Harper to axe 687 jobs at Public Works

The Hill Times:

Attrition won't help many of the 687 employees at Public Works who were told in June that their jobs will be cut over the next three years, says Claude Poirier, president of the Canadian Association of Professional Employees.

Mr. Poirier said that he is in "almost daily" contact with union representatives at Public Works, and judging by the information he's seen on the affected workers, most of their jobs will not be eliminated because public servants are leaving of their own will.

In total, 300 employees will be laid off this year across Public Works.

When news broke of the layoffs June 20, an internal memo obtained by the Globe and Mail stated that "as people leave and retire, the positions, along with the salary dollars, will be abolished."

CAPE represents 103 workers at Government Consulting Services in Ottawa who will be laid off this year. Mr. Poirier said that the government is effectively closing the operation, which gives economic and policy advice to departments.

"Most of them are not old enough to go on retirement, so attrition doesn't apply to them," Mr. Poirier said. CAPE represents 14,000 federal workers including economists, statisticians at Statistics Canada and policy advisers.

Treasury Board president Tony Clement (Parry Sound-Muskoka, Ont.) has previously said that 11,000 people make the choice to leave the public service every year. Parliamentary Budget Officer Kevin Page disputes this number. He estimates that net attrition will be 1,100 over the next three years.

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