Nearly half of Canadians think so, finds survey
The number of federal government workers in Canada has grown by a big percentage, and many Canadians are saying it’s time to see that number drop, according to a report.
Overall, nearly half of Canadians (47%) believe that the number of public sector workers should be reduced, reported the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF).
In comparison, 29% want the federal government to maintain the number of government employees at current levels. Only 7% want Ottawa to hire more federal public service workers.
Nearly one in five (17%) give the “I don’t know” response.
“The poll shows taxpayers know they’re paying for too many federal paper pushers and want Ottawa to shrink the bureaucracy,” said Franco Terrazzano, CTF federal director. “Canadians can’t afford to keep bankrolling a bloated federal bureaucracy.”
When those who don’t know are excluded, the percentage of Canadians who want to reduce the number of federal government workers increases to 56% and the comparable data for those who want the government to maintain the current number ups to 35%.
There is just a two-percentage point increase (9%) for those who want the government to hire more workers.
Since Prime Minister Justin Trudeau came to power in 2015, Ottawa added 108,793 new federal government employees – an increase of 42%, noted CTF.
For the second half of the year, more than half (52%) of Canadian employers plan to create new permanent positions, while 41% intend to fill vacated roles, according to a previous report from Robert Half.
Source: Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF)
