31st Annual Report on the Public Service: Overview
This year’s Annual Report on the Public Service to the Prime Minister highlights various ongoing and planned initiatives by the public service, ranging from clean energy and affordable housing goals to the adoption of new technologies. It gives insight into what initiatives the public service is focused on.
This year's report focuses largely on the public service’s efforts to acquire and incorporate new technology into its inventory so that it can more efficiently meet its responsibilities across the board. The report also goes into depth on the public service’s efforts to foster a cultural change in its ranks which will ultimately help it meet its diversity and inclusion goals.
Delivering the Government of Canada’s Agenda
Providing Support to Increase the Availability of Affordable Housing
Public servants at Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada supported communities and organizations responding to the urgent needs of people experiencing, or facing, unsheltered homelessness by continuing to implement Reaching Home: Canada’s Homelessness Strategy and the Veteran Homelessness Program. Reaching Home aims to prevent and reduce homelessness across Canada by helping communities address their local homelessness needs. The Veteran Homelessness Program is designed to provide support to organizations so they can offer rent supplements and wraparound supports and services to Veterans experiencing, or at risk of experiencing, homelessness.
Growing a Sustainable and Green Economy
Public servants at Environment and Climate Change Canada are applying their expertise to develop measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, while supporting the growth of a clean economy. Some of their efforts include:
- publishing a regulatory framework for an oil and gas emissions cap;
- drafting clean electricity regulations;
- implementing the Electric Vehicle Availability Standard, to give Canadians access to zero-emission vehicles and cleaner air; and
- amending the oil and gas methane regulations with the aim to reduce emissions by at least 75 per cent (based on 2012 levels) by 2030.
Public servants at the National Research Council of Canada have been leading the way in electric vehicle (EV) safety technology. Given the exponential growth of EV production, and the fact that lithium-ion batteries are being used in new applications, safety testing is becoming increasingly critical. To address this, public servants have developed a testing method known as the Thermal Runaway Initiation Mechanism (TRIM). The device tests lithium-ion batteries against an international safety standard for EVs. Manufacturers are now using TRIM to gauge the safety of their designs and products. TRIM is recognized as the most robust testing method on the market.
Looking to the East Coast, the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA) created a Green Economy Task Team to harness its extensive regional relationships and deep industry knowledge. ACOA is supporting small and medium-sized enterprises and communities on their greening journey. The Green Economy Task Team hosted thematic sessions and full-day green regional summits in each of the four Atlantic provinces to build knowledge on the energy transition and emerging clean technologies.
Public servants working at Prairies Economic Development Canada invited Canadians living and working across the region to engage directly to help shape the Framework to Build a Green Prairie Economy. In spring and summer 2023, public servants engaged with provincial and municipal representatives, Indigenous communities, industry stakeholders, academia, and Prairie residents. Nearly 500 participants took part in more than 100 in-person sessions, and over 130 written submissions were received. The resulting framework represents a long-term commitment by key federal departments and regional stakeholders to seize new opportunities to work together more closely to grow the green Prairie economy.
Improving Service Delivery to Facilitate Easy and Effective Access for All
The Public Service has been working to make sure that Canadians receive the services they rely on when they need them. Efforts have focused on meeting service standards, improving access to existing services, shifting towards digitization, and providing more flexible options for obtaining government services. Shifting Towards Digitization and Providing More Flexible Options for Obtaining Government Services Modernizing our services by transitioning to new digital platforms and applications allows us to provide more flexible and improved service delivery options for Canadians.
There have been several service delivery improvements and modernization initiatives undertaken by the Public Service over the past year. Public servants have developed and launched two innovative tools to help seniors plan for retirement as the cost of living rises: the Retirement Hub and the enhanced Old Age Security Benefits Estimator. These intuitive online tools make it simple for Canadians to access comprehensive information on pension and retirement benefits and empower them to make informed decisions.
Keeping Canadians Safe and Secure
Ransomware is a persistent threat to organizations and the most disruptive form of cybercrime facing Canadians. The Communications Security Establishment Canada’s Canadian Centre for Cyber Security helps to protect Canadians by issuing prompt warnings to those who could be impacted. Since the launch of this groundbreaking pilot initiative in May 2023, 250 entities across key sectors including healthcare, energy, manufacturing, finance, government, and education have benefitted from these warnings. They have saved an average of $250,000 per ransomware incident.
Today, public discourse is also often shaped by social media algorithms and there is a wide range of misinformation and disinformation circulating in the public sphere, which can erode confidence in our institutions. This is a global phenomenon. Combating mis- and disinformation and countering foreign interference are top of mind for the Public Service.
Serving Canadians in Times of Crisis
Wildfire specialists from Natural Resources Canada played a pivotal role in combatting wildfires during the unprecedented Canadian wildfire season in 2023. They applied their knowledge of fire behaviour, fuel conditions, and environmental factors to offer agencies on the front-line specialized intelligence and predictive services. For example, analysts delivered unique mapping products derived from satellite imagery to inform decision-making in real time. Their exceptional work helped coordinate and facilitate international support for firefighting and informed daily situational reporting to keep residents out of harm’s way.
Wildfires were not the only natural disaster that threatened Canadians this past year. After an intense snowfall in February 2024, Canadian Coast Guard (CCG) personnel assisted Nova Scotia residents. CCG assets and resources, including the Officer Cadets from the CCG College, helped emergency responders maintain access, provided snow removal, and performed wellness checks in the community.
Fostering Culture Change
Although there have been many achievements in the past year, it is important to acknowledge that as an institution the Public Service has experienced challenges. It is essential that we foster a culture of high performance grounded in our shared public service values and ethics to help find new, innovative ways to deliver.
Advancing a Values and Ethics Dialogue
To ensure that every public servant has a solid grounding in our public service values and ethics, a task team of senior officials was formed in September 2023. The Task Team was asked to lead a dialogue with public servants, and others outside the Public Service, on how we can reaffirm and bring to life our shared values and ethics within the complex environment in which we are currently operating.
Public servants at Parks Canada refreshed and relaunched their Values and Ethics Code in June 2023, ahead of the release of the recommendations in the Deputy Ministers’ Task Team on Values and Ethics milestone report. Additionally, the values and ethics team at Parks Canada developed a mandatory “Living our Values” training course, fostering conversations at all levels of the organization about personal accountability in upholding public service values and ethics.
Building on a Foundation of Data and Knowledge
The Auditor General of Canada report Inclusion in the Workplace for Racialized Employees, released in October 2023, noted that more needs to be done to gather and analyze disaggregated data on the outcomes of our efforts to address known barriers and inequities in the workplace, so that we can identify actions that yield meaningful change.
In 2023, the Standing Senate Committee on Human Rights undertook a study on allegations of anti-Black racism, sexism, and systemic discrimination in the Canadian Human Rights Commission. The committee’s report provides 11 recommendations, including reinforcing the importance of implementing the Call to Action on Anti-Racism, Equity, and Inclusion in the Federal Public Service (the Call to Action).
Advancing Diversity, Inclusion, and Accessibility to Foster Change
Public servants at Health Canada are demonstrating leadership in the promotion and integration of equity, diversity and inclusion in the workplace by:
- identifying approaches that reduce unconscious bias in science-based decision-making (the Deconstructing Unconscious Bias project);
- developing and launching the Equitable Access to Language Training program, which addresses systemic barriers and prioritizes access to second-language training for Black, racialized and Indigenous employees, and persons with disabilities; and
- introducing specialized recruiting, mentorship, and sponsorship initiatives to improve representation.
To have a Public Service that is truly inclusive and representative of the communities we serve, Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada (HICC) is developing a national footprint to create six regional hubs across the country. The hubs will allow regional employees to participate in the hybrid work experience and positively influence HICC’s programs and policies for Canadians by including unique perspectives and expertise drawn from across the country. To date, HICC has increased its regional presence from 22 percent to 26 percent with the goal of reaching 35 percent.
Embracing Technology and New Ways of Working
In the face of a rapidly changing world, we need to embrace and foster innovation to remain agile and high performing as a public service. We need to continue to modernize our operations, and employees need to be equipped with training and tools to deliver effectively and responsibly. This is critical to our efforts to continue to attract, recruit and retain the talent we need to get the job done.
Optimizing Responsible Use of Artificial Intelligence
In this context, public servants in Canada are exploring how technological advancements, such as AI, can improve the way we provide services to Canadians, while being mindful that the Public Service is a high-value target for unauthorized use of data and information.
Public servants at the National Research Council of Canada (NRC) have been exploring practical applications of AI to make helicopter flight safer. When helicopters land on a soft surface, such as sand or snow, the rotors stir it up so much that it creates what’s known as a dust ball. This makes it hard for the pilot to land safely. In collaboration with partners, public servants in the NRC’s Aerospace Research Centre developed a solution that uses autonomous flight systems, making it possible for the helicopter to take off, fly, and land in difficult conditions without the direct involvement of the pilot. This solution uses LiDAR technology and AI to see, map and evaluate the landing spot.
Employees of the Administrative Tribunals Support Service of Canada are also optimizing the use of artificial intelligence through their decision translation pilot project. The project will enable tribunals to render decisions for Canadians in less time.
Public servants at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) are harnessing the responsible use of AI to benefit Canadians. The Office of the Chief Data Officer is working to improve efficiency and reduce costs across the government through collaboration and empowering in-house experts to develop AI tools. They openly share their work, including code and documentation, across the public service to build collective AI capacity
Since its formation in January 2023, the AAFC AI team has achieved notable results. In June 2023, their generative AI chatbot called AgPal Chat won the inaugural Public Service Data Challenge. Officially launched in early 2024, AgPal Chat serves as a one-stop shop for information on more than 400 agriculture and agri-food programs and services available to support farmers and agribusinesses across the country. The AAFC AI team has held more than 80 engagements with other departments and agencies to share their knowledge and expertise. They also partner with colleges and universities to give students valuable experience.
The Public Service is working to balance taking advantage of the opportunities associated with digital transformation, data and technology with the AAFC winners of the inaugural Public Service Data Challenge. “Through the Canadian Vertical Lift Autonomy Demonstration project, the NRC is helping to shape the future of autonomous flight and the associated airworthiness regulations needed to ensure the safe operation of this technology in Canada. Our unique full-scale testbed and autonomous flight system are enabling Canadian industry and academia to be more competitive.” Derek (Duff) Gowanlock, Research Flight Test Engineer, National Research Council of Canada Cockpit view of the NRC’s Bell 412 Advanced Systems Research Aircraft with test pilots supervising the autonomous landing in between obstacles. 39 EMBRACING TECHNOLOGY AND NEW WAYS OF WORKING challenges and risks they could present, through the development of guidance and regulations, and fostering of public-private partnerships.
Canada has developed a suite of policies and guidance documents to help public servants reap the benefits of AI technology when improving services while upholding their values and ethics and complying with the law. In February 2024, the Government of Canada issued an updated guide on the use of generative AI for federal institutions. The revised guide incorporates feedback from engagement with stakeholders outside the Public Service and addresses questions from federal institutions. It includes updated principles, responsibilities for federal institutions, and best practices. It also identifies issues and policy considerations to help public servants use these tools responsibly.
Modernizing the Employee Experience
Providing an attractive workplace environment is key to recruiting new talent and retaining existing employees. To do this, we need to provide adequate physical space, up-to-date technology, and sound and consistent management practices. Employees must be well supported to deliver with excellence. The way we work is changing, driven by a shift to hybrid employment models. This has accelerated demand from departments and agencies for flexible, modern, inviting and activity-based workplaces. Public Services and Procurement Canada is advancing the workplace modernization agenda through several projects such as GCworkplace.
Since March 31, 2023, the date for full implementation of the Direction on Prescribed Presence in the Workplace (the Direction), deputy heads have been working to implement the Direction in line with their operational requirements. To maximize the benefits of on-site presence and bring greater consistency to the application of hybrid work for employees, while maintaining flexibility for employees to work remotely, the Direction has now been updated to require all federal public servants in the core public administration, who have an approved hybrid work arrangement, to work on-site a minimum of three days each week, four for executives, by September 9, 2024.
This updated requirement reflects the benefits that consistent in-person interactions offer, such as more effective collaboration and onboarding of new talent, as well as creating a culture that is consistent with the values and ethics of Public Service. As we move to greater consistency in the implementation of the Direction, we will undoubtedly discover many approaches that work well and others that will need to be modified to ensure the best service for Canada.
Setting Priorities for the Coming Year
Bringing the Values and Ethics Dialogue to Life in Our Day-to-Day Actions
As we look to the coming year, the ongoing dialogue on values and ethics will help us to reset and affirm our unique role in Canada’s democratic system. These discussions will include determining the nuances of how values and ethics come to life in specific contexts, such as the adoption of artificial intelligence, engaging on social media platforms, and providing nonpartisan advice.
We will also be hosting a whole-of-government symposium in the fall of 2024 on the ongoing values and ethics dialogue, which will serve as a forum to bring together all public servants to discuss our priorities under the umbrella of our core principles. Priorities for the year ahead like equity, diversity and inclusion, accessibility, and the responsible use of innovative technology, such as artificial intelligence, can be discussed within this context.
We expect these discussions, alongside organizational efforts, to result in a deeper understanding and appreciation of our role as public servants. As needed, departments and agencies may update their organizational codes, and conversations may point to specific areas such as artificial intelligence, performance management, use of social media, and employee inclusion, that will benefit from new or updated guidance, training, practices, and ways of working.
Measuring Our Progress and Taking Targeted Action to Ensure a Healthy, Safe, Inclusive, and Accessible Workplace
To help drive an accountability for change, I have asked deputies to report back on their implementation of the forward direction of the Call to Action on Anti-Racism, Equity, and Inclusion in the Federal Public Service. With this reporting, we expect to identify where and how we are progressing and common challenges that must be addressed. By posting the reports online, we are creating space for collective learning.
Responsible Use of Innovative Technology, Data, and Online Platforms to Enhance the Performance of the Public Service for Canadians
While we have been undertaking a digital transformation in the Public Service for many years now, in many ways we are just beginning our transformation. New technologies hold the potential to create a better user experience for those we serve and can help free public servants’ time so they can focus on addressing emerging challenges. In a complex and changing digital landscape – including a growing interest in artificial intelligence and concerns about mis- and disinformation – conversations on values and ethics in the workplace must be sustained and responsive to the public environment.
In Closing
This year’s annual report on the public service demonstrates significant continuity with government goals from previous years, including the adoption of new technologies, greater funding for clean energy and affordable housing, as well as an improvement to diversity and inclusion standards. This year’s document showcases the public service’s efforts to keep the government efficient, orderly and up-to-date on the latest technologies while continuing to meet its obligations to the wellbeing of its employees and the citizens it serves.