Horizontal Initiatives - 2016–17 Report on Plans and Priorities - Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat
Horizontal Initiatives
- Name of horizontal initiative
- Workplace Wellness and Productivity Strategy (WPS) – Modernizing Disability and Sick Leave Management
- Lead department
- Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat (Secretariat)
- Federal partner organizations
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Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC)Footnote 3: The result of the collective bargaining process will determine if TBS will require PSPC – Acquisitions Branch expertise in procuring a new short-term disability plan. Its Accounting, Banking and Compensation Branch will support development of the technological systems solution required for interoperability with the People Soft–based absence management system and the human resources and pay systems in the federal public service.
Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) – Labour: This organization identifies options for improving the administration of occupational claims under the Government Employees Compensation Act.
Health Canada: This organization's activities support the provision of an updated Policy on Employee Assistance Program and related departmental advice, particularly related to wellness and mental health. Its activities also support a streamlined application process for medical retirement under the Public Service Superannuation Act.
- Non-federal and non-governmental partner(s)
- Not applicable
- Start date of the horizontal initiative
- End date of the horizontal initiative
- Ongoing
Total federal funding allocated (start to end date) (dollars)
The amount of $25 million of total funding has been allocated over a four-year period for the Secretariat, PSPC, ESDC and Health Canada to carry out a range of activities in support of modernizing the current system for disability and sick leave management. The total allocated funding includes an amount of $21 million in funding from the fiscal framework, along with $3.9 million from existing departmental reference levels.
For WPS specifically, a reprofiling exercise was performed to bring forward unspent amounts from previous years (2013–, 2014–, 2015–) and anticipated surplus amounts for 2016–, 2017–, 2018– and 2023–. The approved reprofiled amount was $2.7 million, of which $1.7 million will be spent in 2017–, and $0.8 million in 2018–. The remaining $0.2 million will be reprofiled in 2023– and will be used to assess elements of the project.
The total planned spending in 2016– for WPS is approximately $3.09 million, which includes the reprofiled amount as well as projected WPS-related expenditures from various sectors of the Secretariat.
Funding contributed by non-federal and non-governmental partners
Not applicable
Description of the horizontal initiative
The objective of the initiative is to modernize the management of disability and sick leave in the federal public service. Several structural problems in relation to the existing disability management framework have been identified. These include lack of active case management with return-to-work support, gaps in income coverage during disability, and increasing system costs.
A business case was developed to identify options for addressing the structural gaps in the current system based on leading industry practices and those adopted by other public jurisdictions. Funding for the initiative was subsequently earmarked in the fiscal framework and supplemented by resources from existing departmental reference levels.
Link to department's Program Alignment Architecture
Sub-program 1.3.1: Pensions and Benefits
Shared outcomes
The targeted result to be achieved by the Secretariat and its partners, including public service bargaining agents, is the modernization of key elements of the disability and sick leave management regime in the federal public service with a view to creating a seamless, integrated and sustainable system to support employee wellness and productivity. The project will assist in the prevention and improved management of employee disability and will return a higher percentage of employees back to work than is currently the case.
Governance structures
In , the Secretariat was mandated to lead the project in collaboration with its federal partners PSPC, ESDC (then known as Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC)), and Health Canada. In the fall of 2013, the government approved the overall funding and the project implementation plan.
A project charter and brief were prepared for the initiative and were reviewed by senior officials from each of the partner organizations. These documents provide details on the initiative and spell out the roles, responsibilities and deliverables of each of the partners.
In addition, the WPS initiative put in place a detailed governance structure to support effective, collaborative and timely decision making for resolving emerging issues. The governance structure includes oversight at the highest levels, including an Assistant Deputy Minister Steering Committee and a working-level group of work stream committees covering each of the initiative’s major activities.
The chair of each of the work stream committees is responsible for monitoring work, directing corrective actions to be taken when required, reporting regularly on progress, and submitting deliverables as completed to the project management office. The latter has core responsibility for monitoring progress, directing any required corrective actions and approving deliverables. As the senior project director is responsible for project progress overall, he or she is the chair of the project management office.
Planning highlights for 2016–
In 2016–, the focus of the initiative will be to support the collective bargaining process, including the review of options and designs for a short-term disability plan. Continuous reporting and monitoring of the initiative (as described above) ensures that progress is closely tracked using evidence-based information.
Results to be achieved by non-federal and non-governmental partners
Not applicable
Contact information
William Leffler, Acting Senior Director
Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer
8th Floor, 140 O’Connor Street, L’Esplanade Laurier, East Tower
Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0R5
| Federal organizations | Link to department's Program Alignment Architecture | Contributing programs and activities | Total allocation (from start to end date) (dollars) | 2016– Planned spending (dollars) | 2016– Expected results | 2016– Performance indicators | 2016– Targets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Table 10 Notes
|
|||||||
| Secretariattable 1 note * | 1.3.1: Pensions and Benefits | N/A | 15,623,157 | 3,092,515table 1 note † | Project leadership; coordination and oversight; plan design and policy development; input into the bargaining agent engagement, negotiation and consultation process; and change management activities | TBD – table 1 note ‡ | TBD – table 1 note ‡ |
| PSPC | Acquisitions | N/A | 5,227,999 | 746,066 | Support for the development of the Request for Information (RFI) #4 and Request for Proposals (RFPs) for procurement of short-term and long-term disability plans; dependent on collective bargaining outcomes | TBD – table 1 note ‡ | TBD – table 1 note ‡ |
| Federal Pay and Pension Administration | N/A | Activities in support of implementing pay and pension information system changes required for the short-term and long-term disability plans | TBD – table 1 note ‡ | TBD – table 1 note ‡ | |||
| ESDC | Labour | N/A | 2,412,000 | 641,592 | Activities focused on modernizing systems and arrangements involving occupational injury or illness claims filed under the Government Employees Compensation Act, in order to reduce reporting times and improve data collection and information available to departments and agencies | TBD – table 1 note ‡ | TBD – table 1 note ‡ |
| Health Canada | Specialized Health Services | N/A | 1,747,682 | 425,758 | Activities in support of an updated Policy on Employee Assistance Program and related departmental advice; Activities in support of a streamlined application process for medical retirement under the Public Service Superannuation Act |
TBD – table 1 note ‡ | TBD – table 1 note ‡ |
| Total for all federal organizations | 25,010,838 | 4,905,931 | Not applicable | ||||
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