Posted on 25 January 2012
Charlottetown Senator Percy Downe has written Minister of National Defence Peter MacKay, calling upon him to defend the interests of Atlantic Canada in Cabinet and to fight the disproportionate losses of federal public service jobs that have affected the region in recent years. From the letter:
“According to figures provided by the government’s own Treasury Board . . . federal government employment in Atlantic Canada shrank by 430 jobs between 2009 and 2011; and yet, during that same time period, federal government jobs increased over 5% in the Ottawa area and 3% nationwide. Nova Scotia was particularly hard hit, losing 234 jobs -- representing more than half the job losses in Atlantic Canada as a whole.”
It is important to remember that these jobs were lost in the Atlantic region before the recent public service job cuts were announced.
“The creation of thousands of new federal public service jobs in Ottawa while jobs are being cut in Atlantic Canada doesn’t sound fair to the East Coast,” said Senator Downe. “For this to happen with so many Atlantic Canadians sitting at the Cabinet table is not encouraging.”
Obviously government alone cannot solve the problem of unemployment; meaningful economic development can only come from a healthy balanced economy that respects and welcomes the role of a robust private sector to invest the time and money to create the jobs that will keep Atlantic Canadians here to build their future. But federal government employment provides a dependable core of stable, good-paying jobs, which are tremendously beneficial, particularly in the smaller economies of Atlantic Canada. So when those jobs disappear, or are moved to Ottawa, the effect is noticeable.
Senator Downe urged that Minister MacKay show leadership on this issue and that he and his counterparts from Atlantic Canada - Keith Ashfield and Bernard Valcourt from New Brunswick, Gail Shea from Prince Edward Island and Peter Penashue from Newfoundland and Labrador – work to guarantee that the region not suffer disproportionately from the upcoming rounds of federal job cuts.
“The ministers from Atlantic Canada are our representatives at the Cabinet table, not the Cabinet’s representatives in Atlantic Canada,” said Senator Downe. “I trust they will work to ensure that any future federal government job cuts will be done equally across Canada.”
-30-
For further information:
Senator Percy Downe: 613-943-8107
Or toll free at 1-800-267-7362
www.sen.parl.gc.ca/pdowne
January 25, 2012
Hon. Peter MacKay, P.C., Q.C., M.P.
Minister of National Defence
MGen. G.R. Pearkes Building
101 Colonel By Drive
Ottawa, ON K1A 0K2
Dear Minister MacKay:
First of all, let me congratulate you on your recent marriage, and may I wish you and your spouse many years of happiness together.
I am writing to you in your capacity as senior minister from Atlantic Canada, to draw your attention to – and ask you to use your influence to rectify - what I would describe as a troubling inequality with regard to federal government job cuts across Canada.
According to figures provided by the government’s own Treasury Board Secretariat (in response to a question I asked in the Senate), federal government employment in Atlantic Canada shrank by 430 jobs between 2009 and 2011; and yet, during that same time period, federal government jobs increased by over 5% in the Ottawa area and 3% nationwide. Nova Scotia was particularly hard hit, losing 234 jobs -- representing more than half the job losses in Atlantic Canada as a whole.
Given the current economic climate, one cannot help but be concerned by such statistics. If we lost jobs in Nova Scotia when the Government was on a cross-country hiring binge (except in Atlantic Canada), will Atlantic Canadians still have equal opportunity for federal government employment in Atlantic Canada in a time of restraint?
Obviously, government alone cannot solve the problem of unemployment. Meaningful economic development can only come from a healthy balanced economy that respects and welcomes the role of a robust private sector to invest the time and money to create the jobs that will keep Atlantic Canadians here to build their future.
However, federal government employment provides a dependable core of stable, good-paying jobs, which are tremendously beneficial, particularly in the smaller economies of Atlantic Canada, so often subject to the boom and bust cycles of the fisheries, agriculture and other industries. So when those stable, good-paying jobs disappear, or are moved to Ottawa, the effect is noticeable.
Indeed, it is the nature of the jobs lost, not merely the number of them, which is significant. Quite apart from the cuts themselves, there is the issue of the kind of jobs involved. It would appear that senior government officials based in Ottawa have been seeking to preserve, expand and protect federal government employment in Ottawa at the expense of the regions; especially when considering that three-quarters of the highest paying “EX level” jobs are located in the Ottawa area.
Fairness dictates that Atlantic Canada should not suffer disproportionately while other parts of the country carry on as usual. I ask that you, as a senior minister from Atlantic Canada, demonstrate leadership to your fellow cabinet ministers Gail Shea from Prince Edward Island, Keith Ashfield and Bernard Valcourt from New Brunswick and Peter Penashue from Newfoundland and Labrador, and work to correct the recent loss of federal government jobs in Atlantic Canada, to repair the harm done by those losses that have already occurred, and to ensure that any future federal government job cuts your government may deem necessary should be done equally across Canada.
As a member of the Treasury Board Sub-Committee on the Strategic and Operating Review, you have a golden opportunity to see to it that the past unfairness in this regard is corrected and not repeated. I am certain you would agree that Atlantic Canadians should not be asked to absorb a disproportionate number of federal government job cuts.
Sincerely,
Percy E. Downe
Senator