Suspension of the Conversion of Term Employees at Public Services and Procurement Canada - Statement from GSU National President

Nov. 20, 2024

Following the directive from Treasury Board to all Departments to reduce their spending, Public Services and Procurement Canada has announced today the suspension of the Conversion of Term Employees to Indeterminate Status, starting January 6, 2025.
 
The Government Services Union (GSU) is deeply concerned about media reports on the Treasury Board directive and potential federal job cuts, as well as their impact on service delivery, job security, and public sector morale across Canada.
 
For the past two years, Minister Anand has reassured Canadians that efforts to reduce government spending would not affect public services. Yet, now, the government appears to be broadening its scope, targeting term and casual employees and laying the groundwork for departments to initiate permanent staff cuts through Workforce Adjustment measures.
 
While PSPC has told GSU in an initial meeting that job cuts are currently not part of their reduction plan, we want to make it clear that we will do everything in our power to defend and preserve our members’ jobs. During that same meeting, PSPC stated its commitment to review contracted work and potentially reallocate tasks to in-house employees, which we welcomed. PSPC has also expressed that they would rather invest in training our members than allocate resources to contractors—a stance we wholeheartedly support.
 
GSU’s position is clear: Reducing the contracting out of services is essential for achieving long-term cost reduction. By investing in internal capacity and strengthening public sector expertise, we believe that PSPC can achieve a cost reduction by minimizing reliance on external contractors, improving efficiency, and enabling better resource allocation for sustainable, high-quality service delivery.
 
In the coming weeks, we intend to engage with Shared Services Canada on the same critical issues.
 
Our union remains vigilant and unwavering in our commitment to protect our members' interests. We will continue to update our members on these discussions and stand firm in our dedication to ensuring a fair and sustainable path forward for all affected by these proposed changes.
 
In Solidarity, 
 
Bruce Roy
National President
Government Services Union