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Section II:  Analysis of Program Activities by Strategic Outcome

The 2007-2008 Report on Plans and Priorities has one strategic outcome:

The RCMP External Review Committee aims to positively influence the manner in which labour relations issues are addressed within the RCMP

To meet this strategic outcome, the Committee has identified two program activities:

  1. Independent, timely, fair and impartial case review leading to the provision of quality findings and recommendations in all cases referred to the Committee.
  2. Dissemination of information on the role of the Committee and its findings and recommendations, as well as on relevant legal principles.

Program Activity 1: Independent, timely, fair and impartial case review leading to the provision of quality findings and recommendations in all cases referred to the Committee


Financial Resources ($thousands)
Planned Spending* Authorities Actual Spending
905 1,285 1,016

* This breakdown of resources had not been adjusted to reflect the Committee's 80% (program activity 1) and 20% (program activity 2) division for each program activity.


Human Resources (FTEs)
Planned Actual Difference
7 8 1

The Committee continues to spend approximately 80% of its time and resources on case review. Committee Chair and staff wages (not including contributions to employee benefit plans) amounted to $548,794 this year and operating expenses to $300,852.

Background

With regard to its first program activity, the statutory mandate of the Committee is to conduct an impartial review of cases. The Level II grievances, and disciplinary and discharge and demotion appeals, involve disputes that were not resolved through the initial stages of dispute resolution. Therefore, the issues often involve complex, challenging and sensitive problems that require in-depth analysis.

Case review and the issuance of findings and recommendations remains the Committee's central mandate. The Committee has a backlog of cases, defined as a case that has been at the Committee for more than one year.  In addition, the Committee continues to receive increasingly more complex and sensitive cases.

i)  Referrals

The Committee cannot predict the number of cases that will be referred to it in any given year. The following table illustrates the number of cases referred to the Committee in this fiscal year, in comparison to previous years.

Number of cases received.

There were more cases referred to the Committee in this fiscal year than in the prior fiscal year.  A total of 38 grievances were referred to the Committee, compared to 30 in the previous year. Three disciplinary appeals were referred to the Committee and no discharge and demotion appeals were referred to the Committee this year.

ii)  Cases Completed

The number of cases completed by the Committee varies depending on the complexity and number of issues raised. For grievances, the objective of the Committee is to issue its recommendation within three months of the case being referred to it. For discipline and discharge and demotion cases, the standard that the Committee strives for is six months.

There is a waiting period before cases are reviewed and largely due to this, these service standards are not met. The Committee continues to strive to meet these standards given the importance of timeliness in the recommendations issued and it sought, and was granted, short term additional resources to do so. Putting the resources in place, and retaining the personnel, has proven difficult.  The Committee continues to pursue the indeterminate funding levels that would assist it in meeting its mandate.

There was a decrease in the number of cases completed in 2007-08. The Committee reviewed a total of 31 cases this year.  This reduction was due in part to the review of two very lengthy and complex files, one a harassment complaint and one a discharge and demotion appeal, and in part to the increased time that the Chair and operational staff are required to devote to corporate and strategic matters.

In the area of grievances, 26 grievance files were completed.  The Committee completed 4 disciplinary appeals files.  One finding and recommendation in the area of discharge and demotion was issued. The following table illustrates the number of cases completed this fiscal year, in comparison to previous years:

Number of cases completed

The subject matter of this year's completed grievance files fell into the following general categories:

Grievances

iii)  Disciplinary Appeal and Discharge and Demotion Cases

This year, the Committee completed four disciplinary appeal files. One was initiated by a member and three involved an appeal by Commanding Officers ("CO").  One of the CO appeals also involved a cross-appeal by a member.  One appeal dealt with a sanction consisting of an order to resign within 14 days, failing which the member would be dismissed.

iv)  Discharge and Demotion Cases

The Committee issued findings and recommendations in one discharge and demotion case in 2007-08, only the fifth in its history.

v)  Conclusion

In conclusion, a total of 41 cases were referred to the Committee this year, and 31 cases were completed.  At year end, 69 active cases remained before the Committee, including 58 grievances, 11 discipline appeals and no discharge and demotion appeals.  The table below shows the flow of cases and general status of cases before the Committee at the beginning and at the end of this fiscal year.


The Committee's Workload Overview
  Grievances Discipline Discharge/
Demotion
Total
Cases remaining at the end of fiscal year 2006-07 46 12 1 59
Cases referred in 2007-08 38 3 0 41
Cases reviewed in 2007-08 26 4 1 31
Cases remaining at the end of fiscal year 2007-08 58 11 0 69

Expected Result

The expected result for Program Activity 1 is expressed in the activity itself:  All recipients of the Committee's reports of findings and recommendations and the summaries of such reports are better informed because of the independent recommendations received from the Committee, and use this knowledge in making decisions in labour relations matters.

Analysis of Performance

The Committee issued a substantial number of findings and recommendations in 2007-2008. However, progress in the area of case review and backlog reduction has not reached the levels hoped for by the Committee. The Committee has identified several deterrents to progress in this area, including the expanded corporate reporting requirements and commensurate lack of resources in this area, as well as the difficulties the Committee experienced attempting to maximize the benefits from temporary funding.  These are discussed in more detail in the "Lessons Learned" section below.  The Committee has continued its efforts to secure long-term funding to address the deterrents to progress in the area of case review delay.

The Committee continued to implement its backlog reduction strategy by applying Management Reserve funding to fill three temporary positions. The Committee has expanded its pre-screening process and early indications are that this initiative will contribute to the efficiency of the Committee.  The LA-01 position has been dedicated to pre-screening cases before they are subject to fuller analyses.  The position reviews files when they are initially referred to the Committee, to identify files which might be dealt with more expeditiously, or to identify those for which further documentation needs to be obtained.  The initial screening also identifies legal issues and Committee precedents that have dealt with the matter.  This front-end work alleviates the workload on the LA-2(1) FTEs when they undertake a fuller analysis of the file.  It also provides a developmental position and contributes to the Committee's succession planning. The staffing of the additional LA-02(1) has definitely contributed to the operational capacity of the Committee to issue thorough analyses to the Committee Chair, and therefore assist the Chair in issuing findings and recommendations.

The Committee maintained its research files and research tools, and encouraged ongoing training of staff to ensure currency with evolving legal and labour relations issues. Each employee attended training pertaining to present demands, and in some cases, career development.

The Committee continued to build on its commitment to maintain an optimum environment for Committee staff, thereby ensuring an experienced, qualified complement to address the challenges of file review.

In 2007-2008, the Committee fully staffed its indeterminate positions.  It held regular staff meetings and continued its tradition of consulting with all staff on policy development and policy change.

The Committee has developed new policies to optimize the work environment, including a policy on telework and a revision to its conflict resolution policy.  The Committee has continued to monitor its policies on human resources to ensure that they maximize the benefits to its staff.  The Committee also undertook a pilot review of the use of an external confidential access point service, in combination with its already established conflict resolution mechanisms.

The Committee has continued to evaluate its operations to ensure new challenges are foreseen and planned for and to ensure previously identified weaknesses are addressed.

A plan of action was developed for the Committee's twentieth anniversary, which will fall in the 2008-2009 fiscal year. This plan includes outreach activities and a twentieth anniversary publication.  

The Committee addressed the major issues raised in the MAF assessment, including InfoSource, access to information and developing a multi-year evaluation plan.  As a result of the Force-wide evaluation arising from the Brown Task Force and Public Accounts Committee reports, implementation of the evaluation plan has been postponed.

The Committee has continued its efforts to develop a more robust infrastructure to address corporate requirements and integrate these in its operational framework in order to minimize the extent to which operational resources are being diverted to corporate initiatives and to allow operational staff to focus on case review.

In 2007-2008, the Committee, using temporary funding,  filled a position in the administrative support area.  Due to issues surrounding classification, the Committee has been unable to fill the other position funding via the Management Reserve (an FI-03), but it has worked with its HR service provider to develop a solution to this issue. The temporary funding has allowed the Committee to dedicate some of the funds toward changes, including improvements to its registry file office; additional corporate support through consultants; and broader accommodation planning.

The Committee actively participated in the current Service Delivery Model development project, a Treasury Board funded initiative to develop a shared services model for human resources support for small agencies.

Ongoing efforts continued to be made by the Committee to work with Treasury Board Secretariat and Ministry of Public Safety to seek stable and longer term funding to address its resource shortfall in the corporate support and administrative areas.

Program Activity 2:  Dissemination of information on the role of the Committee and its findings and recommendations, as well as on relevant legal principles


Financial Resources ($thousands)
Planned Spending* Authorities* Actual Spending*
287 321 198

* This breakdown of resources had not been adjusted to reflect the Committee's 80% (program activity 1) and 20% (program activity 2) division for each program activity.


Human Resources (FTEs)
Planned Actual Difference
2 2 0

The Committee estimates that it spends 20% of its time and resources on tasks related to our second program activity. Committee Chair and staff wages (not including contributions to employee benefit plans) amounted to $137,198 for the year and operating expenses of $75,213.

Expected Result

The expected result for Program Activity 2 is:  RCMP users of the Committee's communication tools are more informed when participating in the RCMP labour relations procedures and more aware of applicable law, regulations and policies.  Non-RCMP users of the Committee's communication tools increase their understanding of the RCMP internal management process in particular, and relevant legal principles in general.

Analysis of Performance

The Committee considers its communication role with stakeholders essential in ensuring that its mandate is effectively met. The Committee utilizes a number of tools for outreach, including its Web site (www.erc-cee.gc.ca), its quarterly publication Communiqué, requests for information, and ongoing training, meetings, and capacity building. A review of each area of outreach activity follows. The data provided is based upon the Committee's internal tracking of its outreach activities.

The Committee's efforts in 2007-2008 were focussed on solidifying outreach and raising awareness of the Committee's Work . This ensures that there is  knowledge of the Committee' s work. It also contributes to greater transparency of its work and contributes to openness and understanding in the realm of employment relations decisions, and policies and practices as they pertain to the RCMP.

In 2007-2008, all findings and recommendations, and the Commissioner's subsequent decisions, were summarized and put on its Web site (www.erc-cee.gc.ca) as soon as possible in both official languages.  Training materials that have been used in prior training sessions are also included on the Web site.  Key reports, including its annual reports and government reports (RPPs, DPRs), as well as other materials, are also posted on its Web site.

The Committee published the Communiqué four times in the 2007-2008 fiscal year. In the Communiqué, the Committee has also offered articles on areas of interest, such as "What Makes a Good Grievance", the Committee's presentation to the Brown Task Force and its outreach efforts .

The Committee met with a variety of stakeholders in this fiscal year:

  • the Chair of the Committee spoke at the RCMP Pacific Region, Staff Relations Representative (SRR), Sub-Representative conference;
  • the Chair of the Committee and the Committee's Executive Director appeared before the Brown Task Force;
  • the Chair of the Committee appeared before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Public Accounts in relation to their study of the Auditor General's November 2006 Audit of Pension and Insurance Administration in the RCMP;
  • the Chair and Committee staff attended the annual meeting of the newly elected RCMP SRRs;
  • Committee staff visited the RCMP Atlantic Regional Office for the Coordination of Grievances (OCG);
  • the Chair and Committee staff spoke to the RCMP Level I Adjudicators; and,
  • staff participated in three RCMP detachment visits, including two ride-along opportunities.

The Committee responded to 96 requests for information and while some of these are straightforward, others involve more complex legal issues. The Committee responded within an average of 4 days and in some cases has provided additional information in more detailed responses within a longer time frame.

The Committee developed a formal Twentieth Anniversary Plan for the 2008-2009 fiscal year and this included a component on outreach. The Committee also developed a multi-year evaluation plan, which incorporates outreach.  As noted, due to the Force-wide evaluation currently underway, implementation of the evaluation plan has been placed on hold.

Lessons Learned

The Need to Participate in the RCMP Review Processes

One of the most significant aspects of 2007-2008 has been the need for the Committee to dedicate resources to the issue of governance and cultural change within the RCMP.  As a significant part of the labour relations regime of the RCMP, the Committee has contributed by appearing before the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee and preparing submissions for, and appearing before, the Brown Task Force.  In addition, the Committee has carefully reviewed the resulting reports and provided comments and feedback in this regard to numerous stakeholders.  While the Committee has been pleased to be engaged in these processes, and feels its unique perspective has enhanced the discussions, the drain on resources has been significant.  As a micro-agency with only six indeterminate FTEs, the Committee has dedicated a substantial amount of its time and energy, particularly at the most senior levels, to these important strategic issues.

From this, the Committee has concluded that capacity for strategic operations is crucial, even in very small agencies, but it is often overlooked in resource distribution.  In 2007-2008, the Committee temporarily realigned its staff to ensure that there was support for these strategic operations, on the basis of the immediate need, but at the expense of case review.

The Challenges of Temporary Funding for Micro-Agencies

In 2007-2008, the Committee received temporary funding from the Management Reserve, including two years of corporate support funding.  Starting in 2006, it received operational funding for five-years, receivable on a declining basis beginning in 2008-2009.  Unfortunately, a variety of issues prevented the Committee from profiting from these funds to the extent anticipated.

The Committee experienced classification delays with the HR Service Provider in being able to classify the temporary positions, and in fact, one position remains unclassified.

The fact that the funds provided were not indeterminate, but simply fixed term, resulted in staffing choices being restricted and the Committee was not successful in fully filling the positions through secondments and interchange.  It was not until the Fall 2007 that all the FTE (both existing in the A base and from 2006 Management Reserve funding) were fully staffed at the Committee.  Within a few months, two of the temporary positions were again vacant, in large part due to the fact that they could not be filled on an indeterminate basis.

Having positions vacant for periods of time meant that less case work was being done. The significant periods of time required to have the positions classified and staffed reduced the Committee's ability to realize all of the gains that were expected from the Management Reserve funding.  Further, every new selection process required the attention of the Executive Director/Senior Counsel and other Committee personnel, thereby taking time that would have otherwise been devoted to casework.  Attention required does not end with a completed staffing process.  Attention must then be devoted by the Executive Director/Senior Counsel to developing new employees' capacity, an important and worthwhile task, but which necessarily detracts from casework.

The Lack of Corporate Support Resources

Significant changes to management accountability and reporting has increased the resources that the Committee is required to allocate to corporate functions.  The Committee is subject to the same accountability and reporting requirements as large departments.  Corporate pressures on the Committee have not abated, and all staff routinely assists the Committee in meeting its responsibilities.

As the Committee has little corporate capacity, it has been necessary to divert staff persons from case review to address these mandatory governance initiatives.  Further, these corporate requirements engage both the Chair and the Executive Director/Senior Counsel a significant amount of the time, thereby further eroding operational capacity.  The limited duration temporary funding, while of assistance, does not address the need for a permanent, stable corporate support section.