Public Service of Canada

The Public Service of Canada is the staff, or bureaucracy, of the federal government of Canada. Its function is to support the Canadian monarch, and to handle the hiring of employees for the federal government ministries. It is represented by the Governor General, and the appointed ministry. The public service functions through departments, agencies, commissions, crown corporations, and other federal organizations. Over 40% of the Public Service of Canada is located in the Ottawa-Hull area, although there are staff in over 180 countries and 1,600 locations across Canada. It is also the nation's largest single employer. The purpose of the Canadian public service is to enact the will of the government. It does this through providing advice, implementing the priorities of the government, supporting Ministers of the Crown, and delivering services that support Canadians. Hiring (or selection) of civil servants is typically done through a competitive process that is either external (open) process or an internal (closed) process. External competitions are typically done to recruit a greater number of applicants. Conversely, internal competitions may be held for positions where there is considered to be adequate internal candidates and/or to provide opportunities for advancement within the civil service.

The area of selection varies greatly for positions and may be as limited to a specific urban area (e.g., the Lower Mainland of British Columbia) or nation-wide (and in some cases global).

Since the 2003 enactment of the 2003 Public Service Modernization Act, competitions now focus less on a rules-based concept of best-qualified, and more on a values-based approach that supposedly allows managers to hire qualified and competent individuals more quickly. Civil servants in Canada are not contracted by an abstraction called "the state," but rather are employed by the Canadian monarch, who personifies the state and "enjoys a general capacity to contract in accordance with the rule of ordinary law." Hence, some civil servants, such as police officers, are required by law to recite the Oath of Allegiance before taking their posts. Bureaucratic civil servants swear a different oath relating to fulfillment of duty and confidentiality. Some organizations hiring are exempt from the Public Service Employment Act therefore hire independently:

* Atomic Energy of Canada Limited
* Bank of Canada
* Business Development Bank of Canada
* Canada-Newfoundland Offshore Petroleum Board
* Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Board
* Canada Council for the Arts
* Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation
* Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation
* Canada Post
* Canada Revenue Agency
* Canada Science and Technology Museum Corporation
* Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
* Canadian Commercial Corporation
* Canadian Dairy Commission
* Canadian Food Inspection Agency
* Canadian Forces Personnel Support Agency
* Canadian Forces
* Canadian Institutes of Health Research
* Canadian Museum of Civilization
* Canadian Museum of Nature
* Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission
* Canadian Polar Commission
* Canadian Security Intelligence Service
* Canadian Tourism Commission
* Canadian Wheat Board
* Communications Security Establishment
* Defence Construction Canada
* Export Development Canada
* Farm Credit Canada
* Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada
* House of Commons
* International Development Research Centre
* Library of Parliament
* National Arts Centre
* National Battlefields Commission
* National Capital Commission
* National Film Board
* National Gallery of Canada
* National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy
* Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada
* Northern Pipeline Agency Canada
* Office of the Auditor General of Canada
* Office of the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner of Canada
* Parks Canada
* Royal Canadian Mint
* Royal Canadian Mounted Police
* Security Intelligence Review Committee
* Senate
* Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada