2019–20 Departmental Plan
ISSN 2561-6641
Table of contents
Commissioner’s message
I am pleased to present the Departmental Plan for the Office of the Public Sector Integrity Commissioner of Canada for the 2019–20 fiscal year.
Our Departmental Plan provides parliamentarians and Canadians with information about our priorities and the results we expect to achieve for the upcoming fiscal year, including the indicators we will use to assess our performance.
Our core mandate to assess, investigate and report on the disclosures and complaints we receive is what guides the allocation and use of our financial and human resources, and, while that mandate remains constant, we are committed to exploring ways to ensure efficiency, to demonstrate success through results and, in doing so, to build confidence in our Office and in the federal public sector.
The success of our Office as an independent Agent of Parliament responsible for the external whistleblowing regime for the federal public sector, depends on people knowing who we are, what we do and how to reach us when they need our help. It also requires that people trust us to handle their disclosures of wrongdoing and complaints of reprisal in a fair, neutral and confidential manner.
In the coming year, we will continue improving operational efficiencies on the disclosures of wrongdoing, complaints of reprisals and legal assistance requests we receive; building our human resources strength; promoting a healthy, respectful and supportive work environment; and improving communications tools and reaching out to public servants to help them make informed decisions about coming forward with disclosures and reprisal complaints.
I look forward to moving ahead on our priorities and working with the dedicated and professional employees of the Office. I am confident that we can continue to serve Canadians and meet our planned results in the year ahead.
Joe Friday,
Public Sector Integrity Commissioner
Plans at a glance and operating context
The Office of the Public Sector Integrity Commissioner will support the duties of its Commissioner by ensuring disclosures of wrongdoing and complaints of reprisal are dealt with in a timely and effective manner, raising awareness about the Office and the whistleblowing regime and ensuring public servants and members of the public have access to information to make an informed decision about disclosures of wrongdoing and complaints of reprisal.
Public sector disclosures of wrongdoing and complaints of reprisal: 2019–20
PLANS
- Continue to identify and implement operational efficiencies
- Implement the 2018–20 Legal Advice Request Action Plan Footnote 1.
- Increase participation in events targeted to public servants
- Continue to explore the usefulness of social media as a vehicle for raising awareness
- Continue to upgrade our information management and information technology systems
- Finalize the Office relocation
RESOURCES
- $5.5 million
- 36 full time equivalents
RESULTS
- Public sector disclosures of wrongdoing and complaints of reprisal are dealt with in a timely and effective manner.
- Public servants and members of the public are aware of the Office and have access to information to make an informed decision about disclosures of wrongdoing and/or complaints of reprisal.
DEPARTMENTAL PRIORITY
- A transparent, accountable and responsive federal government
For more information on the Office of the Public Sector Integrity Commissioner’s plans, priorities and planned results, see the “Planned results” section of this report.
Planned results: what we want to achieve this year and beyond
Core Responsibilities
Public sector disclosures of wrongdoing and complaints of reprisal
Description
The Office of the Public Sector Integrity Commissioner of Canada (the Office) enhances and improves oversight of government operations by providing public servants and members of the public with a process for receiving and investigating disclosures of wrongdoing in the federal public sector. It reports founded cases of wrongdoing to Parliament and makes recommendations to chief executives on corrective measures. The Office also provides a mechanism for public servants and former public servants to make complaints of reprisal. It investigates and can refer cases to the Public Servants Disclosure Protection Tribunal.
Planning highlights
The Office is dedicated to respecting its values of accountability, fairness, integrity, stewardship, excellence, objectivity and confidentiality. To support the Commissioner’s duties in fulfilling its mandate under the Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act (the Act) and as described above, the Office will aim to achieve the following results:
Result 1: Public sector disclosures of wrongdoing and complaints of reprisal are dealt with in a timely and effective manner.
The Office is focused on dealing with Disclosures of Wrongdoing and Complaints of Reprisal quickly and thoroughly. This include respecting the service standards that guide the Office in completing its work in a timely manner, as well as following-up on the recommendations made by the Commissioner in case reports of founded wrongdoing. In 2016–17 and 2017–18, the Office achieved its targets for service standards and is set to once again achieve its targets for 2018–19.
In 2019–20, plans and priorities will remain very similar to last year, as the Office will continue to focus on operational efficiency within its case analysis and investigations. For example, a recent internal initiative engages employees in proposing new and innovative approaches to current operational processes, with the goal of enhancing the Office’s capacity to deal with its investigations while maintaining the highest standards of procedural fairness and natural justice.
The Office provides funding for legal advice to any eligible person involved in or considering proceedings under the Act. It is essential that requests for funding are reviewed, actioned, managed and tracked in a timely fashion. In 2018–19, the Office evaluated its Legal Advice Request contribution program. The report and action plan can be found on the Office website.
In 2019–20, the Office will implement the 2018–20 Legal Advice Request action plan, review its online communication products and develop additional tools to help improve the performance of this contribution program.
Result 2: Public servants and members of the public are aware of the Office and have access to information to make an informed decision about disclosures of wrongdoing and/or complaints of reprisal.
The Office has continuously increased awareness of the whistleblowing regime, clarified the role of the Office, and, more recently, focused on building trust through its 2017–20 Outreach and Engagement Strategy.
The Office still faces a challenge with awareness and comprehension of the federal whistle-blowing regime. Uncertainty about the process and fear of reprisal create barriers for those wishing to come forward.
In 2019–20 the Office will increase participation in events targeted to public servants, such as conferences and learning events. Face-to-face interactions with public servants contribute to building our reputation as an approachable organization, and offer an opportunity to distribute promotional and educational items directly to public servants. The Office will also take advantage of opportunities for the Commissioner to speak at events targeted to public servants, as well as specialists and organizations in the fields of whistle-blowing and values and ethics.
The Office will continue to explore the usefulness of social media as a vehicle for increasing awareness, as well as drawing attention to case reports and events attended by representatives of the Office.
Planned results
| Departmental Results | Departmental Result Indicators | Target | Date to achieve target | 2015–16 Actual results | 2016–17 Actual results | 2017–18 Actual results |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Public sector disclosures of wrongdoing and complaints of reprisal are dealt with in a timely and effective manner. | Percentage of cases addressed within established service standards (service standards are available on the Office's websiteFootnote 2) | 100% | March 2020 | Various | 100% | 100% |
| Percentage of recommendations actioned by chief executives following investigation findings | 100% | March 2020 | Not available | Not available | Not available | |
| Number of persons benefiting from Legal Advice Requests to support their involvement in a disclosure of wrongdoing and/or a complaint of reprisal | 15 | March 2020 | Not available | Not available | Not available | |
| Public servants and members of the public are aware of the Office and have access to information to make an informed decision about disclosures of wrongdoing and/or complaints of reprisal. | Number of outreach events attended and communications products and items distributed through various means | 5,000 | March 2020 | Not available | Not available | 9,392 |
| Number of website visitors | 30,000 | March 2020 | Not available | Not available | Not available |
Following the Treasury Board Policy on Results, most results indicators were created in 2017–18. The Office also started to measure and track the indictors during that same year, which is why the results are not currently available. The actual results will be published in the 2018–19 Departmental Results Report.
While measuring the indicators, the Office will adjusts some indicators. For example, the indicator measuring the number of persons benefiting from Legal Advice Requests currently has a target of 15 persons. It is difficult to compare year over year on this single figure. The Office will set as a target that 55% of people applying for access to legal advice under section 25.1 of the Act are approved for funding.
Budgetary financial resources (dollars)
| 2019–20 Main Estimates | 2019–20 Planned spending | 2020–21 Planned spending | 2021–22 Planned spending |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3,674,535 | 3,674,535 | 3,674,535 | 3,674,535 |
Human resources (full-time equivalents)
| 2019–20 Planned full-time equivalents | 2020–21 Planned full-time equivalents | 2021–22 Planned full-time equivalents |
|---|---|---|
| 29 | 30 | 30 |
Financial, human resources and performance information for the Office’s Program Inventory is available in the GC InfoBaseFootnote 3.
Internal Services
Description
Internal Services are those groups of related activities and resources that the federal government considers to be services in support of Programs and/or required to meet corporate obligations of an organization. Internal Services refers to the activities and resources of the 10 distinct services that support Program delivery in the organization, regardless of the Internal Services delivery model in a department. These services are:
- Management and Oversight Services
- Communications Services
- Legal Services
- Human Resources Management Services
- Financial Management Services
- Information Management Services
- Information Technology Services
- Real Property Management Services
- Materiel Management Services
- Acquisition Management Services
Budgetary financial resources (dollars)
| 2019–20 Main Estimates | 2019–20 Planned spending | 2020–21 Planned spending | 2021–22 Planned spending |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1,852,851 | 1,852,851 | 1,852,851 | 1,852,851 |
Human resources (full-time equivalents)
| 2019–20 Planned full-time equivalents | 2020–21 Planned full-time equivalents | 2021–22 Planned full-time equivalents |
|---|---|---|
| 7 | 7 | 7 |
Planning highlights
The Office is continuously improving the efficient of delivering its internal services to support and contribute to the achievement of its results.
In 2018–19, the Office upgraded and updated its information technology infrastructure to continue ensuring the safeguard of information and to adequately support employees. It also invested in learning and development of employees, started preparation for an office relocation, while also taking steps to further apply green procurement in the day to day operations.
In 2019–20, the Office will continue implementing these initiatives, with the major projects being investing in the information management and information technologies and finalizing the office relocation to secure the future growth of the organization.
Spending and human resources
This section presents an overview of the Office’s planned spending and human resources (full-time equivalents) for the next three consecutive fiscal years, starting with 2018–19. Planned spending is also compared with the current and previous years’ actual spending.
Planned Spending
Departmental spending trend graph
Text Version
This bar graph illustrates the Office spending trend for six fiscal years. Financial figures are presented in dollars along the vertical axis, increasing by $1 million increments up to $6 million. The horizontal axis shows six vertical bars, one for each fiscal year from 2016–17 to 2021–22.
Each vertical bar displays an accumulated total spending of two categories of funding. The majority of funding represents the voted program expenditures (Vote 1) and the second relates to the statutory items, comprised of the contributions to employee benefit plans.
- In 2016–17, the actual spending was $3,928,727 in voted program expenditures and $394,972 in statutory items, for a total of $4,323,699.
- In 2017–18, the actual spending is $4,508,616 in voted program expenditures and $431,723 in statutory items for a total of $4,940,339.
- In 2018–19, the forecasted spending was $5,009,887 in voted program expenditures and $476,051 in statutory items, for a total of $5,485,938.
- From 2019–20 to 2021–22, the planned spending is expected to be $4,982,609 in voted program expenditures and $544,777 in statutory items, for a total of $5,527,386.
Budgetary planning summary for Core Responsibilites and Internal Services (dollars)
| Core Responsibilities and Internal Services | 2016–17 Expenditures | 2017–18 Expenditures | 2018–19 Forecast spending | 2019–20 Main Estimates | 2019–20 Planned spending | 2020–21 Planned spending | 2021–22 Planned spending | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Public sector disclosures of wrongdoing and complaints of reprisal | 2,779,946 | 3,262,750 | 3,835,107 | 3,674,535 | 3,674,535 | 3,674,535 | 3,674,535 | |
| Internal Services | 1,543,753 | 1,677,589 | 1,650,831 | 1,852,851 | 1,852,851 | 1,852,851 | 1,852,851 | |
| Total | 4,323,699 |
| 5,485,938 | 5,527,386 | 5,527,386 | 5,527,386 | 5,527,386 |
The Office total actual expenditures increased by $626,134 (14.48%) from 2016–17 to 2017–18 and are planned to increase by $536,105 (10.83%) from 2017–18 to 2018–19, which represent an increase of $249,118 thousand or 5.6% over the three year span. This increase in budgetary spending is due to hiring employees, purchasing information technology hardware and software and more specifically in 2018–19, building the Office’s new space. This new construction is the primary reason the Office is forecasting spending close to its entire budget in 2018–19.
We expect to spend nearly $5.5 million in 2019–20, which represents our total budget and will be driven by hiring more employees, continue the construction and relocation of the Office and further upgrading our information technology infrastructure and information management systems.
Planned human resources
Human resources planning summary for Core Responsibilites and Internal Services (full-time equivalents)
| Core Responsibilities and Internal Services | 2016–17 Actual | 2017–18 Actual | 2018–19 Forecast | 2019–20 Planned | 2020–21 Planned | 2021–22 Planned |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Public sector disclosures of wrongdoing and complaints of reprisal | 19 | 22 | 25 | 29 | 30 | 30 |
| Internal Services | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 |
| Total | 26 | 29 | 32 | 36 | 37 | 37 |
The Office is forecasting 32 FTEs for 2018–19, an increase of 3 employees from the previous year. The Office is also expecting to grow to 36 FTEs in 2019–20. The increase in FTEs can be explain by the rise in the number of general inquiries received through the online form which resulted in an increase of investigations.
Estimates by vote
Information on the Office’s organizational appropriations is available in the 2019–20 Main EstimatesFootnote 4.
Future-Oriented Condensed Statement of Operations
The Future-Oriented Condensed Statement of Operations provides a general overview of the Office’s operations. The forecast of financial information on expenses and revenues is prepared on an accrual accounting basis to strengthen accountability and to improve transparency and financial management. The forecast and planned spending amounts presented in other sections of the Departmental Plan are prepared on an expenditure basis; as a result, amounts may differ.
A more detailed Future-Oriented Statement of Operations and associated notes, including a reconciliation of the net cost of operations to the requested authorities, are available on the Office’s websiteFootnote 5.
Future-Oriented Condensed Statement of Operations for the year ending March 31, 2020 (dollars)
| Financial information | 2018–19 Forecast results | 2019–20 Planned results | Difference (2019–20 Planned results minus 2018–19 Forecast results) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total expenses | 5,350,808 | 6,326,881 | 976,073 |
| Total revenues | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Net cost of operations before government funding and transfers | 5,350,808 | 6,326,881 | 976,073 |
The difference of $976,073 between the 2019–20 planned results and the 2018–19 forecast results is directly in relation to the planned spending for acquisition of equipment associated with the Office relocation and upgrading the information management and information technology systems.
Additional information
Corporate information
Organizational profile
Appropriate minister(s): The Honourable Joyce Murray, President of the Treasury Board
Institutional head: Joe Friday, Public Sector Integrity Commissioner
Ministerial portfolio: Treasury Board Secretariat
Enabling instrument(s): Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act, S.C. 2005, c. 46
Year of incorporation / commencement: 2007
Other: The Office of the Public Sector Integrity Commissioner of Canada supports the Public Sector Integrity Commissioner, who is an independent Agent of Parliament.
Raison d’être, mandate and role: who we are and what we do
“Raison d’être, mandate and role: who we are and what we do” is available on the Office’s websiteFootnote 6.
Reporting framework
The Office’s Results Framework and Program Inventory of record for 2019–20 are shown below.
Concordance table
Text Version
- Departmental Results Framework
- Core Responsibility: Public sector disclosures of wrongdoing and complaints of reprisal
- Departmental Result: Public sector disclosures of wrongdoing and complaints of reprisal are dealt with in a timely and effective manner
- Indicator: Percentage of cases addressed within established service standards
- Indicator: Percentage of recommendations actioned by chief executives following investigation findings
- Indicator: Number of persons benefiting from legal advice requests to support their involvement in a disclosure of wrongdoing and/or a complaint of reprisal
- Departmental Result: Public servants and members of the public are aware of the Office and have access to information to make an informed decision about disclosures of wrongdoing and/or complaints of reprisal
- Indicator: Number of outreach events attended and communications products/items distributed through various means
- Indicator: Number of website visitors
- Departmental Result: Public sector disclosures of wrongdoing and complaints of reprisal are dealt with in a timely and effective manner
- Core Responsibility: Public sector disclosures of wrongdoing and complaints of reprisal
- Program Inventory
- Program: Disclosure and Reprisal Management
- Internal Services
Supporting information on the Program Inventory
Supporting information on planned expenditures, human resources, and results related to the Office’s Program Inventory is available in the GC InfoBaseFootnote 7.
Supplementary information tables
The following supplementary information tables are available on the Office’s websiteFootnote 8:
- Departmental Sustainable Development Strategy
- Disclosure of transfer payment programs under $5 million
Federal tax expenditures
The tax system can be used to achieve public policy objectives through the application of special measures such as low tax rates, exemptions, deductions, deferrals and credits. The Department of Finance Canada publishes cost estimates and projections for these measures each year in the Report on Federal Tax ExpendituresFootnote 9. This report also provides detailed background information on tax expenditures, including descriptions, objectives, historical information and references to related federal spending programs. The tax measures presented in this report are the responsibility of the Minister of Finance.
Organizational contact information
Office of the Public Sector Integrity Commissioner of Canada
60 Queen Street, 7th Floor
Ottawa, Ontario, K1P 5Y7
Canada
Telephone: 613-941-6400
Toll Free: 1-866-941-6400
Facsimile: 613-941-6535 (general inquiries)
http://www.psic-ispc.gc.ca
Appendix: definitions
appropriation (crédit)
Any authority of Parliament to pay money out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund.
budgetary expenditures (dépenses budgétaires)
Operating and capital expenditures; transfer payments to other levels of government, organizations or individuals; and payments to Crown corporations.
Core Responsibility (responsabilité essentielle)
An enduring function or role performed by a department. The intentions of the department with respect to a Core Responsibility are reflected in one or more related Departmental Results that the department seeks to contribute to or influence.
Departmental Plan (plan ministériel)
A report on the plans and expected performance of an appropriated department over a three‑year period. Departmental Plans are tabled in Parliament each spring.
Departmental Result (résultat ministériel)
Any change that the department seeks to influence. A Departmental Result is often outside departments’ immediate control, but it should be influenced by Program-level outcomes.
Departmental Result Indicator (indicateur de résultat ministériel)
A factor or variable that provides a valid and reliable means to measure or describe progress on a Departmental Result.
Departmental Results Framework (cadre ministériel des résultats)
The department’s Core Responsibilities, Departmental Results and Departmental Result Indicators.
Departmental Results Report (rapport sur les résultats ministériels)
A report on the actual accomplishments against the plans, priorities and expected results set out in the corresponding Departmental Plan.
evaluation (évaluation)
In the Government of Canada, the systematic and neutral collection and analysis of evidence to judge merit, worth or value. Evaluation informs decision making, improvements, innovation and accountability. Evaluations typically focus on programs, policies and priorities and examine questions related to relevance, effectiveness and efficiency. Depending on user needs, however,
evaluations can also examine other units, themes and issues, including alternatives to existing interventions. Evaluations generally employ social science research methods.
experimentation (expérimentation)
Activities that seek to explore, test and compare the effects and impacts of policies, interventions and approaches, to inform evidence-based decision-making, by learning what works and what does not.
full‑time equivalent (équivalent temps plein)
A measure of the extent to which an employee represents a full person‑year charge against a departmental budget. Full‑time equivalents are calculated as a ratio of assigned hours of work to scheduled hours of work. Scheduled hours of work are set out in collective agreements.
gender-based analysis plus (GBA+) (analyse comparative entre les sexes plus [ACS+])
An analytical process used to help identify the potential impacts of policies, Programs and services on diverse groups of women, men and gender-diverse people. The “plus” acknowledges that GBA goes beyond sex and gender differences. We all have multiple identity factors that intersect to make us who we are; GBA+ considers many other identity factors, such as race, ethnicity, religion, age, and mental or physical disability.
government-wide priorities (priorités pangouvernementales)
For the purpose of the 2019–20 Departmental Plan, government-wide priorities refers to those high-level themes outlining the government’s agenda in the 2015 Speech from the Throne, namely: Growth for the Middle Class; Open and Transparent Government; A Clean Environment and a Strong Economy; Diversity is Canada's Strength; and Security and Opportunity.
horizontal initiative (initiative horizontale)
An initiative where two or more departments are given funding to pursue a shared outcome, often linked to a government priority.
non‑budgetary expenditures (dépenses non budgétaires)
Net outlays and receipts related to loans, investments and advances, which change the composition of the financial assets of the Government of Canada.
performance (rendement)
What an organization did with its resources to achieve its results, how well those results compare to what the organization intended to achieve, and how well lessons learned have been identified.
performance indicator (indicateur de rendement)
A qualitative or quantitative means of measuring an output or outcome, with the intention of gauging the performance of an organization, Program, policy or initiative respecting expected results.
Performance Information Profile (profil de l’information sur le rendement)
The document that identifies the performance information for each Program from the Program Inventory.
performance reporting (production de rapports sur le rendement)
The process of communicating evidence‑based performance information. Performance reporting supports decision making, accountability and transparency.
plan (plan)
The articulation of strategic choices, which provides information on how an organization intends to achieve its priorities and associated results. Generally a plan will explain the logic behind the strategies chosen and tend to focus on actions that lead up to the expected result.
planned spending (dépenses prévues)
For Departmental Plans and Departmental Results Reports, planned spending refers to those amounts presented in the Main Estimates.
A department is expected to be aware of the authorities that it has sought and received. The determination of planned spending is a departmental responsibility, and departments must be able to defend the expenditure and accrual numbers presented in their Departmental Plans and Departmental Results Reports.
priority (priorité)
A plan or project that an organization has chosen to focus and report on during the planning period. Priorities represent the things that are most important or what must be done first to support the achievement of the desired Departmental Results.
Program (programme)
Individual or groups of services, activities or combinations thereof that are managed together within the department and focus on a specific set of outputs, outcomes or service levels.
Program Inventory (répertoire des programmes)
Identifies all of the department’s programs and describes how resources are organized to contribute to the department’s Core Responsibilities and Results.
result (résultat)
An external consequence attributed, in part, to an organization, policy, Program or initiative. Results are not within the control of a single organization, policy, Program or initiative; instead they are within the area of the organization’s influence.
statutory expenditures (dépenses législatives)
Expenditures that Parliament has approved through legislation other than appropriation acts. The legislation sets out the purpose of the expenditures and the terms and conditions under which they may be made.
sunset program (programme temporisé)
A time‑limited program that does not have an ongoing funding and policy authority. When the program is set to expire, a decision must be made whether to continue the program. In the case of a renewal, the decision specifies the scope, funding level and duration.
target (cible)
A measurable performance or success level that an organization, Program or initiative plans to achieve within a specified time period. Targets can be either quantitative or qualitative.
voted expenditures (dépenses votées)
Expenditures that Parliament approves annually through an Appropriation Act. The Vote wording becomes the governing conditions under which these expenditures may be made.