Classification conversions

The Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat has been working with bargaining agents and different functional communities to look at how we can update the classification system to reflect the work being performed in the public service today and into the future.

As a result of this work, classification renewal will be made to a number of occupational groups across the Government of Canada.

Program and Administrative Services (PA) group

Who

All Core Public Administration (CPA) employees in the current PA sub-groups:

  • AS: Administrative Services (Please note, employees conducting Internal audit work currently classified “AS” will move to the new Comptrollership (CT) group. Please see the CT group information for details)
  • CM: Communications
  • CR: Clerical and Regulatory
  • DA: Data Processing
  • IS: Information Services
  • OE: Office Equipment
  • OM: Organization and Methods (forms design only)
  • PM: Program Administration (For the PM-MCO classification, please see the new Negotiation, Mediation and Conciliation Officer occupational group (MN) for more details)
  • ST: Secretarial Stenographic and Typing
  • WP: Welfare Programs

Technically, conversions affect positions, however, clearly changes to positions affect employees.

78.3% of ESDC's workforce (over 30,000 employees) belong to the PA occupational group, representing nearly 30% of the CPA PA Group population.

Why

  • Public Service Commitments:
    • The priority for the Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer (OCHRO) and the Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS)
    • Aligns with the Clerk’s Beyond 2020 modernization efforts
    • Compliance with Canadian Human Rights Act – including working conditions in job description and job evaluation.
  • Agreement with bargaining Agents
    • Honours commitments that we have made with bargaining agents
  • Renewal of Classification Standards
    • Some of the classifications standards date back to the 1960s and have not been updated since
    • Five new sub-groups were created to ensure that similar work is kept together and evaluated consistently across the core public administration (CPA)
    • These changes reflect the increasing professionalization of the work in the public service and the importance of focusing on client service.
  • Pay Equity & Job Description requirements
    • Helps to reduce misalignment between classification results and managers’ expectations
    • Aligns with the new Pay Equity Act and its implementation.
    • Enables fair compensation for similar work that aligns with equal wage legislation and guidelines

What is changing

Replacement of the ten (10) legacy classification standards within the Program and Administrative Services (PA) Occupational Group with one new PA job evaluation standard (JES) that has five job evaluation plans, one for each of the new sub-groups, as follows:

From existing 10 sub-groups:

  • AS: Administrative Services (Please note, employees conducting Internal audit work currently classified “AS” will move to the new Comptrollership (CT) group. Please see the CT group information for details)
  • CM: Communications
  • CR: Clerical and Regulatory
  • DA: Data Processing
  • IS: Information Services
  • OE: Office Equipment
  • OM: Organization and Methods (forms design only)
  • PM: Program Administration (For the PM-MCO classification, please see the new Negotiation, Mediation and Conciliation Officer occupational group (MN) for more details)
  • ST: Secretarial Stenographic and Typing
  • WP: Welfare Programs

To:

  • PA-EAA: Executive Administrative Assistant
  • PA-CMN: Communications
  • PA-PDM: Program Development & Administration
  • PA-PVO: Program & Service Operations
  • PA-RHB: Rehabilitation & Reintegration

Impact on employees

Seamless Transition

The implementation of the new sub-groups will only proceed when we can assure employees of a seamless transition to the new classifications within the pay system.

No immediate impact

There is no immediate impact on employees. Preparation for these changes will unfold over the course of the coming years.

Qualification requirements

Upon implementation of the restructured Program and Administrative Services (PA) group, the minimum educational requirement will be updated.

Following the conversion, indeterminate employees will be deemed to meet the new minimum qualification requirements for their position based on their education, experience and/or training. Indeterminate employees will therefore preserve their career mobility within their new sub-group structure.

Salary protection

When implementation takes place, salary protection measures will apply should the salary for the new sub-group and level be lower than the current salary. New salaries will be determined via the collective bargaining process with the certified bargaining agent.

Sub-group definitions

Canada Gazette - March 9, 2019 Program and Administrative Services (PA) Occupational Group definition

PA Sub-Groups definition :

PVO: Program and Service Operations

PDM: Program Development and Administration

EAA: Executive Administrative Assistant

CMN: Communications

RHB: Rehabilitation and Reintegration

New Comptrollership (CT) group

When

Conversion timelines are established by the Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS).

Employees occupying positions in the CT Occupational Group will receive an Advance Personal Notification (APN), which is planned for April 2023.

The planned timeline for the implementation of the CT Group conversion is September 2023, at which time employees will receive an Official Personal Notification (OPN).

Who

All Core Public Administration (CPA) employees in the current FI and AV-AU occupational groups as well as some AS positions will be converted to the new Comptrollership (CT) sub-groups:

  • FI: Financial Management to CT-FIN
  • AV-AU: Audit, Commerce and Purchasing – Auditing to CT-EAV
  • AS: Administrative Services, positions whose primary purpose is internal audit to CT-IAU

Technically, conversions affect positions, however, clearly changes to positions affect employees.

Note: All other AS positions will be converted to the PA – Program and Administrative Services group.

Why

  • Public Service Commitments:
    • Is a priority for the Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer (OCHRO), TBS
    • Aligns with the Clerk’s Beyond 2020 modernization efforts
  • Bringing together 3 groups into 1
    • Financial management, external audit and internal audit will be brought together under the CT conversion.
    • In response to the two audit reports from the Office of the Auditor General of Canada (2004, 2011) and the Five-Year Evaluation of the Policy on Internal Audit (2011)
  • Outdated Classification Standards
    • Recognizes increasing professionalization, complexities, sensitivities of our evolving work
  • Pay Equity & Job Description requirements
    • Enables fair compensation for similar work that aligns with equal wage legislation and guidelines
    • Helps to reduce misalignment between classification results and managers’ expectations
    • Aligns with the new Pay Equity Act and its implementation.

What is changing?

The Comptrollership (CT) group was created to bring together financial management, external audit and internal audit work under one group. As a result, the Comptrollership (CT) occupational group will consist of three sub-groups:

  • The Financial Management (CT-FIN) sub-group will include all positions in the existing Financial Management (FI) group;
  • The External Audit (CT-EAV) sub-group will be composed of all positions in the current Auditing (AU) classification of the Audit, Commerce and Purchasing (AV) group; and
  • The Internal Audit (CT-IAU) sub-group will encompass Administrative Services (AS) positions in the Program and Administrative Services (PA) group whose primary purpose is internal audit.

WHAT changes will happen if my current position is classified Financial Management (FI) or Auditing (AU)?

  • Upon the implementation date of the Comptrollership (CT) group, the classification of your position will be renamed from the Financial Management (FI) group to the new Comptrollership – Financial Management (CT-FIN) sub-group or from the Auditing (AU) classification to the new Comptrollership – External Audit (CT-EAV) sub-group.
  • There will be no changes to the Financial Management (FI) and Auditing (AU) job evaluation standards; therefore, no changes will be required to your job description in preparation for the renaming exercise and no job evaluation work will need to be completed.
  • There will be no changes to the minimum educational requirements (qualification standards) for FI and AU positions
  • There will be no changes to your current occupational group level. For example, FI-01 positions will become CT-FIN-01 and FI-02 positions will become CT-FIN-02, etc. Similarly, AU-01 positions will become CT-EAV-01 and AU-02 positions will become CT-EAV-02, etc.

WHAT changes will happen if my current position is classified Administrative Services (AS) positions in the Program and Administrative Services (PA) group whose primary purpose is internal audit?

  • A new job evaluation standard was created for the Comptrollership – Internal Audit (CT-IAU) sub-group; therefore, positions within the current Administrative Services (AS) classification with primary responsibilities for internal audit will be evaluated using the new job evaluation standard, in preparation for the conversion to the new Comptrollership – Internal Audit (CT-IAU) sub-group. The new sub-group will only come into effect on the conversion date.
  • Upon the implementation date of the Comptrollership (CT) group, the mandatory minimum education requirement (qualification standard) for the new Comptrollership – Internal Audit (CT-IAU) sub-group will be raised to a degree from a recognized post-secondary institution with acceptable specialization in a field relevant to the work to be performed.
  • When the change goes into effect (i.e., on the conversion date), if you are an indeterminate employee in the Administrative Services (AS) classification performing internal audit work at that time, you will be deemed to have met the new requirements of the sub-group based on your education, experience and/or training. This is often referred to as "acquired rights."
  • Term employees who were hired prior to the conversion date, can have their term extended if their managers wish to do so. Term employees do not have to meet the new requirement given that term extensions do not constitute an appointment and therefore merit does not apply. Term employees are however required to meet the new standard after the conversion date in case of a new appointment in an CT-IAU position.
  • Note that if you leave an organization for which the Treasury Board is the Employer or cease to be employed in the public service, you will lose your acquired rights.

Impact on employees

Seamless Transition

The implementation of the new groups/sub-groups will only proceed when we can assure employees of a seamless transition to the new classifications within the pay system.

No immediate impact

There is no immediate impact on employees. Preparation for these changes will unfold over the course of the coming years.

Qualification requirements

Upon the implementation date of the (CT) group, the mandatory minimum education requirement (qualification standard) for the new Comptrollership - (CT-IAU) sub-group will be raised to a degree from a recognized post-secondary institution with acceptable specialization in a field relevant to the work to be performed.

The Office of the Comptroller General and the internal audit community were consulted on this change. In addition, the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) was informed of this change prior to its announcement.

The mandatory minimum educational requirements (qualification standards) for the Comptrollership – Financial Management (CT-FIN) and Comptrollership – External Audit (CT-EAV) will remain the same following implementation. This means that the existing Financial Management (FI) and Auditing (AU) requirements remain in effect.

Upon conversion, indeterminate employees will be deemed to meet the new minimum qualification requirements for their position based on their education, experience and/or training. Indeterminate employees will therefore preserve their career mobility within their new group/sub-group structure.

Salary protection

When implementation takes place, salary protection measures will apply should the salary for the new group/sub-group and level be lower than the current salary. New salaries will be determined via the collective bargaining process with the certified bargaining agent.

Sub-group definitions

CT group definition per the Canada Gazette - March 9, 2019 Comptrollership (CT) Occupational Group

CT sub-groups’ definitions:

Write to us

Send us your questions: NC-NWDB-BDTN-GD@hrsdc-rhdcc.gc.ca

Learn more about the PA and CT conversions on iService / GCintranet conversions portal and current publications.

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