By Kathryn May, Ottawa Citizen
OTTAWA — Canada's bureaucrats are steeled for this week's budget to
reduce the value of the deluxe pension plan that the government pitches
to new recruits as a reason to join the public service.
While
the two largest federal unions and the Canadian Labour Congress showed a
united front Tuesday to fight any cuts to federal pensions, the
government is wrapping up a recruitment campaign partly built around
"attractive compensation," including one of the best pension plans in
the country.
Departments have a target to hire 4,000 new
graduates by the end of March.
But the uncertainty over
pensions could deter new recruits and spark a stampede of retiring
workers who may opt to leave before the government guts their pensions,
said Gary Corbett, president of the Professional Institute of the Public
Service. He said the union is getting calls from workers pleading to
know whether they should retire now before pensions are cut. (More)
