Canada’s Government Declines ‘Unsustainable’ Strike Demands.

The Canadian Treasury Board rejected an offer by the union representing about 155,000 striking civil servants, saying the demands were “unsustainable”.

“We will not sign agreements that the country cannot afford, nor agreements that severely affect our ability to provide services to Canadians,” the Treasury Board, which oversees public administration, said on Wednesday.

The strike involving about 155,000 federal government workers, represented by the Canadian Public Service Alliance, entered its eighth day on Wednesday, affecting a wide range of public services from tax returns to passport renewals.

Meanwhile, union boss Chris Aylward has invited Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to participate in negotiations and give the Treasury Board a new mandate.

“He can either step in personally and help settle this dispute or turn his back on the striking workers,” Aylward told reporters on Parliament Hill.

“We’ll stay here as long as it takes,” he added, as workers around him chanted.