Carney government tight-lipped on fulfilling campaign promise to raise pay for RCMP cadets
OTTAWA — While the federal Liberal government has signalled plans to make good on its campaign promise to give raises to military members, it is keeping tight-lipped about whether it intends to do the same for RCMP recruits.
During this spring’s federal election campaign, Prime Minister Mark Carney pledged to bolster the national police force by hiring another 1,000 members , creating a new academy within the RCMP’s Depot training division, and, according to the Liberal platform, “increase pay for cadet recruits.”
Hiking the pay that RCMP cadets receive during their 26-week training program from its current $525 per week is one of the requests that the National Police Federation, the union representing RCMP members, has made of the government in recent budget cycles. The force itself supports the move, as it seeks ways to boost sluggish recruitment numbers .
Asked by National Post this week whether the government intends to move on its promise of increased pay, Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree’s office declined to comment, citing an ongoing budget process.
“The RCMP plays a vital role in keeping Canadians safe, and we remain firmly committed to supporting their important work,” wrote spokesman Simon Lafortune in an email.
“Given the federal government’s ongoing pre-budget consultation process, we will refrain from commenting at this time.”
John Fragos, a spokesman for Finance Minister Francois Philippe-Champagne, who is planning to present the Carney government’s first budget in October, said in a separate statement that it would have more to say then.
“The minister is engaging in pre-budget consultations with stakeholders and agencies alike. This process spans 45 cities in every province and territory,” Fragos said.
Unlike other departments and federal agencies that Champagne has asked to find up to 15 per cent in “annual savings,” the RCMP, along with the Canada Border Services Agency and Department of National Defence, have only been asked to find two per cent in “annual savings” over the next three years.
That comes as Canada seeks to bolster its border security by promising to hire more frontline personnel and has committed to spending billions of dollars more to reach the five per cent NATO spending target by 2035 .
Brian Sauve, president of the National Police Federation, said hiking the pay for RCMP recruits would be the “easiest” change the government could make as it looks for ways to help modernize the force’s recruitment process, citing how those who join other police services start receiving a salary from “day one.”
“Our average cadet now is 28 to 30 years old,” he said in an interview from his Ottawa office. “Twenty-eight and 30-year-old Canadians have lives. You know, a lot of them have mortgages, have wives, have husbands, have kids, have commitments, student loan debt.”
“Leaving a job of whatever, and dropping down to $500 a week for (26) weeks is a pretty big commitment,” he said.
Last fall, RCMP commissioner Mike Duheme told National Post he would be satisfied to see pay increase to $1,100 to $1,400 to close the gap between what RCMP cadets receive, compared to recruits of other police services.
He said at the time that he was “pretty confident” changes would be coming and had raised the issue directly with former public safety minister Dominic LeBlanc, whom Duheme described as being “very supportive.” Carney has since appointed LeBlanc to the intergovernmental affairs portfolio.
A response from the RCMP was not returned by press deadline.
Sauve said that while the issue of increased pay for RCMP recruits has “moved along,” it has “never crossed the finish line.”
“This government promised to put it across the finish line in their campaign and in their in their platform,” he said.
Last month, National Defence Minister David McGuinty confirmed to reporters that armed forces members would be receiving a 20 per cent pay increase as part of a $9-billion spending increase for the defence budget, which Carney announced as part of his plan to boost Canada’s defence and security commitments.
The Canadian Press later reported that McGuinty’s office was considering a “combination of approaches” for how to reach that pay increase, including by introducing retention bonuses for “stress trades.”
National Post
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