TORONTO – The provincial auditor’s report confirms what 10 years of cutbacks and privatization has done to Ontario’s public service, the Ontario Public Service Employees Union says.
In his report released today, acting Provincial Auditor Jim McCarter noted that while 20,000 jobs have been chopped from the provincial workforce since 1995, the level of staff overtime has doubled. In addition, 53 per cent of government workers surveyed say their
departments are understaffed, and 32 per cent are dissatisfied with their jobs.
“They’re overworked, work too much forced overtime and many are temporary employees,” said OPSEU President Leah Casselman. “After what they’ve been through for the past 10 years, I’m almost surprised the dissatisfaction level is not higher than that.”
Casselman said working conditions in the OPS are in a crisis and have not improved since the McGuinty Liberals were elected last year. Instead, the Liberals have also continued the Tory legacy of cuts and contracting provincial responsibilities to the private sector with little follow-up to make sure quality services are delivered.
“McGuinty has not even begun to make good on his promise to rebuild public services, as this report shows,” Casselman said. “It’s time the Liberals stop pointing fingers at previous governments and start improving services.”
The Auditor noted that the trend over the past 10 years has been to hire temporary (unclassified) staff rather than permanent positions. Temp staff now comprise 17.7 per cent of the Ontario Public Service, almost double the level of 1995.
The Auditor also concluded that the provincial workforce is aging and the government is not prepared for the upcoming retirements of its staff. The Auditor also discovered that the Ontario government spends two-thirds less on training its employees than other public sector employers.
Casselman said OPSEU welcomed the Provincial Auditor’s recommendation to implement training and development policies in the provincial government, and develop a better relationship with its unions.
“It’s about time we started investing in our people instead of kicking them around,” she said.
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For further information:
Paul Bilodeau, OPSEU Communications: 416/432-5021
Office of the Auditor General 2004 Annual Report
