Public Service of Canada

Pre-Confederation (1841-1867) Prior to introduction of responsible government in 1848, the Province of Canada, then a British colonial possession lacked an organized civil service. Positions in the colonial administration were then largely filled through patronage, with appointments almost exclusively controlled by the sitting governor, often under the advisement of members of the ruling Family Compact, who would recommend the selection of candidates who were supportive of the ruling elite. As such, government officials would be appointed for life, often leading to instances where members of the same family would occupy a position for several generations. While the introduction of responsible government, which conferred more authority toward the popularly-elected Assembly to oversee appointments to the civil services, successive governments continued the practice of drawing appointees to non-political (civil) positions. Unlike the American spoils system, political appointees did not typically resign when a new government was sworn in, which created friction between Cabinet and civil servants as governments changed. Post-Confederation civil service reforms (1867-1908) Following Canadian Confederation, Prime Minister John A. Macdonald's government sought to improve the quality and rigor of appointments with the passage of the Canada Civil Service Act in 1868. The legislation established a Civil Service Board with limited jurisdictions over civil service examinations, certification, and promotional investigations for civil servants located in Ottawa. Despite its intentions, the legislation failed to completely abolish political patronage in appointments. In 1869, the Royal Commission to Enquire into the Present State and Probable Requirements of the Civil Service was established, publishing three reports which called on the government to organize the civil service into departments, introduce a single job classification system, and require candidates to pass an entrance examination. A further amendment to the legislation enacted in 1919 curtailed Cabinet's ability to directly appoint employees to the civil service. Cementing a professional civil service (1919-1951) As the CSC solidified its role as a body responsible for curtailing patronage, and protecting the integrity of the merit-based appointment process, it sought to improve the rigour of its entrance examinations. However, the CSC also began to impose restrictions on employing married women beginning in 1921, with any women holding permanent positions being forced to resign upon marrying. These restrictions would remain in place until 1955. Nevertheless, Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King's government passed the Civil Service Superannuation Act in 1924, helping to establish a pension system for civil servants and to promote a career civil service. The Great Depression brought about a significant economic downturn in Canada, culminating in high unemployment and business failures across the country. As a result, government revenue dropped significantly, prompting the federal government, through the Treasury Board to move forward with cutbacks to the operating costs of the civil service. While this did not result in layoffs within the civil service, as the government wanted to avoid deepening the unemployment issue, the Treasury Board temporarily imposed salary cuts and a suspension of promotions and salary raises. During this period, Prime Minister R. B. Bennett's government, through Orders-in-Council, permanently transferred staffing authority from the CSC to the Treasury Board for civil service positions. Given the Treasury Board's ability to enforce fiscal discipline, and its composition by members of Cabinet, it could more easily resist efforts to increase the size of the civil service, particularly during periods of economic hardship. With the outbreak of World War II, Canada, as a Commonwealth nation and former British possession, was immediately thrust into the war effort. For the civil service, the War saw provisions of the Civil Service Act replaced by the War Measures Act, which facilitated the appointment of upwards of 54,000 employees, largely on a temporary basis. s, 1945. Following the end of World War II, personnel numbers within the civil service ballooned with the return of veterans from the homefront, many of whom were able to secure positions through preferential status granted to former service members. By 1949, about 55,000 veterans were appointed through this method. The civil service also began to introduce developmental classifications, notably the junior administrative assistant position beginning in 1946 to encourage the recruitment and training of university graduates into fully-fledged administrative professionals. Similarly, in 1947, the CSC established a Staff Training Division, responsible for organizing courses to train civil servants on different skills. Financial Administration Act and push for collective bargaining (1951-1964) in Halifax, 1952. In 1951, Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent's government enacted the Financial Administration Act, established the Treasury Board as a formal entity, consisting of the president of the Treasury Board and four other Cabinet members, and the creation of the position of Secretary of the Treasury Board, a senior civil servant who advises the members of the Treasury Board on their decisions. The FAA designated the Treasury Board as the final authority over all matters relating to the management and organization of the public service. The CSC had imposed restrictions on employing married women beginning in 1921, with any women holding permanent positions being forced to resign upon marrying; these restrictions were lifted in 1955. In 2012, the federal budget by the Harper government sought to reduce the number of public service positions by around 19,000 over the next three fiscal years until 2015-16. Beginning in 2014, the Privy Council Office, Treasury Board, and other departments launched a new renewal initiative, Destination 2020, which focused on a five-pronged plan to improve efficiency and effectiveness of the public service by 2020, focusing on the adoption of innovative practices, process renewal, the deployment of new technology, and promoting the values of the public service. Contemporary developments (2015-present) In January 2016, the Phoenix pay system began to be rolled out across the federal government, and ran into significant performance issues, leading to thousands of public servants being overpaid, underpaid, or not paid at all over the course of several months. This would prompt Public Services and Procurement Canada to rapidly launch dedicated telephone lines beginning in the summer of 2016 to assist public servants who were affected by issues brought on by the pay system. In June 2021, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government amended the Public Service Employment Act to enshrine employment equity objectives, and notably introduced provide equal preference to Canadian citizens and permanent residents in job competitions. COVID-19 pandemic (2020-22) The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic prompted the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat to ask departments to close offices to curtail community spread of COVID-19, and switch to remote work where possible. However, restrictions on network capacity and delays in the deploying IT equipment to public servants working remotely resulted in nearly 110,000 public servants receiving special paid leave, costing approximately $1.1 billion by the end of 2020. The relative success of remote work arrangements prompted at least one department, Transport Canada to designate themselves as fully remote by default in May 2020, joining private companies such as Twitter and Shopify. In October 2021, Prime Minister Trudeau announced that all public servants, regardless of whether they are working remotely or on-site, needed to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by a Health Canada-approved vaccine. Public servants were required to attest their vaccination status to their employers by October 29 of that year, with managers able to ask their employees to submit proof where necessary. Post COVID-19 pandemic (2022 to present) In December 2022, the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat directed departments and agencies to have employees attend work onsite at least 2 to 3 days per week, with a phased introduction beginning in January 2023 and with full implementation by the end of March 2023. Return-to-office, alongside wage increases to keep pace with rising inflation, became significant issues in labour negotiations between Public Service Alliance of Canada and TBS. PSAC members voted to strike on April 12, followed by the Union of Taxation Employees three days later on April 15. This strike, which began on April 19, saw an estimated 100,000 workers walk off the job for 12 days, with the UTE striking for 15 days. Tentative agreements were reached for Treasury Board units on May 1 and CRA units on May 3 respectively. TBS went on to revise the direction on hybrid work to increase the minimum number of expected onsite days for employees from 2 to 3 days in May 2024, with full implementation by September 9. This decision was criticized by several public service unions and labour leaders, such as PSAC, which promised to file legal challenges and grievances against the decision Canadian Association of Professional Employees, who called for a parliamentary inquiry into the three-day-a-week return to office mandate. ==Purpose==

The Public Service of Canada supports the Government of Canada in the development, implementation, and evaluation of policy, and in carrying out key bureaucratic functions at the federal level. The duties of individual public servants vary widely, ranging from issuing policy recommendations to ministers, processing applications or forms, to interacting directly with members of the public. While public servants aim to convert the political priorities of the elected government and Cabinet from concept into action, public servants are loyal to the Crown, rather than the sitting government. As such, public servants remain employed even as governments and political priorities change, requiring them to exercise a degree of political neutrality, which restricts their ability to participate in overtly partisan activities. Unlike political staff, who are often hired through patronage, public servants are appointed on the basis of the merit, often through a competitive examination. The duties of public servants and their relationship to the political executive is often captured by scholars and public servants in the epigram "fearless advice and loyal implementation", which denotes the ability for public servants to provide honest, evidence-based advice to the Ministers without fear of losing their employment, while also dutifully carrying out the will of the sitting government, even if it runs counter to their own advice or personal values. ==Structure==

The Public Service of Canada is organized into 137 distinct organizations, including 23 ministerial departments, 3 service agencies, 17 departmental corporations, 50 departmental agencies, 12 special operating agencies, and 6 agents of Parliament. Public service organizations are categorized under the following designations, pursuant to the Financial Administration Act • Core public administration (CPA): Consists of organizations, primarily ministerial departments, listed under schedules I and IV of the FAA, where Treasury Board serves as the direct employer for public servants in these organizations, and sets pay rates and other workplace policies • Separate agencies: Consists of organizations, primarily service agencies and departmental corporations listed under schedule V of the FAA, where Treasury Board is only responsible for approving employer mandates and overseeing the internal finances of each department. Management structure In most ministerial departments and certain agencies, such as the Canada Revenue Agency, a Cabinet minister has overarching responsibility for the management and direction of the organization, and is ultimately responsible to Parliament for their decisions, policies, and operations. Directly beneath the minister is the deputy minister, a career public servant who manages the day-to-day operations of their organization, and is responsible for the decisions and actions of their organization's employees. The deputy minister, under the Financial Administration Act, has superlative authority over financial and personnel management within their organizations, and must ensure the department adheres to standards, regulations, and other policy instruments from the Treasury Board Secretariat and Privy Council Office. Under the deputy minister are assistant deputy ministers (ADMs) who oversee a particular branch or other section of the organization. Branches are further divided into directorates, which focus on a specific functional area under the branch, and are led by directors-general. Beneath directors-general are directors, who oversee divisions within each directorate. These form the smallest organizational sub-units within a federal organization, under which mid-level managers and functional staff are organized. It is common for different organizations within the federal government to adopt alternative terminology for senior management. For instance, the deputy minister-equivalent in the Canada Border Services Agency is the president, under which are vice presidents, whose function is akin to that of an ADM. Oversight bodies Treasury Board Secretariat of Canada The Treasury Board Secretariat of Canada (TBS) is considered the 'employer' of the core public administration, and oversees the management of human, financial, and information resources within the federal government. It issues directives, guidance, and other policy instruments to federal organizations to set consistent managerial procedures and practices throughout the federal public service. It also monitors internal spending within federal departments and agencies, ensuring resources are used appropriately and align with government priorities. Privy Council Office The Privy Council Office (PCO) assists the Prime Minister and Cabinet in setting priorities, developing policies, establishing ministerial mandates, and recommending candidates for appointment to Governor-in-Council positions or senior positions within the federal public service. The PSC runs several general and specialized competitions for candidates seeking employment with the federal government, and spearheads employment equity initiatives across the federal government. The PSC also ensures that federal public servants are non-partisan, overseeing investigations into political activities of public servants, and issuing punitive measures where necessary. ==== Federal Public Service Labour and Employment Board ==== The Federal Public Service Labour and Employment Board (FPSLREB), formed in 2014 from the merger of the Public Service Labour Relations Board and the Public Service Staffing Tribunal oversees the collective bargaining system between the federal government and represented employees, as well as the grievance adjudication system. The FPSLEB hears and issues decisions on cases relating to appeals around personnel management decisions, such as termination, discrimination, or unacceptable behaviour. ==== Office of the Public Sector Integrity Commissioner ==== The Office of the Public Sector Integrity Commissioner (PSIC), which is responsible directly to Parliament through the namesake Public Sector Integrity Commissioner, is responsible for the intake and investigation of disclosures of wrongdoing by public servants by other federal employees or members of the public in relation to the former's job duties. The OPSIC additionally works to prevent and address reprisal against whistleblowers from their supervisors or senior management for reporting wrongdoing. ==Personnel==

Recruitment principles 1964-1968, 1969-1971, 1972-1974, 1975-1979, 1978-1983, 1984-1988, 1989-1999, 2000-2016, 2017-2020 1. For data between 1913 and 1960, annual data is not available for all years. Report of the Royal Commission on Governmental Organization notes in the presentation of this data that "...the lack of historical data based upon uniform and constant statistical concepts makes it impracticable to measure precisely the growth of the public service." However, the Public Service Commission under the terms of the Public Service Employment Act, can establish priority groups for appointment, such as veterans, Canadian citizens, and permanent residents, or can create programs to promote the opportunities for equity-seeking groups (e.g. women, Indigenous peoples, persons with disabilities) in the federal public service. Changes to the Public Service Employment Act in 2003 redefined 'merit' within recruitment processes to focus less on a rules-based concept of best-qualified, and more on a values-based approach. This enables managers to hire qualified and competent individuals whose experience, skills and knowledge are the best fit for a position's current and future needs. Recruitment in organizations in the Core Public Administration is governed directly by the Public Service Employment Act, while separate agencies hire according to authority granted to them by their enabling legislation. Federal public servants Canada are considered to be employed by the Crown, as the corporation sole of the Canadian state. The Public Service Modernization Act in 2003, eliminated the requirement for public servants to swear or affirm Oath of Allegiance to the monarch before they could assume their position. Tenure Public servants can be appointed to one of four types of tenure, as defined under the Public Service Employment Act, which come with different levels of job security, compensation, benefits, and responsibilities. • Indeterminate: Employees who are appointed on a continuous basis, and have no prescribed end date to their employment. Indeterminate employees are considered permanent, though may be laid off during workforce adjustment exercises within their organization. They are also entitled to all benefits, and must contribute to the public service pension plan as required by the Public Service Superannuation Act. • Term: Employees who are appointed for a definite period of time, usually between 3 and 24 months in length. Depending on the length of their contract, they may receive benefits and contribute to the pension. Term employees may be granted a 'rollover' to indeterminate status if they are employed as a term for the same department for three continuous years. • Casual: Employees who are appointed for appointed for short contracts not exceeding 90 working days with a single organization over the course of a calendar year. Casual employees may obtain multiple contracts over the course of a year, but are ineligible to claim benefits or contribute to the pension, and are not represented by a union. • Student: Employees who are participating in a Government of Canada student employment program, such as the Federal Student Work Experience Program (FSWEP) or a co-op program with a post-secondary institution. Under certain conditions, students may claim benefits and contribute to the pension if they are continuously employed for more than 6 months. However, students are not eligible for paid leave, and are not represented by a union. Selection methods Selection processes within the Public Service of Canada for substantive positions can be divided into external appointments, which candidates not currently employed in the federal public service can apply to, and internal appointments, which are limited to individuals currently employed as a federal public servant. These appointments are generally published through jobs.gc.ca, the portal maintained by the Public Service Commission to advertise job vacancies in the federal government. After candidates submit their initial application, they are screened by human resource personnel to ascertain their qualifications and determine if they qualify for inclusion within a pool, from which managers can draw from. Pools themselves are divided into 'fully assessed' pools, meaning that the candidates are verified to have met the merit criteria for a position, and 'partially-assessed' pools, where candidates may require additional testing before they can be hired. Appointments that occur from these selection processes can either be considered advertised, meaning that the appointment made from a pool aligns with the original job advertisement, or non-advertised, in which no clear connection between the position being filled and the information in the job advertisement exists. While external applicants can apply through general pools, the Public Service Commission runs a number of specialized competitions to recruit recent university graduates, such as the Post-Secondary Recruitment (PSR) program to staff entry-level. Other competitions seek to attract academics or individuals with extensive experience in policy work, such as the Recruitment of Policy Leaders (RPL) and Emerging Talent Pool (ETP) programs to the federal workforce, placing successful candidates in more senior, mid-career positions. In addition, managers can select candidates through a non-advertised appointment of former participants in Government of Canada student employment programs to an entry-level position. This process known as 'student bridging', and is responsible for about 16.6 per cent of all indeterminate hires, according to the Public Service Commission. Student employment The Public Service of Canada recruits high school, undergraduate, and graduate students for full- and part-time paid internships, through various sources, including the Federal Student Work Experience Program (FSWEP), the Research Affiliate Program (RAP), and co-op programs at post-secondary institutions in Canada. As of March 2020, the Public Service of Canada employs around 8,852 students. Unlike most public servants, students do not occupy a 'substantive position' and therefore are unable to participate in internal recruitment processes. They are additionally are ineligible for vacation leave and are not represented by a union. Students are only eligible for these internships if they are registered as full-time students at a Canadian secondary or post-secondary institution. For summer or other work term positions, they must demonstrate they are registered for classes in the next semester to meet the requirements for employment. Occupational groups and job classifications are typically referred to by a two-letter code, such as FS, used for foreign service positions. The specific duties and expectations of each job classification is determined through different policy instruments. Before the reorganization of the public service during the latter half of the 20th century, public servants were organized into hundreds of different occupational groups, with one survey of civil service positions by American consultants identifying nearly 1,700 unique classifications within the federal government in 1921. The arrival of the Public Service Employment Act, in preparation for establishing collective bargaining for public servants, saw a concerted effort to consolidate and reorganize position classifications to better facilitate negotiation. While some separate agencies incorporate occupational groups and job classifications used in the Core Public Administration, many retain their own classification systems to align with the particular workforce needs of their organization. Geographic distribution As of 2020, the largest share of public servants is located in the National Capital Region, representing about 42.3 per cent of the federal workforce. As the headquarters of most departments, agencies, and other organizations are typically located in either Ottawa or Gatineau, most executives are located in the NCR. Labour unions Approximately 80 per cent of federal public service employees are represented by a bargaining agent, who negotiate contracts directly with the Treasury Board. The largest federal public service union by number of members is the Public Service Alliance of Canada. List of federal public service unions == Employment equity ==

Employment equity represents a number of positive actions taken within the federal public service to provide opportunities to disadvantaged groups within Canadian society. The legal and regulatory framework of employment equity within the federal public service relies on representation targets, set jointly by PSC, TBS, and other relevant bodies on a periodic basis, as opposed to specified quotas for these groups. The rejection of quotas was intended to preserve the merit-based nature of the selection process in the public service, while providing underrepresented groups with equal footing in applying for positions. Performance on employment equity obligations is benchmarked by comparing the representation of equity-seeking groups in the public service, with the group’s estimated availability within the Canadian workforce at large. Early efforts to promote employment equity in the public service began after the publication of the report Sex and the Public Service, which brought forward concerns around the lack of opportunities available for women in the public service, and recommendations from the Royal Commission on the Status of Women published in 1970. This resulted in the creation of the Office of Equal Opportunity for Women within the PSC, with the stated objective of enhancing representation of women within the ranks of the public service. Recent efforts to advance employment equity have foregrounded increasing the representation of equity-seeking groups among executives within the public service, where significant gaps continue to persist. As of 2020, the EEA identifies four equity-seeking groups: • Women • Indigenous peoples • Persons with disabilities • Members of a visible minority ==See also==