Mr. Speaker, I rise in the House today to address the issue of pay equity. On January 23, 1998 I a met for the second time with the local representatives of the Public Service Alliance of Canada regarding pay equity. They have made me aware of their views and are quite concerned about this issue.
This past fall I met with the President of the Treasury Board to make him aware of the concerns of the PSAC representatives in the greater Moncton area.
I can assure you that wage parity is of great concern, not only to the Public Service Alliance, but also to the Government of Canada.
The government has always given precedence to the option of a negotiated settlement. That is why Treasury Board took the initiative with the negotiations which began on April 15, 1997.
I would like to assure the Alliance and the government of my interest in finding a prompt solution to this impasse.