After years of battles between federal public servants and the Conservative government led by Stephen Harper, the road to Destination 2020 will require some bridge building. It would also be helpful if public service unions and, to a greater extent, Treasury Board President Tony Clement, would refrain from occasionally throwing bundles of dynamite under said bridges.
To that end, the Destination 2020 report compiled by Canada’s top bureaucrat,
Wayne Wouters, which seeks to implement a cultural transformation of the public
service, includes in its five priorities the goal of getting back to the
fundamentals of public service that are rooted in the organization’s values and
ethics code. Professional, non-partisan advice and stewardship of public
resources are at the heart of it. Ministers’ responsibilities under the same
code include “preserving public trust and confidence in the integrity of public
sector organizations” and “upholding the tradition and practice of a
professional non-partisan federal public sector. Furthermore, ministers play a
critical role in supporting public servants’ responsibility to provide
professional and frank advice.”
From rallies featuring “Stephen Harper Hates me” buttons to Clement’s not-so-subtle suggestions that a higher percentage of workers should be getting fired and that they’re gaming the sick leave system (not to mention the government’s outright hostility toward watchdogs and independent officials), the current climate couldn’t be further from non-partisanship.
Dumping on federal bureaucrats is, of course, catnip to the conservative base, and Clement knows this. That’s why it was refreshing to hear him not only endorse the Wouters report, but actually express some affection for the quality and timeliness of the information public servants provide. While government workers will never be thrilled about Harper’s Conservatives due to recent job cuts, it doesn’t help when they’re heading off in the morning to a job that’s constantly being framed as a burden, not a benefit, to Canadian citizens.
Maintaining the focus on how the public service can improve is key here. If both sides can find a way to work together, Wouters’ other four priorities – fostering innovation, cutting red tape, improving technology and giving workers useful learning tools – will be much easier to achieve.
From rallies featuring “Stephen Harper Hates me” buttons to Clement’s not-so-subtle suggestions that a higher percentage of workers should be getting fired and that they’re gaming the sick leave system (not to mention the government’s outright hostility toward watchdogs and independent officials), the current climate couldn’t be further from non-partisanship.
Dumping on federal bureaucrats is, of course, catnip to the conservative base, and Clement knows this. That’s why it was refreshing to hear him not only endorse the Wouters report, but actually express some affection for the quality and timeliness of the information public servants provide. While government workers will never be thrilled about Harper’s Conservatives due to recent job cuts, it doesn’t help when they’re heading off in the morning to a job that’s constantly being framed as a burden, not a benefit, to Canadian citizens.
Maintaining the focus on how the public service can improve is key here. If both sides can find a way to work together, Wouters’ other four priorities – fostering innovation, cutting red tape, improving technology and giving workers useful learning tools – will be much easier to achieve.
© Copyright (c) The Ottawa Citizen By Ottawa Citizen Editorial Board,
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