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Welcome to GC Remote Working
This new forum was created by experts at Shared Services Canada in an effort to help GC workers newly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic who find themselves working remotely.
This is an unprecedented situation; and one which is continually evolving. Remote workers need easy access to the latest information on the available tools and solutions as well as tips, best practices and updates.
Our aim with GC Remote Working is to gather the relevant remote working information in one place. We are only getting started. Our content is based on available information from all corners of the Government of Canada.
We plan to dive into topics such as security, information and document management, making “smart” use of your smart phone, using alternative tools and an introduction to Microsoft Office 365 and Teams.
Bookmark this page and check back often for more content as the situation evolves.
If you have tips and trick you would like to share, please send us an e-mail.
Spotlight: Support for Students During Remote Working
Due to the current Covid-related remote working environment, hiring and onboarding students is looking different this year. The Canada School of Public Service (CSPS) has supports in place to help both students and their managers and supervisors.
There are learning paths for students and their managers and supervisors available through the CSPS learning portal. You need to register with the Canada School of Public Service to start learning.
Help for Students Working Remotely
There is training available to help students with the basic knowledge they need and a variety of tools to support your virtual work environment.
The CSPS also created training specifically to integrate students into the public service during COVID-19, covering topics like virtual workplace, security and information management, public service values and wellness in the workplace. Learning path for students
To start, there are three fundamental courses which deal with Values and Ethics Foundations for Employees , who we work for Who We Work For and background on the Phoenix Self Service for Employees . Then, students are encouraged to explore a variety of courses and training on these important topics:
- Virtual workplace: to help new students with teleworking during the COVID-19 pandemic, the school offers training to support you in your virtual workplace including a toolkit, tips and checklists for remote working and links to podcasts and blogs.
- Security and information management: public servants are responsible for physical and material security, the safe use of technology, and the proper management of information. Online courses cover topics like security awareness, the Canada Labour Code, and Access to Information and Privacy.
- Public service values: To better service Canadians, public servants must integrate the values of respect and inclusion into their work and understand their rights and responsibilities related to official languages. The CSPS courses help students participate in a healthy, respectful and inclusive workplace where differences, diversity and mental health issues are addressed with respect and compassion.
- Wellness in the workplace: It is important to be physically and mentally well at work, to there are mental health learning tools and a video to help you take care of yourself and others.
Support for Remote Working Supervisors of Students
For managers and supervisors of students working in a virtual environment during COVID-19 pandemic, the CSPS put together a learning path to help coach and guide students working virtually. This includes resources to support you in welcoming, integrating and supervising students in a virtual work environment. They are designed for both new and experienced public service managers and supervisors.
The leaning path also includes resources for:
Managing virtual teams: Building a strong team can be complex in the case of a virtual team and CSPS provides best practices in remote management and teach managers how to build and work with effective teams. There are two courses to help; Establishing Effective Virtual Teams and Building and Leading Successful Teams and a webcast Best Practices for Virtual Teams.
COVID-19 and mental health in the workplace: COVID-19 crisis is having a profound effect on Canadians across the country, including federal public servants. Managers/supervisors must make sure employees are feeling well and to help them, the CSPS created a series of job aids on mental health designed to assist managers in managing psychosocial risk in the workplace and creating a psychologically healthy work environment. The Mental Health Job Aids for Managers cover each of the 13 psychosocial risk factors defined by the National Standard of Canada for Psychological Health and Safety in the Workplace including topics like organizational culture, growth and development, engagement, workload management and balance.
Communication and collaboration: A high-performing team, virtual or not, is characterized by good communication, effective collaboration and a high level of trust, even when all team members work remotely. This CSPS course, Communication and Collaboration, addresses these important aspects of managing your team.
Onboarding new employees: Managers are key to successful employee integration which can improve staff acclimatization and productivity and significantly reduces employee turnover. There is an online course Ensuring Onboarding Success that provides information on your unique role and highlights the benefits to you of successfully integrating new hires.
The School continues to create learning opportunities and tools to support for students and managers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Explore the School’s Learning catalogue from time to time to stay up to date on these new products.
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Community of Practice
We joined in on the May 21st M365 Community of Practice meeting. We invited our friends leading the GC Flex initiative to present on team charters and trusted communications as it relates to remote working. Check out the recording here. Please note that you require a gccollab account for access.