Uncertainty for P.E.I.'s federal public service employees as Carney plans to slash 16K jobs

Devon Goodsell · CBC News

· Posted: Nov 05, 2025 11:11 AM EST | Last Updated: November 5

The national authorities is acceptable to slash 16,000 positions — oregon astir 4.5 per cent of the nationalist work workforce — implicit the adjacent 3 years, and it’s not yet wide what that mightiness mean for P.E.I. wherever the national authorities is 1 of the largest employers.

According to the national fund announced Tuesday, the reductions are expected to statesman successful April 2026 and proceed until 2029.

Public Service Alliance of Canada Atlantic determination enforcement vice-president Chris Di Liberatore said that people doesn’t see declaration oregon impermanent positions, and comes connected apical of the astir 10,000 jobs chopped successful 2024-25.

He said it’s not yet evident precisely however the cuts mightiness interaction departments similar the Canada Revenue Agency oregon Veterans Affairs, 2 of the largest employers successful P.E.I.

“We are looking astatine the fund document, we are trying to fig retired precisely however departments volition beryllium impacted and what departments volition beryllium impacted greater oregon to a lesser degree,” helium told Island Morning big Mitch Cormier.

“So portion we’re looking astatine this papers and seeing wherever the numbers fall, we’re figuring retired precisely however it is that we’re going to woody with the numbers that we’re facing.”

The fund aims to offset the reductions wherever imaginable done attrition and voluntary departures, but Di Liberatore said a chopped is inactive a cut.

“That’s inactive a occupation that’s not being refilled, it’s further enactment that’s going onto the plates of the folks that are delivering these services, which is conscionable going to pb to higher volumes, longer hold times for services that Canadians trust on,” helium said.

“It’s going to interaction the wellness of our employees — they’re going to beryllium burning retired astatine a faster complaint erstwhile we’re asking them to bash truthful overmuch much with less.… There’s younger folks who are disproportionately affected erstwhile these situations hap due to the fact that the jobs disposable to them to commencement a vocation are not determination immoderate more.”

Members of the Public Service Alliance of Canada went connected onslaught successful 2023. Here, picketers are seen extracurricular the Jean Canfield Building successful Charlottetown. (Steve Bruce/CBC)

Di Liberatore believes the national authorities is putting its absorption successful the incorrect place.

“We cognize that during times of economical uncertainty that investing successful the nationalist work helps get america done those downturns,” helium said.

“Especially present since COVID has opened up a satellite of radical moving remotely, it’s enactment a batch of workers into agrarian communities that would usually person had to relocate into municipality centres, and we truly judge that if the authorities embraced much distant enactment they could find the savings that they’re looking for without impacting the workforce oregon the wage and payment line.”

LISTEN | How cuts to nationalist work could impact national workers connected P.E.I.:

Dalhousie University governmental subject prof Lori Turnbull said it’s excessively soon to accidental however the reductions mightiness interaction idiosyncratic departments, but it’s apt to mean changes to the programs presently offered — and the elimination of others altogether.

“I don’t deliberation we person the level of granularity connected that to cognize precisely what’s going to happen,” she said. “But [it] could mean that we spot changes successful presumption of the services that are offered astatine the national level whether it’s taxation services, passports, that benignant of thing.”

The fund besides lays retired a program to hasten the wider adoption of artificial quality exertion crossed the national authorities — a program Di Liberatore worries is premature.

“Canadians don’t privation to speech to a machine. They don’t privation to woody with AI chatbots,”  helium said.

“At the extremity of the day, this exertion that has yet to beryllium afloat developed is intended to regenerate workers and that’s conscionable unacceptable.”

He said tools should beryllium utilized to assistance radical enactment much efficiently — not regenerate them.

“AI can’t marque a decision, and AI doesn’t person compassion,” helium said.

“Let’s look astatine idiosyncratic who precocious mislaid a loved 1 who is reaching retired to the pension centre for assistance with the decease benefits they whitethorn beryllium entitled to. AI is not going to beryllium capable to supply that idiosyncratic with the work they necessitate with the level of compassion that they whitethorn request successful that moment.”

Turnbull said it’s not wide however agelong it mightiness instrumentality to instrumentality AI exertion crossed the national government, oregon however it mightiness beryllium used.

“So we’ll spot whether they are capable to support up with developments successful AI truthful that services really get amended contempt the information that determination are cuts.”

WATCH | Federal fund includes nationalist work occupation cuts, much AI use: