Intention to be a candidate announced on social media before receiving permission - Founded

Section 118 – Subsection 114 (1) – Founded – Intention to be a candidate announced on social media before receiving permission

Authority: This investigation was conducted under section 118 of the Public Service Employment Act, S.C. 2003, c.22, ss. 12 and 13 (the Act).

Issue: The purpose of this investigation was to determine whether an employee complied with subsection 114(1) of the Act when they engaged in activities to support their nomination as a candidate in a federal election without first obtaining permission from the Commission. The concern raised was that the employee had posted information publicly on social media platforms in support of their nomination before the Commission had given the necessary permission.

Conclusion: The investigation determined that the employee maintained a website that publicly announced their political intentions before obtaining permission to seek nomination as a candidate in the federal election. Accordingly, the employee contravened subsection 114(1) of the Act. 

Facts:

In accordance with subsection 114(1) of the Act, an employee may seek nomination in a federal, provincial or territorial election before or during the election period only if the employee has requested and obtained permission from the Commission to do so.

During the election period for a federal election, the employee requested permission from the Commission to seek nomination and to become a candidate. Before the employee was granted permission, the Public Service Commission (PSC) learned that the employee had already posted information publicly about their candidacy and political views on Facebook and Twitter accounts. These posts included requests for support in the form of campaign funding and volunteers. The employee did not inform the Commission of these posts, even throughout several exchanges with a contact person in the Political Activities section of the PSC.

The employee confirmed that various social media posts were made by their social media manager. The employee said that they told the social media manager to not post any information until the Commission had granted its permission. The social media manager testified that the employee had not informed them they could not maintain a website for the campaign or post information on other social media platforms. The investigation also determined that a second individual, the employee’s campaign manager, issued a press release about the employee’s candidacy before the employee received permission from the Commission.

The employee admitted that they understood they could only make public their intention to undertake activities in support of their nomination or candidacy after the Commission had granted permission. Despite this, the employee did not inform their campaign team of the restrictions. Further, the employee was aware of the activities determined by the investigation, but did not inform their political activities contact person at the PSC. Accordingly, the employee did not comply with subsection 114(1) of the Act.

Corrective action

The Commission ordered that:

• a letter be sent to the employee to inform them of the failure to comply with section 114 of the Act, and that a copy of the letter be sent to the deputy head of the employee’s organization and be kept on the employee’s record for 2 years
• the employee complete an integrity and professional conduct course and have a discussion with their departmental designated political activities representative
• the employee become familiar with the suite of tools available in the Political Activities section of the PSC’s website within 2 months of the decision, and inform the Investigations Branch once this has been done.

Investigation File No.: 17-18-01