The recent recommendations of yet another consultants’ report on Shared Services Canada (SSC) demonstrate that, when it comes to federal government outsourcing, there’s no shortage of private sector advice. The “SSC Resource Alignment Review,” begun last year at a cost of $1.35 million by Gartner Canada Co., criticizes the government for the fact that it “vastly underestimated the size, scale and complexity” of its IT plans. It then proceeds to recommend a number of changes – e.g., a joint SSC Transition Task Force comprised of industry representatives and government executives, a “relief valve” to allow departments to find alternatives when SSC can’t deliver, and the need to consider a new structure for SSC, “such as an agency, crown corporation, strategic partnership, joint venture” – all of which would, if implemented, promote even wider outsourcing of services than is practiced now.

It seems like only yesterday that Public Services Minister Judy Foote stood in the House of Commons and insisted SSC would not be allowed to outsource nearly a third of its workforce, as a 2014 PricewaterhouseCoopers report commissioned by SSC sought to do. This latest report deserves to meet the same fate.

After successfully negotiating stronger language to protect our CS Group members from the impacts of outsourcing, the suggestion that Shared Services should now be outsourced on an even grander scale than proposed under the Harper government is a bitter irony, given the Liberal government’s promises in 2015 to reduce spending on outside consultants to 2005-06 levels.

Equally troubling is the fact that the report’s “Management Summary” (the full report has not been made public) lists no fewer than 34 instances in which information has been redacted, meaning that the government is not sharing all the analysis and recommendations on which the report is based. PIPSC is filing access to information requests to learn more.

All of this comes on the heels of another separate report based on a 2016 survey of SSC employees by Ipsos Public Affairs which found, among other things, that outsourcing has contributed to a massive drop in morale at the department – a finding that corroborates our own survey findings of 2015.

Outsourcing didn’t work then and it doesn’t work now – as we are constantly reminded by the chronic cost overruns, delays and other problems associated with email consolidation, the Canada.ca website and pay transformation alone.

When it comes to outsourcing we’re all at risk of being Phoenixed.

The government should stop its overreliance on outsourcing and start listening to its own employees. That begins with investing in our members and the resources they need to make SSC succeed, not outside companies.

PIPSC will be writing to Treasury Board President Scott Brison to convey our concerns in detail and will pursue all means at our disposal to ensure the Gartner report is never implemented.

Better Together.

Debi Daviau,

President

Fellow members,

Next week, June 11-17, is National Public Service Week (NPSW). Since 1992 it’s been an occasion to recognize and celebrate the contributions Canada’s public service professionals make to society. The Professional Institute supports this celebration of our members’ accomplishments. In fact, we first proposed it.

Given, however, the many, still-unresolved problems with the Phoenix pay system, we also feel it is vital we send a message to the federal government this year that failure to accurately and reliably pay federal public employees is no way to recognize them.

For this reason, we’re encouraging PIPSC members to wear a “Fix Phoenix” button next week. When you do, not only will you be helping us get our point across, you’ll also be discouraging the government from continuing to outsource work best performed internally – such as processing your pay – to large multinationals like IBM.

“Fix Phoenix” buttons and other visibility items are available at bettertogether@pipsc.ca.

I urge you to join in this effort. After all, we’re worth it, and it is only by working together that we can help ensure the government fixes Phoenix once and for all.

Better Together!

Debi Daviau,
President

A new report commissioned by Shared Services Canada (SSC) shows that the Institute is right in highlighting the dangers of outsourcing in the federal government.

The report, conducted by Ipsos Public Affairs and made public earlier this week, summarizes the results of consultations held in the summer and fall of 2016 with agency employees, their fellow public servants, industry representatives and the Canadian public.

In one of the report’s key findings, SSC employees directly linked the Agency’s well-documented morale problems with the excessive use of external contractors, the lack of internal career advancement opportunities, and staff turnover.

In 2015, a PIPSC survey of CS Group members found that 91% of respondents reported contracted-out positions were never posted internally. That finding – and others – formed part of a report the Institute released in June 2016 titled Programmed to Fail, which argued outsourcing is actually costing the federal money, jobs, morale, accountability and productivity.

The Phoenix pay system fiasco and the stalled federal email transformation initiative are unfortunate, ongoing examples of large multinationals undertaking work best performed internally by the government’s own technical specialists such as CS Group members.

The evidence against outsourcing is in – and mounting. The federal government should pay careful attention to the report’s findings and to the concerns expressed by key stakeholders before undertaking any further projects to modernize its IT infrastructure.

On June 1, 2017, the Joint Union-Management Task Force on Diversity and Inclusion presented a progress update to Treasury Board President Scott Brison.

The Task Force has a one-year mandate to define what diversity and inclusion means in the public service, establish the case for diversity and inclusion, and recommend a framework and action plan.

The update summarizes their work over the past six months and identifies areas for potential action. These actions include creating tools to ensure that diversity and inclusion are considered in making decisions and policies, better engaging senior leaders and employees on diversity and inclusion, and improving education and awareness to spur change across the public service.

PIPSC is proud of the leading role we have played in the establishment of this initiative. We would particularly like to convey our sincere appreciation to its Technical Committee Co-Chair, our own Waheed Khan, for his tireless commitment to the cause of Diversity and to this critical initiative.

“We need to identify and address systemic barriers that keep certain groups of talented Canadians from joining the Federal Public Service, and advancing to positions and levels where they can make optimal contribution to the health of the public service institutions, which is essential to serving Canadians with excellence. We need to develop leadership that is capable of, and committed to changing the culture of the public service to become more representative and inclusive. A public service that rewards talent, professionalism and dedication, and where the background, culture, religion and any other identities, are respected and promoted.”
– Debi Daviau, President, The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC)

The Task Force is expected to present its action plan in the fall of 2017.

For more information:

Progress Update: Joint Union/Management Task Force on Diversity and Inclusion in the Public Service

Joint Union/Management Task Force on Diversity and Inclusion in the Public Service

PIPSC takes leading role in the Joint Union/Management Task Force on Diversity and Inclusion in the Public Service

Name-Blind Pilot Initiative, Debi Daviau Interview on CTV Power play - April 21, 2017

Demographic Snapshot of Canada’s Federal Public Service, 2016