February 8 2024

The National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) condemns the arrest by the Ottawa police of union leader Alex Silas, PSAC’s regional executive vice-president for the National Capital Region, during a lawful picket.

The disturbing turn of events took place during a strike rally by workers picketing at the Department of National Defence/Canadian Armed Forces Joint Intelligence Operations Centre. 500 members of the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) who provide critical support services to members of the Canadian Forces, their families, and veterans at the Canadian Forces facilities’, are on strike for fair wages, equal pay, and improved job security.

“This outrageous treatment of a labour leader who was participating in a legal picket reeks of intimidation,” said NUPGE President Bert Blundon. “Workers in Canada have a constitutionally protected right to strike, and the right to assemble. Strikes are a legal part of the labour dispute process, and the Ottawa police had no business interfering.”

The striking workers are some of the lowest paid in the federal public sector— and the majority of whom are women, . “These bullying tactics by the police are a troubling development, but they only deepen labour’s determination to oppose such regressive behaviour and fight for fairness in bargaining, and everywhere else.”

NUPGE stands in solidarity with the striking PSAC members and their leadership in their bid to negotiate a fair and reasonable contract.