BY KATHRYN MAY, POSTMEDIA NEWS OCTOBER 11, 2010
The alleged plot behind this week’s arrest of a group of suspected terrorists was to attack Parliament Hill and Montreal’s subway system with bombs, says a former counterterrorism officer with the RCMP and CSIS
Photograph by: Chris Wattie/Reuters, Chris Wattie/Reuters
OTTAWA — The federal government's stimulus plan to boost the economy helped fuel a 3.4 per cent increase in the number of jobs in the public service last year.
Most of Canada's provinces and territories received a share of the growth, with most of the new positions created in Ottawa. Only Newfoundland, Prince Edward Island and the Yukon didn't see an increase in government jobs.
The growth was concentrated in five departments — Correctional Service Canada, Environment Canada, Citizenship and Immigration, Human Resources and Skills Development and Public Works and Government Services. Departments also hired to help manage big files and events last year, such as the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games, the G8 and G20 summits, the Haiti earthquake and the H1N1 pandemic.
Half of the job growth came from implementing the Conservatives' economic action plan.
The figures come from Public Service Commission head Maria Barrados, who tabled her 2009-10 report last week.
The public service is coming off one of its biggest decades of growth since the Second World War. The commission's annual report, tabled this week, shows the number of workers in the core public service grew 37 per cent to 216,000 employees between 2001 and 2010.
There are now more young people, a growing number of professionals and more people meeting the bilingual requirements of the jobs when hired in the public service.
Barrados said all signs indicate a decade of steady growth is slowing down.
"We're at a crossroads. We're moving from an environment where we had quite a lot of growth to significant, slower growth," she said. "There will be (financial) pressures and a smaller public service but we will still need to bring in new people because of ongoing retirements."
Last year, the number of overall hires slipped 1.7 per compared to a year ago and moves within the public service also fell. Of all hires, 19 per cent were offered permanent jobs, which is less than the year before.
Barrados said departments are under pressure to reduce spending, meaning salaries — one of their biggest expenses — may be a prime target for cuts.
The executive cadre grew at a faster pace than the rest of the public service. There are now 5,000 executives, a 26 per cent increase compared to five years ago.
Barrados said the growth in executive jobs reflects the growing complexity of government. The nature of work has changed from mostly clerical and administrative workers to higher-paid knowledge workers. She noted executives are older and retiring at larger numbers and departments have to get the next generation ready to take over.
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