Public Works Canada is under fire for its treatment of 37 contractors hired to provide bilingual translation services for Parliament, with the Procurement Ombudsman describing the department’s actions as unprofessional and chaotic.
“The administration of 37 contracts was not conducted in a reasonable manner under the circumstances,” wrote Ombudsman Alexander Jeglic in his report.
Blacklock's Reporter says the contractors, engaged to translate Commons and Senate proceedings, were subjected to last-minute revisions to their contracts, including pay deductions for standard disruptions like temporary hearing suspensions.
“The department’s actions and communications with suppliers regarding the revised amendment were constantly changing and caused confusion,” Jeglic added.
The contracts, valued between $11,300 and $452,000, left translators frustrated and skeptical of the department’s motives.
“The Department of Public Works pulled a bait and switch,” one translator complained, while another described being “gaslit” by misleading emails.
One contractor told the ombudsman, “I am absolutely not prepared to show up for work with a stopwatch.”
Jeglic noted the department imposed the new terms with minimal notice, warning translators to sign the amendments or risk losing their contracts, which were set to expire on June 30.
“Several suppliers informed the department they disagreed with the changes and refused to sign,” Jeglic wrote, with one questioning the legality of the amendments.
The ombudsman criticized Public Works for fostering confusion and urgency without giving contractors adequate time to evaluate the changes.
“It unnecessarily inflicted a sense of urgency upon the suppliers,” Jeglic concluded.
In previous testimony to the Senate national finance committee, Jeglic called federal contracting “a broken system” that ranked “near the bottom tier” among G7 countries.
“The federal procurement system requires urgent reform,” he said.
Public Works Minister Jean-Yves Duclos, however, offered a starkly different view in December testimony to the Commons government operations committee.
“We are doing really, really good compared to most other countries in the world,” he said.
Conservative MP Kelly Block challenged Duclos on his remarks, quoting Jeglic’s assessment that the system is “kind of near the bottom tier” and “broken.” The minister declined to comment further.