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Members of public service union vote in favour of federal strike mandate

Members of a union that represents more than 120,000 federal public servants have voted in favour of a strike mandate.

The Public Service Alliance of Canada can now launch a strike anytime in the next 60 days, but the union has not signalled when that move might come.

Its national president, Chris Aylward, said at a press conference this morning that bargaining for fair wages is top of mind and members are prepared to strike for as long as it takes.

The alliance called a strike vote in January following an impasse in negotiations with the federal government, and members had until Tuesday to cast their votes.

The union and the government began mediated negotiations in early April and both parties are back at the bargaining table this week, but Aylward said the talks have not been going well.

The announcement of the vote result comes after workers at the Canada Revenue Agency voted for their own strike mandate last Friday.