Why conduct a second survey?
Who administers the survey and what about confidentiality?
What sources were used to design the survey and how were the
questions chosen?
Why did this survey not allow free form or open-ended responses?
When was the survey conducted?
Who participated in the survey?
How many people participated in the survey?
When will the Public Service-wide results be released?
Why is a paper copy of the PS-wide report made available to all
employees?
Are the survey results available in alternative formats such as
Braille?
How will departments/agencies obtain their results?
What will the CD Roms contain?
What about regional breakdowns?
What about other demographic breakdowns such as gender?
I requested results from the survey web site and got the message
"Insufficient Data" instead of the results from my
organizational unit. What does this mean?
I've downloaded the results from the web site, but I can't
read the results. Can I get the results in another format such as
WordPerfect or Word?
I want more detailed reports (specific requirements) than the
public service-wide or departmental breakdown. How can I get them?
How can I get a copy of the raw data as opposed to percentage?
Why did Statistics Canada not release the raw data as opposed to
percentages?
What types of analysis did the Treasury Board Secretariat carry
out on the survey results?
Will departments/agencies' results be compared to one another?
What tools are available to help managers analyze the survey
results?
What about follow-up?
What's in it for me as an employee?
Who may I contact for information about what is going on in my own
department/ agency with respect to the survey and actions to be taken
in light of the results?
How may I obtain additional information on the survey?
Can members of the public have access to the survey results?
I did not fill out the survey. Can I fill it out now?
When will the survey be repeated?
Background
Why conduct a second survey?
- The survey is a tool to obtain employee opinion on such issues
as service delivery, organizational effectiveness, well-being and
overall climate across the Public Service. The 2002 Survey engages
employees in helping identify ways to improve the workplace and
service to Canadians.
- The 2002 Survey will also help us measure progress since 1999
when we delivered our first Public Service Employee Survey.
- The 2002 Survey confirms leadership commitment to transparency
and action. As far as we know, we remain the only federal
jurisdiction in the world that conducts a survey of all employees.
Who administers the survey and what about confidentiality?
Statistics Canada, a world-leader in data collection
and processing, administers the survey on behalf of the Treasury Board
of Canada Secretariat. In accordance with the Statistics Act,
Statistics Canada guarantees individual respondents will not be
identified in any way.
What sources were used to design the survey and how were the
questions chosen?
- In addition to receiving advice from departments, agencies and
outside experts, a variety of reference materials from across the
world, were researched in support of designing the 1999 Survey: Investors
in People (U.K.); Field Research (international);
National Quality Institute Standards (Canada); and
the Human Resource Management Framework (Treasury Board of
Canada Secretariat). Developing the first
survey was a very rigorous exercise. We have built on this work for
the 2002 Survey.
- The questions for this survey were chosen based on their
usefulness to employees, managers and bargaining agents in helping
to identify issues and provide concrete solutions to improve the
workplace and service to Canadians. The questionnaire was
developed by an Interdepartmental/Union Survey Working Group
composed of representatives from small, medium and large
departments and agencies, including a representative from the
Small Agencies Group, Statistics Canada, central agencies,
bargaining agents and external advisors. Statistics Canada
tested the questionnaire by way of employee focus groups in Halifax,
Montréal, Ottawa and Edmonton.
Why did this survey not allow free form or open-ended responses?
There was no feasible way to capture or effectively
analyse free form or open-ended responses. For smaller surveys this
may be feasible. But, for a survey of over 95,000 respondents, it
would be too difficult to tabulate open-ended questions. Open frank
dialogue between managers, employees and union representatives will
allow us to obtain additional feedback.
Participation
When was the survey conducted?
The survey period was from May 22nd to June
21st. The target date for dissemination of the
questionnaire to all employees was May 22nd. The
questionnaire was provided to employees in a "paper copy
format" only. Once completed, questionnaires were returned
directly to Statistics Canada.
Statistics Canada accepted completed questionnaires
for several weeks following the established survey period. The true
closing date for acceptance of questionnaires was August 7th.
This still allowed Statistics Canada adequate time to compile the data
from the questionnaires in preparation for a late 2002 publication.
Who participated in the survey?
The survey questionnaire was distributed to all
employees in departments and agencies listed under Schedule I, Part I
of the Public Service Staff Relations Act
(PSSRA I-I) for which
Treasury Board represents the Employer. Employees meeting the
following status were eligible to participate in the 2002 Survey:
Indeterminate employees (permanent)
Seasonal employees
Employees on assignment
Term employees
Casual employees
How many people participated in the survey?
Over 165,000 questionnaires were distributed to
employees in Canada and abroad. More than 95,000 employees
responded. The response rate is up from 54.6% (in 1999) to 57.8%. This
provides a solid basis for analysis and comparison to the 1999 Survey.
Release of the Results
When will the Public Service-wide results be released?
December 2: The
Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat (TBS) will disseminate Public
Service-wide results and a summary report via the survey
web
site survey-sondage.
In addition, a paper copy of the PS-wide report will be sent to all
employees during the period from December 2nd to December
20th.
December 9: All departments and agencies will
release their departmental and organizational unit results to their
employees via departmental intranet or print format. It is at the
department/agency discretion to determine the format of the release.
Departments/Agencies are also encouraged to produce a summary report
for their employees. The Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat will
post departmental results on the survey web sites on December 9th
survey-sondage.
Why is a paper copy of the PS-wide report made available to all
employees?
- Not every employee has access to a computer, therefore, would
not be able to study the survey results.
- It is important for all employees to see the results of the
survey. Managers and supervisors are requested to convene their
teams to discuss the results. Ensuring that every employee has a
copy of the findings will assist in the process.
Are the survey results available in alternative formats such as
Braille?
The public service-wide results will be available in
Braille, audiocassette, large print and diskette. For alternative
formats of your departmental results, please contact your departmental
Employment Equity Co-ordinator to obtain the format you need. If an
employee does not know who their Employment Equity Co-ordinator is,
they can contact Noreen LeBlanc at (613) 952-3204 or Sylvie Lance
Roussel at (613) 946-9310.
How will departments/agencies obtain their results?
Survey Champions will be invited to a meeting to sign
for their
CD-Roms on an embargoed basis.
What will the CD Roms contain?
Survey Champions will be debriefed on PS-wide Results
at a meeting scheduled for November 27th. They will also be
provided with
CD-Roms on an embargoed basis.
CD 1 - Survey Data CD-Rom (Statistics Canada)
- 3 copies of CD package per department/agency
- Beyond 20/20 Browser Software
- Tutorial in using Beyond 20/20
- Analysis Frameworks (Grouping of questions)
- Survey Documents
- Survey Data in Beyond 20/20 format and dbf format
Public Service-wide Results (2002 & 1999)
- Results for all questions (2002 & 1999)
- Results for demographic variables
Departmental Results
- Results for all questions for their own respective
department/agency (2002 & 1999)
- Results for each demographic variable
- Unit Results (2002 only) - (no demographic data
available)
CD 2 - HTML Tables (Treasury Board of Canada
Secretariat)
- 1 copy of CD package per department/agency
- Survey data in HTML format for intranet sites (same data as
above)
*** It is important to note that 1999 data will be
made available only for questions that were repeated in the 2002
Survey. For copies of the 1999 Survey results in full, please contact
Thérèse Lacroix at (613) 957-2300 or by e-mail at lacroix.therese@tbs-sct.gc.ca.
What about regional breakdowns?
The survey web sites will give breakdowns by region
(i.e.: Prairies, Atlantic) for each question at the PS-wide and
departmental levels only, not at the organizational unit level.
What about other demographic breakdowns such as gender?
The results for each question at the public
service-wide level and departmental level can be further broken down
by demographic variable, except for provincial breakdown, which is
available at the public service-wide level only.
I requested results from the survey web site and got the message
"Insufficient Data" instead of the results from my
organizational unit. What does this mean?
You may be requesting results from an organizational
unit from which fewer than ten members responded to that question on
the survey. To assure anonymity of respondents, there was a
requirement that there be a minimum of ten (10) respondents in any
organizational unit before results would be published for that unit.
Therefore, if there is a message "Insufficient
Data," it indicates one of the following circumstances:
- The unit or organization consists of fewer than ten members
- The unit or organization consists of more than ten
members, but fewer than ten people responded to the survey.
I've downloaded the results from the web site, but I can't
read the results. Can I get the results in another format such as
WordPerfect or Word?
No. Results downloaded from the web sites are in HTML
format. You should try to print them on your printer. The HTML reports
print best in landscape mode from Netscape Navigator. Microsoft
Explorer occasionally drops a line per page break. You could also
import or cut and paste the HTML report into a word processing package
before printing.
I want more detailed reports (specific requirements) than the
public service-wide or departmental breakdown. How can I get them?
For special tabulations not provided in the standard
product, requests must be sent directly to Statistics Canada (Martin
Gravel at (613) 951-0150). The time frame for producing such analysis
will depend on the complexity of the requirement and the number of
requests Statistics Canada receives. The cost will depend on the
number of tables requested. The costs for special tables will be the
same as in 1999, i.e. a $250 set-up cost per request and a $50 fee for
each variable. Requests will be answered on a first-come first-served
basis.
How can I get a copy of the raw data as opposed to percentage?
Raw data will not be available at the departmental
level. Raw data at the Public Service level will be available in the
spring of 2003.
Why did Statistics Canada not release the raw data as opposed to
percentages?
Confidentiality concerns and time restraints. In order
to ensure the confidentiality of the identity of all respondents, all
factors that might identify a particular respondent must be taken out
of the results by Statistics Canada staff. This process will be
completed by end of March 2003.
Analysis
What types of analysis did the Treasury Board Secretariat carry
out on the survey results?
Treasury Board Secretariat undertook an analysis of
the public service-wide results taking into account noteworthy
practices in current research on successful organizations known to
place a premium on good people management. TBS also used the Human
Resources Management Framework, Workplace Well-being Indicators
and a variety of theme headings as tools for analysis.
Will departments/agencies' results be compared to one another?
No. Departments/agencies can see their organizational
unit results compared to the department/agency and the Public Service
of Canada as a whole. While departments/agencies can see the results
of other departments/agencies, the intent of the survey is not to
compare one organization against another; rather, it is to establish
measures and take action to implement positive change. Each
organization is different, deals with a unique mandate and is made up
of employees providing specialized and unique skills.
What tools are available to help managers analyze the survey
results?
In 1999, the publication Turning Results into
Action: A Manager's Guide was made available on the survey web
sites, in print and in alternative formats. A similar document
entitled: Responding to the 2002 Public Service Employee Survey:
Some Tips for Managers, supervisors, and their teams is included
as part of the overall PS-wide report to be distributed to all
employees.
Follow-up
What about follow-up?
- After the results are released, managers, supervisors, employees
and their union representatives must work together to bring about
change and improvement in each workplace throughout the Public
Service of Canada. At the same time, Deputy Ministers and Heads of
Agencies and their management teams will also take action to
improve their organizations as a whole. As well, there will be
action taken across the entire federal Public Service. To do this,
the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat will work with
departments, agencies, central agencies and bargaining agents to
address the most urgent corporate concerns.
- After the last survey, for example, a series of get-togethers
were organized for Deputy Ministers and Heads of Agencies where
they had the opportunity to talk through the results, think about
priorities and hear from experts. A number of system-wide
initiatives were agreed to at these events such as the staging of
the Organizational Improvement Learning Event Series
sponsored by TBS to support Departments and Agencies.
Overall, the key to successful follow-up is timely,
collaborative action. The following are some principles/suggestions
that can help guide post-survey activities:
- Study the Survey results and initiate dialogue involving
managers, supervisors, teams and other stakeholders, as
required, such as unions in order to identify priorities
- Move as soon as possible from dialogue to action
- Take individual, team and collective ownership at all levels
- Keep it achievable. Don't try to do too much
- Ensure transparency, be inclusive
- Maintain communications (upward and downward)
- Establish accountability for improvement efforts and results
- Keep checking on your progress
What's in it for me as an employee?
The Survey provides valuable information about how to
make each branch, sector, department, agency, and the federal public
service as a whole, a better workplace. Each person can use this
information to engage in a dialogue with his or her supervisor or
manager on identifying ways to improve the workplace.
Who may I contact for information about what is going on in my own
department/ agency with respect to the survey and actions to be taken
in light of the results?
Early on in this process deputy ministers and agency
heads identified a person to oversee the implementation of the survey
in their respective department or agency. The name of the Survey
Champion responsible for your department or agency can be found on the
survey web sites.
If you have difficulty contacting the survey champion
you may wish to speak directly with your manager or use the toll free
number as alternatives: Toll-free Info Line (1-866-337-3360) and TTY
(1-800-465-7735) - 8 AM - 8 PM EST as of November 18.
How may I obtain additional information on the survey?
You can obtain further information on the
administration and coordination of the survey by:
- Logging onto the survey's web
site
survey-sondage
- Contacting your department or agency's Survey
Champion
- Toll-free Info Line (1-866-337-3360) and TTY (1-800-465-7735) - 8
AM - 8 PM EST as of November 18.
Members of the Public
Can members of the public have access to the survey results?
Yes. The 2002 Survey results will be made available to
members of the public on December 2nd at 10:00 a.m.
(government-wide data) and on December 9th at 10:00 a.m.
(departmental and agency-level data). Members of the public can access
both the PS-wide results and departmental/agency results using the
survey web site
survey-sondage.
Other Questions
I did not fill out the survey. Can I fill it out now?
No, since the results have already been tabulated.
However, there will be more opportunities to give input. It is the
government's intention to consult with employees on a regular basis
in the future. This would monitor our progress toward improving the
workplace.
When will the survey be repeated?
It is expected that the survey will be repeated in 3
years.
Prepared by: Sylvie Lance Roussel
(613) 946-9310
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