President Sharon DeSousa cites issues with "governance and fiduciary operations" as reasons for trusteeship.

Canada’s largest union representing federal public servants has placed another component union into trusteeship.

On Sept. 4, the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) voted to place the Canada Employment and Immigration Union (CEIU) into trusteeship, making it the third component union taken under the larger union’s control in less than a year.

Placing CEIU under trusteeship effectively ousted its national and regional leadership.

Local executive leadership will remain in place, said a Sept. 9 PSAC news release.

The CEIU is one of the largest component unions in PSAC with more than 32,000 members representing workers in Service Canada, Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada and Employment and Social Development Canada, among other workplaces.

In an email obtained by the Ottawa Citizen, PSAC’s national president Sharon DeSousa told CEIU members that “for several months, members have been raising concerns with me regarding the governance and fiduciary operations of the Canada Employment and Immigration Union (CEIU).”

“I want you to know that I have heard you, and that I do not take these matters lightly,” said DeSousa in the email.

The CEIU was placed under trusteeship just days away from the union’s convention when a new executive was set to be elected. The convention was set to be held Sept. 13-18 in Vancouver, but the timeline for the next elections is now unclear.

PSAC has appointed Shimen Fayad, the national president of the Union of Health and Environment Workers, as the trustee for CEIU, while Guy Boulanger is appointed as the administrator.

Since the trusteeship was announced, CEIU members launched a petition demanding a live membership meeting to explain the reasons for the move. The petition had amassed more than 200 signatures as of early Wednesday afternoon.

Jean-Michel Lavergne was elected as the new national president of the Union of National Employees on Aug. 27. 

“The timing of this decision has also raised serious democratic concerns,” the petition said.

“Trusteeship was not the only possible course available. Members deserve an explanation of why this option was chosen at this particular time and why the newly elected leadership was not given an opportunity, with appropriate oversight and support if necessary, to address the problems identified.”

PSAC did not answer questions about why CEIU was placed under trusteeship at a time that elections were set to happen.

The CEIU national executive office has seen turmoil since the ousting of its then-national president Eddy Bourque and vice-president Sargy Chima after the two leaders pushed for members to reject a tentative deal to end a PSAC strike in 2023.

Bourque and Chima launched a legal challenge to be reinstated ahead of the convention, but a judge denied to grant their application in August citing jurisdictional issues.

Helen King, who then replaced Boucher, has now been ousted by the trusteeship, making her the third national president at CEIU in three years.

It has been a turbulent year for PSAC as it struggles to rein in some of its component unions from alleged dysfunction and mismanagement while helping guide workers through the largest public service cuts in more than a decade.

Last October, PSAC placed the Union of National Employees under trusteeship amid accusations of representation issues, complaints against it leadership, high staff turnover and financial issues.

The UNE, which represents more than 27,000 workers, elected a new president and executive on Aug. 27, paving the way for the union to exit its trusteeship, while its former president Alisha Kang has been suspended. Kang is challenging her removal in court and also filed a now-dismissed complaint at the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal, alleging discrimination.

On Aug. 6, PSAC placed the Yukon Employees’ Union, a 5,900-member component union, under trusteeship.

PSAC cited governance issues for putting the component under trusteeship and claimed branches of the union were not functioning in compliance with its bylaws, according to Yukon News.

PSAC places Canada Employment and Immigration Union into trusteeship