The majority of the public: not alot of sympathy it seems...
Overpaid or undervalued? Politics divides opinions of federal employees’ working conditions & compensation
Past CPC voters three times as likely as past Liberals & New Democrats, to say federal workers overpaid
April 27, 2023 – As the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) strike passes the one-week mark, both sides in the contract dispute are under more pressure to reach an agreement. Union negotiators have reportedly
moved off wage demands that asked for a 13.5 per cent increase in compensation over three years. The federal government has reportedly offered nine per cent over that period.
Public opinion data from the non-profit Angus Reid Institute finds that while Canadians are sympathetic to many demands, a majority also feel that federal employees are fairly (36%) or overly (28%) compensated. Just one-in-five (17%) feel workers are underpaid.
Past Conservative supporters are by far the most likely to feel employees of the federal government are overpaid (46%), while New Democrats (33%) are most likely to say the opposite.
Views of compensation colour opinions of the union’s demands. Those who feel employees are underpaid are near-unanimous in their support for the aforementioned 13.5 per cent wage increase (91% support).
One area where Canadians are largely unified is the sentiment that federal employees have better working conditions than workers in other similar private industries. Seven-in-ten (72%) feel government workers have it better when it comes to benefits, job security, pension planning, and other perceived perks.
Past CPC voters three times as likely as past Liberals & New Democrats, to say federal workers overpaid April 27, 2023 – As the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC)
angusreid.org