OTTAWA, January 16, 2026 - As workforce cuts accelerate, public servants are being forced into a Hunger Games-style fight for jobs, competing for their own positions, while outside consultants carry on untouched. The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC) is demanding the government explain why experienced public servants are facing waves of workforce reductions as outsourcing spending reaches record highs.
“This week saw major waves of workforce cuts at Shared Services Canada and Statistics Canada, dealing a serious blow to Canada’s digital and information infrastructure,” said Sean O’Reilly, President of PIPSC. “We are hearing directly from members that consultants are still working alongside employees who received layoff notices this week. That raises serious questions.”
Over the past week alone, public servants at Statistics Canada, Shared Services Canada, Public Services and Procurement Canada, the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, the Canada Economic Development for Québec and the Treasury Board Secretariat, among others, have received workforce adjustment notices, deepening uncertainty and instability across the public service.
“These are core public services Canadians rely on every day,” said O’Reilly. “Slashing capacity across these federal departments weakens cybersecurity, undermines evidence-based decision-making, and delays service delivery. Cuts today mean crisis tomorrow.”
The cuts announced this past week are part of the government’s Comprehensive Expenditure Review, a broader wave of public sector reductions that has already affected multiple federal departments, with more job losses expected in the days and weeks ahead.
“Consultants cost at least 26 percent more than public servants,” said O’Reilly. “If you are trying to save money, you do not lay off trained, experienced workers and pay someone else more to do the same job. That’s not savings. That’s waste.”
PIPSC is calling on the government to halt further workforce cuts and prioritize the expertise of public servants over costly outsourcing. Federal scientists and researchers will also be in Ottawa today demonstrating against cuts to federal science and the broader public service. Members will gather at the Delta Hotel at 2:45 PM ET and will march to Parliament Hill.
PIPSC represents over 85,000 public-sector professionals across the country, most of them employed by the federal government. Follow us on Facebook and on Instagram.
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For more information on today's rally or to request an interview: Johanne Fillion, 613-883-4900 (mobile), jfillion@pipsc.ca