45 years and our Matane office is still growing

In 1976, the Government of Canada chose the small town of Matane, Quebec, as its newest location for a Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) office. This was done as part of the government’s initiative to create jobs across the country.

The opening ceremony for the new building led to a future no one could have predicted. Organizers of the ribbon-cutting ceremony chose a computer ribbon instead of cloth. Little did attendees know at the time how much this office’s evolution was going to contribute to the greening of federal operations and the digitization of government documents, nor that it would support the Government of Canada’s commitment to enhance accountability and transparency.

A hands-on beginning

Originally, the office was home to the Receiver General of Canada’s Cheque Redemption Control Directorate. The work was straightforward but involved many steps, such as verification, mailing, cross-verification against a ledger and authentication of every cheque issued by the Government of Canada to ensure the amount was accurate. Then, cheques were organized by serial number and stored for 6 years plus 1 day, after which, they were shredded on site.

This practice continues, but the way employees work has changed significantly. Up until 1995, employees did all of it by hand. That meant the 100 people who worked there manually processed more than 100 million cheques every year.

By 1996, the shift towards direct deposit was gaining momentum and the number of cheques being processed declined. By 2022, the number of cheques dropped to about 30 million per year. The handling of these cheques also became easier. “Cheques are now processed through a cheque reader, making the process very fast with at a rate of 40,000 cheques per hour,” according to Steeve Bourassa, Accounting and Remittance Processing Operations Chief in Matane.

A bright future

Vignola is now retired. While leaving is bittersweet, she confirms that the work at the Imaging and Receiver General Operations Directorate will continue to grow. She says, “There are ideas at work to expand our ability to serve Canadians in the world of digitization. While I won’t be on the front lines anymore, I know I’ll be staying in touch with my colleagues, or should I say my second family, so I can hear about their progress. I will miss everyone and continue to be proud of the work we do here, in Matane.”

This little office that started out as the government’s repository for cheques has changed and grown by leaps and bounds over its 45 years. Through its important work, the directorate in Matane will continue to support the Government of Canada’s Greening Government Strategy and an open and transparent democracy for Canadians.

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