Worth Noting - Ideas You Can Use!

As departments gear up for the implementation of the new PSEA, many are thinking about how they can do staffing better. If you're looking for good ideas, you may want to start with some of these.

Have a transition plan. Departments can develop their own Human Resources Modernization Transition plans. A transition plan establishes a governance model and specifically addresses staffing and human resources planning. It can also address collaboration between unions and management, classification, labour relations and learning.

Know the risks! Some organizations choose to establish a Staffing Monitoring Program. This program encompasses a review of all facets of staffing based on a risk assessment that identifies areas of low, medium or high risk for the organization.

Sometimes, the simplest solution is the best. Your department or agency may wish to invest in regularizing its workforce. We know of at least one department that, proportional to the rest of the Public Service, hires more indeterminate employees than temporary ones. The department's term hiring has decreased substantially and the majority of its term appointments are made competitively.

Communication is the key. Using a personalized electronic journal to allow employees to ask questions about staffing is one creative way to encourage open communication. Answers can then be published on-line for all employees to see.

For more ideas on how to simplify and improve staffing in your department, consult the PSC's Annual Report for 2004-2005, due out this fall.