:
Thank you, Mr. Chair and honourable members of the committee.
I am here with Hélène Laurendeau, Senior Vice-President, Policy Branch, and Elizabeth Murphy-Walsh, Vice-President, Audit and Data Services Branch. We are here to discuss the Public Service Commission's 2010-2011 Annual Report and its audit reports for 2011, which were tabled in Parliament earlier this week.
The PSC is an independent body accountable to Parliament for safeguarding the integrity of staffing in the public service and the non-partisanship of the public service. The PSC is free from ministerial direction in the exercise of its executive authorities for hiring and non-partisanship, but it is accountable to Parliament. We report annually to Parliament on our activities and results and we welcome the opportunity to discuss them with your committee.
The PSC's 2010-2011 Annual Report covers the fifth year of operation under the Public Service Employment Act. As of March 2011, there were 83 organizations, representing over 216,000 individuals, to which the PSC has delegated its appointment authority.
There was no growth in the core public service in 2010-2011, as compared to 3.4% in the previous year. We saw less recruitment, especially new permanent hires, with no change in departures. Fewer young employees joined the public service in 2010-2011, and, for the first time in a decade, there was a decrease in the number of employees under 35 years old.
Although there is less hiring, there is still significant intake. Over 1,250 students entered the public service through post-secondary recruitment as opposed to nearly 1,650 the year before.
There was a marked reduction in not only hiring, but also internal staffing activities—15.2%—compared to last year.
[English]
The government has entered a period of fiscal restraint. There will be pressures on the staffing system. We see continuing interest in public service jobs—but it will be for fewer jobs.
The PSC is responsible for managing a priority program for displaced employees in the federal public service. Our legislation provides for a priority person to be appointed ahead of all others to vacant positions in the public service, if the person meets the essential qualifications of the position. This program is important in providing fairness to displaced employees, and we need to make sure that it works well. An evaluation identified areas for strengthening the program, and we are making a number of changes to make it more robust and rigorous.
In addition, our analysis of 19 audits over the past two years showed that in 11 % of appointments, problems were identified in obtaining priority clearance. As well, proper use and better planning of both the permanent and contingent workforces are essential to ensuring that managers are able to respond to their needs in a flexible way, while respecting the values in the PSEA. We believe, however, that targeted hiring must continue to ensure succession in the public service and to maintain a public service that delivers results for Canadians.
I would like to now turn to our overall assessment. Based on our oversight activities in 2010-11, we have concluded that overall, merit is being respected in the staffing system. And our audits show that managers are doing a better job of applying the merit test. Organizational performance in the management of staffing continues to improve. We saw positive trends in hiring strategies, which better support staffing priorities, as well as improved HR capacity. However, we have concerns about the quality control of appointment processes, the lack of appropriate assessment and documentation of merit, and the poor rationales for non-advertised appointment processes.
In addition, there continues to be a small proportion of cases where merit has not been met. This is usually the result of error, omission, or improper conduct. As well, there are still too many cases where merit is not demonstrated in the staffing files or other organizational records.
The PSC continues to be concerned about employees' perceptions of the fairness of the overall staffing process. About a quarter of employees persistently feel that the overall process is not at all fair, or fair only to some extent. We are also concerned that the continued low rate of external appointments for persons with disabilities will have a negative consequence for their representation in the public service over the long term.
With respect to non-partisanship, we find that a small proportion of public servants are politically active. In 2010-11, the PSC received 94 candidacy requests from public servants. Still, we are concerned that public servants are not well informed about their rights and responsibilities with regard to political activities. We believe that more effort is required to properly safeguard this core value.
Now, I would like to turn to our audits. This year the commission examined 11 organizations, and it placed additional conditions only on the delegation of the staffing authorities at the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages. The commissioner has provided an action plan that outlines how they will respond to the audit recommendations, and they will also provide semi-annual reports on how the plan has been implemented. The PSC has removed the conditions placed upon Health Canada and some of the conditions on the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, following their past audits.
Following a 2009 audit, the PSC and the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada reached an agreement with respect to the auditing of additional appointments, the conduct of investigations, and corrective actions. A report on this agreement was also tabled in Parliament. The PSC found improvements in their staffing practices; however, the IRB has not accepted the conclusions of the majority of the investigations completed by the PSC. Any decision not to respond to the results of an investigation or not to undertake appropriate corrective measures undermines the integrity of the staffing system. Instead of removing all of their staffing authorities, we are now moving forward with a process whereby the PSC would carry out investigations and order corrective actions in the internal processes at the IRB.
[Translation]
As we move forward, the PSEA values will be as important as ever. With fewer opportunities, each appointment decision takes on more significance relative to the integrity of the system as a whole. The PSC's oversight activities provide important information about the integrity of the staffing system and assurance to Parliament that the core and guiding values are being met.
The PSC will also continue to work with members of this committee as well as other parliamentarians, deputy heads, bargaining agents and other stakeholders to ensure that the staffing system is responsive to the changing operational and fiscal context, and that staffing values continue to be respected.
[English]
My term as president has been extended until a replacement is found. PSC is committed to supporting a smooth transition to a new commission over the coming months. We'll continue to ensure that Canadians benefit from a professional public service in which merit and non-partisanship are independently protected.
Thank you.
[Translation]
I would be pleased to respond to any questions you may have.
:
Good afternoon, Ms. Barrados. Thank you for being here today. It's most appreciated.
I'll stop complaining immediately about my travels between Montreal and Ottawa.
Some voices: Oh, oh!
Mr. Alexandre Boulerice: We've been talking a lot about staffing today, but I'd like to take the opportunity to talk about some data in the report of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. It talks about a phantom public service. I'd like to point out to what extent, despite the government's austerity measures or maybe even because of them, instances of contracting work out have not only increased in the past few years, but they have really exploded. Between 2005-2006 and today, the use of various consultants, temp services and management consultants has increased by 80%. It's in excess of $5.5 billion in taxpayers' money. We're talking about a 100% increase over the past few years in four main services or departments.
In your opinion, should we, and the government, look at the issue of outsourcing? Is this a way of providing Canadians with the best services at the best cost? I'd also like to know whether you are concerned about the increasing use of subcontracting, in the sense that it makes it possible to circumvent all the rules of the hiring process and the rules of the Public Service Commission of Canada. In fact, these private companies aren't subject to the same bilingualism, hiring or staffing requirements. We are troubled by the massive use of outsourcing, particularly at Public Works, when we are being told to be careful with taxpayers' money.
What do you think about this explosion in outsourcing? Are you not concerned about it as a way to get around the rules of the federal public service?
During the last Parliament, there was a motion by this committee asking us to do a study of temporary work in the public service, which we did. Elizabeth Murphy-Walsh was responsible for that study.
The result of the study showed some interesting things. First, it is not a staffing process, but rather a contracting process. The Public Service Commission is responsible for all staffing. This committee asked us to do a study, which we did. In my opinion, if it's something that works like a staffing process, we have the right to review it.
We found that there really is a lack of planning in this area and that there isn't enough control. We often have temporary workers who appear to be permanent employees. We have no information about whether these people meet the bilingualism and security requirements. This doesn't mean that people in the public service can't use this type of contract. It is appropriate if the job really is temporary.
At the PSC, we are very concerned if the process is being used not only for temporary work, but also for permanent work and is being used instead of a formal staffing process.
We haven't looked at the other sections that you mentioned. These are other contracts with professionals.
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The act provides for two ways of putting somebody in a job. It can either be by recruiting them from outside, or by promoting someone to a higher or different level in the public service. They allow these positions to be advertised, meaning that the job post is put on the jobs website or on an internal website. It explains what the job is, and lets everybody apply who thinks they can apply. They also allow non-advertised positions, meaning that the job is not posted.
The commission prefers advertised positions, particularly when we're recruiting from outside, because I think we should have as broad a reach of Canadians as possible. In my view, these are good jobs, and everyone should be given a fair chance to apply for them.
But there are cases where it's acceptable to have non-advertised positions. For example, if you have run a process looking for someone for a specialty area and you have not been successful in finding a candidate meeting your requirements but then happen to find someone who meets your requirements, I'm fine with that kind of person being appointed unadvertised. I still expect you to document why you've done that.
About 26% or 27% of recruitments are unadvertised, and I want a good, clear explanation as to why people think it's justified to go with an unadvertised position, because my preference and that of the commission is to have these positions advertised.
:
As Madam Barrados pointed out, when it comes to determining whether political activity is appropriate or not, it's a matter of an assessment and balancing act that needs to be done between the clear obligations at the very senior level--limited to the right to vote, for the deputy minister, for example--and what is appropriate given the circumstances of someone's employment and the types of activities they're involved in. It could include provincial and federal activities, but it's more about the level of influence there may appear to be, or a threat, if you wish, to the impartiality of the public service.
The assessment will be made. We do that by assisting public servants to do a self-assessment of their own activities in the same way that it would be done, to a certain extent, for conflict of interest. You are entitled to have outside activities. You're even entitled to do things on your own, but you always have to be mindful as a public servant of the impact these activities may have, or whether you leave yourself open to an inappropriate form of influence.
The test is similar for political activity. We have a self-assessment tool on the website, consisting of a series of questions asking public servants about the types of activities they are doing professionally, in contrast to the ones they would like to do as a citizen.
We have received a couple of complaints about it. Some of the bargaining agents told us that they felt it was overly limiting. It's not a compulsory tool, but a guide, like any other information we put on our website, to try to raise awareness among public servants about what it means. We are in the process of reviewing that tool, taking into consideration some of the comments given to us.
Thank you, Ms. Barrados, for being here today. I'd like to congratulate you on your leadership, and for taking the time to work for another democracy and testify so that people can benefit from your experience and expertise. As Canadians, we are happy to have high calibre people who can share our knowledge with other societies. I think it's commendable and I wanted to mention it.
This isn't the first time I have seen you appear before the committee. You have always made me aware of the fact that the retirement of many public servants, given the age groups, may cause problems in the public service because these people have a lot of expertise, which vanishes when they leave.
Can you tell us about the situation now and for the next few years, and give us an overview of the number or percentage of public servants who may be leaving?
Thank you, Commissioner Barrados. We appreciate your seven years of service, and maybe we need to clarify the definition of temporary in regard to your extension, because income tax was temporary as well.
Some hon. members: Oh, oh!
Mr. Ron Cannon: We know it's hard to find good people like you, so we thank you for your years of service to our country.
I appreciate your report. Just reading through it, I noticed significant progress has been made but there's also more to be done, which is often the case. In your seven years of service, how many different organizations have you audited? There are 82 altogether, you said.