Changes

The government of Canada has a long history of leveraging external resources to support innovation, surge capacity and specialized skills acquisition. Some believe that these tools may be overused, leading to terms like "[https://www.policyalternatives.ca/publications/reports/shadow-public-service Shadow Public Service]" made up of contractors, consultants, casual workers and students. However, there has also been a history of a group of public servants that are been busy moving around government to work on exciting projects and this number seems to be growing.   

The government of Canada has a long history of leveraging external resources to support innovation, surge capacity and specialized skills acquisition. Some believe that these tools may be overused, leading to terms like "[https://www.policyalternatives.ca/publications/reports/shadow-public-service Shadow Public Service]" made up of contractors, consultants, casual workers and students. However, there has also been a history of a group of public servants that are been busy moving around government to work on exciting projects and this number seems to be growing.   

The [https://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/pol/doc-eng.aspx?id=12552 Policy on Interchange Canada] lead to Interchange Canada, "an exchange program between the core public administration and other organizations in private, public and not-for-profit sectors in Canada and internationally. "Since 1971, Interchange Canada has been facilitating temporary assignments of individuals in and out of the Core Public Administration. Assignments take place with other sectors including private companies, non-profits, educational institutions, and international organizations, among others." (Personal Communications: [[gccollab:blog/view/3258098/engcmobility-update-iteration-15fr|Peter Wesolowski]]). The Policy on Interchange continues to be updated including in 2007 and 2012, demonstrating the government of Canada's continued interest in supporting mobility initiatives between the public service and other sectors.   

The [https://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/pol/doc-eng.aspx?id=12552 Policy on Interchange Canada] lead to the development of [https://www.canada.ca/en/treasury-board-secretariat/services/professional-development/interchange-canada.html Interchange Canada], "an exchange program between the core public administration and other organizations in private, public and not-for-profit sectors in Canada and internationally. "Since 1971, Interchange Canada has been facilitating temporary assignments of individuals in and out of the Core Public Administration. Assignments take place with other sectors including private companies, non-profits, educational institutions, and international organizations, among others." (Personal Communications: [[gccollab:blog/view/3258098/engcmobility-update-iteration-15fr|Peter Wesolowski]]). The Policy on Interchange continues to be updated including in 2007 and 2012, demonstrating the government of Canada's continued interest in supporting mobility initiatives between the public service and other sectors.   

A growing number of HR innovation programs such as Canada's Free Agents, PCO Fellowships, TBS Talent Cloud, Canadian Digital Service (CDS) and GCEntrepreneurs have been helping to formalize the structure, acceptance and utility of Gig workers within the Government. As the Gig economy starts to mature within a Government of Canada context, we have an opportunity to re-think what a public service might look like.

A growing number of HR innovation programs such as Canada's Free Agents, PCO Fellowships, TBS Talent Cloud, Canadian Digital Service (CDS) and GCEntrepreneurs have been helping to formalize the structure, acceptance and utility of Gig workers within the Government. As the Gig economy starts to mature within a Government of Canada context, we have an opportunity to re-think what a public service might look like.