Heating problems leave Global Affairs staff out in the cold, working from home
Global Affairs Canada employees at the Lester B. Pearson Building were sent home twice in January after problems with the building’s heating system, a problem the union says employees have been grappling with for more than a year. The temperatures were too low on Jan. 8 and Jan. 15 for employees to work, the government […]
Why hiring consultants to fix our healthcare system doesn’t work
There are three main reasons why governments turn to consultants for help. First, they often believe that the leadership of health organizations will be unwilling to deliver budgetary restraint and innovation because they want to protect the status and budgets of their organizations. Consultants are seen to provide independent and objective advice. Second, there is often the related belief […]
Treasury Board’s top bureaucrat to retire, likely to trigger larger DM shuffle, say observers
Expect deputy ministers to be on the move in the coming weeks, say observers, after longtime DM Yaprak Baltacıoğlu, secretary of the Treasury Board, announced her retirement last week. Ms. Baltacıoğlu, who’s been a deputy minister for almost half her 29 years in the public service, is leaving April 3. Thought to be one of the […]
Good grievance! Treasury Board wading through more than 4,000 Phoenix-related complaints
The Treasury Board Secretariat has been hit with more than 4,000 individual complaints from government employees related to the Phoenix pay system, an amount that a labour relations expert says could be a slog to wade through. Kevin Banks, a Queen’s University labour relations law professor, said payroll grievances are “pretty straightforward” but the amount […]
Centre Block occupants ‘skeptical’ of summer move-out plans, but department says schedule hasn’t changed
The Centre Block building’s emptying out is just around the corner—at least based on current department timelines—but its present occupants say they’re “skeptical” the big move into the West Block and Government Conference Centre buildings will actually end up happening this summer. “I highly doubt that it’s going to happen, just because I’ve had tours […]
Public service needs better data to measure diversity, says task force
Planning the future of diversity in the public service is not possible with out-of-date data, leaving certain groups unintentionally sidelined, a joint task force studying equity initiatives found, after a months-long examination of inclusion and diversity in the public service. In its final report released Dec. 11—Building a Diverse and Inclusive Public Service—the joint union-management […]
Oft-critiqued Liberal mandate tracker to become ‘more useful,’ says government ‘deliverology’ chief
The government’s oft-maligned online mandate letter tracking tool will be more comprehensive in the next six months, according to the Liberals’ “deliverology” expert, allowing users to track the government’s progress in more detail, more frequently. During a sit-down interview with The Hill Times last week, Matthew Mendelsohn, deputy secretary to the cabinet for results and delivery, said […]
Canada should be prepared to walk away from NAFTA if it can’t secure the best deal for Canadians
Free trade represents one of those rare areas where the majority of economists agree: when structured properly, significant benefits can accrue to all countries involved. NAFTA is a great example of such an agreement. It was implemented in 1994 and for the past 23 years, it has delivered increased prosperity and employment to Canadians, Americans, and […]
Federal procurement system ‘bogus,’ needs fixes: longtime bidder
The federal government’s procurement system isn’t fair or serving taxpayers well, says one longtime supplier whose companies have won government contracts worth millions of dollars. “They’ve got a bogus procurement system, in my opinion. It shuts out the vast majority of potential suppliers and I wish they could reverse that,” said Brian Card, who in […]
Procurement adviser pens book on getting into government’s ‘inner circle’
An Ottawa procurement expert with a checkered past has re-emerged with a consulting business and new book that promises to teach suppliers how to get into the inner circle of government and win contracts. Over 30 years, Brian Card said he’s founded and managed seven companies. The first went bankrupt, the second sold for about […]
