This past week, USJE’s Health and Safety Advisory Committee met in Ottawa for its regularly scheduled In-Person meeting to discuss progress on USJE’s efforts to implement key changes to the federal Government Employees Act.
These changes were identified by USJE’s Health and Safety Advisory Committee this past June as being crucial to protecting the mental health of federal public safety personnel that USJE represents. If implemented, these changes would close a gap in this legislation which leaves behind thousands of federal public safety personnel who suffer from psychological injuries owing to their efforts to keep Canadians safe from coast to coast to coast.
As part of the discussion, USJE President David Neufeld was joined by representatives from the Committee to meet newly appointed federal Public Safety Minister, the Hon. Dominic LeBlanc, in his Parliament Hill Office to discuss USJE’s proposed changes to the legislation.
Subsequent to this meeting, several members of the Health and Safety Advisory Committee attended the annual Equal Voice Foundation gala where National President David Neufeld had the opportunity to quickly chat with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and other Members of Parliament on why investing in the mental health of federal public safety personnel makes sense.
This past week was USJE’s first opportunity to have a sit down meeting with Minister LeBlanc since the cabinet shuffle. During the meeting, USJE highlighted the imperative for the federal Government to pursue these changes as quickly as possible. Minister LeBlanc indicated his strong interest in considering amending the Government Employees Compensation Act, and signalled that he would be consulting the Ministry and his colleagues to better understand options and implications at this stage.
Minister LeBlanc brings considerable insight into the role that federal public safety personnel represented by USJE play within the RCMP and the federal Correctional Service. The proposed changes to the federal legislation would ensure more federal public safety personnel have access to Worker’s Compensation benefit to support their recovery from mental health injuries and return to work.
Investing in the Mental Health of Federal Public Safety Personnel makes Good Financial Sense and Strengthens Canada’s Public Safety Network
In turn, better access to Worker’s Compensation by federal public safety personnel would help to significantly reduce the financial pressures on the federal government’s long term disability program which cost $421.8 million in 2022, compared to $380.8 million in 2021. By contrast, the provision of Worker’s Compensation to federal public servants is estimated to be approximately $100 million annually.
Further, by supporting federal public safety personnel earlier in their recovery from mental health injuries, the Government of Canada is reducing the risk of forfeiting the cumulative experience and expertise of seasoned federal public safety personnel who, with the right support, who can continue to make meaningful contributions to keeping Canadians safe from coast to coast to coast.
USJE’s membership is largely comprised of federal public safety personnel who are regularly exposed to traumatic incidents, materials, victims and criminalized persons, but are unfortunately regularly denied Worker’s Compensation by provincial/territorial boards for their injuries.
A Private Member’s Bill (Bill C-357) in support of USJE’s proposed changes to GECA was introduced this past September by Member of Parliament Peter Julian. The key changes to GECA proposed in Bill C-357 would ensure that federal public safety personnel have access to the compensation and support they deserve.
USJE is seeking all party support for the proposed changes to GECA as quickly as possible so that the thousands of federal public safety personnel who keep Canadians safe every day are no longer left behind to suffer in silence when they develop a mental health stress injury owing to their work.
In addition to meetings with Minister LeBlanc, USJE is also in conversation with senior representatives from the federal Ministries of Mental Health and the Treasury Board.