Circumventing the Federal Student Work Experience Program to hire favoured students – Founded

Authority: This investigation was conducted under section 66 of the Public Service Employment Act, S.C. 2003, c.22, ss. 12 and 13.

Issue: The purpose of this investigation was to determine whether an error, an omission or improper conduct affected the selection of students appointed through the Federal Student Work Experience Program.

Conclusion: The investigation concluded that the sub-delegated manager responsible for the appointment processes committed improper conduct in favouring and appointing several students. The manager tailored the requests for student referrals to target the favoured students and retrieve their applications. The evidence also showed that a Departmental human resources (HR) professional guided the manager and showed them exactly how to circumvent the random nature of the referral process to hire the predetermined students. The manager was also helped by a colleague who referred several students; afterward, the manager relayed instructions to the colleague and students on how to apply to ensure they were selected. This colleague had ties to many of the appointed students, and was the parent of some of them. This improper conduct affected the appointment of the favoured students.

Facts: The manager was responsible for staffing support positions to implement a large-scale departmental project. They had trouble finding interested candidates, and so reached out to colleagues to obtain the résumés of potential candidates.

The manager contacted the Public Service Commission of Canada’s Federal Student Work Experience Program team and asked them how to find and hire specific students in the inventory for which they already had résumés. The team clearly responded in an email that it was not possible to target a student from the inventory because the program relies on a random selection to ensure fair treatment for all student applicants. It was also explained that a particular student could only be selected for rehire after having already been recruited through a student program.

The manager forwarded the program team’s response to the Departmental HR professional and asked if it was possible to select students for which they already had a résumé. The Departmental HR professional responded that it was possible but challenging; they also indicated that the best approach would be to tailor the manager's requests to the profiles of the students enrolled in the system to facilitate the match.

The Departmental HR professional noted that this might mean that the manager would need to submit multiple applications to target and select the predetermined students.

The initial response from the Federal Student Work Experience Program team was clear. Since this team is responsible for providing guidance for the program, it was not reasonable for either the manager or the Departmental HR professional to believe that they could proceed otherwise.

The next day, the manager forwarded the Departmental HR professional’s response to their colleague while referencing the colleague’s children. The evidence shows that the favoured students, including the colleague’s children, were told which criteria to select when submitting their application in the system. The students’ applications showed that they followed the instructions and that the criteria selected were not linked to the positions to be staffed.

The following week, the Departmental HR professional met with the manager and they submitted the first request for student referral in the system. Several other student referral requests were submitted on behalf of the manager, and cancelled when they did not contain the names of the targeted students. Although many students were referred to the manager, only the favoured students were considered and hired. In addition, the manager used the same approach the following year to hire more students.

According to the Public Service Commission’s Appointment Policy, appointment processes must be conducted in a fair and transparent manner and in good faith. The Student Employment Programs Participants Regulations also stipulate that “A participant may be appointed to the public service under a student employment program if the participant meets the qualifications for the work to be performed and the appointment is free from personal favouritism or political influence.”

The evidence showed, on the balance of probabilities, that the actions of the manager, the colleague and the Departmental HR professional constituted improper conduct when they circumvented the program. These actions affected the appointment of the favoured students.

Corrective action:
Following the conclusion of improper conduct in the appointment process, the Commission ordered the following actions.

• The manager:
  • for 5 years, must notify the Public Service Commission before accepting any position or work within the federal public service
    • failure to do so will result in the revocation of their appointment
  • must complete the Values and Ethics Foundations for Managers (C355) course offered by the Canada School of Public Service, and then have a discussion with their director
    • failure to do so will result in the revocation of their appointment
  • for 5 years, must not be sub-delegated appointment-related authorities
  • must complete the Staffing: A Resourcing Tool for Managers (P901) course and then have a discussion with their director 6 months before the end of this 5-year period
    • failure to do so will result in the revocation of their appointment

• The colleague (no longer an employee of the public service):
  • for 3 years, must notify the Public Service Commission before accepting any position or work within the federal public service
    • failure to do so will result in the revocation of the appointment
  • if they accept a position or work in the federal public service within the 3-year period, must not be sub-delegated appointment-related authorities for 3 years after their appointment
  • if they accept a position or work in the federal public service within the 3-year period, must complete the following 2 courses offered by the Canada School of Public Service, and then have a discussion with their director
    • Staffing: A Resourcing Tool for Managers (P901) (6 months before being appointment-related authorities)
    • Values and Ethics Foundations for Managers (C355)
      • failure to do so will result in the revocation of their appointment

• The Departmental HR professional (no longer an employee of the public service):
  • for 3 years, must notify the Public Service Commission before accepting any position or work within the federal public service
    • failure to do so will result in the revocation of their appointment
  • if they accept a position or work in the federal public service within the 3-year period, must complete the Values and Ethics Foundations for Employees (C255) course offered by the Canada School of Public Service, and then have a discussion with their director
    • failure to do so will result in the revocation of their appointment
       

Investigation File No.: 21-22-06