Public service: cuts confirmed at the Canada Revenue Agency

Threats of cutbacks in the federal public service are confirmed.

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) notified nearly 580 temporary employees across the country on Thursday that they will lose their jobs by mid-December, according to two civil servant unions. Among them, around fifteen employees come from the Ottawa-Gatineau region.

Thus, all dismissed employees will see their contracts end before the expiry date. The cuts mainly affect debt collectors.

The Union of Taxation Employees (UTE) and the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC) confirmed this news.

In an interview with - on Thursday evening, the national president of the Union of Taxation Employees, Marc Brière, said he stunned by this decision.

I would tell you that a debt collector collects on average 1 to 5 million per year and [que son] salary is much lower. Financially, this is not the most logical decision by the federal government.

Mr. Brière believes that these staff reductions will have direct repercussions on the public service and on the workload required of the remaining staff.

Morale is very low […]. People wonder who’s nexthe adds.

Collection is the cash cow, it’s what brings money to the government. […] It is not by depriving oneself of a considerable income of several tens of millions by cutting revenues to the ARC that it will affect the government’s finances.

According to Marc Brière, the CRA has assured that no further layoffs will be made in 2024 and that no permanent employees will be affected in the foreseeable future.

A “responsible use of public funds”, says theARC

In a written response, theARC explained that he wanted to prioritize maintaining the workforce for the tax filing period.

L’ARC recalls that the agency’s resources have increased to deliver essential programs during the pandemic. As we move away from pandemic-related activities, the agency is ensuring responsible use of public fundsexplains Kim Thiffault, media relations at theARC.

We looked closely at our temporary workforce and decisions were made to reduce the number of term employees where we had the flexibilityshe adds.

The revenue agency says it will not make this decision lightly.

We recognize that this can cause stress, especially so close to the end of the yearwrites theARC by ensuring that it wants to limit the repercussions of cutbacks on human resources.

These cuts are part of the federal government’s efforts to refocus. Last year, Ottawa announced that it wanted redirect government spending by $15.8 billion over five years, and $4.8 billion thereafter, toward the programs and services that matter most to Canadians.

Canada’s Minister of Finance, Chrystia Freeland, notably asked federal departments and agencies to reduce their operating costs by 3%.

With information from Estelle Côté-Sroka