President’s meeting with Christiane Fox, Deputy Minister, Indigenous Services Canada

Introduction

Deputy Head

Ms. Christiane Fox was appointed as the Deputy Minister, Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) on September 21, 2020.

Ms. Fox is exercising the Public Service Commission’s (PSC) authority for the first time as Deputy Head (DH). A copy of the New Direction in Staffing (NDS) highlights for DHs is attached as Annex A.

Organizational Context

Mandate

In August 2017, the Prime Minister announced the dissolution of Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC), and the creation of two new departments: Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada (CIRNAC) and Indigenous Services Canada (ISC). The final structure of these two new departments is being developed with an objective to accelerate self-determination, contribute to the closing of socio-economic gaps and advance reconciliation.

On November 30, 2017, ISC was created, bringing First Nations and Inuit health services (formerly with Health Canada) together with education, essential social services, child and family services, economic development, housing and infrastructure programs from the former INAC. ISC has a mandate to support Indigenous communities to deliver services and programs and address the unacceptable socio-economic conditions that persist today.

To support this mandate, we will continue to focus on five key priority areas: keeping children and families together, supporting quality education, improving health outcomes, building reliable infrastructure and enabling economic prosperity. ISC has set an ambitious agenda in partnership with Indigenous peoples. In delivering on these five key priorities, with full partnership with Indigenous communities, ISC's ultimate goal is ensuring that the design, delivery and control of services are led by Indigenous peoples for Indigenous peoples.

Challenges

ISC's mandate is complex and requires alignment with various partners. The complexity of the strategic landscape, the diversity of perspectives of partners and the extent of operational and cultural changes expose the Department to some important risks related to policy implementation, internal service capacity and management of human and financial resources.

As ISC is made up of former employees of both Health Canada and INAC in addition to new hires, the organization is facing some resistance to change and to the measures taken to restructure and standardize its human resources services. In November 2019, the PSC worked with ISC’s HR Services team to provide information sessions on the New Direction in Staffing to Atlantic Region managers and employees. The PSC has offered to help connect with other regions as well.

Experimentation

ISC is using social media in its recruitment approach. Posting job applications to Facebook (in particular) appears to be boosting visibility and increasing applications from Indigenous communities. The organization is looking into different platforms for recording interviews, including VidCruiter, which has been analyzed and deemed rather costly. Other alternatives are being considered.

For second-language evaluation, the organization has developed standardized tests that are being administered by their Official Languages Services, easing data access and facilitating the production of the 2020–2021 report.

Population and Staffing Activities

Population

CIRNAC and ISC were recently established at the end of 2017. The available organizational data are still grouped together and are even inseparable pending the conclusion of the administrative split of INAC.

ISC is a large organization with 5,470 employees as of March 31, 2020. Almost half of its employees, 45%, are located outside the National Capital Region.

Staffing Activities

In 2019-2020, ISC proceeded with a total of 3,968 staffing activities:

• 596 appointments to the public service;
• 858 promotions;
• 568 acting appointments;
• 609 casuals;
• 517 students (324 FSWEP and 193 COOP);
• 820 lateral and downward movements.

Please refer to Annex B for additional details on staffing activities.

Time to Staff

For 2019-2020, ISC has a median time of 195 days for internal appointments, which is higher than the median of the public service, which is 175 days. ISC has a median time of 248 days for external appointments, which is higher than the median of the public service, which is 203 days.

Staffing Framework

New Direction in Staffing Implementation

A review of the staffing framework was conducted in 2017 following the implementation of the New Direction in Staffing. As per the PSC Appointment Policy, the ISC Appointment Framework contains policies on the area of selection and use of advertised and non-advertised processes, as well as requirements related to the articulation of selection decisions.

In 2019, the PSC provided ISC with comments for the review of the sub-delegation of appointment and appointment-related authorities’ instrument. Once approved, the revised version of this instrument will be shared with the PSC.

Appointment Delegation and Accountability Instrument Annex D Reporting

Use of the Public Service Official Languages Exclusion Approval Order (PSOLEAO) and the Public Service Official Languages Appointment Regulations (PSOLAR)

ISC reported that the organization made use of the Public Service Official Languages Exclusion Approval Order and the Public Service Official Language Appointment Regulations for the period from April 1, 2019, to March 31, 2020. Two cases exceeding the period to become bilingual were still unresolved. With the PSC’s support, these cases were transferred for handling by an ISC official languages specialist.

Approved Deputy Head Exceptions to the National Area of Selection (NAOS) Requirements for an External Advertised Appointment Process

ISC reported that the DH did not approve any exceptionsto the national area of selection from April 1, 2019, to March 31, 2020.

Results of Organizational Cyclical Assessment

Although the first cyclical assessment submitted in January 2018 was produced before the structural changes were made at INAC, the PSC accepted the assessment for both ISC and CIRNAC. The results of the next ISC cyclical assessment are therefore expected by May 1, 2023.

Inquiries and Trends

Since April 1, 2020, the PSC’s staffing support advisors have responded to 20 inquiries from ISC as compared to 25 inquiries in 2019-2020. Topics most frequently addressed include second language evaluation and the application of new temporary evaluation measures, information sessions, monitoring and reporting, and priority administration.

Oversight

Audits

ISC was one of the organizations selected for the Audit of Employment Equity Representation in Recruitment. This audit is intended to determine whether the four designated employment equity groups are proportionately represented in recruitment processes and to identify key factors that influence representation in the appointment system among the four designated employment equity groups. The results of this audit are set to be released at the beginning of 2021.

Investigations

Since April 1, 2019, the PSC has received a total of seven cases for ISC, four of which are already closed or not accepted. The three investigations currently under way are related to fraud.

Table 1 - Investigations

Nature of Issue	Cases Received	Cases Referred by Organization	Closed – Not Accepted	Completed Unfounded	Completed Founded	Ongoing
s.66 External Appointments (Merit, Error, Omission, Improper Conduct	4	0	4	0	0	0
s.69 Fraud	3	3	0	0	0	3
Total	7	3	4	0	0	3

Note: The numbers may not add up as discontinued cases, cases resolved via early intervention and rare cases are not included in this table.

Note: Each column is an independent calculation of the others. Cases received are cases received in the time period, cases completed are those completed in the period, not necessarily cases completed out of those received.

Staffing and Non-Partisanship Survey Results

The results of the Staffing and Non-Partisanship Survey (SNPS) are based on a final response rate of 43.5% for INAC. When the survey frame was created in October 2017, CIRNAC and ISC did not exist. However, these departments did exist for selection purposes when the data was collected. The results of these two departments were combined with those of INAC.

Overall, INAC’s SNPS results present some inconsistencies in comparison with those of other large organizations and the public service. In addition, you will see a gap between how staffing advisors perceive themselves compared to managers' perceptions of the services received.

Below are the key findings from INAC’s 2018 SNPS results:

• 100% of staffing advisors indicated that they are confident in their ability to provide managers with useful advice on staffing, as compared to 98.3% in similar size organizations and 98.3% across all organizations in the federal public service.
• 49.4% of managers agreed that, overall, they were satisfied with the staffing services they received within their organizations, as compared to 57.7% in similar size organizations and 59.4% across all organizations in the federal public service.
• 55.9% of employees agreed that people hired in their work units can do the job, as compared to 52.3% in similar size organizations and 53.8% across all organizations in the federal public service.
• 59.8% of managers indicated that the NDS has improved the way they hire and appoint persons to and within their organization, as compared to 54.4% in similar size organizations and 56.1% across all organizations in the federal public service. 
• 91.6% of managers indicated that the administrative process to staff positions within their organizations is burdensome, as compared to 88.6% in similar size organizations and 80.1% across all organizations in the federal public service. 

Diversity Profile

It is important to note that the organizational coding for ISC was not input into the pay system until the end of September 2020. As a result, the organization will only be able to account for the representativeness of under-represented employment equity groups as of fall 2021. However, the Indigenous statistics compiled using the voluntary self-identification form for ISC employees indicate very good Indigenous representation.

Table 2 - Diversity Profile

Designated Group	Public Service Work Force Availability (WFA)	Indigenous Services  Canada	Representation across the Public Service of Canada
Women	52.7%	No data available*	54.8%
Aboriginal Peoples	4.0%	29.4%**	5.1%
Persons with Disabilities	9.0%	No data available*	5.2%
Members of Visible Minority	15.3%	No data available*	16.7%

Sources:

*Employment Equity in the Public Service of Canada 2018-2019, Treasury Board Secretariat – Indigenous Services Canada was created and transferred at the end of September 2020 into the pay system. The organization will not report on its employment equity representation until fall 2021.

**Indigenous Services Canada: 2018 to 2019 Departmental Results Report – Statistics on Aboriginal Peoples were compiled using ISC’s employees self-identification form; no information was provided regarding other designated groups.

Strategies

The following solutions may help ISC continue building a representative and diverse organization:

• The Public Service Employment Act includes provisions allowing managers to:
• Target designated group members in the area of selection for advertised appointment processes;
• Establish and apply an organizational need to appoint designated group members; and
• Use an external and internal non-advertised appointment process to appoint designated group members.
• The PSC offers recruitment solutions that target designated group members:
• Request referrals of designated group members when using student programs such as the Federal Student Work Experience Program and Post-Secondary Co-op/Internship Program, with a plan that could eventually involve recruiting students into the public service for indeterminate or term positions.
• Request referrals from the Employment Opportunity for Students with Disabilities and Indigenous Student Employment Opportunity.
• Hire interns through the Federal Internship Program for Canadians with Disabilities.
• Advertise through the student Research Affiliate Program to recruit students from designated groups.
• Request referrals of designated group members when using inventories such as Post‑Secondary Recruitment.

Priority Entitlements and Veterans

From April 1, 2019, to October 5, 2020, ISC submitted 1,953* priority clearance requests.

Since the Priority Entitlements Policy Division began monitoring priority entitlement clearances related to COVID-19, ISC has submitted 166 authorization requests for 172 positions specifically related to the management of the pandemic.

From April 1, 2019, to October 5, 2020, ISC appointed 13 persons with a priority entitlement (PPE).

Between the coming into force of the Veterans Hiring Act on July 1, 2015, and September 30, 2020, ISC made one appointment of a person with a CAF Priority Entitlement.

As of October 1, 2020, ISC had 30 persons with a priority entitlement in the Priority Information Management System.

Priority Authorization Requests Indigenous Services Canada

From April 1, 2019, to October 5, 2020, ISC has submitted 1,953 priority clearance requests.

• 497 external non-advertised appointments
• 428 internal non-advertised appointments
• 246 appointments from among the qualified persons identified in a previous external appointment process
• 173 external advertised appointments
• 159 appointments from among the qualified persons identified in a previous internal appointment process
• 149 internal advertised appointments
• 135 external appointments related to employment equity
• 90 internal appointments related to employment equity
• 36 student bridging
• 13 priority appointments
• 16 appointments from among qualified persons identified in a previous employment equity appointment process
• 10 appointments under section 43 of the PSEA
• 1 appointment by internal and external process advertised simultaneously

Table 3 - Priority Entitlements and Veterans

Period	Attributable To Service (Statutory)	Not Attributable To Service (Regulatory)	Total
2015 (July 1) - 2016	0	0	0
2016 - 2017	0	0	0
2017 - 2018	0	0	0
2018 - 2019	0	0	0
2019 - 2020	1	0	1
2020 - 2021	0	0	0
Total	1	0	1

Source: Priority Information Management System

Non-Partisanship in the Public Service

Since April 1, 2015, the PSC has handled four requests for permission (one federal, one provincial and two municipal) from INAC. Currently, one departmental employee is a part‑time municipal elected official.

According to the results of the 2018 Staffing and Non-Partisan Survey, the level of awareness among INAC employees of their rights and responsibilities for engaging in political activities is 80.4% as compared to 80.1% across the entire public service. In addition, 92.3% of employees understand their responsibilities to be politically impartial in carrying out their duties as public servants. This percentage is identical in the federal public service as a whole.

André Picard is the Designated Political Activities Representative (DPAR) for ISC. The DPAR liaises with the PSC on matters of political activity and impartiality.

PSC Initiatives

The PSC has launched a pilot project called the Employee Referral Program and has developed tools to support organizations interested in launching such a program. In addition to these tools, the PSC will soon be publishing its project report, which will include best practices for setting up this type of initiative.

ISC has expressed an interest in the pilot for the recruitment of nurses given the many challenges involved in staffing these positions. Discussions have been held with ISC’s nurse staffing team. Though the pilot project is over, should ISC want advice on using a referral program, the PSC can provide its expertise to support such an endeavour.

ISC has participated in Indigenous Career Pathways (ICP), taking part in consultations and providing feedback on the Inventory of Indigenous Applicants and Indigenous Recruitment Toolkit. ICP will be officially launched with a letter to deputy heads in fall 2020 and a joint event with the Canada School of Public Service on December 11. The next step will be establishing an Indigenous talent acquisition circle with the overarching goal of creating a collaborative space where federal departments will be able to discuss, share and exchange advice on different projects, programs and initiatives related to awareness, recruitment and staffing of Indigenous talent.

ISC is also a member of the informal Indigenous recruitment group for the Quebec Region organized by the PSC. Other members include Employment and Social Development Canada, the Canada Revenue Agency and Crown‑Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada.

ISC has co-hosted various information sessions targeting Indigenous students in the Quebec Region with the goal of establishing and maintaining relationships with Indigenous communities and associations. Three successful events have been held over the last 18 months, and the organization is partnering with Kiuna College to hold a virtual information session in January 2021.

Meanwhile, the PSC is in the process of reviewing the Public Service Employment Regulations, a key instrument supporting the Public Service Employment Act. The intent of this review is to address the current and future needs of hiring organizations and eliminate any unnecessary requirements.

The PSC has consulted various stakeholders, including ISC, to hear their views on the application of the Regulations and the proposed amendments. ISC provided comments through its head of HR.

The PSC will soon finalize the content proposals and initiate the regulatory amendment process with the Treasury Board Secretariat and Justice Canada.

Since April 1, 2012, departments and organizations subject to the Public Service Employment Acthave been required to use the Affirmation of Aboriginal Affiliation Form (AAAF) for internal and external, advertised and non-advertised appointment processes when the persons proposed for appointment or appointed have self-declared as Indigenous and the appointment process targets Indigenous persons.

As the AAAF was created some time ago, we would like to review its use, assess its effectiveness and relevance, and identify potential changes. Over the coming months, we will therefore be consulting human resources and bargaining agent communities and Indigenous groups inside and outside of the public service through online questionnaires and virtual meetings.

Recruitment Programs

ISC has not yet participated in the Federal Internship Program for Canadians with Disabilities, but would benefit from taking part in this program next year for several reasons: It contributes to the Government of Canada Accessibility Strategy, offers a 50% salary reimbursement to hiring departments for the two-year internship period, and provides managers and interns with career coaching services and tools to support interns’ development.

The pandemic crisis has delayed the launch of the second year of the program as well as recruitment of the next intern cohort. The PSC’s revised plan involves hiring new interns by December 2020 / January 2021. The initial evaluation process for potential candidates, as well as engagement with interested hiring managers, is currently under way. The matching phase is in progress. If ISC is interested in taking part in this initiative, program staff will be glad to provide further information and help the organization get started.

ISC has launched a targeted inventory for Indigenous students called Treaty Pay Summer Jobs for Indigenous Students – 2020. This inventory was posted from November 15, 2019, to April 1, 2020, and will be open/accessible until January 31, 2021. Due to the pandemic, the inventory has not resulted in any hiring.

In addition, ISC has used many of the PSC’s programs to recruit employees, renew its workforce and increase workplace diversity. These programs include the Employment Opportunity for Students with Disabilities (EOSD), the Indigenous Student Employment Opportunity (ISEO), the Federal Student Work Experience Program (FSWEP) and Post-Secondary Recruitment (PSR).

Between January 1 and August 31, 2020, ISC submitted:

• 12 student referral requests for the EOSD
• 3 student referral requests for ISEO
• 24 student referral requests for FSWEP
• 10 student referral requests for the PSR to fill AS, CR and EC positions
• 10 student referral requests for the targeted inventory for Indigenous students

EOSD and ISEO candidates are available year-round in the FSWEP continuous inventory.

• Number of students available through the EOSD: 3,714
• Number of students available through ISEO: 2,263

In 2019–2020, ISC hired 13 students through the EOSD and 60 students through ISEO.

Staffing Support

Public Service of Commission Representatives and Organizational Contacts

The Staffing Support Advisor (SSA) assigned to this organization is Gaétane Clément. The primary organizational contacts are Isabelle Larose, Director Policies and Programs and Karine Renoux, Deputy Director General, Workplace Effectiveness. The Head of HR is Maryse Lavigne, Director General.

PREPARED BY:
Gaétane Clément
Staffing Support Advisor

Annex A

A New direction in Staffing – A merit-based system that is effective, efficient and fair

Appointment Policy

New focus on core requirements to provide sub-delegated persons greater discretion in making an appointment

• One Appointment Policy, no duplication with legal requirements
• Broader focus on values-based system, away from rules-based system
• Appointments Policy supported by streamlined guidance:
• A roadmap to the requirements in legislation, regulations and policy
• Options and considerations for decision-making where there is discretion
• Clear expectations for priority entitlements
• No restrictions to assessment methods for EX appointments
• Exceptions to National Area of Selection approved by deputy head

Delegation

• New ability to customize organizational staffing system based on unique context and evolving business needs

• Deputy head establish a direction on the use of advertised and non-advertised appointment processes
• Deputy heads to establish requirement(s) for sub-delegated persons to articulate, in writing, their selection decision
• Clarity on requirements related to investigations
• Attestation form to reinforce the accountabilities of sub-delegated persons

All PSC monitoring and reporting requirements now found in the Appointment Delegation and Accountability Instrument

Monitoring and Reporting

Monitoring built by organizations, targeted to their needs

• Annual Departmental Staffing Accountability Report no longer required
• Annual reporting to the PSC limited to:

• Use of Public Service Official Language Exclusion Approval Order
• Exceptions to the National Area of Selection approved by the deputy head
• Results of any internal investigations
• Actions taken following any PSC investigations or audits.

• Deputy head responsible for ongoing monitoring of organizational staffing system based on the organization’s unique context

• Assessment of adherence to requirements, based on organization’s own risks, at the minimum every five years

PSC Oversight

System wide-focus

• Government-wide compliance audit every two years
• Renewed Survey of Staffing administered in alternating years with government-wide audit
• System-wide effectiveness and efficiency reviews to support continuous improvement
• Targeted PSC audits as a result of identified system-wide or organizational risks or at the deputy head request
• Investigations conducted when there is a reason to believe there was political influence, fraud or improper conduct in an appointment process

This document should be read in conjunction with the Public Service Employment Act, the Public Service Employment Regulations, the PSC Appointment Policy and the PSC Appointment Delegation and Accountability Instrument.

Annex B

Internal time to staff is calculated as the number of calendar days between the opening date of the advertisement and the date of the first notification

The median internal time to staff for the public service (organizations subject to the Public Service Employment Act) for fiscal year 2019 to 2020 is 175 days

Internal time to staff for fiscal year 2019 to 2020

Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada’s median internal time to staff for fiscal year 2019 to 2020 is 195 days

External time to staff is calculated as the number of calendar days between the opening date of the advertisement and the date of the first estimated external hire

The median external time to staff for the public service (organizations subject to the Public Service Employment Act) for fiscal year 2019 to 2020 is 203 days

External time to staff for fiscal year 2019 to 2020

Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada’s median external time to staff for fiscal year 2019 to 2020 is 248 days

Technical Notes:

• The Time to Staff - Internal Appointments (TTS-IA) is the median number of calendar days between the opening date of an internal advertisement and the date of the first Notice of Appointment or Proposal of Appointment (NAPA) from the Public Service Resourcing System for internal term and indeterminate positions. As NAPAs are not required for all internal staffing actions, this measure is limited to reporting on internal promotional appointments.
• The Time to Staff - External Appointments (TTS-EA) is the median number of calendar days between the opening date of an external advertisement and the date of the first estimated appointment of an individual from outside an organization subject to the Public Service Employment Act for term and indeterminate positions. Because data between systems is linked using a probabilistic match, errors in data linkage are a potential source of measurement error.
• Only estimated term and indeterminate appointments/notifications are included (deployments, casual and acting appointments are excluded).

Sources:

• Hiring and staffing activities data are derived from information received from the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat Incumbent File.  The Incumbent File is extracted from the Public Services and Procurement Canada’s pay system.  The data constitutes an estimate of hiring and staffing activities to and within organizations.
• Information from the Priority Information Management System and the Public Services Resourcing System is also used to determine if staffing actions are advertised or non-advertised as well as for calculating time to staff.
• The data are not expected to match an organization’s human resources data, due to methodology and timing differences.
• The Time to Staff - Internal Appointments (TTS-IA) is the median number of calendar days between the opening date of an internal advertisement and the date of the first Notice of Appointment or Proposal of Appointment (NAPA) from the Public Service Resourcing System for internal term and indeterminate positions. As NAPAs are not required for all internal staffing actions, this measure is limited to reporting on internal promotional appointments
• Only estimated term and indeterminate appointments/notifications are included (deployments, casual and acting appointments are excluded)
• The Time to Staff - External Appointments (TTS-EA) is the median number of calendar days between the opening date of an external advertisement and the date of the first estimated appointment of an individual from outside an organization subject to the Public Service Employment Act for term and indeterminate positions. Only estimated term and indeterminate appointments/notifications are included (deployments, casual and acting appointments are excluded)
• Because data between systems is linked using a probabilistic match, errors in data linkage are a potential source of measurement error
• Hiring and staffing activities data are derived from information received from the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat Incumbent File.  The Incumbent File is extracted from the Public Services and Procurement Canada’s pay system.  The data constitutes an estimate of hiring and staffing activities to and within organizations.
• Information from the Priority Information Management System and the Public Services Resourcing System is also used to determine if staffing actions are advertised or non-advertised as well as for calculating time to staff.
• The data are not expected to match an organization’s human resources data, due to methodology and timing differences.