Service Channels Used

Leaving aside those who used the 1-800 O’Canada phone line, respondents who contacted Service Canada regarding a CPP Retirement pension and a CPP Disability pension were most likely to have used the telephone (74-79%). That said, a majority of those who made contact for each of the other services also used the phone, with the exception of those who made contact about a SIN (48%). Those who contacted Service Canada about a SIN were most likely to have done so in-person (64%). In-person contact was also used by a majority of those who made contact regarding a passport and Employment Programs/Assistance. The Internet was most likely to be used by those making contact about EI and Employment Programs/Assistance services (55-57%). Mail and fax were most likely to be used by those making contact about CPP, the OAS, and the GIS (33-34%). Email was most likely to be used by those making contact regarding Employment Programs/ Assistance (20%).

The following graph presents the number of channels used by program/service. Single channel use was most common among CPP Disability and 1-800 O’Canada clients, and lowest for EI, Employment Programs/Assistance, and passport clients.

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Q6: Did your contact concern any of the following programs or services?

Q8: During the last six months, in which of the following ways did you contact Service Canada? Please focus on contact with the government itself, nervice received through another organization delivering programs or services funded by the Government of Canada. How about [insert service channel]?

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In terms of average number of contacts with Service Canada across all channels (both including and excluding web contact), EI and Employment Programs/Assistance clients were the most likely to have numerous contacts, particularly when website visits are included*. CPP, OAS and GIS clients are at the lower end of the spectrum.

* Average number of contacts have been rounded to closest full number.

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Q9: How many times in the past six months did you [insert service channel]?

Perceptions of Service

Respondents who used the 1-800 O’Canada phone line were most likely to provide strongly positive feedback on all 15 service-related issues. The difference in strongly positive feedback between users of 1-800 O’Canada and those who contacted Service Canada for other services were widest regarding perceived courteousness of staff (84% vs. 57-67% of others), responsiveness to needs (75% vs. 50-62% of others), perceived knowledge and competence of staff (72% vs. 50-59% of others), being treated fairly (79% vs. 58-67% of others), and the perception that staff went the extra mile to get them what they needed (66% vs. 40-54% of others. Excluding users of 1-800 O’Canada, differences in strongly positive feedback between respondents who initiated contact for other services ranged from 7-15% across the various service-related issues. The difference was widest regarding the amount of time it took to get service.

On 13 of 15 issues, those who made contact regarding a CPP Disability pension were most likely to provide negative feedback. The only exceptions were the clarity/ease of understanding of information and the courteousness of staff. Negative feedback among those who made contact regarding a CPP Disability pension was most likely to stand out in relation to confidence that any personal information provided would be kept confidential (14% vs. 4-7% of others), the amount of time it took to get service (22% vs. 18% or fewer of others), and accessibility to service (13% vs. 5-9% of others).

Received What They Needed

CPP Disability and 1-800 O’Canada clients were the least likely to say they received everything the needed, while SIN and Passport clients were the most likely to say they got what they needed.

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Q26: In the end, did you get what you needed?

Problems with Service

The likelihood of encountering problems with service during the past six months ranged from a high of 18% of those who made contact regarding Employment Programs/Assistance to a low of 10% of OAS clients and those who called 1-800 O’Canada.

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Perceived Impact of Service Model on Quality of Service

The following graph presents information about the degree to which clients of different programs or services were informed by Service Canada staff about other programs or services that might be of interest to them. This was done least often for GIS and SIN clients, and most often for Employment Programs/Assistance and 1-800 O’Canada clients.

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Q27: During the past six months, were there any problems with the service you received from Service Canada?

Q69: When you contacted Service Canada to obtain information or service during the past six months, did service staff inform you about any other programs, services or information that might be of value or use to you?

Users of 1-800 O’Canada were most likely to attribute a positive impact to the new model of service delivery represented by Service Canada (71%). A majority (51-57%) of those who contacted Service Canada for the following also attributed a positive impact to the new model: Employment Programs/Assistance, a CPP Retirement pension, the OAS, the GIS, and a passport. Thos who contacted Service Canada for a CPP Disability pension were least likely to think this (42%). Perceptions that the impact is negative varied little across client groups (3-7%).