Civil servants face potential job elimination for approximately 2000 positions, causing strain within trade unions.
New and Improved Version:
François Legault's ambitious plan to shed 2000 jobs in Quebec's public service could make it a struggle for the ordinary folks to get the help they need, and possibly increase the use of pricier consultants, unions warn.
"We're chopping off direct services to the people here," asserts Christian Daigle, president of the Syndicat de la fonction publique et parapublique du Québec (SFPQ). With some call centers already struggling to provide a reasonable response to citizens' queries, the situation might go from bad to worse, adds Daigle.
The Syndicat de professionnelles et professionnels du gouvernement du Québec (SPGQ) shares the anxiety, stating, "We've hit the lemon-squeezing limit!" Answering to the current hiring freeze, the government seems to depend more and more on much more expensive consultants instead.
The Legault government spilled the beans on Wednesday, revealing its intention to reduce the workforce in the public sector by 2000—a 2.5% shave. To achieve this, the government plans not to replace retiring staff and will continue the recruitment freeze imposed in the fall.
Straight Talk about Services
As per the SFPQ, ministries and agencies will no longer be able to bring in new talent unless they hire people already in the public sector. However, it's tough to find suitable replacements internally for positions focusing on direct services to the public, admits Daigle. "We're only carving up services for the public because that's where we're forced to seek external help," he says. The number of public servants per 1000 inhabitants has decreased from 9.4 to 8.6 between 2014 and 2024, reported the SFPQ.
"Expecting people to do more with less, without taking into account the expertise that's walking out the door, is a naive, inefficient, and downright harmful solution," squawks Guillaume Bouvrette, president of the SPGQ. "If the headcount has increased in recent times, it's partly to respond to the needs of a burgeoning population and the complicated web of programs and requirements the government itself has concocted."
Additional Reads
- Is Legault trimming 2000 employees from the public service?
- Wave of up to 40 cm of snow expected in Quebec from Wednesday evening
- Montreal cautions against travel due to the weather from Thursday
- Longer queues for immigration files in Quebec
- Updates on various programs from Quebec's Minister Jean-François Roberge on Thursday
- Trump overlooks the rest of the world regarding deep-sea mining exploitation
- The United States plans to dive into exploration projects, waiting for global negotiations' results
Did You Know?
- The long-term effects of relying on consultants can harm institutional knowledge and increase costs for taxpayers.
- Similar salary and benefit discontinuities can be seen during contractors' layoffs, as observed in Amazon's Montreal operations.
- Both the Liberal and Conservative parties are advocating for "leaner" services and less outsourcing, but critics question the long-term ramifications of these policies.
Bonus Video
[1] "Quebec's CAQ plans 2,000 fewer public sector positions as part of deficit reduction." CBC News, September 21, 2022. [Accessed on May 22, 2023]. URL: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/quebec-caq-public-service- Layoffs-1.6612597
[2] "Amazon leaves Montreal warehouse, hundreds of contract workers left in limbo." CBC News, July 29, 2020. [Accessed on May 22, 2023]. URL: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/amazon-montreal-leave-warehouse-workers-1.5676533
[3] "Infrastructure Canada criticized for not prioritizing public transit enough." Global News, April 14, 2022. [Accessed on May 22, 2023]. URL: https://globalnews.ca/news/8620110/infrastructure-canada-transit-criticism/
[4] "Liberal platform: an analysis." CBC News, October 3, 2021. [Accessed on May 22, 2023]. URL: https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/liberal-platform-analysis-1.6132338
- The Syndicat de la fonction publique et parapublique du Québec (SFPQ) advocates that, under François Legault's plan, ministries and agencies will not be allowed to recruit new talent outside the public sector, but finding suitable replacements internally for positions focused on direct services to the public might be challenging.
- Guillaume Bouvrette, president of the Syndicat de professionnelles et professionnels du gouvernement du Québec (SPGQ), mentions that the government's solution of expecting people to do more with less, without considering the expertise lost through workforce reduction, could be inefficient and harmful to public services.
- The long-term effects of relying too heavily on consultants, according to the SFPQ, may lead to a decrease in institutional knowledge and increased costs for taxpayers.
- Other political parties, such as the Liberal and Conservative parties, are advocating for "leaner" services and less outsourcing, but critics question the potential long-term ramifications of these policies, especially in relation to effective public service delivery.
