It's hard to apply for a job if you don't know about the vacancy..Blacklock's Reporter says a newly released audit showed fewer than half the job vacancies in one federal department are now advertised to the general public..The Department of Canadian Heritage confirmed only 46% of postings are made public, a practice criticized by the Public Service Commission as prone to nepotism..“The proportion of non-advertised staffing actions has been increasing,” said the audit..In 2015, only 25% of all job vacancies were filled by insiders without public notice. The rate is now 54%. No reason was given..“Attracting and retaining a diverse, engaged, and skilled workforce is a challenge that the department continues to face,” wrote auditors..“The challenge is amplified as a result of the impacts of the pandemic.”.“The Canadian labour force is in constant evolution and the Government of Canada continues to place significant importance on attracting and retaining a diverse and highly qualified workforce to advance programs and initiatives.".The Public Service Commission in a March 1 report complained cronyism and nepotism remained commonplace in federal hiring with a majority of employees surveyed, 53%, saying they “believe appointments depend on who you know.” Findings were based on questionnaires with 75,440 federal workers..“There are still areas for improvement,” Patrick Borbey, president of the Service Commission, said in a statement. .Nepotism is a firing offence in the public service. Findings of the 2021 Staffing And Non-Partisanship Survey found complaints of incompetence were also common..Asked if they agreed with the statement, “We hire people who can do the job,” 17% of all respondents disagreed. Asked if “the process of selecting a person for a position is done fairly,” 26% disagreed. Asked if “staffing activities are carried out in a transparent way,” 31% disagreed..Borbey said results showed some improvement from past years..“Progress has been made,” he said.
