Friday, December 21, 2018
Most of us have been aware that downsizing has been subtly underway since the Secretary of Cabinet first announced a hiring freeze days before government transition took place. While that edict has slowly been taking its toll the past six months, the Secretary’s most recent memo, that openly references downsizing and solicits voluntary exits, is downright frosty.
Phrases within the Secretary’s memo like “the government is exploring measures to manage compensation costs in a way that ensures vital services to citizens are not compromised while avoiding involuntary job losses”, and “to help streamline the size of the OPS, the current focus is on leveraging available programs that allow employees to exit the organization on a voluntary basis”, leave us wondering what lies ahead.
On the heels of General Motors’ imminent departure from Oshawa, one would think the preservation of the social safety network that Ontarians prize so highly would be imperative.
Practically speaking, when good jobs in the private sector disappear, there’s always an increased pressure on public services. Demand for public services will only grow, while capability to supply those services is shrinking.
Economically speaking, Ontario is the most cost-efficient jurisdiction in Canada in the provision of public services. The recent Ernst and Young ‘line by line’ audit clearly depicted public service spending as being flat-lined for more than a decade. These facts should be proof positive that not only is downsizing not required, it’s arguably not tolerable from a service perspective.
The loss of good public service jobs will be felt province-wide. When a good job is removed from its local community, be it in Toronto, Ottawa, London or Thunder Bay, there’s a ripple effect felt by the local economy and by future generations. While the government can declare Ontario ‘open for business’, present day reality is that good jobs are continuing to disappear. With the world of manufacturing literally gone south, it’s hard to imagine comparable replacement jobs anytime soon.
Eliminating quality public service jobs that fuel local economies and support the social safety network that those who are unemployed in the private sector rely upon --- just doesn’t add up.
How “vital services will not be compromised with a further streamlining of the public service” remains a mystery. Although the government’s ‘current focus’ is on downsizing by attrition and not by direct job loss, it is a very bittersweet reprieve. The sweet being the promise of job security, at least for the immediate future. The bitter being having to witness the public service that provides and protects what we as Ontarians and Canadians stake our reputation on – our veritable social fabric – unjustifiably downsized and its public servants stretched thinner and thinner by the day.
Good jobs matter. Public services matter. In this instance – they are in fact one and the same.
Dave Bulmer
President