Many Canadians complain that they cannot communicate with anyone at the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) by telephone to address important tax issues, and the union that represents the agency workers has joined the affected taxpayers to declare the federal government to solve the problem.
“It is very frustrating and disappointing,” said Krista Tucker Petrick of North Bay, Ontario, one of the several affected taxpayers interviewed by CBC News.
She said she has been calling the CRA at least twice a day for weeks to deal with the heritage of her late stepmother.
Tucker Petrick says every time he calls, he doesn’t even put it on hold. Instead, it is received by an automated recording on CRA online service options.
“It’s a government service. Well, I’m not receiving any service,” he said.
Regina’s accountant, Erin Rudd, says she began experiencing the same problem in May. Now, your company’s staff turns to spend all day trying to call CRA to address urgent customer affairs.
They rarely succeed in passing, Rudd added.
“We redeem ourselves and then get the ‘All our agents are busy, please call again’ [message] And we started again, “said Rudd, owner of Black Star Accounting.” Some days we would like to have a shout room in the office because we literally want to shout. “
The Union of Tax Employees, which represents the workers of the CRA, says that almost 3,300 employees of the call center have lost their jobs since May 2024. Consequently, says the union, on average, less than five percent of the people who call an agent.
Thursday, the union launched a social media campaign To condemn employment cuts and warn Canadians that if Ottawa proceeds with more planned cuts, it will only be more difficult to talk to a CRA agent by phone.
“The future at this time seems very gloomy,” said Marc Brioère, national president of the union.
“We are advocating because they stop bleeding.”
Work cuts
According A Database of the Treasury BoardCRA had 52,499 employees at the end of March 2025. In 2024, it was 59,155, which means a loss of more than 10 percent of its employees.
Brière said that the loss of thousands of workers from the call center has been devastating. He estimated that between 3,500 and 4,000 employees of the call center remain at work.
Most incoming calls are not only unanswered, said Brière, but the remaining staff is struggling with the workload.
“People are absolutely exhausted and cry for help.”
He added that employees should also deal with people who call angry who, when they finally reach an agent, want to know why it is so difficult to pass.
“They are receiving many abuses in the telephone lines.”
Brière said that more job losses are expected in CRA call centers due to that of Prime Minister Mark Carney’s recent call so that federal ministries significantly reduce programs. The expense objectives would see 7.5 percent cuts in the fiscal year that begins in April 2026, followed by the following 10 percent of the year and 15 percent in 2028-29.
Carney’s proposed cuts follow their promise more than double expense in defense to know new NATO spending objectives.
Brère argues that Ottawa needs to increase, not decrease, the CRA budget and hire the workers of the call center that have already been released.
“If not, that will be absolutely unpleasant,” he said. “It’s going to be, ‘Don’t bother to call us, we can’t even lift the phone.'”
On Wednesday, the CRA told CBC News that I was working on an answer for this story, however, none was received at night.
People calling
CBC News interviewed several taxpayers who say they have been trying in vain, sometimes for months, reach the CRA on the phone.
Social networks have also flooded complaints.
Reddit contains dozens of discussion threads On the subject, with titles like “CRA Endless Phone Loop” and “How to talk to a human in the Cra? “
Tucker Petrick, who is the albacea of the inheritance of his late stepmother, said he needs to talk to a CRA agent to make a simple request. She needs the agent to give her accountant access to the assets so that she can deal with the tax documentation, a task she could not do online.
Until the paperwork is made, you cannot pay the money left by its stepmother to it and three other beneficiaries, she said.
She says the first day, on August 5, she called the agency 671 times more than seven hours.
“I was crying because I’m trying to clean this farm,” he said. “I have a fiduciary duty with three other beneficiaries.”
Tucker Petrick said he hopes to reach an agent. He also expects the government to reinvest its cuts to the call centers.
“You need to do better,” he said. “You can’t simply keep cutting the service and expect the system to run. It does not.”
Back in Black Star’s accounting services in Regina, Rudd says that the problem of the CRA calling center is harming her business, and not only because an employee is tied every day in the agency’s editing.
Rudd said that he should also deal with annoying clients whose cases remain in Limbo until his office can reach the agency to address his problems.
“The public is frustrating, we are frustrating,” Rudd said.
When asked if you have a message to send to the government, Rudd’s response was succinct.
“Help,” he said.
