It replaced the Public Service Staff Relations Board (PSSRB), which had existed since 1967 when collective bargaining was first introduced into the federal public service. Although the PSLRA effectively created a new Board with a new mandate, the PSLRB in fact continues to provide many of the same services as the former PSSRB and builds on its accomplishments and the solid body of jurisprudence it generated.

The Board provides three main types of service:

  • adjudication – hearing and deciding grievances, complaints and other labour relations matters;
  • mediation – helping parties reach collective agreements, manage their relations under collective agreements, and resolve disputes without resort to a hearing; and
  • compensation analysis and research – conducting compensation comparability studies and providing information that can be used in the negotiation and settlement of collective agreements.

As a quasi-judicial tribunal, the PSLRB operates very much like a court. As such, the PSLRB is bound by the constitutionally protected open-court principle. This means that most information filed with the PSLRB becomes part of a public record and is generally available to the public.

When deciding a matter, administrative-law principles require that the PSLRB issue a reasoned decision, which includes a summary of the evidence presented and of the arguments of the parties, as well as an articulation of the reasons supporting the findings. The full text of those decisions is posted on the PSLRB website (http://pslrb-crtfp.gc.ca) and is distributed to a number of publishers.

As per Section 44 of the PSLRA, the Chairperson is the Board's Chief Executive Officer and has overall responsibility and accountability for managing the work of the Board.

The Executive Director and General Counsel is responsible for providing direction and supervision of the day-to-day operations of the PSLRB. He reports to the Chairperson and is supported by five directors who have direct responsibility and accountability for establishing priorities, managing the work and reporting on performance of their specific unit.

Full-time and part-time Board members are responsible for administering the PSLRA by conducting hearings throughout Canada and rendering decisions. They are appointed by the Governor in Council for terms of no longer than five years. They may be reappointed any number of times.

The PSLRA covers some 230,000 federal public servants who belong to 86 bargaining units represented by 22 bargaining agents. It applies to some 28 different employers in the federal public service including departments named in Schedule I of the Financial Administration Act, the other portions of the public service named in Schedule IV, and the separate agencies named in Schedule V.

On April 1, 2005, a new labour relations regime was introduced in the federal public service when the PSLRA came into force. This new regime was part of a larger set of human resource management reforms in the federal public service aimed at supporting healthy and productive public service workplaces. The Public Service Labour Relations Board (the Board) received an expanded mandate under the new PSLRA, which now includes the delivery of compensation analysis and research services in addition to adjudication and mediation functions that were well established under the former regime. The Board’s expanded mandate has introduced certain complexities to its administration, including the requirement to manage cases filed under two legislative regimes at the same time. The Board is also responsible for the administration of the Parliamentary Employment and Staff Relations Act and acts as the labour board and grievance system administrator for all employees of Parliament (House of Commons, Senate, Library of Parliament and Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner) and for the Government of Yukon.

Employees of the federal public service deliver a vast array of programs and services that Canadians rely on. A labour relations environment that supports increased collaboration between employers and employees can improve the ability of the public service to serve and protect the public interest.

Issues in the collective bargaining environment can sometimes impact on the Board’s adjudication function. The Board’s registry has been receiving a large number of complaints dealing with the duty to bargain in good faith, which must be dealt with quickly in order to ensure that collective bargaining is not delayed. As well, it is important to note that bargaining agents have in the past filed larger numbers of grievances as part of a strategy to press for solutions to common problems experienced by their members. Such a strategy can result in a large volume of similar grievances being referred over a very short period of time, such as several hundred in the course of one week. These groups of cases can and have been withdrawn without formal Board intervention once the matter has been resolved during collective bargaining or elsewhere.

The Board’s adjudication services are very much influenced by the availability of resources devoted to labour relations cases by the parties appearing before it. When employers and bargaining agents experience reduced capacity to deal with the existing volume of grievances and complaints — as they have in recent years — requests for postponements increase, which introduce delays in the processing of cases by the Board.

Adjudication services are also affected by the growing complexity of cases being referred, including those involving human rights and duty-to-accommodate issues. Furthermore, the Board continues to witness a rising number of individuals who are represented, not by bargaining agents or counsel, but by themselves. These cases generally require more time on the part of the Board’s employees and adjudicators.

The decision of the Supreme Court of Canada with respect to Health Services and Support – Facilities Subsector Bargaining Assn. v. British Columbia, 2007 SCC 27 (http://scc.lexum.umontreal.ca/en/2007/2007scc27/2007scc27.html) recognized for the first time in Canadian history that collective bargaining is a constitutional right protected under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. This decision has the potential to result in changes to the context of applications before the Board — for example, the questioning of the constitutional validity of some aspects of the existing labour relations framework, in areas such as the scope of bargaining, certification procedures, the right to unionize etc.

Conditions in the current public service environment affect how the Board sets its priorities. For example, the current round of collective bargaining has resulted in increased demand for the Board’s mediation services and limited the resources available within its Dispute Resolution Services division to mediate adjudication cases. This is expected to extend into 2009-2010 as negotiations continue. The Board’s dispute resolution services face a very challenging situation: the ability to identify and plan for 2009-2010 activities is very much dependent on the outcome of future decisions of the government with respect to collective bargaining in the public service in relation to the government priorities to deal with the crisis facing the Canadian economy in the year ahead.

The environment within which the Board must operate, driven in large part by the prevailing labour relations climate and the parties’ related priorities, is at times complex, given that the needs and interests of the parties are diverse and often divergent. In the case of its compensation analysis and research services for example, the Board must ensure that it addresses these varied requirements within tight deadlines dictated by the collective bargaining calendar, with the added complexity of contracting with various service providers for the development and application of the relevant methodologies, tools and processes.

Additional human and financial resources have been required to carry out the Board’s new mandate. In particular, the delivery of compensation analysis and research services has necessitated that the Board establish a new division and recruit additional employees. A key risk faced by the Board has been the uncertainty regarding its funding base to continue to deliver its new statutory functions.

As a federal agency established by law and subject to the provisions of the Financial Administration Act, the Board was among the six agencies required to participate in the Horizontal Review of Human Resources Functions as part of the government’s related initiatives under the Expenditure Management System and resulting strategic review process. The review was focused on aligning roles and responsibilities with a view to ensuring the efficiency and effectiveness of central human resources management and policy functions, reducing duplication of services and ensuring that departments and agencies are appropriately supported in their human resources responsibilities. This review will inform the government’s response to the 2nd report of the Prime Minister's Advisory Committee on the Public Service entitled Pursuing a High Performance Public Service which was released in February 2008.

Through this exercise, funding earmarked for central human resources management functions was reviewed to ensure related programs are effective and efficient in meeting the priorities of Canadians and in providing value for money. The Board, as a result of Budget 2009, will be provided with more stable long-term funding and will therefore no longer need to rely on temporary funding to carry out many of the responsibilities assigned under its expanded mandate. However, as the Board is still proceeding with the establishment of its new compensation analysis and research services, the resources required to deliver these in the longer term are still under review.

Strategic Outcome(s) and Program Activity Architecture (PAA)

The Board has one strategic outcome: harmonious labour relations in the federal Public Service and Parliament. The Board benefits Canadians by supporting a harmonious relationship between federal public servants and their employers, which improves the ability of the public service to serve the public interest.

Program Activity Architecture: Organization: Public Service Labour Relations Board < Strategic Outcome: Harmonious labour relations in the federal Public Service and Parliament (thereby minimizing the possibility of labour unrest that could lead to disruption in the delivery of government programs) < Activities: Adjudication, mediation and compensation analysis and research < Supported by: Internal services

Planning Summary

Financial Resources ($ Thousands)


2009–10 1 2010–11 1 2011–12 1
13,467 13,467 13,467

Human Resources (Full-Time Equivalent—FTE)


2009–10 2 2010–11 2 2011–12 2
93 FTEs 93 FTEs 93 FTEs

1 Includes earmarked funding provided in Budget 2009, resulting from Strategic Review to enable the Board to deliver its new functions mandated by the PSLRA.
2 Includes new positions already staffed or being staffed on an indeterminate basis to deliver the new legislative framework.

Summary Table


Strategic Outcome : Harmonious labour relations in the federal Public Service and Parliament
Performance Indicator Target
Percentage of clients who are satisfied with the Board's ability to improve labour relations in the federal public service and Parliament through impartial and open processes and the quality of assistance, reports and educational tools it provides. 75%


($ thousands)
Program
Activity
Forecast Spending1
2008–09
Planned Spending2 Alignment to Government
of Canada Outcomes
2009–10 2010–11 2011–12
Adjudication, Mediation and
Compensation Analysis and Research
7,512 8,692 8,692 8,692 Government Affairs

As a federal quasi-judicial tribunal operating in the area of labour relations, the Public Service Labour Relations Board is aligned to the “Government Affairs” Outcome area in the Government of Canada’s whole-of-government framework. The resources allocated to the Board contribute to supporting a “public service that reflects excellence and leadership” as set out in this framework.
Internal Services 4,748 4,775 4,775 4,775
Total 12,260 13,467 13,467 13,467

1 Reflects the best forecast of cash expenditures to the end of the fiscal year.
2 Includes earmarked funding provided in Budget 2009, resulting from Strategic Review to enable the Board to deliver its new functions mandated by the PSLRA.

Contribution of Priorities to Strategic Outcome(s)


Operational Priorities Type Links to Strategic Outcome(s) Description
Continue to improve the delivery of mediation and adjudication services Previously committed to The Board has one strategic outcome: harmonious labour relations in the federal Public service and Parliament as mandated by the PSLRA and the Parliamentary Employment and Staff Relations Act and one program activity under which fall three distinct areas of service: adjudication services, mediation services and compensation analysis and research services.
  • parties before the Board receive a timely and impartial resolution of their case
  • dispute-related issues are resolved fully or partially through mediation interventions
  • all cases filed with the former PSSRB have been closed
  • ensure no cases are older than two years after date of filing
  • appropriate measures in place to respond to the results of its Client Satisfaction Surveys
Deliver compensation data and analysis Previously committed to  
  • continued consultation with parties and other stakeholders
  • relevant methods, processes and tools developed
  • results published in time for collective bargaining


Management Priorities Type Links to Strategic Outcome(s) Description
Continue to develop the Board’s infrastructure and human resources Previously committed to In an effort to enhance its efficiency and effectiveness as an organization, in 2009-2010, the Board will sustain its existing initiatives to develop its infrastructure and human resources, as well as undertake new ones.
  • new case management system operational
  • learning plans in place for employees and Board members
  • human resources planning integrated into strategic planning
  • operationalize the performance measurement framework through data collection and monitoring

Risk Analysis

The Board has put in place key elements to ensure good governance, management and accountability. These include an annual strategic plan that takes into account operational priorities, resources, key risks faced by the organization and expectations of key stakeholders, along with a Management Resources and Results Structure that supports well-defined and long-term program activity, a Results-based Management and Accountability Framework, Performance Management Framework and a risk-based internal audit plan. The organization regularly updates these plans and monitors and reports its progress in achieving the goals set out in each.

Delivery of Mediation and Adjudication Services

High-quality mediation and adjudication services are timely, impartial, proactive, expert, responsive, transparent and efficient. Adjudication services must also be rendered in accordance with the law and principles of natural justice.

Given its commitment to the continuous improvement of its services, the Board undertook a number of related initiatives in the past year and will continue to strive to close all cases filed under the former Public Service Staff Relations Board (PSSRB), ensure that no cases are older than two years after date of filing, and address opportunities to enhance services that received less than satisfactory ratings in its Client Satisfaction Surveys.

For a number of years now, the Board has been concerned that its growing adjudication caseload has affected its ability to handle cases in a timely manner. The total number of cases before the Board, which includes new cases and cases carried over from previous years, continues to increase every year. In 2007-2008, the total volume of open cases stood at 4819. A significant proportion of these cases have been in process for several years.

Grievances referred for adjudication (3885 cases) account for 80% of the Board’s cases. This high number is a holdover from the large increases in grievance cases that have been referred to the Board in recent years. During this period, many of the Board’s clients — employer groups and bargaining agents — have had internal capacity issues resulting in more requests to postpone cases, which adds to the time required to close them, and keeps them on the caseload.

In the past few years, the Board’s efforts to deal with the caseload have primarily focused on its analysis and on bilateral discussions with stakeholders to identify strategies. In 2009-2010, the Board will continue to focus on more directive case management, the close monitoring of key cases, more careful scrutiny of requests for postponement, use of screening practices that allow similar cases to be grouped together, and greater use of pre-hearing conferences. The Board will also continue its practice of consulting closely with parties (employers and bargaining agents) to discuss options for accelerating the processing of cases both through mediation and adjudication.

When the PSLRA was enacted on April 1, 2005, employees were still able to refer grievances to adjudication under the former PSSRA if the events grieved happened before that date, or if the grievance had been presented but not finally dealt with before that date. In 2007-2008, 763 (85%) new grievances were filed under the new Act while 114 (15%) were filed under the former PSSRA. Although the number of grievances referred under the former Act is declining, it still represented one tenth of all grievances referred to the Board in 2007-2008. In 2009-2010, the Board will make it a priority to close all cases referred to adjudication with the former PSSRB.

Mediation and conflict resolution are key elements of the Board’s statutory mandate under the new PSLRA. Mediation contributes directly to harmonious labour relations in the public service as it is generally preferable to resolve disputes early on and at the lowest possible level than to resort to adversarial processes such as adjudication to settle them. Mediators provided by the Board are impartial third parties with no decision-making power who intervene in a dispute to help parties reach their own mutually acceptable solutions voluntarily.

When the Board receives a reference to adjudication or a complaint, it gives priority to exploring options for resolving the matter voluntarily through mediation. The Board’s mediation services also include preventive mediation, which is aimed at resolving disputes even before an application is filed. This can help reduce the number of cases brought before the Board.

In recent years, the demand for the Board’s mediation services has grown in tandem with the large volume of grievance adjudication cases submitted to it. There have also been new requests for mediation assistance from employers stemming from the requirements in the PSLRA for departments and agencies to put in place labour-management consultation committees and informal conflict management systems.

Given the Board’s efforts to improve the availability of information to allow would-be participants to better assess their interest in mediation, its dispute resolution services web pages were updated to provide the reader with easier access to a mediator with whom they could easily talk to about the process. This initiative along with more detailed correspondence was aimed specifically at providing assistance to the increasing number of self-represented complainants/grievors who submit their concerns to the Board without the benefit of representation. Also the Board made accessible to all public servants its video concerning mediation “Best Interests, An Introduction to Grievance Mediation” by including it on the PSLRB website. In doing so, all public servants can, in the comfort and privacy of a location of their choice, obtain considerable information on the subject of mediation at the PSLRB.

Given the potential for mediation to reduce the number of cases going through lengthy and demanding adjudication processes, the Board has for some time now, promoted its mediation services to the parties involved in adjudication and will continue to do so in 2009-2010. In light of the Board’s limited resources and prevailing uncertainty surrounding requests for additional/permanent funding, our efforts for 2009-2010 will focus on our continued reduction of the caseload before us. It has become apparent from the 2007 Client Satisfaction Survey and our ongoing consultations with our clients that the Board’s current approach and emphasis on providing timely and impartial mediations on those matters already before the Board is critical to the success of the program. We will continue with the practice that has evolved over the past five years and has made the DRS program so successful; this lean and flexible approach has been successful because it is extremely responsive to the clients’ ever changing priorities, concerns and availabilities.

The Board believes firmly in the merits of mediation offered to the parties in a timely and impartial manner; it has become a pivotal tool allowing the Board to fulfill its statutory mandate in both the areas of adjudication and collective bargaining. To the extent that preventive mediations contribute to ultimately reducing the number of matters that will find their way before the Board, we will continue to be of assistance to departments in need, resources permitting.

In light of the Board’s reputation for its mediation services, we will continue to play our legislated role of assisting the parties in dealing with issues arising out of collective bargaining. The Board’s ability and success in providing effective mediation both in the context of collective bargaining and mediation of grievances have given it privileged access in assisting the parties restore good workplace relationships between unions and management via training in the workings of Labour Management Consultative Committees. It is our view that such expertise will be required when the current round of bargaining comes to an end.

In line with our outreach efforts, another forum that will remain a staple in the list of services provided by DRS is the two-and-a-half-day joint training session. This initiative continues to be of interest to individuals from all sides working in and/or involved in the field of labour relations.

The Board has, in response to the wish expressed by some of our parties, considered and discussed the desirability of expanding its mediation services beyond the parameters within which they are presently delivered, including the possibility of increased mediation and conflict resolution assistance to departments and agencies, in the context of their informal conflict management systems. It became clear that moving in that direction would not only require significant additional resources to carry out such an endeavour across the public service, but could also be seen as blurring the accountability that Parliament placed on deputy heads under the PSLRA in that regards. In light of these considerations, of the high level of demands arising directly from the Board’s current caseload and collective bargaining activities of the parties, and considering the Board’s current resources and financial situation as outlined earlier, the Board is of the view that the emphasis for 2009-2010 and future years will be on continued promotion and improvement of the delivery of mediation services that are focused on the Board’s statutory mandate, as set out in the PSLRA.

Delivery of compensation data and analysis

With the enactment of the new PSLRA, the Board gained a new responsibility — compensation analysis and research — and created a new unit to carry it out.

The Board’s Compensation Analysis and Research Services (CARS) contribute to the promotion of harmonious labour relations in the federal public service and in Parliamentary institutions by:

  • supporting the parties to collective bargaining in the federal Public Service in their discussions and negotiations over compensation issues, through consultation and facilitation of joint discussions and by providing them with accurate, timely and impartial information; and
  • assisting arbitration boards and public interest commissions in carrying out their dispute resolution activities by making available relevant comparative analyses of compensation data.

Over the past few years, the Board has made important progress in establishing CARS and laying a solid foundation for its future work, including staffing the unit and holding extensive consultations with the parties to bargaining in the federal public service and with provincial governments.

In 2008-2009, the Board published two compensation comparability studies to support the parties’ collective bargaining efforts. These studies involve a broad survey of current wages and benefits offered by employers in other public and private sectors for jobs comparable to technical services occupations in bargaining units represented by the Public Service Alliance of Canada and health-related occupations represented by the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada.

To date, CARS activities have been carried out by a small core organization that directs and oversees research projects and contracts with external service providers to develop survey tools and conduct field work. Following the experience of the studies, CARS intends to review its organization and business model to ensure that it has the capacity to respond effectively to the needs of the parties.

Through these studies, the Board has piloted various approaches, methodologies and tools for the development of a national study covering a wider range of federal public service occupations. CARS has also been working closely with Statistics Canada, to benefit from that agency’s expertise in identifying and resolving methodological and process issues related to conducting a study on a national scale.

In 2009-2010, we will engage in further consultations with the parties to collective bargaining and other stakeholders in addressing their compensation data requirements and ensuring the results of compensation studies are released in time for collective bargaining.

Ongoing development of the Board’s infrastructure and human resources

In an effort to enhance its efficiency and effectiveness as an organization, in 2009-2010, the Board will sustain its existing initiatives to develop its infrastructure and human resources, as well as undertake new ones.

After intensive planning and design work, the Board’s new case management system will become operational in early 2009-2010. The new system will allow the Board to manage case information electronically from initial intake to the distribution and posting of the decisions, thus giving employees and Board members more efficient, up-to-date and integrated tools for managing cases. The system will also facilitate more detailed reporting in support of the Board’s new performance measurement framework. As the system starts being used by employees, it will likely require further developmental work to meet all requirements.

To support its compensation analysis and research function, the Board requires technology to receive, store, analyze and report compensation data. In 2009-2010, work will continue on the identification of requirements and the implementation of related databases and systems.

In today’s competitive labour force environment, organizations that are committed to remaining effective are placing increased emphasis on succession planning, workforce development and revitalization, and strong human resources planning integrated with business planning. As a small organization, the Board must be creative and proactive in meeting the challenges of recruiting, retaining and training a skilled work force.

In 2009-2010, the Board will move forward with the development of individual and group training plans for all employees and Board members and with the full integration of its human resources planning into its strategic and business planning.

Expenditure Profile

The figure below illustrates the Board’s spending trend from 2005-06 to 2011-12. For the 2005-06 to 2008-09 periods, the total spending includes all Parliamentary appropriation sources: Main Estimates, Supplementary Estimates, transfers from Treasury Board Vote 15 and 23 and also includes carry forward adjustments. For the 2009-10 to 2011-12 periods, the total spending corresponds to the planned spending which includes earmarked funding provided in Budget 2009, resulting from Strategic Review to enable the Board to deliver its new functions mandated by the PSLRA. It should be noted that as the Board is still proceeding with the establishment of its new compensation analysis and research services, the resources required to deliver these in the longer term are still under review.

Departmental Spending Trend

departmental spending trend: dollars in thousands versus spending trend over time (actual spending, forecast spending, and planned spending)

Voted and Statutory Items

This table illustrates the way in which Parliament approved the Board’s resources. As noted elsewhere, the Board is seeking a permanent adjustment to its reference levels in order to deliver its expanded mandate and to address workload pressures of the National Joint Council.


($ thousands)
Voted & Statutory
Item
Public Service Labour Relations Board 2008–09
Main
Estimates
2009–10
Main
Estimates
100 Program expenditures 5,996 6,071
(S) Contributions to employee benefit plans 760 750
TOTAL 6,756 6,821



Section II — Analysis of Program Activities by Strategic Outcome

Strategic Outcome: Harmonious labour relations in the federal Public Service and Parliament


Program Activity: Adjudication, mediation and compensation analysis and research
Human Resources (FTEs) and Planned Spending ($ thousands)
2009–10 2010–11 2011–12
FTEs Planned Spending 1 FTEs Planned Spending 1 FTEs Planned Spending 1
61 8,692 61 8,692 61 8,692

1 The planned spending includes earmarked funding provided in Budget 2009, resulting from Strategic Review to enable the Board to deliver its new functions mandated by the PSLRA.


Program Activity: Internal Services
Human Resources (FTEs) and Planned Spending ($ thousands)
2009–10 2010–11 2011–12
FTEs Planned Spending 1 FTEs Planned Spending 1 FTEs Planned Spending 1
32 4,775 32 4,775 32 4,775

1 The planned spending includes earmarked funding provided in Budget 2009, resulting from Strategic Review to enable the Board to deliver its new functions mandated by the PSLRA.


Program Activity Expected Results Performance Indicators Targets
Parties before the Board receive a timely and impartial resolution of their case Percentage of clients who are satisfied with the Board's services in regard to timeliness and impartialness 75%
Dispute-related issues are resolved fully or partially through mediation interventions Percentage of mediation efforts (grievance or complaint cases & collective bargaining) where issues are partially or fully resolved 80%
The Board's compensation data facilitates the process of collective bargaining Relevance of data, as measured by comparing data provided to original commitments 80% of original commitments met



Section III – Supplementary Information

Other Items of Interest

Statutes and Regulations Administered by the Public Service Labour Relations Board

  • Public Service Labour Relations Act, S.C. 2003, c. 22, s. 2
  • Public Service Labour Relations Board Regulations, SOR/2005-79
  • Public Service Staff Relations Act, R.S.C. 1985, c.P-35 (repealed as of March 31, 2005)
  • P.S.S.R.B. Regulations and Rules of Procedure, 1993, SOR/93-348 (repealed as of March 31, 2005)
  • Parliamentary Employment and Staff Relations Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. 33 (2d Supp.), as amended.
  • P.E.S.R.A. Regulations and Rules of Procedure, SOR/86-1140, as amended.
  • Sections 133 and 147 of Part II of the Canada Labour Code, R.S.C. 1985, c. L-2
  • Education Labour Relations Act, (Yukon), R.S.Y. 2002, c. 62 (amended by SY 2004, c.8)
  • Yukon Teachers Staff Relations Board Regulations and Rules of Procedure, O.I.C. 1992/95
  • Public Service Labour Relations Act, (Yukon), R.S.Y. 2002, c. 185 (amended by SY 2004, c.8)
  • YPSSRB Regulations and Rules of Procedure, C.O. 1970/226

How to Reach Us


Mailing Address: Public Service Labour Relations Board
P.O. Box 1525, Station B
Ottawa, Ontario
K1P 5V2
Telephone: 613-990-1800
Toll-free: 866-931-3454
General: Fax: 613-990-1849
Registry Operations and Policy: Fax: 613-990-3927
Dispute Resolution Services: Fax: 613-990-6685
Website: www.pslrb-crtfp.gc.ca
E-mail Address: Mail.courrier@pslrb-crtfp.gc.ca