Ottawa, March 22, 2016 – The federal budget tabled today sent a clear signal that Canada's economic growth can be strengthened by valuable public services – services that are delivered by a non-partisan, impartial federal public service employees, who are experienced in providing evidence-based analysis.
“What we heard today is that public services have value – that they can promote economic growth,” said Emmanuelle Tremblay, president of the Canadian Association of Professional Employees (CAPE). “We heard that these services can be carried out by public service employees working in safe and healthy workplaces – public servants who are adept in providing rigorous evidence-based analysis on government programs.”
“We’re embracing this message, especially after a decade of constant demonizing of Canada’s public service.”
Over and above this change in attitude, CAPE’s president also lauded the government’s decision to reinvest in many programs.
“We’re seeing a government that wants to implement measurement tools that can assess the impact of its spending and programs. That’s music to the ears of tens of thousands of analysts and economists who can harness those tools to the benefit of the population. If we evaluate our programs and explain their objectives, Canadians can better understand their importance and appreciate the work of the men and women behind these services.”
CAPE also applauded the government’s decisions to reduce outsourcing, create healthier work environments for public servants and negotiate in good faith towards the renewal of collective agreements.
However, the budget stays mum on the Translation Bureau, which has been suffering from a deteriorating mandate and shrinking resources for some time. CAPE will continue to call on the government to properly fund the Translation Bureau and provide it with the tools it need to protect the equality status of Canada’s official languages.
CAPE members are public servants whose work informs sound policymaking and assures the equal status of both official languages in government affairs. These 13,000 members include, among others, economists, statisticians, social science employees, translators, interpreters, terminologists, analysts and research assistants.
