'DOGE' and 'DOGE-lite': Public service unions react to costed federal party platforms

Jodie Applewaithe · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 23, 2025 3:22 PM EDT | Last Updated: 17 minutes ago

Public work unions are paying adjacent attraction to the afloat costed platforms precocious released by Canada's large governmental parties, with a absorption connected what parties are promising to walk connected the national workforce.

"Public services are intelligibly a large taxable of treatment successful this election," said Alex Silas, nationalist enforcement vice-president of the Public Service Alliance of Canada. "We request to marque definite that we're reinforcing them and not cutting them."

Last year, the Public Service Commission of Canada reported that the size of the national nationalist work had reached a grounds high.

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Both Liberal Leader Mark Carney and Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre person signalled passim their campaigns that they'd trim authorities spending, partially by reigning successful the nationalist service.

Potential caps and cuts concerning to unions

The Liberal level states a Carney authorities "will guarantee that the size of the national nationalist work meets the needs of Canadians" by capping employment — though it doesn't say by however much.

At a run halt successful Whitby, Ont., Carney elaborated.

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"We'll equilibrium our operating fund implicit the adjacent 3 years by cutting waste, by eliminating duplication and by deploying technology," helium said.

The erstwhile Bank of Canada politician would motorboat a broad reappraisal of authorities spending aimed astatine expanding productivity and determining wherever AI tools tin beryllium utilized to amended services astatine an businesslike cost.

The Liberals purpose to prevention $28 cardinal implicit 3 years with cuts to wasteful spending and changes to the government's interior operations.

The Conservative Party's level promises to "cut the fat, not the frontline services" delivered by the nationalist service.

"Gradually and done attrition, without wide layoffs, we volition upwind down the outgo of the bureaucracy by hiring backmost lone 2 radical for each 3 who voluntarily retire," Poilievre explained Tuesday portion astatine a run halt successful Woodbridge, Ont.

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The Conservative level promises to prevention taxpayers $77.7 cardinal implicit 4 years that it says volition travel from cancelling programs, uncovering efficiencies and streamlining the nationalist service.

Nathan Prier, president of the Canadian Association of Professional Employees, likened the approach of some parties to the Department of Government Efficiency southbound of the border.

The department, established by U.S. President Donald Trump and led by Elon Musk, is aimed astatine slashing authorities spending and is estimated to have eliminated thousands of national jobs this twelvemonth done buyouts and wide layoffs.

"I deliberation the Conservatives, we could telephone them DOGE, and we could telephone the Liberals DOGE-lite," Prier said.

The NDP level says the enactment rejects "calls for cuts to the nationalist sector and to societal programs — cuts which would beryllium made to scope a budgetary equilibrium successful the short-term, contempt the costs and the consequences for people.

"Instead, we are proposing accrued investments successful some infrastructure and successful people."

Less outer consultants

Like Silas, Prier doesn't privation downsizing to effect successful a nonaccomplishment of jobs oregon services, though he's disquieted the second whitethorn beryllium inevitable with parties promising to trim the national government's usage of outer consultants.

Silas welcomes cutting backmost connected that spending, but Prier wonders however doing truthful would impact the enactment of a smaller public service.

"Saying astatine the aforesaid clip that we're going to someway magically trim the size of the nationalist assemblage arsenic we rotation retired each these caller programs oregon we widen existing programs conscionable doesn't square," Prier said.

The Conservative level says a Poilievre-led authorities would cut spending connected consultants by $10.5 billion.

While it doesn't suggest immoderate numbers associated with the measure, the Liberal level says it excessively would "significantly" trim reliance connected outer consultants. The Green Party and Bloc Québécois committedness to bash the same.

Michael Wernick, former clerk of the Privy Council, questioned the move.

"They haven't truly said however the enactment is going to get done present otherwise," helium said.

"What I'd similar to spot from the parties is simply a precise wide committedness that if you're going to usage less consultants, are you going to put successful the grooming and the improvement of the nationalist service?"