The Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) has expressed serious concerns about the federal government's Budget 2025, which proposes extensive cuts to essential public services, layoffs of over 40,000 federal public service employees, and reductions in collective bargaining rights for hundreds of thousands of workers.
Despite the growing and aging Canadian population, the government plans to eliminate key programs and services over the next three years. This will coincide with replacing many workers with artificial intelligence as part of the Comprehensive Expenditure Review (CER).
"These deep public service cuts will hurt workers, families and communities across Canada," said PSAC National President Sharon DeSousa.
"People can expect longer wait times for passports, EI and child care benefits, more unanswered calls at Canada Revenue Agency, reduced public health and food safety efforts, and a government that isn’t there for ordinary people when they need it most.”
Rather than investing in front-line services and supporting the public workers who maintain essential functions, the government is intensifying job cuts and relying more on AI chatbots, which may weaken Canada’s social safety net.
The federal budget threatens vital public services and workers’ rights by prioritizing spending cuts and automation over the needs of Canadians.