Chapter 7

Enabling departments and agencies

7.1   The delegation of almost all Public Service Commission (PSC) appointment and appointment-related authorities to deputy heads has provided departments and agencies with the ability to customize their own staffing programs and processes to meet their operational needs. As the PSC ultimately remains responsible for the overall health of the staffing system, it makes available to departments and agencies a broad range of support to assist them in exercising their delegated responsibilities and achieving a values-based appointment system.

7.2   This chapter focuses on the support provided by the PSC. It describes the policies and guidance, common tools and systems and staffing and assessment products and services that are provided to departments and agencies, the latter through a mixed funding model of cost-recovery and appropriation. The chapter also demonstrates how the PSC introduces refinements on an ongoing basis in order to meet its statutory obligations and respond to the needs of federal organizations.

Refinements to the policy suite

7.3   In 2009-2010, the PSC conducted a comprehensive review of the PSC's Appointment Policy Framework to ensure that it is functioning as intended and reflects the intent and guiding values of the Public Service Employment Act (PSEA) and that the suite of PSC appointment policies is clear to managers with delegated authorities. This work was done as part of good management practices after more than four years of experience under the current legislation. In addition to proposing policy amendments, the appointment policy review will provide input to the PSC's assessment of the PSEA and contribute to the legislative review of the Public Service Modernization Act for which the President of the Treasury Board is responsible.

7.4   The PSC sought feedback on its appointment policies from various policy stakeholders and user groups. Consultations included the National Joint Council (NJC) Joint Employment Equity Committee, the NJC Official Languages Committee, the National Council of Visible Minorities, the National Council of Federal Employees with Disabilities, the National Council of Aboriginal Federal Employees, the National Staffing Council, the Personnel Advisory Group, the National Managers' Community, the Association of Public Service Executives and the Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer.

7.5   Based on in-depth analysis of the feedback received, as well as other feedback received over the past four years, amendments will be made to the Appointment Policy Framework in 2010-2011. The primary change will be the addition of a Merit and Appointment Values Policy. Compliance with the guiding values will now be required by policy. In addition, the Choice of Appointment Process Policy will explicitly establish advertised processes as standard practice in most situations as they best reflect the guiding values. We believe that these changes will help managers understand how to apply the guiding values and help root the guiding values and the values-based system more deeply. The PSC is committed to consulting with deputy heads prior to finalizing the amendments.

7.6   Other changes to be introduced in 2010-2011 include the addition of a requirement in the Assessment Policy that a passing mark or grade must be established for each qualification in order to ensure adherence to the PSEA requirement that all essential qualifications must be met. In addition, the guides for the PSC's appointment policies are being streamlined and reduced from 52 separate documents to 10 and hyperlinked to allow readers to more easily navigate and research specific questions.

7.7   The PSC also continued to work on regulations and exclusion approval orders in several areas in 2009-2010:

• Public Service Employment Regulations (PSER) —
  Amendments were made to the PSER to make several changes in the priority provisions. The PSC worked to finalize the provisions over the course of the year and the amendments came into force on May 12, 2010, although the revised provisions related to priority for the Office of the Secretary to the Governor General will only come into force when related amendments to the Office of the Governor General's Secretary Exclusion Approval Order come into effect.
  
  
  • Spousal priority — The PSER were amended to create a two-year priority entitlement for the spouses or common-law partners of employees, members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and members of the Canadian Forces (CF) whose deaths are attributable to the performance of duties and have taken place since October 7, 2001. Such persons have the right to be appointed ahead of all others, except statutory priorities, if they are found to meet the essential qualifications for a position that is open to all Canadians.
  • Priority for excluded persons in the Office of the Secretary to the Governor General — When the proposed Office of the Governor General's Secretary Exclusion Approval Order and Regulations come into effect (see below), the priority for appointment for persons who cease to be employed in a position excluded by the Order will be repealed. Transitional provisions in the PSER will continue the priority for those persons who occupy the excluded positions on the date the Order and Regulations come into effect.
  • Other priority provisions — An amendment was made to clarify that the entitlement period for the priority for appointment for employees who become disabled and for members of the CF and the RCMP who are released or discharged for medical reasons begins on the day on which the person is ready to return to work, as certified by a competent authority.
• Office of the Governor General's Secretary Exclusion Approval Order — As noted above, the priority provision in the PSER for excluded persons in the Office of the Secretary to the Governor General will be repealed at the same time this proposed Order and Regulations come into effect. The existing priority is to be replaced with a mobility provision in the proposed Regulations, which will allow persons who cease to be employed in one of the 11 excluded positions to participate in advertised internal appointment processes open to all employees for a period of one year after their cessation of employment. Consultations are ongoing and the proposed Order and Regulations are expected to come into force in 2010-2011.
• Student Employment Programs Participants Exclusion Approval Order — Work on the new Student Employment Programs Participants Exclusion Approval Order and Regulations was ongoing during 2009-2010 and they came into force in June 2010. They replace the former Student Employment Programs Exclusion Approval Order and Regulations. The new Order and Regulations modify the accountability framework within which students are appointed. Under the new Order and Regulations, the Commission retains its authority to appoint students. This appointment authority may be delegated to deputy heads who, in turn, may sub-delegate their authority. Students are now required to take and subscribe the oath or solemn affirmation prior to the effective date of their appointment. They are also subject to the political activities requirements set out in Part 7 of the PSEA and are permitted to engage in any political activity as long as it does not impair, or is not perceived as impairing, their ability to perform their duties in a politically impartial manner. The Regulations set out terms and conditions that apply to the appointment of students and during their employment.
• Statistics Canada Census-Related Term Employment Exclusion Approval Order — Following work in 2009-2010, the Order and Regulations came into force in June 2010. They provide for exclusions from certain provisions in the PSEA to ensure that the work related to the censuses conducted by Statistics Canada every five years can be completed within legislated time-frames.
• Notification Exclusion Approval Order — When conducting collective appointment processes, candidates who do not possess an essential qualification are eliminated from any possible appointment. Nonetheless, they must still be notified of each appointment made as a result of the process. To improve the efficiency of these collective processes, the PSC is developing an exclusion approval order to address the requirement for notification of every appointment made to candidates who have been eliminated due to their not meeting an essential qualification. Consultations are ongoing and work on this proposal will continue in 2010-2011.
• Communications Security Establishment Exclusion Approval Order — Consultations have been ongoing with Communications Security Establishment Canada (CSEC), which is currently covered by a blanket exclusion approval order issued under the former PSEA. With the greater flexibilities inherent in the current PSEA, such a blanket approach is no longer necessary. The PSC is working with the CSEC, as well as the Department of Justice Canada and the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, to finalize the proposed Order and Regulations.
• Locally Engaged Staff Exclusion Approval Order — The proposed Order and Regulations would apply to persons who are recruited locally at locations outside Canada and are expected to be used mostly by the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade and the Department of National Defence. The proposed Order and Regulations are being developed in consultation with both departments to respond to their operational needs. The Order would exclude locally engaged staff from the application of certain provisions of the PSEA. The proposed Regulations would prescribe provisions with respect to participation in internal appointment processes, assignments to other positions, lay-offs and revocations of appointments. This work is currently in progress.

Priority administration

7.8   The PSC is responsible for administering the priority entitlements provided for under the PSEA and the PSER. These provide, for a specified period of time, for classes of persons who meet certain conditions and who meet the essential qualifications for a position to be appointed. The PSC uses an automated inventory called the Priority Information Management System (PIMS) to register persons who are granted a priority entitlement and to refer them to positions being filled by managers within the public service. Examples of such priority entitlements include surplus and laid-off employees, employees on extended leave of absence whose positions have been backfilled indeterminately, employees who have become disabled, as well as members of the CF and the RCMP who are released or discharged for medical reasons.

General trends in 2009-2010

7.9   The number of persons entitled to a priority for appointment fluctuates from one fiscal year to another. However, there has been a relatively consistent increase in the number of new priority entitlements since 2001-2002.

7.10  The 2009-2010 fiscal year saw the second most significant increase in the number of new priority entitlements over the past nine years. The number of new priority entitlements registered in PIMS jumped by 31% compared to 2008-2009, to a total of 1 635. This marked increase was accompanied by a 10% decrease in the number of requests for priority clearance, which are required to staff available positions. In the context of fiscal restraint, it is anticipated that the upward trend in the number of priority persons, coupled with decreased staffing actions, may present challenges to the placement of priority persons.

7.11  When taking into account the various priority entitlements and data, persons with a surplus priority entitlement registered in 2009-2010 are by far the group with the highest increase. For the past fiscal year (see Table 20), 422 new cases were registered in PIMS as persons with a surplus status, representing a 294.4% increase in comparison to the new cases registered in 2008-2009. Although the number of persons with a surplus priority entitlement who have been appointed has also increased by over 41% during the 2009-2010 period compared to 2008-2009, it is expected that the number of appointments will not be able to compensate for the increasing number of surplus priority entitlements in fiscal year 2010-2011.

Source: Public Service Commission Priority Information Management System

Support for former Canadian Forces and Royal Canadian Mounted Police members

7.12  Similar to last year, 2009-2010 saw a continued increase in the number of priority entitlements for CF and RCMP members who have been medically discharged (see Table 21). Overall, 301 persons met the conditions for this priority entitlement compared to 259 last year, representing a 16.2% increase.

Source: Public Service Commission Priority Information Management System

7.13  The Department of National Defence (DND) employs the largest proportion of persons with this type of priority, appointing approximately 70% of them in 2009-2010. This reflects the fact that, to a great extent, priority persons determine the types of positions and locations to which they wish to be referred. Some have limited mobility for accepting employment, thus limiting the jobs available to them. PSC analysis shows that former CF and RCMP members with a priority entitlement as a result of being medically discharged decline approximately 30% of all referrals to vacant positions, due to the nature and location of the work and other reasons. More than 95% of these priority persons accept positions in their region of residence. In many regions, DND is one of the only federal employers of significant size.

Spousal priority entitlement

7.14  The PSC is providing assistance to organizations to implement the new spousal priority created by the amendments to the PSER. Given that the priority applies retroactively to the spouses or common-law partners of specified persons whose death was attributed to service and occurred between October 7, 2001 and May 12, 2010, the PSC has taken steps to identify those who are affected and is working to ensure that they are made aware of their priority entitlement.

Office of the Secretary to the Governor General priority

7.15  Once the proposed Order and Regulations come into effect, the priority provision in the PSER will be repealed, although the PSER's transitional provisions will continue the priority for the persons occupying the 11 excluded positions on the date the proposed Order and Regulations come into force. The PSC is working with the Office of the Secretary to the Governor General to ensure that those to whom the transitional provisions apply will be advised of their continued priority right and that persons subsequently hired into the excluded positions are advised of their mobility right for advertised internal appointment processes.

Enabling infrastructure

7.16  The PSC continues to support departments and agencies by facilitating the recruitment to the public service of talented Canadians drawn from across the country and abroad. The PSC also continues to support deputies, managers, employees and Canadians by providing efficient approaches to staffing, standardized assessment products and modern electronic tools and systems. The assessment products that the PSC provides for selection and development are based on best practices that are fair, equitable and transparent and in support of the merit principle.

7.17  The ongoing demand for PSC services in 2009-2010 confirms the need for a central service provider that can achieve economies of scale. As a centre of expertise in offering innovative staffing and assessment services, the PSC is able to help organizations meet their needs in a cost effective way.

7.18  As part of its commitment to ensure that its products and services are responsive to organizational needs, the PSC began to examine the overall effectiveness of the model it uses to deliver services and products in 2009-2010.

7.19  Information and feedback from various internal and external stakeholders is critical for this work. The Deputy Minister Advisory Committee on PSC Staffing and Assessment Services continued to provide advice to the PSC on issues concerning the delivery of its staffing and assessment services.

7.20  In addition, a new Client Advisory Committee was created this year. The Committee met for the first time in December 2009 and will provide advice to the PSC on the quality and relevance of products and services offered on cost recovery basis and the needs of the human resources community.

7.21  The PSC also stepped up its efforts to capture information to support its business model in 2009-2010, including client information and product volumes. This information is being used to identify trends and patterns and to establish more reliable benchmarking.

Recruitment of post-secondary graduates

7.22  The PSC offers two ways to recruit post-secondary graduates: the Post-secondary Recruitment (PSR) program and the Recruitment of Policy Leaders (RPL) initiative. Both support organizations seeking to hire new, highly qualified public servants and provide efficient and effective testing and assessment of candidates. They also enable organizations to have access to graduates who come into the public service with new visions and views that will help shape the government of tomorrow.

7.23  The Post-Secondary Recruitment program — The PSR is an annual campaign that supports staffing on a national scale for organizations as well as for functional communities. The PSR has two components: career choices are targeted opportunities to attract graduates to specific positions or areas of employment that are identified by client organizations based on their recruitment needs; and the general inventory offers a broader range of opportunities and is open for referrals over the course of the year.

7.24  The PSR campaign has grown consistently over the last five years, with the fall 2009 PSR campaign being the largest one to date. Fifty-nine targeted career choices were advertised, including five collaborative (multi-organizational) job streams. There were over 38 000 unique applicants, resulting in over 90 000 applications and over 50 000 tests administered in more than 70 locations across the country and abroad. In addition, 8 700 graduates qualified to be included in the PSR general inventory.

7.25  The PSR campaign continues to attract significant new talent to the public service. As a result of the PSC's PSR services, 1 643 graduates were hired in 2009-2010 into a variety of term and indeterminate positions. This represents a significant contribution to the Clerk of the Privy Council's 2009-2010 Public Service Renewal Action Plan, which set a target of offering indeterminate positions to at least 4 000 graduates.

7.26  The PSR program also contributes to ensuring a bilingual and representative public service. In 2009-2010, 71% of PSR applicants identified their first official language as English and 29% as French. The proportion of visible minority applicants for PSR was well above workforce availability (42.4% versus 12.4%), although the percentages of applicants from the three remaining employment equity groups were somewhat below workforce availability, as illustrated in Table 22 below.

Source: Public Service Resourcing System and the Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer for the 2006 workforce availability figures

7.27  A program evaluation of the PSR was conducted in 2009-2010. This evaluation confirmed the relevance of the program and its annual campaign as an integral means of recruiting new graduates for entry-level positions to the public service. Several areas for improvement, such as communications and marketing, were also identified and the related recommendations have been implemented.

7.28  In the year ahead, the PSC will continue to promote the use of its post-secondary recruitment activities and the current PSR general inventory to all departments and agencies. This will be done through the Human Resources Council, regional federal councils, the Personnel Advisory Group, the National Staffing Council, the public service middle managers' forum and special public service renewal initiatives.

7.29  The Recruitment of Policy Leaders initiative — Introduced in 2005, RPL enhances the capacity for policy analysis and development in the federal public service. The initiative attracts exceptional Canadian graduates with significant expertise in a number of areas, including national security, health, social development and environmental concerns, and allows departments and agencies to appoint candidates to policy positions. These graduates have not only achieved academic excellence and acquired previous policy-related experiences, but they have also demonstrated leadership through their work, volunteer activities or academic studies. The PSC has now led six annual RPL recruitment campaigns to support organizations using the initiative.

7.30  In 2009-2010, 58 candidates were qualified into the initiative and 19 were appointed to the public service (see Table 23). The PSC and its RPL partners also undertook a second year of a pilot recruitment strategy for the Economics and Social Science Services community. Candidates screened into the RPL assessment phase were considered not only for participation in the initiative, but also for a partially assessed pool for entry-level EC positions that is available to all managers. A total of 41 candidates qualified to be included in the entry-level pool and, to date 2 have been appointed. The top five users of the RPL program in 2009-2010 were Environment Canada, the Canadian International Development Agency, Industry Canada, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and Canadian Heritage.

Source: The number of campaigns and the number of qualified candidates are from the Public Service Commission (PSC) Recruitment of Policy Leaders Program (RPL). The number of applicants is extracted from the Public Service Resourcing System and the number of appointments to the public service is extracted from the PSC hiring and staffing activities files.

¹ Represents the number of qualified candidates at the time, and before the reference checks were completed.

² A second pool of candidates was created in the 2008 RPL Campaign. In addition to the 19 above, the program numbers include 2 candidates appointed from this second pool plus 3 employees appointed from within the public service.

Recruitment of students for temporary employment

7.31  The PSC manages three recruitment programs that enable organizations to hire students on a temporary basis: the Federal Student Work Experience Program (FSWEP), the Research Affiliate Program (RAP) and the Co-operative Education and Internship Program (CO-OP). The January 2009 Federal Budget allocated an additional $20 million for student employment over fiscal years 2009-2010 and 2010-2011.

7.32  Federal Student Work Experience Program — The FSWEP is the primary vehicle through which federal departments and agencies recruit students for temporary jobs. Candidates must be full-time secondary or post-secondary students at a recognized institution. They must also be returning to full-time studies in the next academic term and have reached the minimum age to work in the province or territory in which the job exists.

7.33  In 2009-2010, the FSWEP attracted 60 487 applicants, which led to 9 613 student hires (see Table 24). When compared to last year, this represents a similar number of students applying to the FSWEP and similar number of student hires, with 9 932 in 2008-2009. There were 63 100 students that submitted applications to be considered for the general FSWEP inventory and for the 15 targeted departmental student programs.

Source: Public Service Resourcing System and Public Service Commission hiring and staffing activities files

7.34  Research Affiliate Program — The RAP recruits post-secondary students looking for research experience. It is a unique program that matches a student's particular research interests with federal public service projects. The program was designed to help the public service conduct research, develop intellectual property and patents and promote the transfer of scientific findings.

7.35  The RAP continues to grow in popularity and has attracted highly qualified researchers. More than 23 organizations are now using the program and have indicated that this program is more tailored to their hiring needs. Consistent with this, an increase of 78% in initial hires was observed in 2009-2010, as well as a 10% increase in re-hires (see Table 25). This is the third year of continuous increase in the program, underlining its continued pertinence to the public service's national and international contribution to research.

Exhibit 5: Research Affiliate Program highlights from 2009-2010

Source: Public Service Resourcing System and Public Service Commission hiring and staffing activities files

¹ A re-hire is an extension of employment without a break in service.

² Of the 217 hires, 13 students were paid through a stipend or bursary and as such are not included in the student hiring activities figures reflected in Appendix 2, Table 43.

7.36  Co-operative Education and Internship Program — The objective of the CO-OP program is to provide post-secondary students with on-the-job training. Co-operative education alternates classroom instruction with work placements in the student's field of study. The internship component offers supervised, on-the-job training assignments designed to give students the required skills and knowledge for entry into a trade or profession. There were 4 842 CO-OP placements made in 2009-2010 compared to 4 216 in 2008-2009 (see Table 26).

7.37  The PSC's main role is to confirm that the CO-OP programs offered by post-secondary institutions meet the eligibility criteria for work placements in the federal public service. As of this past fiscal year, there are a total of 3 487 eligible CO-OP programs, an increase of 15% over 2008-2009.

Exhibit 6: New Eligible CO-OP programs in 2009-2010

7.38  The number of placements in the CO-OP program has increased by 41% since 2005-2006, partly due to greater outreach by the PSC to both organizations and educational institutions. In 2009-2010, over 79 meetings and presentations were conducted. The PSC will begin a review of the current database of CO-OP and internship programs in 2010-2011 to ensure that it continues to provide up-to-date information about accredited programs.

Source: Public Service Commission hiring and staffing activities files Recruitment statistics and volumes

Recruitment statistics and volumes

7.39  The PSC continues to connect potential employees with federal public service jobs. The PSC Policy on Advertising in the Appointment Process requires that opportunities open to the public be advertised on the PSC Web site at jobs.gc.ca and on Infotel or another toll-free telephone service that allows Canadians to hear the same advertisements.

7.40  The PSC tracks the total number of visits to the jobs.gc.ca Web site, and the number of calls to Infotel and related services. Over the last five years, use of the Web site has increased by 46%, while use of Infotel and related services has decreased by 47%. Virtually no paper applications are now received by the PSC, although this option remains available to persons requiring accommodation.

7.41  The PSC has also promoted greater awareness of direct access by organizations to the Public Service Resourcing System (PSRS), an e-staffing system for all external and student hiring that provides a number of screening tools. Direct access to PSRS allows hiring managers to save time, increase the quality of staffing and target candidates who are the right fit for their organization. As the number of organizations with direct access has increased, so has their share of advertisements posted on the jobs.gc.ca Web site. In 2009-2010, 61% of all advertisements were posted by the PSC and 39% by direct-access organizations. In 2008-2009, 76% were posted by the PSC and 24% by direct-access organizations.

7.42  There was a decrease in the number of advertisements posted on the jobs.gc.ca Web site during 2009-2010, but opportunities for permanent employment remained stable. In 2009-2010, 3 463 advertisements were posted compared to 4 995 in 2008-2009, a decrease of 31%. The proportion of permanent positions being advertised remained the same, at 28% of all advertisements.

7.43  In response to all of the advertisements posted on jobs.gc.ca during 2009-2010, more than 276 000 job seekers submitted 878 372 applications. This is a decrease in applications of 15% compared to 2008-2009. In 2009-2010, an average of 254 applications were received per advertisement, compared to an average of 206 in 2008-2009, when approximately one million applications were submitted.

7.44  The availability of applicants for public service occupations varies greatly. Table 27 presents the 10 occupational groups advertised on jobs.gc.ca with the highest and lowest ratios of applications to positions available for the year 2009-2010. For those groups with a high ratio of applications to positions available, hiring managers benefit from volume management tools and strategies, such as the electronic screening features provided by PSRS and collective staffing. For those occupational groups with a low ratio of applications to positions available, managers may use outreach strategies that go beyond advertising on the jobs.gc.ca Web site. This could include advertising in special journals, or participating in career fairs.

Source: Public Service Resourcing System

7.45  Educational profile of applicants to external advertisements — In 2009-2010, approximately 78% of applicants reported having a post-secondary diploma or degree. Table 28 shows the distribution of academic level by employment category.

7.46  Notably, approximately 72% of applicants to positions in the Clerical and Secretarial category (e.g. Clerical and Regulatory group, levels 1 through 5) indicated that they had at least a post-secondary diploma or degree, whereas the minimum educational requirement of the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat's Occupational Groups Qualification Standards is for two years of secondary school or employer-approved alternatives.

Source: Public Service Resourcing System

Note: Educational information for applicants who applied to multiple employment categories is included in each employment category to which the applicant applied. A single applicant may be included in the table up to five times depending on the number of categories to which they applied.

7.47  Staffing activity by geographic area — Applications are received from across Canada, with the majority of applicants (69.5%) residing in Ontario and Quebec. Applicant residency figures for eight of the country's provinces/territories were equal to or greater than their share of Canada's population (i.e. Quebec, Ontario, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut). In 2009-2010, there were five provinces in which the percentage of applicants was lower than the province's share of Canada's population, namely Alberta, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Newfoundland and Labrador. This reflected a highly competitive labour market in these regions during the reporting period (see Table 49, Appendix 2).

7.48  Official language profile of applicants to external positions — Applicants for public service jobs remain representative of Canada's linguistic duality. In 2009-2010, English was identified as the first official language by 72.6% of applicants, down only slightly from 74.1% in 2008-2009. French was identified as the first official language by 27.4% of applicants, compared to 25.9% in 2008-2009.

PSC-led pools and inventories

7.49  The PSC creates pools and inventories in order to meet the hiring needs of departments and agencies to staff similar positions in a timely and effective way and respecting the core and guiding values. Pools are comprised of candidates who have met the minimum criteria to be included in the pool. Inventories are created without any candidate assessment, but allow hiring managers to proceed with their own assessment methods.

7.50  Thirteen new PSC-led pools and two new inventories were established in 2009-2010. This brought the total to 51 PSC-led pools and 2 inventories available to hiring federal government organizations across Canada. Twelve of the pools and inventories will not be carried over into the new fiscal year.

7.51  As was the case last year, all new pools were for entry-level positions in the Program and Administrative Services groups. Five of the new pools and one of the new inventories were targeted to one or many employment equity groups. Most were established on a partially assessed basis, allowing clients to tailor the remaining assessment specifically for the jobs being staffed. Further new pools and inventories are in the planning stages and will be made available to federal government organizations in 2010-2011.

7.52  A formative evaluation of PSC-led pools and inventories was conducted in 2009-2010 by the PSC. The evaluation led to a number of recommendations, including recommendations dealing with pool creation and management (e.g. promotion, performance and cost effectiveness) and the need to have more mechanisms in place to better track and monitor costs, client satisfaction and time to staff. The PSC is committed to developing an action plan in response to these recommendations.

7.53  Hiring optimization analysis — As a follow-up to the PSC's past studies on staffing optimization, in 2009-2010 the PSC reviewed a random selection of advertised statements of merit criteria (SMCs) for positions at various groups and levels, in order to identify trends or common usage in the merit criteria. The analysis revealed that, in all the SMCs analysed, abilities and personal suitability factors constitute approximately 55% of the merit criteria in a SMC. Moreover, out of all the abilities found in the SMCs studied, 90% were represented by 10 qualifications and, out of all the personal suitability factors found in the same sample of SMCs studied, 90% were represented by 12 qualifications. These key findings suggest that there exist staffing optimization opportunities such as providing organizations with assessment tools for the most commonly used merit criteria, which would assist them in reducing their time to staff.

Executive resourcing services

7.54  The PSC continues to offer executive (EX) resourcing services for appointments at the EX-1 to EX-5 level on a cost recovery basis. These turnkey or à la carte services include essential staffing components such as advice and guidance, scrutiny of the SMC with a view to rendering the process more efficient and productive, posting of advertisements, creation and implementation of assessment tools and support to the hiring manager during the assessment phase (i.e. during the interview and the subsequent reference check integration phases).

7.55  In 2009-2010, the PSC received over 100 requests for its services. Requests for EX resourcing services continued to decrease for the third year. This decline can be attributed to a continuous increase in the establishment of organizational EX resourcing services teams, as a result of the adoption of the current PSEA and the delegation of EX resourcing to the deputy head level. As committed in its 2008-2009 Annual Report, the PSC began a review of its quality control assurance mechanisms in 2009-2010 and is establishing mechanisms for file review based on audit recommendations.

Assessment services and products

7.56  The PSC provides a range of mandatory and optional assessment services and products to federal organizations. Mandatory instruments include the PSC's Second Language Evaluation (SLE) tests, which must be used by federal organizations subject to the PSEA when staffing bilingual positions. Optional assessment instruments and services include occupational tests, management tests, executive counselling services and other customized assessment services, for both the executive and non-executive levels.

7.57  The PSC also offers instruments for assessing management and leadership competencies, including in-basket exercises, simulations and assessment centres such as Simulations for Executive Selection. These instruments provide hiring managers and candidates with significant information about a candidate's management strengths and developmental needs. The PSC also provides career-oriented assessment and coaching services to the executive cadre and to the executive feeder groups.

Assessment volumes

7.58  In 2009-2010, demand for assessment products and services was comparable to 2008-2009 in some areas, but declined significantly in others (see Table 29). Test volumes for SLE and assessment services in the executive counselling area remained relatively stable. However, organizational use of PSC occupational tests decreased for the second consecutive year. A range of factors have contributed to the decline, including the transition of many occupational tests to cost-recovery in 2008-2009 and the decrease in staffing activity and greater use of PSEA flexibilities (e.g. use of asset criteria and volume reduction strategies). The PSC has responded to the change in demand by diversifying its assessment products and services (e.g. tailoring assessment instruments to specific requirements) and by focusing on more economical assessment instruments such as unsupervised Internet tests. In addition, the PSC has increased its outreach to clients to better inform them of the value-added of standardized testing, as well as to collect input on their staffing and assessment needs.

7.59  The PSC provides executive reference checks that are required by policy and are an integral part of appointment processes at the executive level. When conducted appropriately, they can be invaluable in identifying and averting potential hiring problems and associated costs. In 2009-2010, the use of PSC EX reference check services decreased by 36% compared to 2008-2009. As with the reduction in requests for EX resourcing services (see above), the decrease in EX reference checks is likely a result of increased organizational EX staffing capacity following delegation of EX appointments to deputy heads.

7.60  Demand was up or stable in other areas. A major increase was seen in the number of EX interview board preparation workshops, with 32 workshops delivered in 2009-2010, almost double the volume in 2008-2009. Demand for 360 degree feedback tools and services remained strong, with 128 assessments compared to 132 in 2008-2009. Coaching and counselling services were provided to over 900 individual clients, about the same number as last year.

Source: Public Service Commission Test Scoring and Results Reporting System and Assessment Centre Integrated Information System, as of March 31, 2010.

Tailored assessment tools and services

7.61  The PSC offers a wide range of customized assessment services to departments and agencies with specific assessment needs. This includes the development and administration of tailored assessment products and services.

7.62  For example, in 2009-2010 the PSC provided support to the Canada Space Agency in elaborating standardized assessment tools aligned to their competency profile for technical occupations. The PSC also worked collaboratively with the Department of National Defence, Health Canada and the Canada Revenue Agency to develop and/or administer tailored assessment products and services for use in organizational appointment processes and development programs.

Assessment accommodations

7.63  The PSC continues to support guiding values by further developing its leadership in terms of operational capacity and advisory role for persons with disabilities. Recent investments within the PSC have strengthened its operational capacity and contributed to enhancing fairness and representativeness in the staffing system. The PSC is currently examining a range of delivery models in order to maximize the efficiency and effectiveness of services to candidates with disabilities and organizational clients. Ongoing efforts to streamline processes and increase outreach to candidates and clients have contributed to reducing backlogs and time to staff. In addition, information specific to accommodations is now available on the PSC Web site, which also allows for a reduction in inquiries related to general information.

7.64  After yearly increases since 2003-2004, demand for accommodation measures remained strong in 2009-2010, but decreased slightly. The PSC received a total of 2 060 requests for accommodations, compared to 2 442 in 2008-2009. During the year, the PSC also produced more than 200 alternate test formats for candidates with disabilities and provided advice on a fee-for-service basis on accommodation for organizational tests.

Second language evaluation

7.65  The PSC is responsible for evaluating second official language proficiency for staffing purposes. It fulfills this mandate by developing, monitoring and supplying and/or administering standardized tests for reading comprehension, written expression and oral proficiency. The PSC certifies organizational test administrators to administer the reading and written expression tests. The PSC also selects, trains and certifies language assessors to administer the Test of Oral Proficiency.

7.66  The PSC has been renewing its suite of SLE instruments. The new SLE Test of Written Expression and the new SLE Test of Oral Proficiency were introduced in 2008. The new test of Reading Comprehension was released during the summer of 2010. These modernized SLE instruments reflect the latest best practices in the field and will help to ensure that second language requirements for bilingual positions are assessed fairly, objectively and consistently across all federal organizations that are subject to the PSEA.

7.67  In 2009-2010 (see Table 30), the PSC saw a 2.4% decrease in SLE testing (from 102 081 assessments to 99 668), but still representing an overall increase of 27.4% in testing levels over the last five years (99 668 assessments in 2009-2010 compared to 78 232 in 2005-2006). In 2009-2010, the decrease in assessment volumes was largest for the Test of Oral Proficiency, followed by the Test of Written Expression and the Test of Reading Comprehension.

Source: Public Service Commission Test Scoring and Results Reporting System, as of March 31, 2010.

7.68  In 2009-2010, more than three quarters of the SLE oral proficiency tests administered were for staffing bilingual imperative positions (56.4%) or for training or non-imperative staffing purposes (24.5%). The remaining tests were administered for other purposes, such as the re-identification of language requirements for a position. In 2009-2010, the PSC continued to successfully meet the second language oral proficiency service standards.

7.69  Pass rates for the English and French Test of Oral Proficiency, Test of Written Expression and Test of Reading Comprehension, by level and year — The PSC tracks pass rates for its three second language tests. Tables 31, 32, and 33 show the pass rates for the Test of Oral Proficiency, the Test of Written Expression and the Test of Reading Comprehension, respectively, for the last three fiscal years (2007-2008 to 2009-2010) for all levels combined, for the B and C proficiency levels and for the C level for executives. Variations in pass rates across years is expected due to a wide range of factors that influence test results, including the changing profile of those taking the tests, demographics and policy changes. Overall, for all three tests, the pass rate trends are similar.

Source: Public Service Commission Test Scoring and Results Reporting System, as of March 31, 2010.

¹ Pass rates reflect the number of successful tests at a given level, divided by the total number of tests for which that level is required, expressed as a percentage. Levels A, B and C correspond to basic, intermediate and advanced levels of second language proficiency.

Source: Public Service Commission Test Scoring and Results Reporting System, as of March 31, 2010.

¹ Pass rates reflect the number of successful tests at a given level, divided by the total number of tests for which that level is required, expressed as a percentage. Levels A, B and C correspond to basic, intermediate and advanced levels of second language proficiency.

Source: Public Service Commission Test Scoring and Results Reporting System, as of March 31, 2010.

¹ Pass rates reflect the number of successful tests at a given level, divided by the total number of tests for which that level is required, expressed as a percentage. Levels A, B and C correspond to basic, intermediate and advanced levels of second language proficiency.

Test security

7.70  As committed in its 2008-2009 Annual Report, in May 2009 the PSC released an audit that concluded that the PSC's SLE tests had been used without its authorization. The PSC subsequently replaced compromised versions of the SLE Reading and Writing tests and began retesting students who may have been exposed to compromised test content.

7.71  Over the course of 2009-2010, the PSC introduced a series of measures to respond to the audit and improve test security. The PSC updated test administration manuals, test order forms and other material to reinforce key messages related to test security. New procedures were implemented concerning how clients order and use PSC tests in order to further protect standardized test content.

7.72  The PSC continues to encourage the use of on-line testing, a more secure alternative to the traditional paper-and-pencil testing format. The PSC is offering assistance to departments and agencies interested in establishing their own e-test centres and is exploring how new technologies, such as computer-generated testing, can enhance test security, reduce the risk of tests being compromised and better safeguard these Crown assets.

E-testing and assessment innovations

7.73  In 2009-2010, the PSC continued to work with departments and agencies to expand its e-testing services. Such services are not only more secure compared to the traditional paper-and-pencil testing format, but they can also be more cost effective and decrease time to staff since test results are available in a more timely manner. Table 34 shows that, for this year, 38% of PSC tests were written on-line. The vast majority of these tests (95%) were SLE tests.

7.74  Departments and agencies demonstrated continued interest in transitioning to on-line testing in 2009-2010. As a result, the number of organizational e-testing centres has grown by 30% to 165, and the number of certified public service employees qualified to administer these e-tests has increased to 420.

Source: Public Service Commission Test Scoring and Results Reporting System, as of March 31, 2010.

7.75  The PSC will use its e-testing technology to implement a more efficient on-going approach to pre-testing new test content in 2010-2011. In addition, the PSC will expand the capacity of its e-testing technology to allow for computer-generated testing, which will enhance the security of second language testing.

7.76  In 2009-2010, the PSC continued the development of two unsupervised Internet tests (UITs), a cognitive ability test and a second language writing skills self-assessment. UITs are administered to candidates over the Internet in unsupervised settings. Successful candidate results are confirmed by subsequent testing in a supervised environment.

7.77  The PSC piloted the two UITs with over 15 000 job applicants during the year. Feedback from applicants was positive and results indicated that applicants found that the tests provided useful information in considering whether to apply for specific appointment processes.

7.78  The new UITs are scheduled to be released to organizations by the fall of 2010. UITs are done from home at the time of application and do not require supervision. As a supervised testing session is restricted to those candidates who have successfully passed the UIT, the requirement for supervised testing will be reduced commensurately with a resulting reduction in costs and time to staff.

Public Service Staffing Modernization Project

7.79  The Public Service Staffing Modernization Project (PSSMP) is a comprehensive, government-wide initiative, led by the PSC, to modernize staffing in the federal public service. Major progress was made on the project during 2009-2010.

7.80  Volumetrics — The Public Service Resourcing System (PSRS) handled more than 800 000 employment applications in response to 3 464 advertisements during 2009-2010. During the year, 276 580 job seekers registered and submitted curriculum vitae using the jobs.gc.ca interface, and the site received an average of 470 916 unique visitors per month.

7.81  Improving stakeholder communications — The PSSMP led a comprehensive re-design of the jobs.gc.ca Web site in collaboration with departments and agencies, including the Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer, to support public service renewal to create a new and improved "look" with many new features. Job seekers have easier access to career information through improved search functions and videos with incumbent testimonials. An extranet site now enables client organizations to share staffing information and best practices and they can use newly created tools to build profiles of themselves and highlight their emerging requirements.

7.82  In November 2009, the PSC introduced a Job-seeker Satisfaction Survey as part of a series of enhancements to the jobs.gc.ca Web site. The purpose of the survey is to solicit feedback from job seekers about the jobs site, its search tool and their experience with the PSRS. Each individual who completes an application for a position is invited to take part in the survey. Over 25 000 individuals responded during the last four months of the fiscal year. The survey will continue in the 2010-2011 fiscal year and the survey results (25 345 respondents from November 25, 2009 to March 24, 2010) will be used to make further improvements to the jobs.gc.ca site and to determine the effectiveness of the PSRS as a staffing and recruitment facility.

Source: Public Service Commission Job-seeker Satisfaction Survey Report

¹ A total of 25 345 individuals responded to the Survey from November 25, 2009 to March 24, 2010.

7.83  Reducing time to staff — As part of the PSSMP, the PSC developed and disseminated a set of new tools in 2009-2010 to expedite staffing processes. This included the Extreme Hiring Makeover, unsupervised Internet testing and a Candidate Information Exchange. Further, eight additional organizations now have full control of their external advertised processes through direct access to PSRS, raising the total to 32. There are currently 16 organizations with direct access to PSRS on a national basis, compared with only four in 2008-2009.

7.84  Increasing collaboration — The PSC worked throughout the year to increase collaboration with key human resources (HR) proponents. This included consulting with officials of the Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer concerning common HR business processes and partnering with members of the interdepartmental HR aid initiative to develop shared HR tools.

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