Thousands of federal public servants receive workforce adjustment notices
Unions report thousands of federal employees have been told their positions may be cut after the federal budget. Unions blame outsourcing and lack of transparency.
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By Torontoer Staff
Thousands of federal public servants have been notified their jobs may be affected by workforce adjustments, with a large share of those notices issued in the past week. Unions representing public service workers say the notifications follow the federal budget’s cost-cutting exercise and raise questions about outsourcing and transparency.
The notices inform employees that their positions could be impacted by reductions, but they do not yet confirm how many people will be laid off. The move is part of Ottawa’s broader plan to reduce program spending and administration costs over the next five years.
Who has received notices
The Public Service Alliance of Canada said 1,775 workforce adjustment notices were issued to its members last week, and 2,273 members have received notices since the federal budget was released in November. The union said affected workers are in departments and agencies including Public Services and Procurement Canada, Shared Services Canada, Statistics Canada and the Treasury Board Secretariat.
The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada reported 1,849 of its members were served a workforce adjustment notice last week. The Canadian Association of Professional Employees told its members that more than 2,800 of its members have received notices since November, with more than 1,900 of those at Statistics Canada and others across departments such as Natural Resources Canada, Transport Canada and the Privy Council Office.
Unions call out outsourcing and lack of clarity
Unions have held rallies and issued statements demanding the government explain why experienced public servants face workforce reductions as spending on external consultants reaches record levels. They say the timing and the use of consultants create the impression that core public service work is being outsourced while staff are made vulnerable.
We are hearing directly from members that consultants are still working alongside employees who received layoff notices this week. That raises serious questions.
Sean O'Reilly, president, Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada
Public servants are being forced into a "Hunger Games-style fight for jobs."
Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada
What the government says and the size of the cuts
Ottawa’s comprehensive expenditure review aims to cut about $60 billion in program and administration spending over five years. The federal budget said the process will involve restructuring operations, consolidating internal services and using workforce adjustments and attrition to return the public service to what it calls a more sustainable size.
- Planned reduction of about 40,000 public service jobs from a peak of 368,000 in 2023-24
- About 10,000 public service jobs have already been eliminated
- A reduction of 1,000 executive positions over the next two years
- A planned 20 per cent cut to spending on management and consulting services over three years
- Canada spent more than $19 billion on external professional and special services in 2024-25, roughly $2 billion more than the previous year and about $8.5 billion more than in 2020
Early retirement program and next steps for employees
The government has sent information about a planned one-year early retirement program to almost 68,000 public servants who may be eligible. The voluntary program is intended to boost attrition and avoid cuts to younger workers by allowing some employees to retire earlier without pension penalties. The budget said the program could be implemented as soon as this month.
Statistics Canada has already announced it will cut about 850 staff and reduce its executive team by roughly 12 per cent. The agency said it would inform affected employees within two weeks. Other departments, including Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, Environment and Climate Change, and Employment and Social Development, told staff late last year that details on job cuts would be shared this month.
There seems to be a lack of transparency as to which departments and which services will be impacted by job cuts. It’s impacted our members, their mental health, they don’t know if they’re going to be next.
Sharon DeSousa, national president, Public Service Alliance of Canada
What comes next
Unions say more notices are expected as the expenditure review continues and they will press the government for details about where cuts will fall. For employees who received notices, uncertain timelines and pending decisions add pressure on individual workers and on the services Canadians rely on.
The coming weeks will show how many of the notices translate into layoffs, how the early retirement option is implemented, and whether the government’s planned reductions to consulting and management spending will slow the use of external contractors in work currently performed by public servants.
Unions say they will continue to challenge the cuts and seek clarity, while the government proceeds with its plan to reduce the size and cost of the public service.
federal governmentpublic servicelayoffsunionsbudget
