Fixing problems with Phoenix payroll system cost taxpayers $5.1 billion: official
OTTAWA - A top federal official said fixing the payroll problems caused by Phoenix cost taxpayers more than $5 billion — and they'll keep paying extra to run two public service payroll platforms at once as Ottawa weans itself off the problem-plagued system.
Alex Benay, associate deputy minister at Public Services and Procurement Canada, said the alternative to running the Phoenix system in tandem with its replacement, Dayforce, would have been worse.
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Toronto Star
8 hours ago
- Toronto Star
Fixing problems with Phoenix payroll system cost taxpayers $5.1 billion: official
OTTAWA - A top federal official said fixing the payroll problems caused by Phoenix cost taxpayers more than $5 billion — and they'll keep paying extra to run two public service payroll platforms at once as Ottawa weans itself off the problem-plagued system. Alex Benay, associate deputy minister at Public Services and Procurement Canada, said the alternative to running the Phoenix system in tandem with its replacement, Dayforce, would have been worse.
Toronto Sun
8 hours ago
- Toronto Sun
Fixing problems with Phoenix payroll system cost taxpayers $5.1B: Official
Published Jun 23, 2025 • 2 minute read Federal seasonal worker Roxanne Merrill Young holds a sign during a Phoenix payroll system demonstration in Miramichi, N.B., in 2017. Photo by Jocelyn Turner / Postmedia Network OTTAWA — A top federal official said fixing the payroll problems caused by Phoenix cost taxpayers more than $5 billion — and they'll keep paying extra to run two public service payroll platforms at once as Ottawa weans itself off the problem-plagued system. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Alex Benay, associate deputy minister at Public Services and Procurement Canada, said the alternative to running the Phoenix system in tandem with its replacement, Dayforce, would have been worse. 'The unfortunate situation is there's no easy path,' he said. 'This is the one that's going to impact employees the least.' The other option, he said, would have been a more risky 'big bang' deployment that would have switched roughly 350,000 public servants from the old system to the new Dayforce system all at once. Read More That's what happened when the federal government introduced Phoenix, which led to nearly a decade of public service payroll errors and major lawsuits. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'My commitment when I started this role was that I would not support that, for all the obvious reasons of where we are today, nine years later,' Benay said. He added that the 'deputy minister community' and ministers decided they 'do not want to do another big bang.' Benay said taxpayers likely spent about $5.1 billion to process the backlog of Phoenix errors that caused some public servants to be paid incorrectly — or sometimes not paid at all. On June 11, Ottawa announced it had awarded a 10-year contract to Dayforce worth $350.6 million which includes a possible extension to 20 years. 'This is not another Phoenix. The work is being done at small scale and transparently,' Benay said. 'We're hoping that this is a smarter, more human-centred transformation that'll be built to last.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Parallel testing of the new payroll system will start next year and the first two departments to adopt the new system will be Shared Services Canada and Public Services Procurement Canada. The initial amount spent to create Phoenix was $309 million, according to departmental spokesperson Jullian Paquin. Phoenix's origins date to 2009. It was originally designed to decrease the cost of processing the federal government's massive payroll. But the project failed on launch after being rolled out with no project oversight, according to a federal audit. The original price tag provided by IBM to implement Phoenix in 2012 was $274 million. — With files from Catherine Morrison. Toronto & GTA Toronto Maple Leafs Toronto Blue Jays World Other Sports
CTV News
11 hours ago
- CTV News
Top public servants unanimously opposed ‘big bang' pay switchover for public service
Alex Benay, Associate Deputy Minister at Public Services and Procurement Canada, speaks during a news conference at the National Press Theatre in Ottawa, on Tuesday, July 9, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang OTTAWA — A top federal official says fixing the payroll problems caused by Phoenix cost taxpayers more than $5 billion — and they'll keep paying extra to run two public service payroll platforms at once as Ottawa weans itself off the problem-plagued system. Alex Benay, associate deputy minister at Public Services and Procurement Canada, says the alternative to running the Phoenix system in tandem with its replacement, Dayforce, would have been worse. The other option, he says, was a 'big bang' deployment that would have switched roughly 350,000 public servants from the old system to the new Dayforce system all at once. That's what happened when the federal government introduced Phoenix, which led to nearly a decade of mispayments for public servants and major lawsuits. Benay says taxpayers likely spent about $5.1 billion to process a backlog of Phoenix errors that caused some public servants to be mispaid — or sometimes not paid at all. While he doesn't have a cost estimate for the switch to Dayforce, Benay adds senior government officials agreed not to repeat the mistakes of nine years ago when Phoenix was brought online. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 23, 2025. Kyle Duggan, The Canadian Press
