We need federal public service workers’ expertise 

Over the weekend, the leader of the Parti Québécois (PQ), Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, alluded to laying off federal public service workers should Quebec declare independence. This statement raises important questions.  

Sébastien Paquette, Executive Vice President for the Public Service Alliance of Canada, Quebec Region (PSAC-Quebec), has released a response to these remarks:  

  • It would be catastrophic for an independent Quebec to give up the expertise of federal public service workers, whose work benefits Quebecers on a daily basis. 
  • Their expertise covers a wide range of areas, including:  
  • Employment Insurance; 
  • Old Age Security and Guaranteed Income Supplement; 
  • scientific research, including in agriculture and conducting the census; 
  • safety, including food inspection, transportation inspections, passports, border control, coast guard activities, and national defence  
  • The leader of the PQ says that, in the interest of savings, he would like to avoid “redundancy” in a sovereign Quebec. He must clarify what he means by “redundancy” as soon as possible.  
  • Mr. Plamondon may be referring to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA). Comparisons between the CRA and Revenue Québec (RQ) should be treated with caution. As Canada’s only international investigative authority able to secure our collections, the CRA has unique expertise. The CRA also oversees a number of programs, including:  
  • the Canada Child Benefit; 
  • the Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit; 
  • the Child Disability Benefit; 
  • the Canada Caregiver Credit. 
  • Federal public service workers should know as soon as possible whether their services will be required—not just before a possible referendum on Quebec sovereignty, but before the fall election that could put the PQ in power. 

The federal public service in Quebec 

In 2025, Quebec boasted almost 30,000 federal public service employees. The Ottawa-Gatineau region contains 130,000 federal public service workers. Excluding employees working in Ottawa, PSAC represents nearly 50,000 members in Quebec and Gatineau.  

About PSAC-Quebec 

PSAC-Quebec represents about 40,000 members in the federal public sector, at Quebec universities, and in the private sector.  

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