Letter to the Chief Human Resources Officer about the PSES

October 15, 2018

Nancy Chahwan
Chief Human Resources Officer
OCHRO, Treasury Board Secretariat
219 Laurier, Ottawa ON K1P 5J6
By email: nancy.chahwan@tbs-sct.gc.ca

Dear Ms. Chahwan,

I am writing today about the contracting-out to Advanis, a Canadian market and social research firm, of the administration of the 2018 Public Service Employee Survey (PSES). As you know, previous surveys had been administered by Statistics Canada on behalf of your Office.

Because the Institute firmly believes that informed data should be used to effect change, I supported our members’ full participation in the 2018 PSES. That said, I believe that outsourcing the survey to Advanis represents a missed opportunity on the Treasury Board’s part to demonstrate its full commitment to Canada’s professional public service.

I am sure you are aware of the grave concerns repeatedly expressed by public service employees over the continued outsourcing of their work to the private sector. At a time of growing demand for government services, over-reliance on contractors has taken its toll on the professionals who deliver these services to Canadians. Morale, accountability and productivity are all seriously impacted by the contracting-out of work best performed “in-house”. In addition, outsourcing costs the federal government billions of dollars annually, money that would be better invested in improved public services.

I therefore urge your Office to return the administration of future Public Service Employee Surveys to Statistics Canada, a first-rate organization mandated “to provide statistical information and analysis about Canada’s economic and social structure to develop and evaluate public policies and programs (and to) improve public and private decision-making for the benefit of all Canadians”. Given the Department’s mandate and amply demonstrated expertise in its field, I would be quite interested in understanding the reasoning behind the decision to contract out its work to Advanis.

I look forward to your response and thank you for your attention to this important matter.

Sincerely,

Debi Daviau
President,
The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada

Published on 15 October 2018

3 November 2017

Phoenix and the status of retroactive pay

We have received several inquiries about the impact of the Phoenix pay system on retroactive pay for members who signed new collective agreements this year.

27 October 2017

Treasury Board agrees to negotiate better birth control coverage for public service employees

After years of advocacy, the Treasury Board has agreed to negotiate the addition of non-oral contraceptives to the Public Service Health Care Plan (PSHCP).

6 October 2017

Words to Live By

Radio-Canada and the CBC have reported this week that Phoenix was “doomed from the start.” The reason? The business case prepared in 2009 under the previous government “lacked proper risk analysis and was politically motivated.” In the words of former parliamentary budget officer Kevin Page, “You look at this business case, you can drive trucks through some of the holes under the risk analysis.”

3 October 2017

PSPC releases latest Pay Bulletin

In light of the Phoenix fiasco and as part of a commitment made to bargaining agents to make it easier for their members to obtain information about their pay, Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSCPC) has just released its Pay Bulletin for September.

2 October 2017

Institute files two new policy grievances over Phoenix

The Institute has just filed two new policy grievances on Phoenix-related issues, accusing the Treasury Board of failing to implement the terms of the AV and SP Group collective agreements within the specified timeframe (120 and 90 days respectively).

29 September 2017

The Phoenix Pay System’s Not-So-Golden Handshake

While much has been reported about the impact of the Phoenix pay system on current federal employees, comparatively little has been said about the harm done to retirees.