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Section II Performance Discussion by Strategic Outcome

Policies and Programs That Meet the Human Capital and Social Development Needs of Canadians

Program Activity:
Policy, Research and Communications

During the year Human Resources and Social Development Canada provided strategic policy, research, and communication expertise in support of the government's efforts to improve the standard of living and quality of life of Canadians, and promote their social well-being and security. A major focus of this work was supporting the government's commitments contained in the 2006 Budget and economic and fiscal update, including supporting the principle of creating new opportunities and choices for people that was announced in Advantage Canada: Building a Strong Economy for Canadians.

Achievements Against Priorities

Policy, Research and Communications
Plan	2006-2007 Achievements
Priority: Promote key human resources and social development policies of the Government of Canada
Develop policies that support the Government's commitments.	Contributed to the New Government Economic Plan: Advantage Canada, by supporting development of "Knowledge Advantage" to create the best educated, most skilled and most flexible workforce in the world by: creating new opportunities and choices for people; increasing participation of Canadians and new Canadians in the workforce, and enhancing opportunities to acquire knowledge and skills.
Undertake an older worker feasibility study.	In January 2007, the Minister of Human Resources and Social Development appointed an independent expert panel to undertake a study of labour market conditions affecting older workers in Canada and examine potential measures to help them, including improved training and enhanced income support, such as early retirement benefits. To support this objective, the Expert Panel on Older Workers has consulted extensively with all provinces and territories, as well as employers, labour representatives, academia and other stakeholders.
Undertake consultations on post-secondary education and training to help restore the fiscal balance.	Over the summer and early fall of 2006 the Minister and Deputy Minister of Human Resources and Social Development Canada consulted with their provincial counterparts on post-secondary education and training. Discussions focused on: the overall objectives for post-secondary education and training; the appropriate roles and responsibilities for post-secondary education and training; and the development of a framework for measuring results and accountability with respect to funding support. The Department also undertook an on-line consultation that yielded 162 submissions from individual citizens and 33 from stakeholder organizations. This was followed in September and October 2006 by roundtable discussions with major associations representing universities, colleges, polytechnics and sector councils, students, faculty, business, labour and Aboriginal people. The summary findings were subsequently posted on the Finance Canada website (http://www.fin.gc.ca/activty/consult/fiscbal_2e.html#2) Following these consultations, through Budget 2007 the Government of Canada legislated an $800 million increase in annual support for post-secondary education through the Canada Social Transfer beginning in 2008-2009. In addition, legislation extends the Canada Social Transfer to 2013-2014 with an annual three percent escalator starting in 2009-2010 to ensure predictable and growing support and moves the Canada Social Transfer to an equal-per-capita cash allocation starting in 2007-2008.
Work towards developing a long-term human capital policy/social policy for the 21st century.	Established a Medium-Term Policy Planning process to identify key priorities, with an initial focus on globalization, families, social safety net, life-long learning, participation and inclusion.
Priority: Develop and implement key departmental frameworks and strategies
Develop a policy framework encompassing human capital and social development to underlie the new Department and identify key priorities.	Established an analytical base that will integrate a long-term human capital and social policy approach for the 21st century.
Develop and implement a department-wide Knowledge Management Initiative.	Developed a new approach to Human Resources and Social Development Canada knowledge gathering and dissemination to more directly inform policy and program development, including a needs assessment of data gathering and a better integration of evaluation support. A departmental Knowledge Conference was held in December 2006.
Develop an integrated HRSDC Knowledge Plan, a medium-term strategy to develop and disseminate knowledge.	A Department Knowledge Plan was drafted.
Develop the HRSDC Data Plan, a coordinated, comprehensive strategy for data and survey planning.	A draft plan was developed to strengthen the data portfolio on human resources and social development, identifying products, key data needs and concrete actions to support the Department's mandate and commitments as well as to maximize the relevance of a departmental data portfolio over time. In 2006-2007, the Department conducted a data needs assessment to support the development of the Data Plan.
Strengthen strategies to include evaluation in the policy development process.	Human Resources and Social Development Canada implemented various initiatives to strengthen evaluation support for policy and program development: Established a dedicated unit responsible for managing and disseminating evaluation knowledge as well as fostering linkages between evaluation and policy and program activities. This unit conducted thematic studies on lessons learned from previous evaluations. Approved an Audit and Evaluation Management Action Plan Follow-up Policy. Follow-up on all management responses included in evaluations approved between 2004-2005 and 2006-2007 is currently underway.
Priority: Advance knowledge development to support informed decision-making
Develop rigorous, integrated knowledge and evidence to identify current and emerging social policy and human resources development issues.	The two research directorates were reorganized so that the centralized departmental research in labour market and skills and social policy domains were integrated. Draft of an integrated Human Resources and Social Development Canada Policy Research Plan. Over 50 research projects were completed and 175 projects were begun. Major progress was made in engaging Canadian academics in the conduct of the research plan. Seven separate academic researcher networks, funded by the Department and with work plans developed jointly by academics and the Department, became active during 2006-2007. A major set of policy issue 'diagnostics' was completed to help identify current and emerging issues as input into the departmental Medium Term Planning exercise.
Develop integrated HRSDC knowledge exchange and engagement strategies to foster the sharing of high-quality knowledge and to support decision-making and on-going dialogue with external partners.	In 2006-2007, the Department advanced key knowledge exchange and engagement activities: Hosted a departmental Knowledge Conference focusing on research, data development, evaluation, knowledge management, and monitoring and reporting. The Conference helped to strengthen the Department's capacity to create, share and use knowledge and build partnerships. Implemented departmental publication guidelines to ensure quality control and relevance of knowledge and research content to corporate priorities. Provided the Department with current knowledge and research information to support decision-making and venues for knowledge exchange and dissemination through such products as internal electronic knowledge newsletters, the Monthly Knowledge Series and the Knowledge Web Centre.
Support key government priorities through data, information and knowledge strategies.	The Department developed data, information and knowledge strategies to support knowledge development in priority areas (e.g., caregiving, childcare)
Develop a common knowledge base on social policy and human resources development trends.	In 2006-2007, the Department developed a set of individual and societal well-being indicators to help monitor and better understand well-being across the country. In January 2007, the Department launched a pilot version of the Indicators of Well-being in Canada website for use within Human Resources and Social Development Canada. These indicators help the Department monitor trends influencing well-being over time and provide the Department with evidence-based knowledge to support the development of effective and relevant policies and programs for Canadians.
Conduct evaluations in key areas relating to departmental policies and programs.	Undertook work on over 48 evaluation projects in all departmental policy and program areas. Among these, the Department completed a major Summative Evaluation of Employment Insurance Part I, which provides a summary of all evaluation knowledge on Employment Insurance available to date. The Department also made progress with respect to evaluation of the Employment Benefits and Support Measures delivered under the bi-lateral Labour Market Development Agreements. In addition to the evaluation in British Columbia that was approved in 2004, the Department completed the evaluation in Nunavut and Newfoundland and Labrador. Approved two new evaluation reports (management response included): Summative Evaluation of Employment Insurance Part 1 Formative Evaluation of Foreign Credential Recognition Program Also produced reports in support of the 2005 Employment Insurance Monitoring and Assessment Report. The Department also approved the management response of four evaluations that were completed in 2005-2006: Summative Evaluation of Employment Benefits and Support Measures Delivered Under the Canada/Newfoundland and Labrador Labour Market Development Agreement. Formative and Summative Evaluation of Nunavut Benefits and Measures Delivered under the Canada-Nunavut Labour Market Development Agreement. Formative Evaluation of the Youth Employment Strategy. Summative Evaluation on Pilot Project No. 5 (preventative withdrawal).
Promote consideration of international policy research and analysis in development of policy initiatives to address human resources and social development priorities.	In June 2006, Canada hosted a forum on the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development´s New Jobs Strategy in Toronto. The forum, which brought together Ministers of Employment from the Organization´s member countries and labour market and economic experts, provided an opportunity to examine and discuss the recommendations contained in the Jobs Strategy. In June 2006, the Minister and Chair of the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada and the Minister of Education (Newfoundland & Labrador) co-led the Canadian delegation to the G8 Education Ministerial in Moscow. The meeting focused on examining education for innovative societies in the 21st century. In October 2006, the Minister, led the Canadian delegation to the G8 Labour and Employment Ministerial meeting in Moscow. The meeting focused on the links between economic growth and employment and their impact on productivity, labour market performance and social policy.
Priority: Increase engagement and collaboration with our partners and Canadians through public involvement and other activities to ensure better, innovative and complementary policy initiatives
Implement an engagement strategy and a Public Involvement Framework to guide all HRSDC public involvement activities in a manner that is coordinated and integrated both interdepartmentally and intra-departmentally.	The Department is actively improving its capacity for public involvement through a number of mechanisms, including a Public Involvement Framework that includes departmental principles for consultation and citizen engagement. A Public Involvement engagement strategy was developed in 2006-2007, which included an annual stakeholder conference and a web-based citizens' panel.
Continue to support and enhance federal-provincial/territorial relations through formal meetings, consultations and working arrangements, which supports the Government's effort to strengthen the economic union and continue to support the social union.	In Budget 2006, the Government of Canada presented its approach to restoring fiscal balance and committed to consultations with provinces and territories on fostering a competitive and efficient economic union. During the summer and fall of 2006, the Minister and the Deputy Minister of Human Resources and Social Development Canada consulted their provincial and territorial counterparts responsible for labour market and post-secondary education. The purpose of these consultations was to discuss shared objectives, roles and responsibilities, and accountability measures for Post-Secondary Education and training. The consultations also provided an opportunity to convey the importance of Post-Secondary Education and training to Canada's labour market and economic objectives. These consultations helped inform the development of the Government of Canada's Advantage Canada, which laid the groundwork for a labour market strategy to secure growth and prosperity, while respecting the primary responsibility of provinces and territories for delivering labour market programming, and the measures that were announced in Budget 2007. Working with provinces and territories, the Department re-initiated regular Federal, Provincial and Territorial meetings under the Forum of Labour Market Ministers. Deputy Ministers met in Toronto in February 2007. In 2006-2007, the Department continued to work closely with provincial and territorial governments building on established relationships through multilateral forums as well as through bilateral interaction in advancing its social policy and program priorities. The Minister and Deputy Minister of Human Resources and Social Development Canada met with their provincial and territorial social services counterparts and discussed child care, persons with disabilities and low-income families. Federal Provincial and Territorial Ministers Responsible for Seniors also met in September of 2006, they discussed issues including: safety and security for seniors (elder abuse), social isolation and healthy aging.
Develop strategic policy advice and opportunities to support the social and economic development objectives of the 2010 Olympics and Paralympics Winter Games through horizontally working relationships.	Horizontal working relationships were developed concerning the 2010 Games with various federal departments Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, Industry Canada, Canadian Heritage - and with the Federal Government Representative Working Group, and other 2010 Games partners. Acted as the Co-Chair of the Social Development Issues Cluster, led the creation of the social development component of the 2010 Games Strategic Opportunities plan and developed opportunities for an Accessibility Showcase for the BC-Canada Beijing 2008 Pavilion. Also served as a member of the Economic Issues Development Cluster.
Continue to support the Government of Canada's relationships with community sector organizations who play a key role in serving Canadians.	As the Government of Canada lead on the relationship with the community sector, the Department recognizes that the community sector plays an important role in improving the social and economic well-being of our citizens - e.g., $126 billion in economic activity, a workforce equivalent to two million full-time employed and engagement of some 12 million volunteers - thereby building a stronger, better Canada and supporting Canadians in making choices that help them live productive and rewarding lives. A key dimension of the community sector is the transformational role this sector plays in reshaping the thinking about the policy solutions to systemic socio-economic problems and in providing citizens meaningful engagement in contributing to Canadian society. It is recognized that the community sector is one of many partners required for an effective multi-sectoral collaborative approach to addressing community issues. In support of a vibrant sector, the Government of Canada has focused on creating an enabling environment for the sector to meet the needs of an aging and changing society, a growing population, and the socio-economic challenges that face our cities and communities. To this end, Human Resources and Social Development Canada continues to: collaborate with the community sector; make strategic investments to support its innovation and address the social development needs of Canadians, their families and communities; and promote its increased self-sufficiency and sustainability. In 2006/2007 HRSDC carried out this work through a number of activities, including: Supporting the development and launch of a national campaign to raise the awareness with the public and the community sector of the community sector's substantial contribution to the economic and social fabric of the country. Conducting consultations with community sector stakeholders on innovation and ways to support the sharing of best practices for a more effective and efficient sector through pilot projects. Supporting the development and launch of a web-based portal to provide a national forum for community sector organizations to share information, best practices, network and develop partnerships for projects and services to Canadians. Striking a Task Force on Community Investments to provide recommendations to promote consistent and coherent federal government funding practices to community sector organizations. Working with sector stakeholders to develop financial tools designed to help them manage community sector organizations.

For more details on programs supporting this activity, please see Section IV - Other Items of Interest

Financial and Human Resources 2006-2007

Policy, Research and Communication
Gross Spending (Millions of dollars)	Planned Spending	Authorities	Actual
Human Resources and Skills Development Canada
Gross Operating Expenditures	120.1	140.1	139.4
Non-Statutory Grants and Contributions	0.0	1.5	1.5
Social Development Canada
Gross Operating Expenditures	67.3	64.1	54.7
Non-Statutory Grants and Contributions	0.0	646.4	0.0
Total	187.4	852.1	195.6
Full Time Equivalents	936	1,143	1,143

 

Details by Program and Services 2006-2007

Policy, Research and Communications
	Planned Spending	Authorities	Actual Spending
Financial Resources (in millions of dollars)
Human Resources and Skills Development Canada
Strategic Policy and Planning	43.7	54.9	53.4
Communications and Ministerial Services	44.5	52.8	48.5
Allocated Corporate Servicesa	37.1	33.9	33.7
Otherb	(5.2)	-	5.3
Sub-Total	120.1	141.6	140.9
Social Development Canada
Social Development Policy and Innovation	61.7	701.9	50.8
Allocated Corporate Servicesa	5.6	8.6	3.9
Sub-Total	67.3	710.5	54.7
Total	187.4	852.1	195.6
Human Resources
Full Time Equivalents	936	1,143	1,143
a Corporate Services resources related to the Minister's Office, the Deputy Minister's Office, the Comptroller's Office and the Shared Services have been prorated to each Strategic Outcome. b Other category is for resources which are not directly related to the sub-activities identified.

Enhanced Canadian Productivity and Participation Through Efficient and Inclusive Labour Markets, Competitive Workplace and Access to Learning

During 2006-2007, Human Resources and Social Development Canada worked on a number of broad fronts-supporting labour market efficiency and inclusiveness, enhancing the competitiveness of workplaces, and helping Canadians gain access to learning opportunities-toward the common goal of supporting Canada's continuing prosperity through enhanced productivity and participation. The Department's labour market, workplace skills, and learning programs complemented each other in working towards creating the best educated, most skilled and flexible labour force, and in contributing to a number of broad Government of Canada outcomes: strong economic growth, an innovative and knowledge-based economy, income security and employment for Canadians, and a fair and secure marketplace. Departmental efforts under this strategic outcome and its major program activities were consistent with the principle of creating new opportunities and choices for people that is outlined in the Government's economic plan: Advantage Canada: Building a Strong Economy for Canadians.

Program activity: Labour Market

Canada has a well educated, highly skilled and mobile workforce, which has contributed to one of the most flexible and adaptable labour markets among Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development countries. Canada's performance has remained strong even though the face of the labour market has changed significantly over the past two decades. To date, the economy has shown resilience in its ability to cope with the ongoing changes.

New challenges have begun to emerge including growing labour shortages in some regions and sectors, as well as demographic challenges as the population ages.

The Department has two major program activities that assist Canadians with income support and in finding and retaining employment in support of this Strategic Outcome.

The Employment Insurance program promotes individual well being, economic stability and a flexible labour market by providing temporary income support to unemployed workers who qualify under Part I of the Employment Insurance Act. The program encompasses a wide range of benefits to address the needs of workers and the labour market.

Employment Programs enable Canadians, including unemployed adults and targeted groups, such as youth, Aboriginal Peoples and older workers, to develop their skills and encourage them to invest in themselves and become self-reliant. These programs and services are funded under the Consolidated Revenue Fund and Part II of the Employment Insurance Act.

The Department recognizes the importance of working in partnership with other federal departments and in particular with agencies, external organizations, unions, Aboriginal organizations, the voluntary sector and provinces and territories to successfully fulfill its mandate and meet the needs of unemployed Canadians.

Strategic Outcome Indicators

Labour Market
Indicators	Current Level
Percentage of unemployed looking for work for one year or more (52 weeks and over).	2006	8.7%
	2005	9.6%
Percent of youth (15-24 year-olds) neither in the labour force nor in school*	2006	4.82%a
Involuntary part-time employment as a proportion of all part-time employment.	2006	24.1%
	2005	25.6%
Employment Insurance regular beneficiaries to unemployed ratio.	2005	44.8%
	2004	43.6%
Unemployment Rates by Designated Group. (2005)	Women	7.2%
	People with Disabilities	10.7%
	Aboriginal Peoples	19.1%
	Visible Minorities	9.5%
	Older Workers	6.0%
aA different methodology was used compared to previous years, and as such, historical data could not be provided. * Census 2006 data is not yet available. The above results are based on Census 2001 data (includes Labour Force 15 years or older that are unemployed).

Our employment programming is delivered through four major Department-led horizontal initiatives: Aboriginal Human Resources Development Strategy; Aboriginal Skills and Employment Partnership program; Youth Employment Strategy; Targeted Initiative for Older Workers, and Labour Market Development Agreements. In addition to these activities, the Department helps to sustain the vitality of Official Language Minority Communities through the Enabling Fund, which enhances human resources development, increases employability and community capacity building for the official language minority communities. Details on the above-noted horizontal initiatives can be found at:
http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/rma/eppi-ibdrp/hrdb-rhbd/dep-min/HRSDC-RHDSC/hrsdc-rhdsc_e.asp

Key accomplishments for 2006-07 include:

• Devolution of the Labour Market Development Agreement to Ontario on January 1, 2007 with required sub-agreements and systems. This devolution is consistent with the overall government direction of negotiating the transfer of Labour Market Development Agreements to all provinces per Budget 2007.
• Worked closely with other federal departments, National Aboriginal Organizations and other stakeholders to strengthen Aboriginal Human Resources Development Strategy in key areas of urban service delivery, private sector engagement, and labour market research.
• Developed draft Self-Government Labour Market Development Agreement in implementing the Yukon First Nation self-government agreement.
• Throughout the 2006-07 timeframe, agreements for the Targeted Initiative for Older Workers were signed with Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, and Yukon. Agreements with all other provinces and territories that have indicated they will participate in the initiative were signed during 2007-08.

The delivery of the Employment Programs is primarily done through Service Canada and their role is crucial in the successful implementation of programs and delivery of services to Canadians. The design and delivery of services is done with a citizen-centred perspective. All of the employment programs are focused in this way and programs and services continue to be tailored to be relevant and comprehensive for Canadians.

There were a number of summative and formative evaluations either launched or completed in 2006-2007 related to Employment Insurance and Employment Programs. All evaluations assist the Department in ensuring that the programs remain responsive to the needs of Canadians requiring income support and/or seeking assistance in getting back to work. Evaluations undertaken in 2006-2007 include:

Evaluations launched:

• Summative Evaluation of the Youth Employment Strategy.
• Summative Evaluation of Employment Insurance 5-week Seasonal Work Pilot.
• Formative/Summative Evaluation of the New-Entrant/Re-entrant component of EI Part I.
• Formative Evaluation of Aboriginal Skills and Employment Partnerships.
• Formative and Summative evaluation of the Voisey's Bay project.
• Formative Evaluation of the Aboriginal Human Resources Development Agreements Formative Evaluation of the Manitoba Labour Market Agreements for Persons with Disabilities.

Evaluations completed:

• Support for Monitoring and Assessment Report - Over ten evaluative studies focussing on Employment Insurance Part I completed for the 2006 Monitoring and Assessment Report.
• Formative Evaluation of Employment Insurance Compassionate Care Benefits (results will be made available in fall 2007).
• Summative Evaluation of Employment Insurance Part I.

Other on-going evaluation activities:

• Employment Programs - Summative evaluations of Employment Benefit and Support Measures are currently underway in several jurisdictions. Key findings from the British Columbia, Quebec, Alberta, Ontario and Newfoundland and Labrador summative evaluations are discussed in the 2006 Monitoring and Assessment Report. Other summative evaluations are currently underway and where available, findings will be presented in the 2007 Monitoring and Assessment Report.
• Audit and Evaluation Committee approved Action Plan to address recommendations in 2005 Formative Evaluation of the Youth Employment Strategy the 2005 Summative Evaluation of Employment Benefits and Support Measures Delivered Under the Canada/Newfoundland and Labrador Labour Market Development Agreement and the 2005 Formative and Summative Evaluation of Nunavut Benefits and Measures Delivered under the Canada-Nunavut Labour Market Development Agreement.
• On-going collaborative work for the Evaluation of Federal Action Plan for Official Languages.
• Launched of the Formative Evaluation of Enabling Fund for Official Language Minority Communities.

Program Indicators

Labour Market
Indicators	Notes
Access Percentage of unemployed targeted by the Employment Insurance program eligible to collect regular Employment Insurance benefits 2004 Result: 80.4% 2005 Result: 83.4%
Rate of Participation of Designated Groups and Older Workers in Employment Benefits and Support Measures :
Rate of Participation in EBSM 2005-06a Percentage of the entire unemployed labour forceb Women 50.0% 45.5% People with disabilities 4.6% 9.8% Aboriginal persons 7.2% 6.5% Visible minorities 6.8% 16.2% Older workers (55 and over) 6.5% 17.3%
Adequacy Proportion of regular entitlement collected by Employment Insurance claimants (%). 2003-2004: 60.9% 2004-2005: 59.8%
Proportion of Employment Insurance maternity/parental entitlement collected by Employment Insurance claimants. 2003-04: 92.9% 2004-05 93.5% c
Labour market efficiency
Number of youth clients who return to school or become employed following an employment program intervention under the Youth Employment Strategy and proportion of these clients in the total number of action plans closed Target: 7,400 Result: 8,539 Proportion:  65.29%	These targets do not include returns to school following participation in the Summer Career Placements initiative under Summer Work Experience
Number of Aboriginal clients who return to school or become employed following an employment program intervention under the Aboriginal Human Resources Development Strategy and proportion of these clients in the total number of action plans closed Target: 20,500 Result:: 23,230 Proportion:  54.17%
Number of clients employed or self-employed following an employment program intervention, and proportion of these clients in the total number of action plans closed Target: 220,000 Result: 226,453 Proportion: 59.15%
aSource: 2005-06 Monitoring and Assessment Report b Source: Census 2001 c New methodology used for more accurate results and consistency in method used for regular benefits

 

Achievements Against Priorities

Labour Market
Plan:	2006-2007 Achievements
Priority: Work with provinces, territories and stakeholders to ensure that labour market programming is coherent, comprehensive and flexible
Continue to work with the province of Ontario on preparing for the transfer of responsibility for the design and delivery of Employment Insurance-funded Employment Benefits and Support Measures under the Canada-Ontario Labour Market Development Agreement, which takes effect on January 1, 2007.	Labour Market Development Agreement devolved to Ontario January 1, 2007 with required sub-agreements including systems development.
Develop, assess and propose options for program policies to ensure continuing relevance in a dynamic labour market based on comprehensive review of the lessons learned from program evaluations and other sources.	Designed new policy approach for determining financial assistance to Skills Development participants to improve transparency, fairness, inclusion, and working collaboratively with Service Canada began testing new approach in Nova Scotia.
Strengthen links between active employment measures and workplace skills programs to ensure greater alignment with the demand side of the labour market.	Released policy allowing the use of Targeted Wage Subsidy to assist unemployed apprentices experiencing difficulties finding employment related to their apprenticeship. Enhanced policy under the Labour Market Partnerships benefit to allow for an Employer-Sponsored Training option so that workers facing job loss may be supported in training.
Continue to strengthen links with Official Language Minority Communities with a view to ensuring the vitality of their local labour markets. apprentices experiencing difficulties finding employment related to their apprenticeship.	Developed a department-wide Action Plan for Official Languages Organized six national committee meetings with federal partners and community representatives and supported in the development of a strategic plan for National Human Resources Development Committee for English Linguistic Minority. The formative evaluation for the Enabling Fund for Official Language Minority Communities and the related governance structure is currently underway. This evaluation is examining program design, delivery and implementation including: program objectives, data collection, performance indicators, roles and capacity of all partners, horizontality aspects and achievement of short and medium-term objectives (increased capacity and accountability, development of community action plans and projects, increased leverage of resources and investments and strengthened financial partnerships, etc.). In addition, the formative evaluation will provide a follow-up to the findings and conclusions from the 2003 formative evaluation of the predecessor program, the Support Fund. The preliminary findings are planned for September 2007 and final report for December 2007.
Priority: Provide advice on Employment Insurance income support to ensure it remains well suited to the needs of Canada's economy and workforce
Monitor and assess the labour market impacts of Employment Insurance pilot projects in regions of high unemployment to inform decisions for the Employment Insurance Program.	The labour market impacts of Employment Insurance pilot projects in regions of high unemployment were monitored and assessed. An extended Employment Insurance benefits pilot project was implemented in June 2006. The extended Employment Insurance benefits pilot project will continue to test whether providing additional weeks would help address the annual income gap faced by seasonal workers whose weeks of work and Employment Insurance benefits are not sufficient to provide income throughout the year, and whether it would have any adverse labour market effect on other Employment Insurance claimants.
Complete a formal evaluation of Employment Insurance Compassionate Care Benefits, introduced in January 2004, and assess the potential for policy adjustments related to the benefit.	A formal evaluation of Employment Insurance Compassionate Care Benefits was completed in early 2007. In June 2006. a regulatory change was made to the compassionate care benefit which broadened the definition of family member to ensure siblings, grandparents, grandchildren, in-laws, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, foster parents, wards or any individuals considered by the gravely ill person or his or her representative to be family members are eligible for compassionate care benefits.
Continue to review Employment Insurance Economic Regions, used to establish entitlement and benefit periods, working with new geographic data from Statistics Canada.	New Census 2006 geography data was released by Statistics Canada in January 2007. Extensive analysis was started.
Monitor and assess the new Employment Insurance rate setting legislation to ensure it achieves the intended objectives.	Analysis of process and results is ongoing.
Priority: Build more effective partnerships to improve Aboriginal labour market outcomes
Strengthen and support the delivery of the Aboriginal Human Resources Development Strategy and the Aboriginal Human Resources Development Agreements across the country.	Approximately 54,797 (includes new starts and carry-overs) Aboriginal people assisted (16,540 employed; 5,785 returned to school). Return to work of the Employment Insurance claimants before end of benefit period: approximately $15.04M in unpaid Employment Insurance Part I Benefits; return to work of non-Employment Insurance claimants resulted in approx $5.1M in savings to social assistance. Worked closely with other federal departments, National Aboriginal Organizations and other stakeholders to strengthen the Aboriginal Human Resources Development Strategy in key areas of urban service delivery, private sector engagement, and labour market research. Began development of engagement strategy for successor strategy for the Aboriginal Human Resources Development Strategy program post-2009 through examination of number of key issues related to the Aboriginal Human Resources Development Strategy programming. Participated in the inter-departmental committee lead by Treasury Board Secretariat to develop a new Directive on Aboriginal Transfer Payments.
Foster more private sector partnerships such as the Aboriginal Skills and Employment Partnerships program, thereby improving the participation of Aboriginal people in sustainable employment.	9 Aboriginal Skills and Employment Partnerships projects and training plans were underway. More than 1,300 clients were served and participated in interventions, with participants securing approximately 400 jobs in 2006-2007. $105M announced in Budget 2007 for enhancements to Aboriginal Skills and Employment Partnerships (2007-2012).
Collaborate with other departments on Aboriginal Early Childhood Development to explore options, and develop a recommendation for a "single window" approach while supporting quality child care programs on-reserve and in the North.	7,500 child care spaces were subsidized in more than 400 First Nations and Inuit communities. Participation in testing financial/reporting instruments that could lead to national roll-out leading to Single Window Model for Aboriginal Early Childhood Development.
Work with Aboriginal partners, provinces and territories and other stakeholders to develop a new approach with workable solutions to reduce poverty and narrow the gap in employment outcomes for Aboriginal peoples.	Held six Workforce Connex Forums since January 2006 with private sector representatives, Aboriginal Human Resources Development Agreement holders, government officials, and other key stakeholders across Canada to provide information on how to tap into Aboriginal labour supply and foster new/innovative types of partnerships and collaborations for mutual benefit of the Aboriginal Human Resources Development Agreement holders, their client groups and employers. Labour market challenges and opportunities for Aboriginal people and communities were explored in partnership with Environmental Careers Organization of Canada, Canadian Brownfield´s Network, and other government departments, regarding participation in the clean-up of contaminated sites, waste management, and remediation sector. Working with Provinces and Territories and with Health Canada to promote adoption of innovations/best practices to increase representation of Aboriginal people in the health care sector. With 11 federal departments and agencies, participated in workshops with territorial government departments, Aboriginal organizations, the Aboriginal Human Resources Development Agreement holders and other youth serving agencies to identify partnership opportunities to improve the social, economic and skills development outcomes of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal youth in the territories (Framework for Action for Northern Youth) - concrete outcomes include National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation annual career fair in Yellowknife; Royal Canadian Mounted Police youth advisory committee in Yukon; Rivers to Success community plan for Inuit youth in Nunavut (major focus on skills development) and social development initiative in Nunavut to improve community safety, wellbeing, and reduce crime. Aligned Aboriginal Literacy and Essential Skills component to the overarching departmental strategy. Promoted/supported Aboriginal skills development, literacy and Essential Skills through Pan Canadian Innovation Initiative Fund. Engaged on Aboriginal Health Human Resources Initiative to promote integrated approach (facilitated partnerships with Métis Aboriginal Human Resources Development Agreements).
Priority: Develop approaches to reduce barriers and help vulnerable Canadians, such as youth, disabled and older workers participate in the labour market
In consultation with partners, undertake a review of youth employment programming to ensure it is aligned with current labour market and youth needs at the national, regional and local level.	Launched the Canada Summer Jobs Initiative. Analysed and used up-to-date labour market information in development of Canada Summer Jobs, taking into consideration today's strong labour market (i.e., lowest level of unemployment rate in 30 years; 2006 national student unemployment rate lowest than in recent years; employers having increased difficulties filling jobs in certain areas of the country).
Achieve greater effectiveness within the Government of Canada for the Youth Employment Strategy and across all orders of government and non-governmental organizations in the development of youth programming.	Summative Evaluation of the Youth Employment Strategy initiated to examine program relevance, success, and cost effectiveness of the Youth Employment Strategy programming delivered by all 13 participating federal departments and agencies.
Adapt existing programs to the special labour market conditions of the North with a special focus on youth.	Led 11 federal departments and agencies participation in workshops with territorial government departments, Aboriginal organizations, Aboriginal Human Resources Development Agreement holders, other youth serving agencies, and youth to identify partnership opportunities to improve social, economic and skills development outcomes of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal youth in the territories (Framework for Action for Northern Youth). Worked with regions, provinces and territories to ensure the Employment Benefits and Support Measures program policies responded to regional labour markets (e.g. Newfoundland, Nunavut); worked with partners on the development of the Northern Youth Strategy and developed an approach to use Skills Link funds more effectively in Nunavut.
Work with other orders of government and non-governmental organizations to address urban violence for at-risk youth through employment programming.	Built partnerships with the province of Ontario and the City of Toronto as well as with numerous federal departments and agencies as the federal lead on Social Development Committee for Tri-Level task Force on Youth Violence. Key results include better collaboration among policy teams at the federal level, a higher degree of coordination among all partners on the ground and the development indicators and benchmarks for assessing progress that were agreed upon by the three orders of government.
Develop and implement an initiative to respond to short-term employment needs of displaced older workers, while undertaking a feasibility study to assess a range of measures available to assist these workers, with a view to developing a longer-term strategy.	Consulted with provinces and Territories in the development of Targeted Initiative for Older Workers. Approval of two-pronged strategy on Older Workers and the announcement of new $70M Targeted Initiative for Older Workers. Led extensive work with provinces and territories to raise awareness of the Targeted Initiative for Older Workers. Terms and Conditions for the Targeted Initiative for Older Workers approved. Throughout the 2006-2007 timeframe, agreements for the Targeted Initiative for Older Workers were signed with Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, and Yukon. Agreements with all other provinces and territories that have indicated they will participate in the initiative were signed during 2007-2008.

For more details on programs supporting this activity, please see Section IV - Other Items of Interest.

 

Financial and Human Resources 2006-2007

Labour Market
Gross Spending (Millions of dollars)	Planned Spending	Authorities	Actual
Gross Operating Expenditures	1,324.2	1,205.7	1,185.0
Non-Statutory Grants and Contributions	552.3	543.4	518.5
Statutory Transfer Payments	0.2	0.1	0.1
Total Gross Expenditures	1,876.7	1,749.2	1,703.6
EI Part I - Income Benefits	12,442.0	12,028.0	11,992.5
EI Part II - Employment Benefits and Support Measures	2,137.5	2,137.5	2,086.9
Total EI Benefits	14,579.5	14,165.5	14,079.4
Government Annuities and Civil Service Insurance payments	48.3	48.6	48.6
Total	16,504.5	15,963.3	15,831.6
Full Time Equivalents	13,377	12,305	12,305

 

Details by Program and Services 2006-2007

Labour Market
Financial Resources (in millions of dollars)
	Planned Spending	Authorities	Actual Spending
Employment Insurance Benefits
EI Benefits	12,442.0	12,028.0	11,992.5
Allocated Corporate servicesa	269.4	288.8	287.3
Otherb	658.4	520.1	511.8
Sub-Total	13,369.8	12,836.9	12,791.6
Employment Programs
Employment Benefits and Support Measures c	1,353.8	1,140.8	1,120.8
Labour Market Development Agreements Transfers c	987.0	1,190.0	1,157.5
Aboriginal Human Resources Development Strategy	271.3	281.5	281.4
Aboriginal Skills and Employment Partnerships	30.3	25.0	14.9
Youth Employment Strategy	321.1	300.9	287.6
Labour Market Adjustments	11.2	20.4	12.9
Official Language Minority Communities	13.6	14.0	14.0
Allocated Corporate Servicesa	131.2	140.4	139.7
Otherb	15.2	13.4	11.2
Sub-Total	3,134.7	3,126.4	3,040.0
Total d	16,504.5	15,963.3	15,831.6
Human Resources
Total FTE	13,377	12,305	12,305
a Corporate Services resources related to the Minister's Office, the Deputy Minister's Office, the Comptroller's Office and the Shared Services have been prorated to each Strategic Outcome. bOther category is for resources which are not directly related to the sub-activities identified. cIncludes all resources associated with EI Part II Pan-Canadian activities. dThis amount includes resources for the delivery of programs and services by Service Canada. For a full accounting of Service Canada's operations please refer to the Strategic Outcome, "Achieve better outcomes for Canadians through service excellence (Service Canada)".

Program Activity: Workplace Skills

Workplace Skills aims to improve Canadian economic competitiveness by fostering innovative, productive and inclusive workplaces, where workers are encouraged and supported to develop and use their knowledge, skills and abilities.

This program area promotes and encourages employers across the country to invest in the skills development of their workers based on partnerships between the federal government, provinces and territories, and stakeholders. Canada's success, and the success of individual Canadians, relies on our economic productivity. In addition, our productivity, in turn, is increasingly dependent on skills and learning.

A key component of strengthening Canada´s productivity and improving quality of life involves enhancing the competitiveness of Canadian workplaces. Skilled workers contribute to this competitiveness and help drive improvements in workplace productivity through their abilities to process information, perform tasks more efficiently and effectively, and adapt to and operate new technology. They are also more skilled at generating innovations resulting in new or improved information, products, services, and production and distribution processes. Human Resources and Social Development Canada´s work pertaining to the Workplace Skills activity supported the Government of Canada´s Outcome Area of an innovative and knowledge-based economy.

The Department, in collaboration with partners including sector councils, professional regulatory bodies, employers, unions, and provincial and territorial governments, promotes workplace-related learning and skills development and recognition that reflect the realities of the changing labour market.

Strategic Outcome Indicators

Workplace Skills
Indicators	Current Level
Percentage of adult workforce who participated in job-related formal training	27.6% (2005 - source: Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics) * 34.7% (2002 - source: Adult Education and Training Survey) 28.5% (1997 - source: Adult Education and Training Survey)
Percent of adult workforce who participated in employer-supported job related training	20.2% (2005 - source: Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics)* 25.0% (2002 - source: Adult Education and Training Survey) 22.4% (1997 - source: Adult Education and Training Survey)
Average earnings of recent immigrant university graduates as a percentage of the earnings of Canadian-born university graduates	2000 65.0% (Source: Census data)
* Note: In previous publications of this report, the Adult Education and Training Survey was used as a source of data for the first two strategic outcome indicators. Due to the availability of data, the Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics was used this year in order to provide an updated source.

Service Canada delivers the Apprenticeship Incentive Grant, Temporary Foreign Worker Program, and Labour Market Information.

Main accomplishments for 2006-2007 include the following:

• The Apprenticeship Incentive Grant application process and website were launched on January 1, 2007. As of the end of March 2007, more than 4,900 applications had been received for the grant.
• The Foreign Credential Referral Office task force received approval for the design of the Office, facilitated implementation of initial operations and undertook consultations and research in support of the development of the Office.
• The Foreign Credential Recognition Program made investments towards addressing Foreign Credential Recognition issues and expanded its scope to additional occupations and sectors such as Respiratory Therapists and the Biotechnology sector.
• Investments were made towards addressing Labour Mobility issues within priority health occupations such as Medical Laboratory Technologists, Registered Nurses and Audiologists.

Each year, Evaluations are conducted to assist the Department in ensuring that its programs and services remain responsive to the needs of Canadians. In 2006-2007, there was an evaluation pertaining to the Foreign Credential Recognition Program

Foreign Credential Recognition Program:

• A formative evaluation of the Foreign Credential Recognition Program that was completed in 2006-2007 made six recommendations to Management, all of which have either been addressed or are currently being addressed. The recommendations addressed issues such as improving the performance measurement strategy and the sharing of project results. The formative evaluation and the management response can be viewed at the following websites, respectively:
  http://www.hrsdc.gc.ca/en/publications_resources/evaluation/2007/sp_ah_687_02_07/page05.shtml
  http://www.hrsdc.gc.ca/en/publications_resources/evaluation/2007/sp_ah_687_02_07/page03.shtml .
• The Evaluation report concluded that the Foreign Credential Recognition Program is progressing well towards accomplishing its objectives and outcomes.

Program Indicators

Workplace Skills
Indicators	Notes
Number of apprentices that received the Apprenticeship Incentive Grant. Target: N/A Result: 4,900 applications for the Grant as of March 31st, 2007.	Since this indicator is new, no target was set. Approval of Apprenticeship Incentive Grant funding occurred on March 30, 2007.
Increase in the number of trades people who are fully mobile in Canada through Red Seal endorsement. Target: 15,000 Result: 20,386 (2006)	Red Seal statistics are reported annually, based on the January to December time period.
Number of tools and processes completed to be used in verifying and recognizing foreign credentials and work experience of foreign-trained professionals. Target: 85 Result: 89	Cumulative totals from April 2004 – March 2007

 

Achievements Against Priorities

Working Skills
Plan:	2006-2007 Achievements
Priority: Articulating an integrated workplace skills strategy by working with provinces, territories, key government departments and stakeholders in advancing multiple activities that include trades and apprenticeship, foreign credential recognition, labour market information, as well as sectoral initiatives.
Further developing and strengthening Foreign Credential Recognition initiatives, including the proposed Canadian Agency for Assessment and Recognition of Foreign Credentials.	The Foreign Credential Recognition Program made investments towards addressing Foreign Credential Recognition issues and expanded its scope to additional occupations and sectors such as Respiratory Therapists and the Biotechnology sector. An Investment Selection Process that takes a strategic approach for selecting occupations for the Foreign Credential Recognition Program future investments was implemented. The Working in Canada tool that provides seamless integrated Labour Market Information from several departmental databases (and the backbone to the Foreign Credential Recognition Office website) was developed. The Foreign Credential Recognition Office task force received approval for the initial design of the Office and undertook research, analysis and consultations in support of policy and program development.
Implementation of the Trades & Apprenticeship Strategy including the Apprenticeship Incentive Grant.	The implementation of the Trades and Apprenticeship Strategy progressed with the launch of the AIG application process and website on January 1, 2007. Received more than 4,900 applications for the grant from January to March 2007. Federal-Provincial-Territorial working groups established under the Trades and Apprenticeship Strategy are meeting objectives and timelines of work plans established in key areas: common core curriculum; language benchmarks; integration of Essential Skills into Red Seal apprenticeship training programs; integration into civilian trades workforce of retiring military trades people; and evidence-based analysis. The Aboriginal Human Resources Development Council is forging partnerships through outreach to employers and other to promote Aboriginal participation in apprenticeships and the skilled trades.
Continuing to work with provinces and territories to improve inter-provincial labour mobility under the Agreement on Internal Trade.	Forum of Labour Market Ministers Senior Officials approved 2006-2007 Labour Mobility Coordinating Group labour mobility work plan. Forum of Labour Market Ministers' Deputy Ministers reviewed progress towards reaching 2009 compliance deadline to accelerate the removal of barriers to mobility for Canadians. Investments were made towards addressing Labour Mobility issues within priority health occupations such as Medical Laboratory Technologists, Registered Nurses and Audiologists.
Further developing and strengthening the Workplace Literacy and Essential Skills Initiative.	Launched first Essential Skills Initiative Call for Proposals with focus on Essential Skills in and for the workplace (45 proposals received). New National Essential Skills Workplace Service approved to provide contributions funding to assist employers in developing the Essential Skills of their employees. Seven Essential Skills tools were developed to support HR practices in the workplace. Conducted research that will contribute to the knowledge base for Essential Skills including an inventory of Province-Territory Essential Skills initiatives and a representative survey of 1500 Canadian workplaces to better understand the extent to which Essential Skills is deemed important and is being implemented in Canadian workplaces.
Refining and broadening the impact of the Sector Council Program, testing new and innovative approaches to sectoral skills development.	93% of Sector Councils met or exceeded expected levels of performance. The Sector Council Program withdrew funding from two sector councils and re-directed investments towards more strategic sectors to broaden impact, namely Agriculture and Supply Chain Logistics. Discussions were held with the forestry sector to assess the feasibility to establish a forestry sector council. Labour Market Transition Initiative was initiated as a new instrument. Five pilots were launched in electricity, mining, trucking, environment, and petroleum).
Take first steps to develop common core curriculum standards for Red Seal trades, with the goal of improving the labour mobility of apprentices in Canada.	Engaged six provinces in the project to develop common core curriculum standards for the Red Seal trades, known as the Interprovincial Program Guide project. Conducted five Interprovincial Program Guide workshops for the Red Seal trades. Completed three Interprovincial Program Guides as of March 2007.
Through the Forum of Labour Market Ministers Labour Market Information Working Group, continue working on issues of common interest to provide Canadians with quality labour market information.	The Labour Market Information Working Group held its 5th Annual National Labour Market Information Forum in Winnipeg, with the theme "The Power of Labour Market Information : A Roadmap for Canada´s Changing Labour Market". Over 135 participants attended from Federal, Provincial and Territorial governments, academia, business, education communities, with speakers from Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom. The Labour Market Information Training Resource package, designed for career and employment practitioners, was finalized and approved for release by the Forum of Labour Market Ministers´ senior officials.

For more details relating to programs supporting this activity, please see Section IV – Other Items of Interest

Financial and Human Resources 2006-2007

Workplace Skills
Gross Spending (Millions of dollars)	Planned Spending	Authorities	Actual
Gross Operating Expenditures	102.9	106.9	102.9
Non-Statutory Grants and Contributions	116.4	79.3	38.6
Total	219.3	186.2	141.5
Full Time Equivalents	908	942	942

 

Details by Program and Services 2006-2007

Workplace Skills
	Planned Spending	Authorities	Actual Spending
Financial Resources (in millions of dollars)
Workplace Partnerships	127.3	89.4	49.4
Foreign Workers and Immigrants	22.6	32.1	30.0
Skills & Labour Market Information	33.6	24.8	24.4
Allocated Corporate Servicesa	29.6	31.5	31.3
Otherb	6.2	8.4	6.4
Total c	219.3	186.2	141.5
Human Resources
Total FTE	908	942	942
aCorporate Services resources related to the Minister's Office, the Deputy Minister's Office, the Comptroller's Office and the Shared Services have been prorated to each Strategic Outcome. b Other category is for resources which are not directly related to the sub-activities identified. cThis amount includes resources for the delivery of programs and services by Service Canada. For a full accounting of Service Canada's operations please refer to the Strategic Outcome, "Achieve better outcomes for Canadians through service excellence (Service Canada)".

Program Activity: Learning

Lifelong learning is vital to the well-being of individual Canadians as well as the productivity, competitiveness and prosperity of Canada. As announced on November 23, 2006, Canada's economic plan, Advantage Canada, is designed to make Canada a world leader for today and future generations. It will build a strong Canadian economy and make our quality of life second to none through competitive economic advantage. The Knowledge Advantage component of this plan identifies "creating the best-educated, most skilled and most flexible workforce in the world", as one of the five key areas of focus to gain a global competitive advantage. In recent years the knowledge-based economy has increasingly been creating jobs that require a higher level of education and skills. The Canadian Post-secondary Education: A Positive Record - An Uncertain Future report states that, by 2013, "Two-thirds (66%) of new non-student jobs will demand post-secondary education or be in the management group"¹.

This report further elaborates that "research shows that higher education and training are strongly linked to safe communities, a healthy population and sustainable environment. Other benefits of an educated population include a greater appreciation of diversity, resulting in a stronger social cohesion".

This report also cites a Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation study (2004) that identifies the impact on Canada's economy of investing in post-secondary education. For example, university graduates represent 16.1% of the population, provide 33% of income tax paid and consume 9.1% of government transfers, such as employment insurance or social assistance. A similar percentage of the population (19.2%) that have less than high school provide much less (8.8%) of income tax paid, and consume considerably more (35.1%) of government transfers. This suggests that a greater investment in post-secondary education could yield a substantial benefit to the economy with more income tax paid and less government transfers.

Strategic Outcome Indicators

Learning
Indicators	Current Level
Percentage of population with post-secondary diplomas/degrees (2006)	25-64 year-olds = 47.0%
	25-34 year-olds = 54.8%
	35-64 year-olds = 44.5%
Percentage of adult population (aged 25-64)who participated in adult learning opportunities (2002)	36.7%
Post-secondary participation 18-21year-olds by family after-tax income quartile when youth were age 16 (2001).	Family After-tax	PSE Participation
	Income Quartile	University	College
	Lowest	21%	30%
	Lower-middle	25%	32%
	Upper-middle	30%	37%
	Highest	38%	30%
	Overall	29%	32%
Proportion of adults who were attending university or college, by age group (October 2006)	Age Groups	Percentage
	25-34	9.2%
	35-44	3.5%
	45-54	1.5%
	55-64	0.6%
	Overall 25-64	3.7%

Human Resources and Social Development assists Canadians in accessing the learning opportunities they need to increase their skill levels and participate more fully in a knowledge-based economy and society. The Department fosters a culture of lifelong learning by:

• promoting awareness of the importance of lifelong learning and the need to save, plan and pay for post-secondary education;
• facilitating access for students to post-secondary education and adult learning opportunities;
• collaborating with provincial and territorial governments and other key stakeholders on the delivery of learning programs and services; and
• researching and disseminating information on the benefits of learning for individuals and society

As part of its mandate, the Department works with Service Canada, provincial and territorial governments, foundations, universities, financial institutions and other key stakeholders. The Department also manages Horizontal Initiatives, including the Canada Student Loans Program². At the beginning of 2006-2007 the Department had agreements with four foundations.³ Three of these foundations - the Canadian Council on Learning, the Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation and the Peter Gzowski Foundation for Literacy received one-time funding in prior years, while the Winnipeg Foundation has received cost-matched funding on an annual basis ending September 30, 2006. The funding agreement with the Read to Me! Foundation also ended on September 30, 2006. The funding agreements for the latter two foundations ended due to the expiry of the terms and conditions of the National Literacy Program and the approval by Treasury Board Secretariat of new terms and conditions for the Adult Learning, Literacy and Essential Skills Program.

The Learning program activity manages relations between the various participating organizations, develops policies and guidelines to ensure the relevance and effectiveness of its programs, works to strengthen partnerships with provincial and territorial governments and stakeholders and introduces changes that contribute to streamlining the delivery of the programs. Many of these changes originate from budget announcements and recommendations from evaluations and the Office of the Auditor General reports. Human Resources and Social Development Canada also works with Service Canada in managing and continuously improving program delivery. This partnership, which primarily focuses on the provision of technical support in the areas of human resources, communication, systems and call centres, enables the delivery of the Learning Branch's programs.

The largest program of the Learning Program Activity is the Canada Student Loans Program which helps to lower financial barriers for those with a demonstrated financial need. In 2006-2007 approximately 461,500 borrowers benefited from the Canada Student Loans Program. Approximately 49,600 Canada Study Grants and 39,000 Canada Access Grants were awarded to students to increase the participation of under-represented groups in post-secondary education.

In order to ensure the financial integrity of programs, the Canada Student Loans Program worked with its partners, an external audit firm, Integrated Provinces and Service Canada to deliver 30 audit reports for the year ending March 31, 2007. These reports were part of annual audits of the two Service Providers and they serve to provide assurance on the financial statements of the Program, as well as compliance with the Integration Agreements between the Federal Government and the four Integrated Provinces. Results of the audits were very positive.

The 2007 Report on Federal Loans and Grants for Post-Secondary Education by the Office of the Auditor General found that the Canada Student Loans Program is generally well managed. It noted that "The Department has the necessary controls in place for disbursing loans and grants; it also obtains reasonable assurance that its partners in delivering the Program are fulfilling their responsibilities". However, the report noted that a clear strategy for measuring improved access to post-secondary education was needed. While developing national-level indicators is a challenge as not all provinces have the same availability of data, the Department is committed to developing a performance measurement framework to address this. The report also found that the Department is taking steps to make prospective post-secondary students and their families more aware of the financial assistance available to them. As an example of this, the Canada Student Loans Program ran year two of the Pan-Canadian Communications Campaign from September 2006 until March 2007. Advertisements ran federally in national magazines and on-line parenting websites. Participating provinces and territory also ran advertisements in newspapers, radio, billboards and cable television.

Students can also receive funding from the Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation. The objectives of the Foundation are to improve access to post-secondary education for all Canadians, especially those facing economic or social barriers; to encourage a high level of student achievement and engagement in Canadian society; and to build a national alliance of organizations and individuals around a shared post-secondary agenda. The Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation distributes $325 million in the form of bursaries and scholarships each year. Since 2000, the Foundation has delivered more than half a million bursaries and scholarships worth more than $1.5 billion to students across Canada. The Office of the Auditor General 2007 Report on Federal Loans and Grants for Post-Secondary Education found that the Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation's bursary programs are well managed and that the Foundation has the necessary controls in place to ensure that eligibility for bursaries is assessed correctly and that payments are issued in the right amounts to the right people.

The Learning program activity continued to provide supports and incentives for Canadians to encourage savings for post-secondary education through the Canada Education Savings Program. In 2006-2007, the Department finalized the implementation of the Canada Learning Bond and changes to savings match rates following the recommendations of the formative evaluation completed in April 2003 and the Government's commitment to provide more support for education savings for low-income families. The Learning program activity has enabled Canadians to access opportunities in support of lifelong learning by providing education savings incentives through partnerships with Registered Education Savings Plan providers. Furthermore, the Department undertook various activities to increase awareness and uptake of the Canada Education Savings Program through community outreach activities and events across the country delivered through Service Canada. A second formative evaluation, that was originally scheduled for 2006-2007 will be conducted in 2007-2008 in order to have sufficient data on the Program changes to complete the evaluation. The overall objectives of this evaluation will be to provide information on the design, delivery and early impacts of the changes to the program implemented since 2005.

As a result of the Canada Education Savings Program, families have been saving more for their children's post-secondary education at a younger age. Since 1998, the average age at which children receive their first Canada Education Savings Grant has dropped from 8 years old to 4.3 years old in 2006. During that same time frame, there has been a dramatic increase in Registered Education Savings Plan savings from $4 billion in 1998 to $22 billion in 2006.

The Department implemented the Government's commitment to adult literacy through an integrated program, the Adult Learning, Literacy and Essential Skills Program. The Adult Learning, Literacy and Essential Skills Program was created through the integration of the National Literacy Program, the Office of Learning Technologies and the Learning Initiatives Program in April 2006. The Effective Spending Measures, announced on September 25, 2006 re-targeted federal investments to achieve concrete results and measurable outcomes for adult Canadians who want the opportunity to improve their learning and literacy skills. In 2006-2007, the Adult Learning, Literacy and Essential Skills Program supported 166 projects focussed in four strategic activity clusters including knowledge generation, capacity-building, innovation and demonstration projects, and promotion and public awareness. In addition, the Adult Learning, Literacy and Essential Skills Program provided support to 16 provincial or territorial literacy coalitions and 7 national literacy organizations. Results of an interim evaluation of the National Literacy Program and of phase 1 of a summative evaluation of the Office of Learning Technologies completed in 2007 will be used to support results-based management and accountability of the Adult Learning, Literacy and Essential Skills Program.

In 2006-2007, key accomplishments included:

• Ensured continuity of the delivery of the student loans program by completing the Canada Student Loan Program Service Provider Re-procurement process and initiated transition to new Service Provider, which will result in improved service to borrowers and substantial savings in program administration.
• Launched new communication plan for 2006-2008 to promote planning and saving for education and to increase uptake of the Canada Education Savings Program.
• Achieved the targeted Canada Education Savings Grant uptake of 34%.
• Achieved 92% client satisfaction rate from Registered Education Savings Plan promoters of the Canada Education Savings Program services, an increase from the 2004 survey.

Program Indicators

Learning
Indicators	Notes
3-year loan default rate (direct loans only for 2006-2007) Target: 26% Result: On track to meet targeted 3-year result (actual available in 2009-2010)	The 3-year loan default rate tracks the default rate of loans in the first three years after entering repayment. The Canada Student Loans Program has put in place a series of portfolio performance improvement initiatives and strategies in the past three years, which has resulted in significant improvement in the performance of loans of recent graduates. Currently all key performance indicators point to lower cohort default rates in the years to come. The 3-year default rate for 2003-2004 cohort was 28%. The preliminary estimate for the 2004-2005 cohort is 18%. There is evidence to indicate that performance of the 2005-2006 will improve. Based on this trend, it is anticipated that the target for the 2006-2007 cohort will be exceeded.
Number of Canadians who have ever received a Canada Education Savings Grant and who are attending postsecondary education in the current fiscal year Target:192,000 Result: 190,000 (calendar year)	This year´s result is 1% short of the target.
Percentage of Canadians under 18 years of age who have ever received a Canada Education Savings Grant Target:34% Result: 34%
Percentage of Children eligible for the Canada Learning Bond who have a Registered Education Savings Plan Target:22% Result: 8%	This target was first established when the Program was launched in 2005. It was based on an estimate of Registered Education Savings Plan savings patterns of low-income families in 2004. As a new initiative, the Canada Learning Bond required changes to the delivery network and awareness of its availability as a benefit for low-income families. It was only in July 2006 that a significant number of financial institutions became ready to offer the new Canada Learning Bond. This delayed the widespread availability of the Canada Learning Bond to eligible children. Throughout 2006-2007, the Department promoted awareness by sending letters to families of newly eligible children and engaging in other communication activities to encourage greater Canada Learning Bond participation. As a result, in 2006-2007 the number of Canada Learning Bond beneficiaries increased by 34,497 from 3,771 in 2005-2006. Cumulatively, this means there have been 38,268 beneficiaries paid, which represents 8% of those eligible for the Canada Learning Bond.
Service Indicators
Client satisfaction with the overall quality of services provided by the Canada Student Loans Program Target: 76% Result: 75%	Client Satisfaction ratings were 75% in the 2006-2007 loan year, which is the same rating as in the 2005-2006 loan year. Because the margin of error of this client satisfaction survey is 2.6%, statistically there is no difference between the target of 76% and the level achieved in 2006-2007.
Client (Registered Education Savings Plan providers) satisfaction with the overall quality of services provided by the Canada Education Savings Program 2006-2007 Target: 88% Result: 92%	Human Resources and Social Development Canada undertook a client satisfaction survey with promoters of Registered Education Savings Plan and the Canada Education Savings Program who received service during the 12-month period preceding the survey. A total of 50 interviews were conducted by telephone with clients with the result that 92% of the surveyed clients expressed satisfaction with the overall quality of service they received, with 50% very satisfied.

 

Achievements Against Priorities

Learning
Plan	2006-2007 Achievements
Priority: Continue to assess policy and program options in order to address financial and non-financial barriers to Post-Secondary Education access and to lifelong learning
Ongoing review of the Canada Student Loans program, including consideration of the needs assessment process.	Initiated significant work towards the simplification of the Canada Student Loans Program needs assessment process.
Implementation of the Budget 2006 parental contribution change as it relates to the Canada Student Loans Program.	Implemented the Budget 2006 measure to expand eligibility for Canada Student Loans through a reduction in the expected parental contribution.
Complete review of supports for debt management and assistance to part-time learners.	Completed research, knowledge and policy development work related to debt management measures (e.g. revision of terms, Interest Relief, Debt Reduction in Repayment, and permanent disability benefit) and supports for part-time students. The pros and cons of current supports to part-time learners were reviewed, focusing on developing a common understanding of the needs and motivations of part-time students.
Continue diagnostic work with the Provinces and Territories on the appropriate mix of loans, grants, and debt management instruments to address the needs of students from low and middle-income households.	Conducted ongoing research, knowledge and policy development related to students from middle-income families. Extensive research and diagnostic work was also completed on disadvantaged groups, including Aboriginal, rural, disabled, visible minorities and recent immigrants, student parents, and low income. Work in both of these areas has enabled identification of data and knowledge gaps that are being addressed.
Priority: Implement the Adult Learning, Literacy and Essential Skills Program and finalize the implementation of the Canada Learning Bond
Complete the development of, and implement, the Adult Learning, Literacy, and Essential Skills Program building on the strengths of the National Literacy Program, the Office of Learning Technologies Program and the Learning Initiatives Program, with common objectives, outcomes, and processes.	Launched and implemented the Adult Learning, Literacy and Essential Skills Program.
Strengthen federal leadership in promoting lifelong learning, literacy and essential skills development and reducing non-financial barriers to learning by increasing public awareness, building the research and knowledge base for long-term change, supporting learning initiatives in areas of federal priority, and enhancing accountability and outcome measurement	The Department initiated work on re-targeting future federal investments to national priorities and achieving concrete results and measurable outcomes for adult Canadians who want the opportunity to improve their learning and literacy skills. In 2006-2007, the Adult Learning, Literacy, and Essential Skills Program signed 155 projects in this area. Initiated a project to develop a Performance Measurement Strategy for the Learning program activity. The resulting logic model and performance indicators will be used to enhance outcome measurement and accountability.
Implement measures to increase Canadians awareness of the Canada Learning Bond, and the importance of planning and saving for post-secondary education, including the Education Savings Incentive Pan-Canadian Community Outreach.	Finalized the implementation of the Canada Learning Bond. By March 2007, forty-seven Registered Education Savings Plan providers had signed agreements with the Department and upgraded their systems to make the Canada Learning Bond widely available. As a result, there was a considerable increase in uptake in 2006-2007. In March 2007, the Department launched a national advertising campaign promoting the importance of planning and saving for a child's education and sent letters to all families eligible for the Canada Learning Bond. As well, inserts describing the Program were sent to 3.4 million families in the Canada Child Tax Benefit notices in July. Results for Canada Learning Bonds are in line with those experienced when Canada Education Savings Program first started in 1998. Two projects were initiated under the Education Savings Incentive Pan Canadian Community Outreach.
Continue working with the Province of Alberta to deliver the Alberta Centennial Education Savings Plan.	Canada Education Savings Program solidified a partnership with the government of Alberta and is delivering the Alberta Centennial Education Savings Plan on its behalf.
Other Achievements in 2006-2007 Laid the groundwork for the review of the Canada Student Loan Program announced in Budget 2007. Ensured ongoing partner compliance with Canada Education Savings Program rules through compliance reviews and grant payment monitoring. Concluded the negotiation of the new International Academic Mobility European Union-Canada cooperation program in Higher Education, Training and Youth (2006-2013). Facilitated provincial collaboration to establish Registered Education Savings Plans for children in care. Undertook negotiations with the Governments of British Columbia and Quebec on the delivery of provincial savings programs modeled on Canada Education Savings Grants. Negotiated and implemented an integrated Collections agreement between the Canada Student Loan Program and Newfoundland and Labrador to streamline the collections activities for loans to borrowers from that province. Review of all the Canada Student Loans Program´s Guidelines and Procedures documents used for the delivery of the Program in preparation for the transition to a new Service Provider. As a means to continuously improve our Program, a Summative Evaluation of the Canada Student Loans Program is being held over a 5-year period from 2006-2007 to 2010-2011, focusing on a different policy aspect of the program each year. The results of the first year indicate that the rationale for the program is still valid and the program appears to achieve objectives.

For more details relating to programs supporting these activities, please see Section IV - Other Items of Interest.

Financial and Human Resources 2006-2007

Learning
Gross Spending (Millions of dollars)	Planned Spending	Authorities	Actual
Gross Operating Expenditures	162.5	162.5	150.6
Non-Statutory Grants and Contributions	45.1	41.6	27.3
Statutory Transfer Payments	1,019.6	874.5	874.5
Total Gross Expenditures	1,227.2	1,078.6	1,052.4
Loans disbursed under the Canada Student Financial Assistance Act	981.5	1,231.9	1,231.9
Total	2,208.7	2,310.5	2,284.3
Full Time Equivalents	589	624	624

 

Details by Program and Services 2006-2007

Learning
Financial Resources (in millions of dollars)
	Planned Spending	Authorities	Actual
Student Financial Assistance	1,486.2	1,689.6	1,682.2
Canada Education Savings Program	634.2	537.5	536.1
Adult Learning, Literacy and Essential Skills Program	51.8	45.8	31.1
International Academic Mobility	4.0	3.9	2.7
Allocated Corporate Servicesa	25.0	26.6	26.5
Otherb	7.5	7.1	5.7
Total	2,208.7	2,310.5	2,284.3
Human Resources
Total FTE	589	624	624
a Corporate Services resources related to the Minister's Office, the Deputy Minister's Office, the Comptroller's Office and the Shared Services have been prorated to each Strategic Outcome. b Other category is for resources which are not directly related to the sub-activities identified.

Safe, Healthy, Fair, Stable, Cooperative, Productive Workplaces and Effective International Labour Standards

Program Activity: Labour

Labour laws and standards are critical to the successful functioning of private and public sector organizations, and equally important to the personal and family lives of the vast numbers of individuals who go to work every day. Labour law and policy define and structure the relationship between employers and employees. Employees may deal with employers as individuals or organized into legally recognized unions. Labour law and policy also deal with the basic work environment, ensuring it is safe, healthy and productive and maintains a fair balance of employer and employee rights and responsibilities.

The Labour Program's federal mandate reaches an estimated 46,000 Canadian workplaces and up to 1,132 million employees (approximately 8.5% of Canadian workers), is legislative in nature and is limited to the industries that fall under the jurisdiction of Parliament for labour matters. The federal labour jurisdiction comprises sectors of key importance to the Canadian economic infrastructure including transportation, communications and banking, as well as federal Crown Corporations and industries declared by Parliament to be for the general advantage of Canada, such as grain handling and uranium mining.

Strategic Outcome Indicators

Labour
Indicators	Level
Percentage of total working days lost due to work stoppages (federal jurisdiction)	Less than 1% (0.04%)
Representation of designated groups in all occupations and workforce availability, employers covered under the Legislated Employment Equity Program	Representation of Designated Groups(2004)
	Women	43.3%
	Aboriginal Peoples	1.8%
	Visible Minorities	14.1%
	People with Disabilities	2.7%
	Workforce Availability (2001)
	Women	47.3%
	Aboriginal Peoples	2.6%
	Visible Minorities	12.6%
	People with Disabilities	5.3%

The Labour Program serves the Canadian public and supports departmental objectives by fostering cooperation, coordination and knowledge sharing among Canadian governments and partners (workers' and employers' organizations) on labour issues. By providing dispute resolution and dispute prevention assistance to trade unions and employers under federal jurisdiction, the Labour Program helps to foster constructive and harmonious labour-management relations and contributes to cooperative and productive workplaces throughout Canada.

Labour legislation sets out minimum labour standards; strives to prevent accidents and injury to health in the course of employment through enforcement of occupational health and safety protections; ensures the protection, conservation and minimization of risks to life and property due to fire; and works to remove barriers in the labour market. The Program also seeks to ensure equitable employment opportunity for all Canadians and provide compensation benefits to employees of federal departments, agencies and Crown Corporations for employment-related injuries and illnesses.

The Program conducts and disseminates research and information on national and international labour laws and labour matters. It promotes internationally-recognized core labour standards that protect workers in Canada and abroad and negotiates and manages international labour cooperation agreements that support Canada's trade agenda and, consequently, Canadian businesses and prosperity.

Key 2006-2007 accomplishments include:

• 96.9% of collective bargaining disputes were settled without a work stoppage.
• The number of days not worked due to labour disputes in 2006-2007 represented less than half of one per cent (0.04%) of the total available work time in the federal private sector.
• The Minister of Labour introduced and Parliament passed emergency back-to-work legislation to ensure the continuation of rail services at the Canadian National Railway Company after the union membership rejected a tentative settlement reached with the assistance of the Chief Mediator.
• The development of new Pay Equity Program activities were announced, including education, promotion, specialized mediation services and monitoring to help build fair workplaces where men and women working in the same establishment are paid the same for doing work of equal value.
• The Minister of Labour tabled, in Parliament, the Annual Report - Employment Equity Act 2005 on June 15, 2006. In total, 520 employment equity reports submitted by federally-regulated private sector employers were validated and consolidated in the summer of 2006. Tools to assist employers in the fulfillment of their reporting obligations (e.g., variance tool, narrative report template) were developed and distributed.
• The Minister of Labour hosted a major roundtable drawing together leading employers, unions and academics to examine the contribution of good workplace practices related to economic productivity.
• Federal, provincial and territorial Ministers responsible for Labour adopted a joint statement affirming their commitment to the effective integration of occupational health and safety concepts and competencies into education and training, including, where appropriate, through elementary, secondary and post-secondary education systems.
• The effectiveness of Canada's international labour agreements increased with Quebec formally agreeing to accept, in its jurisdiction, the obligations of the Canada-Chile and Canada-Costa Rica agreements, bringing another 23% of the Canadian labour force under the auspices of these agreements.
• The Minister of Labour received a major report from the Federal Labour Standards Review Commission on modernizing Part III of the Canada Labour Code and responded to it by meeting with stakeholders to obtain their views, identifying priorities for administrative change, and launching development work on potential options for legislative change.
• The Minister of Labour supported the implementation of a new Wage Earner Protection Program, which would protect workers from loss of wages in the event of their employer's bankruptcy, by drafting and proposing technical amendments to the Wage Earner Protection Program Act to ensure that it operates fairly and effectively, and by developing the necessary regulations and program design.
• The International Trade and Labour grants and contributions program funded over $1 million in labour capacity-building programming, mainly in Canada's current and future trading partners in the Americas. Key project themes included preventing child labour in Central America, migrant worker outreach in the Caribbean, harmonizing labour legislation in the Caribbean, strengthening occupational health and safety in Central America, Belize, and the Dominican Republic, and supporting the Inter-American Conference of Ministers of Labour.
• Canada hosted a major conference on migrant workers' rights and temporary workers' programs, under the auspices of the Inter-American Conference of Ministers of Labour, with nearly 30 countries participating.
• Negotiations towards new international labour agreements advanced, particularly with Korea and Singapore.
• The revised Operations Program Directive (OPD) governing the investigation of refusals to work under the Canada Labour Code, Part II, and the guidelines that interpret key terms in connection with these investigations, such as "danger" and "normal condition of employment", took effect on March 7, 2007. The purpose of these revisions was to assist in the interpretation of the definition of danger, clarify the interpretation of normal condition of employment and ensure consistent application on the basis of the recent case law.

 

Program Indicators

Labour
Indicators	Notes
Percentage of collective bargaining disputes settled under Part I (Industrial Relations) of the Canada Labour Code without work stoppages Target: 90% Result: 96.9%
Percentage of unjust dismissal complaints settled by inspectors (Part III of the Canada Labour Code) Target: 75% Result: 74%	The result was less than 75% because many of the parties in the unjust dismissal process are becoming more litigious and are requesting an adjudicator to decide their case, rather than accept the assistance of an inspector.
Disabling Injury Incidence Rate measuring the change in the rate of lost time injuries, illnesses and fatalities within federal jurisdiction industries from year to year. Target: To reduce the Disabling Injury Incidence Rate by 10% over five years (from 2001-2005) in identified high priority industry sectors through targeting proactive inspections and other interventions focussed on education and prevention. Result: Percentage decrease in DIIR from 2001-2005 All industries reduced by 11.0% High priority industries reduced by 20.2%
Percentage of money collected in relation to the amount found to be owed for complaints under Part III (Labour Standards) of the Canada Labour Code (excluding unjust dismissal complaints). Target: 75% Result: 74%	The result was less than 75% because companies in Ontario and Quebec filed for bankruptcy protection. As the companies are under the protection of the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act, the Labour Program turned to the Directors for payment of the amounts owing, which attempt was not successful. This issue will be considered during the review of Part III (Labour Standards) of the Canada Labour Code.
Service Indicator
Client satisfaction with the quality of Workplace Information Directorate data. Target: 80% Result: 96.4%	96.4% rated the quality of Workplace Information´s products as good, very good and excellent
Additional Measures
The unionization rate defined as a proportion of non-agricultural workers who are covered by a collective agreement (national)	31.6% (2006)
Time loss injuries per 100 workers (all jurisdictions)	2.1 (2005)
Direct compensation cost per worker	$418 (2005)

 

Achievements Against Priorities

Labour
Priority: Complete a comprehensive review of Part III (Labour Standards) of the Canada Labour Code
Plan:	2006-2007 Achievements
Receive the final report from the independent Commissioner.	Report received in October 2006. The Minister of Labour has met with key stakeholders to obtain their views regarding the report´s recommendations on how to modernize labour standards in the federal jurisdiction.
Develop policy options in response to the recommendations.	Priorities for administrative changes in response to the report´s recommendations have been identified and analysis of potential options for legislative change.
Priority: Develop policy options for a modernized Federal Workers´ Compensation System including a Federal Disability Management Strategy
Complete research and other preparations required to reform the system.	An examination of current agreements in place with provincial Workers´ Compensation Boards and national and international models and approaches was launched. Engaged key expertise in the field to study and advice on the feasibility and benefits of program, operational and delivery improvements and changes.
Priority: Complete preparations for the Wage Earner Protection Program
Draft regulations and prepare for implementation of the new Act.	Drafting instructions were provided to the Regulations Section of Justice Canada. Developed program design, and initiated audit and evaluation frameworks, risk assessment, and privacy impact assessment.
Priority: Parliamentary review of the Employment Equity Act
Draft the Minister of Labour´s five-year report, which would include a socio-economic analysis of current conditions among the designated groups, a presentation of program administrative data on progress, and accomplishments towards the recommendations made by the Committee in the previous review.	A presentation document was drafted, along with supporting material for the Minister of Labour. A report on progress of the implementation of the recommendations in the previous review was drafted with input from all federal partners (intra and interdepartmental) with responsibility for implementation of the recommendations.
Other Achievement 2006-2007 The first phase of training related to the proactive administration of the Pay Equity Program has taken place. Employers have been contacted, specialized mediation services are now available, and a number of printed products are in the approval stage. The Minister of Labour and the Minister of Natural Resources collaborated with the government of Nova Scotia to create a single regulatory and administrative regime that will apply to the Donkin Mine. Officials of the federal Labour Program, Natural Resources Canada and the provinces of Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador agreed, in principle, to a regime for the effective enforcement of occupational health and safety in the Atlantic offshore oil and gas industry. One Operational Program Directive and two Interpretations Policies and Guidelines were revised and developed to recognize the changing interpretations by the Appeal authorities of the definition of "danger" in Part II of the Canada Labour Code and the impact these interpretations have on employees' right to refuse dangerous work. 75 awareness sessions were delivered to employers across Canada as part of the implementation of the Racism-Free Workplace Strategy (a component of the Canada Action Plan Against Racism) providing operational tools, addressing potential racism-related issues in the workplace, and building a network of community resources. Completed a draft Aboriginal Labour Affairs Strategy that will focus on relationship building with Aboriginal communities, implementing labour initiatives sensitive to cultural, economic, and geographic context, and fulfilling a policy research agenda to support the strategy. A Canada where service delivery is focused on citizen needs through: the creation of a more inclusive and user-friendly Labour Program web site for the use of all our partners and stakeholders, which allows for the availability of a wide range of labour information. and the introduction of a 1-800 line for ready access to the National Labour Operations Directorate, at all times of the day and from all Canadian locations, to further enhance the delivery of our services.

For more details on programs supporting this activity, please see Section IV - Other Items of Interest

Financial and Human Resources 2006-2007

Labour
	Planned Spending	Authorities	Actual
Gross Spending (Millions of dollars)
Gross Operating Expenditures	90.6	91.3	91.3
Non-statutory Grants and Contributions	3.9	3.9	2.7
Statutory Grants and Contributions	28.7	0.0	0.0
Workers' Compensation Payments	126.0	136.4	136.4
Total	249.2	231.6	230.4
Full Time Equivalents	904	863	863

 

Details by Program and Services 2006-2007

Labour
	Planned Spending	Auhorities	Actual Spending
Financial Resources (in millions of dollars)
Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service	7.9	8.1	7.1
National Labour Operations	171.1	183.0	183.0
International and Intergovernmental Labour Affairs	5.9	6.0	6.0
Workplace Policy and Information	36.1	4.2	4.2
Allocated Corporate Servicesa	26.8	28.5	28.3
Otherb	1.4	1.8	1.8
Total	249.2	231.6	230.4
Human Resources
Total FTE	904	863	863
aCorporate Services resources related to the Minister's Office, the Deputy Minister's Office, the Comptroller's Office and the Shared Services have been prorated to each Strategic Outcome. bOther category is for resources which are not directly related to the sub-activities identified.

Enhanced Income Security, Access to Opportunities and Well-Being for Individuals, Families and Communities

The Department continued helping individuals, families, and communities achieve their potential in contributing to Canadian society and sharing in the opportunities society provides. Challenges require that the Department be flexible in finding the most effective ways to provide assistance. At times, this involved providing direct assistance, such as the financial benefits paid to parents to help them choose the kind of care they want for their young children. Other approaches included working horizontally with other federal departments and orders of government; working with groups at the community level; tapping the capacity of non-profit organizations; or generating awareness about issues among the public at large. Some challenges, such as enhancing the income security of seniors, affect a broad segment of the population and involved providing pensions to millions of people; other challenges called for a more tailored approach to address particular circumstances, such as providing the assistance that helped more than 2,500 people with disabilities improve their employability. A new Homelessness Partnering Strategy that increases horizontality and partnerships was developed to improve access to the range of services and programs that homeless individuals and families need to move toward self-sufficiency. Working towards this strategic outcome also contributed to a number of Government of Canada outcomes, such as A Diverse Society that Promotes Linguistic Duality and Social Inclusion, Safe and Secure Communities, Income Security and Employment for Canadians, Strong Economic Growth and an Innovative and Knowledge Based Economy.

Program Activity: Social Investment

Canada's economic prosperity, its vibrant labour market, and the positive outlook for our country's future are closely linked to the security and well-being of Canadians, their families and communities.

The means by which individuals attain income security, care for and support a family and participate in their community contributes to the extent of their well-being and inclusion in Canadian society. In 2006-2007, the Department continued to build and enhance social investments for Canadians.

Despite current economic successes, Canada still faces many social challenges that require our full attention and support. Individuals, families and communities are experiencing diverse impacts from a variety of different sources, such as changing family structures and dynamics, an aging population, and the challenge of securing adequate income. As a result, the Department worked with stakeholders, provinces and territories to address and develop collaborative solutions to these challenges.

Key areas of accomplishment in 2006-2007 include:

• Introduction and passage of legislation to amend the Canada Pension Plan and the Old Age Security Act (Bill C-36).
• Extended the Labour Market Agreements for Persons with Disabilities for one-year, to March 31, 2008, with annual funding of $222 million made available to the provinces/territories.
• Selected 16 new communities in the Understanding the Early Years initiative through a Call for Proposals process.
• Approved 775 New Horizons for Seniors Program projects for a total of 14 million dollars.
• Launched the new National Seniors Council to advise the Government on matters related to the health, well-being and quality of life of seniors.
• Developed and implemented Branch-wide information-gathering strategies to support reporting on results.

Strategic Outcome Indicators

Social Investment
Indicators	Current Level
Number and proportion of individuals aged 65 years+, who had low family income	242,000	6.1% (2005)
Number and proportion of individuals aged 65 years+ who would have had low income without public support	1,977,400	50.9% (2004)
Average income by which low-income individuals aged 65+ fall short of the relevant LICO threshold if public pension support is removed	2004	$3,137
Average combined annual Canada Pension Plan/Old Age Security/Guaranteed Income Supplement payments for persons over 65 years of age represented as percentage of annual Average Industrial Earnings	2006	40.6%
Proportion of income provided by the Old Age Security program as a percentage of total postretirement income for seniors	2004	22.6%
Proportion of income provided by the OAS program as a percentage of total post-retirement income for low-income seniors	2004	57.5%
Proportion of income provided by the Canada Pension Plan program as a percentage of total postretirement income for seniors	2004	17.8%
Persons living in Canada receiving a benefit from another country as a result of a Social Security Agreement	2005	171,229
Contribution of the Canada Pension Plan-Disability Program to income support of beneficiaries as measured by total disability payments as a percentage of total net income received from all sources (measure every three years from tax data)	2004	42.6% (includes QPP disability clients)

 

Program Indicators

Social Investment
Indicators	Notes
Proportion of Canada Pension Plan contributors who have contributory coverage/eligibility for Canada Pension Plan Disability Target: - new measure Result: 67% (Males); 62% (Females)	Canada Pension Plan Disability contributory eligibility is based on workforce attachment, which is influenced by factors beyond the scope of program activities. To be eligible for benefits, contributors must have been employed or self-employed and have made Canada Pension Plan contributions in four of the last six years. The proportion of contributors with Canada Pension Plan Disability eligibility is expected to remain stable at 65% to the year 2010.
Number of Canada Pension Plan Disability recipients who report a return to work and leave benefits - proportion of this group of clients who have remained off benefits for six months or more Target: new measure Result: 2,107	The proportion of this group who remained off benefits for six months or more can only be measured in October 2007; hence, results will be reported next fiscal year.
Number of partnerships concluded that provide the public with knowledge of the Old Age Security and Canada Pension Plan programs Target: new measure Result: not available	Indicator currently being tested in a pilot project in the Ontario region of the Department.
Labour Market Agreements for Persons with Disabilities
Number of participants in programs/services under the Labour Market Agreements for Persons with Disabilities Target: 199, 812 Result: not available	Reports for 2006-2007 will be released in December 2007
Number and Percentage of participants completing a program or service through the Labour Market Agreements for Persons with Disabilities programming, where there is a specific start and end point to the intervention, by province 2006-2007 Target: 76,311 (38%) Result: not available	Reports for 2006-2007 will be released in December 2007
Number and percentage of participants who obtained or were maintained in employment through LMAPD programming, where the program or service supports the activity. Target: 43,680 (22%) Result: not available	Reports for 2006-2007 will be released in December 2007
Opportunities Fund for Persons with Disability
Number of clients served Target: 5,539 Result: 4,923
Number and percentage of clients who obtained employment Target: 1,711 (31%) Result: 1,757 (36%)
Number and percentage of clients with enhanced employability Target: 2,198 (40%) Result: 2,642 (54%)
Number and percentage of clients who sought further skills upgrading (returned to school) Target: 242 (4 %) Result: 223 (4.5%)
Social Development Partnerships Program
Knowledge is created and disseminated to meet the social development needs of citizens Target: new measure Result: see notes	Examples where knowledge was created or disseminated included: Participants from the Vibrant Communities project shared their knowledge and experience via the Government Learning Circle teleconferencing series which connects a virtual ‘community of practitioners´ who seek to understand how government can best play enabling roles in local, collaborative, well-being efforts. Three tele-learning sessions were held in 2006-2007, attracting 70 registrants, on average, per session. The cross-country dissemination of the Voluntary Sector Awareness Campaign, which promoted an increased understanding, among Canadians and the community non-profit sector, of the important contribution the sector makes to Canada´s economic and social well-being. La Fédération Canadienne des enseignantes et des enseignants produced a set of tools related to the « Profil d'entrée à la 1ère année dans une perspective langagière et culturelle ». These tools are intended to enhance the development of young francophone children in official language minority communities.
Understanding the Early Years Initiative
Number of communities that apply through the call for proposals process during each year Target: new measure Result: 33 communities applied for funding
New Horizons for Seniors Program
Number of seniors leading and or involved in funded project activities within the community Target: - new measure Result: 106,745 (estimate)
Social Development Partnerships Program Office for Disability Issues
Number of proposals (from contribution agreements) funded Target: 46 Result: 61

 

Achievements Against Priorities

Social Investment
Plan:	2006-2007 Achievements
Priority: Enhance income security and active participation in communities
Develop and implement a plan to inform people about the retirement income system and their role within it. Efforts will include a focus on Aboriginals on-reserve.	Work plan frameworks were developed for priority populations, revolving largely around how to develop the capacity of partners in reaching out to these groups. These plans are intended to guide regional and headquarter work in targeting hard-toreach groups. Efforts to better reach Aboriginal seniors included the design and testing of a training and learning initiative (Working Together Workshop) for service providers in First Nations communities.
Develop a Seniors Council that will assist in the development of a seniors' policy agenda and the Plan of Action for Seniors.	The creation of the National Seniors Council and the appointment of its chair were announced on March 5, 2007. The Council will advise the Government on seniors' issues of national importance and help ensure that government policies, programs and services meet the evolving needs of seniors. The Council will initially focus on ways to raise awareness of and combat elder abuse, and to provide support to unattached, low-income senior women.
Priority: Break down barriers to full participation in the richness of Canadian life and communities
Undertake policy research and development on disability issues and work towards bringing forward a National Disability Act	Developed preliminary policy options on a legislative proposal to improve accessibility, engaging all partners within the Department and across government.
Extend the Labour Market Agreements for Persons with Disabilities	Extended the Labour Market Agreements for Persons with Disabilities for a one-year period to March 31, 2008, with annual funding of $222 million being made available to the provinces and territories.
Contribute to the Canada Pension Plan Triennial Review by managing the adoption of an amendment to relax contributory eligibility for longterm contributors applying for Canada Pension Plan Disability benefits, as well as other minor amendments, and planning for their eventual implementation	Developed policy proposals for the Canada Pension Plan Committee to ease contributory eligibility for Canada Pension Plan Disability for long-term contributors. Following approval in principle by federal-provincial-territorial finance ministers, developed the legislative amendment as part of Bill C-36, and supported the tabling and passage through Parliament. Leading the implementation of the amendment on long-term contributors.
Start Phase One of a comprehensive evaluation of the Canada Pension Plan-Disability Program, including a review of existing literature and data, key informant interviews, and examination of the interactions between the Canada Pension Plan-D and other disability income programs	In collaboration with the Evaluation Directorate, a Request for Proposal process was conducted, and a contractor was selected to undertake Phase I of the Canada Pension Plan Disability evaluation.
Place Canada Pension Plan-Disability administrative data into Statistics Canada´s Research Data Centres for use by academic researchers to build the knowledge base about Canada Pension Plan-Disability	Worked with Statistics Canada to update the 2006 Participation and Activity Limitation Survey (data collection phase complete). A conference is being planned to maximize the use of the new data once released.
Improve awareness, coherence, and horizontal management of disability policies and programs within HRSDC and across the Government of Canada	Launched the Task Team on Accessibility to make the Department fully accessible and a model employer for people with disabilities. Worked with Infrastructure Canada to ensure that accessibility requirements are considered in projects funded through contributions by the Government of Canada. Worked with the Centre for Emergency Preparedness and Response, Public Health Agency of Canada to ensure that accessibility is considered in the development of emergency preparedness plans.
Serve as a national focal point within the Government of Canada for national and international partners working to promote the full participation of people with disabilities	Work undertaken to advance the full participation, inclusion and well-being of people with disabilities included: a) Extending the Terms and Conditions of the Opportunities Fund for Persons with Disabilities for 2 years; and contributing to policy development for new Labour Market Agreements; and b) Contributing to policy discussions on the Working Income Tax Benefit. Budget 2007 announced an additional supplement for people with disabilities; commencing work towards a Registered Disability Savings Plan proposal as well as a legislative proposal to improve accessibility for people with disabilities. Canada was an active contributor to the negotiations leading to the adoption by the UN General Assembly of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in December 2006. Canada was one of the first countries to sign the Convention when it was opened for signature at a ceremony in New York City on March 30, 2007. Progress toward revitalizing the Benefit Services for Person with Disabilities Working Group: Drafting new terms of reference Renewal of Labour Market Agreements for Persons with Disabilities to March 2008 Drafted collaborative Federal/Provincial/Territorial workplan Established new collaborative Federal/Provincial/Territorial disability-related network by reaching out to Provincial/Territorial Offices for Disability Issues and Premiers' Councils.
Priority: Support non-profit community sector efforts to innovate, strengthen networks of collaboration, develop capacity and share good practices to contribute to community well-being
Increase the participation of seniors through the third Call for Applications under the New Horizons for Seniors Program	Investments were made in 775 new projects worth a total of $13.9 million under the New Horizons for Seniors Program to encourage seniors to share their knowledge and skills with others in their community.
Strategically invest in national and non-profit community sector organizations through the Social Development Partnerships Program	Investments were made in 78 active projects worth a total of $11.5 million under the Social Development Partnerships Program. This included issuing a Call for Proposals for funding to enable national organizations to improve the well-being of children and families.
Make investments to enhance early childhood development policies and programs for families in official language minority communities	A Call for Proposals was issued to strengthen early childhood development for official language minority communities. This resulted in the approval of a funding agreement to build a national vision shared by stakeholders involved in early childhood development for official language minority communities.
Additional communities will participate in the Understanding the Early Years initiative through its second Call for Proposals	A Call for Proposals for new Understanding the Early Years communities was issued which resulted in applications from 33 communities while continuing to manage ongoing projects in 21 communities worth $2.6 million.
Foster social innovation and entrepreneurship within the non-profit community sector in a move towards greater sustainability and self-sufficiency over the long term	Community non-profit stakeholders were consulted to identify priorities for investing in innovation which included a literature review, an online survey, interviews and a workshop that brought together stakeholders from across the country. This resulted in the development of a Call for Proposals for $2.6 million to be launched in 2007-2008. A community finance advisory committee was established to review, collect and debate information and advice on community financing. Also, research was initiated to identify the scope of activities done by social enterprises in the Canadian economy. Collaborated with Statistics Canada on the release of the 2004 Canada Survey of Giving, Volunteering and Participating.
Develop tools to foster growth and innovation for community-based socio-economic development	The Second Government Learning Circle in cooperation with Vibrant Communities was launched, which is supporting a virtual 'community of practitioners' who seek to understand how government can best play enabling roles in local, collaborative, well-being efforts. Supported the Collaborative Community Initiatives Speaker Series, a learning series which has attracted audiences of over 200 people, with representation from more than 25 different federal organizations since February 2006. Worked collaboratively with private sector organizations to develop instruments to measure and report on the social, environmental and financial impacts of investments in social-entrepreneurial activities. The Demonstrating Value Project was initiated to measure the social, environmental and economic impact of social enterprises. A financial fitness toolkit was developed to assist community sector organizations in the areas of accounting, financial planning and legal issues.
Make strategic investment to support the engagement of the non-profit community sector in policy dialogue and the sharing of innovative practices	The cross-country dissemination of the Voluntary Sector Awareness Campaign was promoted to increase the understanding, among Canadians and the community non-profit sector, of the important contribution the sector makes to Canada´s economic and social well-being. Six studies were commissioned in collaboration with key stakeholders and federal partners to gather intelligence and advance policy analysis pertaining to social enterprises.
Demonstrate leadership and support other federal departments in their efforts to effectively work with the non-profit community sector	The Task Force on Community Investments published 3 major reports on federal policies and practices related to transfer payments and the funding of horizontal initiatives. In November 2006, the Task Force recommended 41 ways to achieve more consistent and coherent funding practices which were subsequently reflected in the report of the Independent Blue Ribbon Panel on Grant and Contribution Programs in December 2006.

For more details on programs supporting this activity, please see Section IV - Other Items of Interest.

Program Activity: Children and Families

The Government of Canada recognizes that families are the building blocks of a society, and that child care is a priority for Canadian families. Canada's Universal Child Care Plan, consisting of both the Universal child Care Benefit and Support for the Creation of Child Care Spaces, represents a new approach to child care that respects the role of parents in determining how best to care for their children and recognizes the responsibility of provincial and territorial governments for delivering child care services.

Strategic Outcome Indicators

Children and Families
Indicators	Current Level
Percentage of children 4-5 years of age displaying normal to advanced development	2002-2003 86.9% of children 4 to 5 years of age displayed average to advanced levels of verbal development.
Distribution of children 0-6 by type of primary care arrangement	2002-2003
	Parental Care	47%
	Non-Parental Care	53%
	Care in someone else's home	45.9%
	Care in child's home	21.6%
	Daycare centre	27.8%
	Other	4.7%
Percentage of children for whom there is a regulated child care space (broken down by children ages 0-5 and 6-12)	2004 Approximately:
	Children 0-12	15.5%
	Children under age	24%
	School age children	9.3%
	Percentage of children ages 0-5 displaying behaviour problems	2002-2003 Emotional problems-anxiety: 16.7% of children 2 to 5 years of age displayed signs associated with emotional problems-anxiety Hyperactivity/Inattention: 5.5% of children 2 to 5 years of age displayed behaviour associated with hyperactivity or inattention Aggression/Conduct Problems: 14.6% of children 2 to 5 years of age displayed signs of aggression or conduct problems Age-appropriate personal and social behaviour: 15.7% of children from birth to 3 years of age did not display age-appropriate personal and social behaviour
Percentage of children living in families exhibiting positive family functioning	2002-2003 90.2% of children from birth to 5 years of age lived in wellfunctioning families

In addition, governments recognize that to secure a vibrant and productive society, the well-being of children is crucial. Through investments in key initiatives, participating governments have agreed to policy objectives that will enhance the well-being of children and the economic security of individuals as well as families with children. The Department is responsible for federal leadership on these initiatives and is actively involved in facilitating learning and reporting on results. Human Resources and Social Development Canada manages three horizontal initiatives in support of this strategic outcome including: the National Child Benefit Initiative, Federal-Provincial-Territorial Early Childhood Development Agreement and Federal-Provincial-Territorial Multilateral Framework on Early Learning and Childcare.

Details on these horizontal initiatives can be found at:
http://www.nationalchildbenefit.ca/home_e.html (National Child Benefit),
http://www.ecd-elcc.ca (Early Childhood Development),
http://www.ecd-elcc.ca/en/ecd/ecd_home.shtml (Federal/Provincial/Territorial Communiqué on Early Childhood Development).

The Department also plays a key role, on behalf of the Government of Canada, in the development and exchange of knowledge, information, and best practices related to children and their families.

Key accomplishments for 2006-2007 included:

• On-going policy work on Canada's Universal Child Care Plan, including supporting the creation of child care spaces
• On-going implementation of the Early Childhood Development Agreement and the Multilateral Framework on Early Learning and Child Care, including monitoring of and reporting on activities and expenditures
• Implementation of the Universal Child Care Benefit
• The National Child Benefit Supplement for low-income families with children increased by approximately $185 per child, bringing maximum National Child Benefit Supplement benefits
• for a two-child family to $3,665 in 2006-2007. Government of Canada investment in the National Child Benefit Supplement was $3.5 billion in 2006-2007.⁴

Program Indicators

Children and Families
Indicators	Notes
Incidence of low income - the change in the number and percentage of families and children that fall below the post-tax Low Income Cut-Off, due to the National Child Benefit, in one year Target: Actual data to be reported Result: In 2003, 60,500 families with 159,000 children were prevented from living in low income, due to the National Child Benefit. This is a reduction of 12.4 percent in the number of families with children living in low income.	The most recent analysis on this indicator is the year 2003, published in May 2007 in the National Child Benefit Progress Report: 2005.
Depth of low income - the change in the aggregate amount of income that low-income families would need to reach the post-tax Low Income Cut- Offs, due to the National Child Benefit, in one year Target: Actual data to be reported Result: In 2003, the National Child Benefit reduced the depth of low income, or the low-income gap, for families with children who received the National Child Benefit Supplement, by a total of $610 million, or 16.1%.	The most recent analysis on this indicator is the year 2003, published in May 2007 in the National Child Benefit Progress Report: 2005.
Number of children under six years of age for whom their parents are receiving the Universal Child Care Benefit Target:95% of all children under six years of age.5 Result:95%	The results reported are for the last month (March) of each fiscal year. In March 2007: There were 2,047,500 children under six years of age6 With 1,946,402 children under six years of age having received Universal Child Care Benefit payments Therefore, 95% of eligible children under six years of age received the Universal Child Care Benefit in March 2007.

 

Achievements Against Priorities

Children and Families
Priority: Provide support and choices for families, through Canada's new Universal Child Care Plan and other existing initiatives, to help ensure their children have the best possible start in life
Plan:	2006-2007 Achievements
Ensure successful implementation of Canada´s Universal Child Care Plan through: Working with other government departments to implement the Universal Child Care Benefit effective July 2006. Developing a strategy for the creation of new child care spaces, in consultation with other government departments, provinces and territories, stakeholders and Canadians.	Launch of the website on Canada´s Universal Child Care Plan (www.universalchildcare.ca) Effective July 1, 2006, through the Universal Child Care Benefit, families were eligible to receive $100 per month for each child under the age of six. To inform the development of the approach to create child care spaces, cross-country consultations with provinces and territories, employers, child care providers and other stakeholders were conducted through the summer and fall of 2006. A Ministerial Advisory Committee was established to provide advice on the design of the Child Care Spaces Initiative, complementing ongoing consultations with provinces and territories and stakeholders. Budget 2007 announced an approach to support the creation of child care spaces, which involves: Transfer to provinces and territories of $250M per year to support the creation of child care spaces in a way that builds on their respective child care systems ; and A non-refundable tax credit valued at 25% of eligible expenses to a maximum of $10,000 per space to support businesses interested in creating child care spaces in the workplace for the children of their employees and the wider community.
Ongoing implementation of the Federal, Provincial and Territorial Early Childhood Development Agreement and the Multilateral Framework on Early Learning and Child Care	Continue to fulfill reporting commitments as outlined in the 2000 Federal, Provincial and Territorial Early Childhood Development Agreement and 2003 Multilateral Framework on Early Learning and Child Care Draft of the report - The Well-Being of Canada´s Young Children: Government of Canada Report 2006 Amend drafts of the reports "Early Childhood Development Activities and Expenditures: Government of Canada Report 2004-2005" and "Early Learning and Child Care Activities and Expenditures: Government of Canada Report 2004-2005" to include activities and expenditures for 2005-2006. On-going work of the Federal, Provincial and Territorial Committee on Early Childhood Development Knowledge, Information and Effective Practices

For more details on programs supporting this activity, please see Section IV - Other Items of Interest.

Financial and Human Resources 2006-2007

Social Investment and Children and Families
Gross Spending (Millions of dollars)	Planned Spending	Auhorities	Actual
Gross Operating Expenditures	160.3	120.4	99.8
Non-Statutory Grants and Contributions	296.6	296.6	285.5
Statutory Grants and Contributions:
Old Age Security	23,255.0	22,878.8	22,878.8
Guaranteed Income Supplement	6,820.0	6,901.1	6,901.1
Allowances	500.0	504.1	504.1
Universal Child Care Benefit	1,610.0	1,784.4	1,784.4
Child Care - Prov./Terr. Agreements	650.0	650.0	650.0
Energy Cost Benefit	0.0	3.7	3.7
Total Statutory Grants and Contributions	32,835.0	32,722.1	32,722.1
Sub-Total	33,291.9	33,139.1	33,107.4
CPP Benefits	26,132.3	26,115.3	26,115.3
Total	59,424.2	59,254.4	59,222.7
Full Time Equivalents	872	500	500

 

Details by Program and Services 2006-2007

Social Investment and Children and Families
Financial Resources (in millions of dollars)
	Planned Spending	Auhorities	Actual Spending
Social Investment
Seniors and Pensions	53,248.3	53,274.9	53,274.9
Disability Programs	274.0	262.3	262.3
Canada Pension Plan - Disability	3,523.3	3,168.1	3,168.1
Community Development and Partnerships	52.6	42.2	42.2
Allocated Corporate Servicesa	43.2	61.3	34.5
Sub-Total	57,141.4	56,808.8	56,782.0
Children and Families
Child Care	1,610.0	1,784.4	1,784.4
Multilateral Framework for Early Learning and Child Care	650.0	650.0	650.0
Early Childhood Development Agreements	3.5	-	-
National Child Benefit	2.4	-	-
Allocated Corporate Servicesa	5.4	8.2	3.3
Otherb	11.5	3.0	3.0
Sub-Total	2,282.8	2,445.6	2,440.7
Total	59,424.2	59,254.4	59,222.7
Human Resources
Full Time Equivalents	872	500	500
aCorporate Services resources related to the Minister's Office, the Deputy Minister's Office, the Comptroller's Office and the Shared Services have been prorated to each Strategic Outcome. bOther category is for resources which are not directly related to the sub-activities identified.

Program Activity: Housing and Homelessness

The Government of Canada recognizes the importance of contributing to the reduction of homelessness in Canada. It does so by investing in 121 communities across the country to provide them with the tools to develop a range of interventions to stabilize the living arrangements of homeless persons and prevent those at-risk from falling into homelessness. The government of Canada works with new and existing partners and stakeholders such as communities, Aboriginal organizations and other levels of government to share strategies, deliver programs and develop mechanisms to prevent and reduce homelessness in Canada. The Department carries out the above activities on behalf of the Government of Canada, through the delivery of the National Homelessness Initiative.

Included in its investments in 121 communities, the National Homelessness Initiative makes strategic investments in 61 high profile designated communities, as well as in small, rural and Aboriginal communities across Canada to provide a range of supports and services such as drug counselling, rent banks, and supportive and longer-term housing that help homeless and at-risk people move toward self-sufficiency. The National Homelessness Initiative is contributing to the government of Canada outcomes by assisting homeless individuals through the provision of supports that assist in removing barriers to full participation in society, in an effort to strengthen the economic and social foundations of Canadian life and contributing to Canada´s economic growth.

Human Resources and Social Development Canada's responsibility for direct service delivery to Canadians is anchored in a network of 320 Service Canada Centres, as well as regional offices in each of the provinces and territories operated by Service Canada. The National Homelessness Initiative works in partnership with Service Canada's regional service delivery network. Regional Service Canada offices play a central role in implementing the National Homelessness Initiative and in building and enhancing horizontal partnerships within communities. By working closely with communities, the required services are determined, as well as the approach best suited to meeting those needs. Delivery can occur through agreements with community entities, with third party service providers, and with other levels of government. Responsibility for direct delivery to homeless persons depends on the type of agreement in place.

A summative evaluation of the National Homelessness Initiative was conducted in 2006-2007 and will be completed in 2007-2008. The results of the evaluation will be used to support results-based management and accountability of the new Homelessness Partnering Strategy

A new Homelessness Partnering Strategy was drafted and approved in December, 2006. The Homelessness Partnering Strategy replaces and builds upon the National Homelessness Initiative. The Homelessness Partnering Strategy also responds to the Auditor General's recommendations in her report of November of 2005, to improve horizontal accountability through the introduction of the Homelessness Accountability Network.

In 2006-2007, the key accomplishments were:

• Approximately $175.5 million in National Homelessness Initiative funding helped a total of 1,140 homelessness-related projects to provide support services to some of Canada's most vulnerable citizens in 121 communities across the country.
• Existing authorities, including the Terms and Conditions of the National Homelessness Initiative, were extended to allow projects that could not be completed in 2006-2007 to be completed in the new fiscal year. This means that services to homeless persons continued without disruption.
• The Housing and Homelessness Branch built upon best practices and lessons learned from the previous initiative to develop the policy framework for the new Homelessness Partnering Strategy, which shifts emphasis from remedial interventions, such as emergency shelters, to the prevention and reduction of homelessness through transitional and supportive housing. The policy development process was supported by national consultation, which resulted in the renewed broad-based support of stakeholders, including provincial and territorial governments, for federal leadership in preventing and reducing homelessness.

Strategic Outcome Indicators

Housing and Homelessness
Indicators	Current Level*
Percentage of overall SCPI funding, for projects completed in 2006-2007 between: (a) emergency shelters (b) transitional housing and supportive housing	33.33% 66.67%
Number of National Homelessness Initiative funding partners in 2006-2007	742
Percentage of National Homelessness Initiative funding partners by Sectors for 2006-2007.	Non-profit 26.4% Sponsor/Organization/Recipient (internal fundraising) 20% All orders of Government (e.g. federal/agencies, provincial/territorial, regional/municipal) 32.4% Private Sector 9.8% Others (such as faith-based communities unions, etc.) 11.4%
*Based on projects closed in 2006-2007

 

Program Indicators

Housing and Homelessness
Indicators	Notes
Percentage of investments directed toward the continuum of supports and services based on priorities established by the community. Target: At least 75% invested in community priorities Result: 100%	All investments were directed toward the continuum of supports and services based on priorities established by the community. Based on projects closed in 2006-2007
Ratio of total National Homelessness Initiative investments versus funding by type of partners for each province and territory 2003-2007. Target:1 to 1.5 Result:1 to 1.89	While the ratio of investments varied considerably across the country, the overall ration exceeded the objective. Cumulative result for Phase II of the National Homelessness Initiative (2003-2007)
Increase in accessible sources of information/data on homelessness Target: Evidence of uptake of data/information Result: yes	The National Homelessness Initiative website received an average of 1,593 "visits" per day from 2006-2007, showing an ongoing uptake of information on homelessness. In addition, in 2006-2007, support from the National Research Program has allowed research organizations from across Canada to highlight homelessness information on their own websites, e.g. the Canadian Ethnic Studies Association, at http://umanitoba.ca/publications/ces/CES_en_homelessness.htm. The National Research Program, in partnership with CICMetropolis, coordinated a one day national symposium for academics, government researchers and service providers from across Canada on immigration and homelessness in March 2007. In the 2006-2007 fiscal year, the National Research Program supported the creation of York University's Homeless Hub: A Canadian Homelessness Research Library, which will go live in August 2007. The National Research Program also supported the University of British Columbia in the creation of knowledge dissemination projects on homelessness in British Columbia's Lower Mainland, which will produce a variety of publications and web-based products by October 2007.

 

Achievements Against Priorities

Housing and Homelessness
Priority: Contribute to the reduction of homelessness in Canada
Plan:	2006-2007 Achievements
Review and disseminate program funding allocation, guidelines and tools to ensure a smooth transition and efficient delivery of the National Homelessness Initiative during the extension year (2006-2007)	In 2006-2007, approximately $175.5 million in National Homelessness Initiative funding helped a total of 1,140 homelessness-related projects to provide support services to some of Canada´s most vulnerable citizens in 121 communities across the country.
Produce and disseminate National Homelessness Initiative results for the period of 2003-2007	Research generated by the National Homelessness Initiative has been disseminated in a number of peer reviewed journals and policy magazines, including the Journal of Human Behaviour in the Social Environment, the International Journal of Social Welfare, Canadian Issues, and Canadian Diversity. In addition, National Homelessness Initiative research findings have been presented at a number of conferences and other forums, including the Metropolis Conference and the Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences. The National Homelessness Initiative also funded a special one day conference on immigration and homelessness in March 2007.
Priority: Develop homelessness and housing policies for Canadians, including Aboriginal peoples
Develop policy options for the National Homelessness Initiative beyond March 2007	New policy options for addressing homelessness were developed in 2006-2007, and on December 19, 2006, the Government of Canada committed $269.6 million over two years (2007-2009) to more effective and sustainable solutions to addressing homelessness, including support for Aboriginal communities, through a new Homelessness Partnering Strategy, which replaced the National Homelessness Initiative. Existing authorities were extended to allow projects that could not be completed in 2006-2007 to be completed in the new fiscal year. This means that services to homeless persons continued without disruption.
Priority: Strengthen horizontal links between housing and homelessness and other policy areas
Improve coordination and reporting of horizontal links with federal partners.	Coordination and reporting of horizontal linkages remained a priority throughout the year, and the lessons learned played an important role in the development of the new Homelessness Partnering Strategy. Continued the National Tripartite Committee on Surplus Federal Real Property for Homelessness Initiative, which is composed of representatives from Human Resources and Social Development Canada, Public Works and Government Services Canada and Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. Continued the Action for Neighbourhood Change, whose government partners included Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, Health Canada, and the National Film Board.

 

Financial and Human Resources 2006-2007

Housing and Homelessness
Gross Spending (Millions of dollars)	Planned Spending	Auhorities	Actual
Gross Operating Expenditures	40.2	34.8	32.7
Non-Statutory Grants and Contributions	147.9	185.1	157.6
Total	188.1	219.9	190.3
Full Time Equivalents	383	303	303

 

Details by Program and Services 2006-2007

Housing and Homelessness
Financial Resources (in millions of dollars)
	Planned Spending	Auhorities	Actual Spending
Supporting Communities Partnership Initiative	133.0	156.9	135.6
Urban Aboriginal Homelessness	18.2	23.5	20.0
Regional Homelessness Fund	5.4	9.1	8.1
National Research Program	2.8	3.9	3.8
Homeless Individuals and Families Information System	2.1	1.7	1.7
Surplus Federal Real Property for Homelessness Initiative	2.5	-	-
Allocated Corporate Servicesa	13.1	13.9	13.0
Otherb	11.0	10.9	8.1
Total c	188.1	219.9	190.3
Human Resources
Total FTE	383	303	303
a Corporate Services resources related to the Minister's Office, the Deputy Minister's Office, the Comptroller's Office and the Shared Services have been prorated to each Strategic Outcome. b Other category is for disposal of crown asset. cThis amount includes resources for the delivery of programs and services by Service Canada. For a full accounting of Service Canada's operations please refer to the previous table.

Achieve Better Outcomes for Canadians
Through Service Excellence

Service Canada

Service Matters: In its second year of operation, Service Canada generated improvements in service to Canadians by introducing new service offerings, improving service across delivery channels, improving integrity of benefit programs and increasing investments for greater efficiency in the infrastructure supporting service delivery.

Service Canada was launched in 2005 based on approaches to service delivery that drew on careful research, analysis and planning. It was shaped by listening to Canadians about the approach to service they want to see and their views on what works best for them.

The result so far is a one-stop, easy-to-access services across multiple channels including phone, Internet, in-person and mail. Service Canada has over 19,000 employees dedicated to serving Canadians; almost 600 points of service throughout the country, including outreach and mobile services; the national 1 800 O-Canada phone service; a network of call centres, as well as and a range of on-line services offered on the Internet through servicecanada.gc.ca.

Service Canada, in collaboration with a number of federal departments and agencies as well as partners in other governments, delivers a range of integrated programs and services to Canadians, further streamlining how government services are provided. The Service Canada focus on making it easier for Canadians to access the programs and services they need is in the early stages of reaching a longer-term goal to contribute to improved policy outcomes, and better connecting citizens to government.

Did you Know?

Each year, Service Canada:

• Serves more than 31 million Canadians - from newborns to seniors
• Pays over $70 billion ($190M a day) in benefits to Canadians
• Handles over 53 million calls
• Handles over 11 million transactions online
• Mails over 20 million letters
• Averages 1 million transactions per day

For 2006-2007, the Service Canada agenda had three major program activity focuses:

• Seamless, Citizen-centred Service;
• Integrity; and
• Collaborative, Networked government Service.

Program Activity: Seamless, Citizen-Centred

Consistent with the milestones set out in its multi-year plan, Service Canada made significant progress toward its goal of providing a one-stop personalized service experience for Canadians offering high-quality service across all delivery channels and responding to the identified service delivery interests of Canadians. The activities have emphasized a citizen-centred focus to delivering what Canadians want and to bring services as close to them as possible. That work took place under the three priorities: Transforming Service to Canadians; Achieving and Rewarding a Service Excellence Culture and Strengthening Accountability and Transparency.

Priority 1: Transforming Service to Canadians

As set out in the Report on Plans and Priorities, Service Canada had already begun a multi-year plan to transform service to Canadians, whether in person, using the telephone or via the Internet. That plan to transform services to Canadians had the following five elements: Implementing Our Service Strategies for Client Communities; Undertaking Business and Product Development; Expanding Our Regional and Community Presence; Integrating Call Centres and Renewing Internet and Intranet Services, each of which is described below.

Implementing Our Service Strategies for Client Communities

Service Canada's goal was to implement a service strategy for more meaningful and responsive service to client communities. As part of this effort, Service Canada followed through on its commitment to create client advisory groups that would lead to better understanding the priorities of particular groups of clients and identify client segment champions. The establishment of the Service for People with Disabilities External Advisory Group in September 2006 and its subsequent work with Service Canada demonstrates the value of that engagement, which complemented existing work to improve services for people with disabilities.⁷ For example, a new policy on sign language services means that Service Canada Centres use a standardized approach to ensure they can communicate with Canadians who use sign language. Some 35 Service Canada Centres have improved their accessibility to Canadians with disabilities and the 11 most commonly used Service Canada forms are now all available online. The Service Canada website was enhanced to include a "Read to me" automated reading service link on each page that assists visually impaired users.

The Service Canada Voluntary Sector Advisory Committee was established as a vehicle to build a strategic and positive relationship with non-profit service delivery organizations. The Committee began with a focus on the administrative issues surrounding grant and contribution programs. It provided advice on the implications for Service Canada of the recommendations of the Independent Blue Ribbon Panel on Grants and Contributions.⁸ However, the emphasis of Voluntary Sector Advisory Committee was broadened, enabling it to provide advice on the needs of seniors, families, newcomers to Canada and general service delivery improvements.⁹

A Newcomers to Canada segment strategy was developed in consultation with Citizenship and Immigration Canada, Human Resources and Social Development Canada and other federal departments and drew on consultations with immigrant-serving organizations.¹⁰ An Official Languages Minority Community segment strategy was developed after consultations with community organizations, opinion leaders and citizens.¹¹

A key commitment under a new three-year action plan was to establish 17 points of service designated to provide enhanced services to members of official language minority communities during 2006-2007. Service Canada exceeded that goal, establishing 33 points of service, including outreach sites. For example, points of services in Saskatoon and Gravelbourg were established to provide services to francophone clients in Saskatchewan.

In addition, Service Canada engaged national Aboriginal organizations in discussions to develop more meaningful and responsive services for Aboriginal citizens and in the development of an Aboriginal Client Service Strategy. In support of the Aboriginal and Newcomers to Canada segment strategies, Service Canada has produced fact sheets in seven Aboriginal and 12 foreign languages on the seven programs and services of greatest interest to those communities. Building on this work, Service Canada's Multi-Language Service Initiative continued to test various approaches to in-person multi-language service across the country. Ongoing pilot projects include the use of a third-party telephone interpretation service and hiring staff who speak targeted languages to deliver multi-language services in Service Canada Centres and through scheduled outreach.

Undertaking Business and Product Development

This priority centres on the Service Canada commitment to develop processes and approaches that are founded on service offerings that reflect the needs of Canadians rather than the traditional program-driven approach delivered through separate service networks. A key to this was a commitment to improve and develop the service offerings that Canadians access through Service Canada. This commitment was met through the introduction of 13 new service offerings and the enhancement of others. New service offerings included access to pleasure craft licences, the Apprenticeship Incentive Grant, the Universal Child Care Benefit and Department of National Defence and Royal Canadian Mounted Police recruitment awareness. Service Canada and the Ontario government have collaborated to provide the Newborn Registration Service that enables parents to register their newborn child's birth and apply for a birth certificate and Social Insurance Number at the same time. The full list is included in the Achievements Against Priorities chart later in this report.

Service Canada continued to introduce improvements to existing service offerings that responded to the needs of Canadians. The existing Passport Receiving Agent service that enables Canadians in smaller and more remote communities without Passport Canada locations to file their applications at Service Canada Centres was expanded by 58 to respond to increased demand. During the year, Service Canada handled more than 67,000 passport applications.¹²

A new "May I help you" feature was introduced. Service Canada developed a plan leading to the piloting of its new Service Experience Model, which defines the process and environment of service to citizens.

Expanding Our Regional and Community Presence

Service Canada committed to establishing itself as the Government of Canada network of choice by offering choice and access to Canadians through measures such as doubling the points of service. Service Canada has made progress towards that commitment in many ways. For example, it introduced 171 new points of service (5 new Service Canada Centres, 129 new Scheduled outreach locations and 37 new Service Canada Community Offices). Among those new Outreach locations, six were established in the Northwest Territories, 11 in Nunavut and 72 in Ontario.

By March 31, 2007, there were 587 Service Canada points of service. As a result, 95.1% Canadians live within 50 kilometres of a Service Canada point of service, exceeding the 90% target. The Service Canada website includes a "Find a Service Canada Centre Near You" feature that makes it simple for Canadians to find these points of service.¹³

Service Canada implemented extended hours of service at 53 sites against a target of 60 sites, achieving 88% of its stated commitment. However, among locations with extended hours, in Toronto alone, the Canada Quay site operates on Saturdays and Sundays and the Malvern Service Canada Centre have extended their hours of operation to weekday evenings and Saturday. Officially opening in October, 2006, the Malvern Service Centre is located in a priority Toronto neighbourhood, that has a higher than average percentage of youth facing barriers and visible minorities. This Centre provides a focal point at which youth can access information about employment and training opportunities as well as the full suite of Service Canada offerings. In its first two weeks of operation, the Centre provided service to over 1,800 clients and has been well received by the community.

Service Canada began to implement a strong and consistent visual identity that will be seen by Canadians in Service Canada Centre signage, advertising and public notices as well as the new Service Canada Internet site, described later in this section.

Integrating Call Centres

Service Canada handled more than 53 million calls to its interactive voice response systems and to call centre agents in 2006-2007.

In a year in which call volumes rose by 22%, Service Canada met its target of answering 85% of calls to the 1-800-O-Canada general information number within 18 seconds, recording a 92% client satisfaction rate.

The Canada Student Loan Program, a specialized call centre service, exceeded its target of answering 95% of calls within 180 seconds, achieving a 98.4% call answer rate.

Service Canada continued to implement improvements to other specialized services supporting its call centre network. Facing a number of challenges, Canada Pension Plan and Old Age Security call centres answered 85% of calls within 180 seconds, while Employment Insurance answered 44% of calls within 180 seconds and 67% within five minutes. As a result of the introduction of a number of service improvements, including Saturday service and extended hours of operation, Employment Insurance Call Centres were successful in achieving 72% service level in March, at the height of the winter peak. In the last quarter of the year, high volume messages decreased by 67% compared to the same period the previous year (659,124 compared to 2 million).

In addition, a plan to improve the Interactive Voice Response service was completed and a plan was developed for the implementation of a national Quality Assurance Program. A new Common Reference Tool was launched to provide consistent, accurate information to all Service Canada call centre and processing agents at the same time. Service Canada has also completed a vision, and plan for the integration of call centres as well as migration to a new delivery model that will be sustainable, affordable and result in tangible service improvements for Canadians.

Renewing Internet and Intranet Services

As planned, Service Canada launched a new website that gives Canadians easy access to Government of Canada programs and services.¹⁴ Users now have simple access to the right programs, services or topics of interest to them. As noted above, the new site, has a "Read to me" feature that reads out content for clients. Information about Service Canada points of service now also includes photos of buildings and direction maps. In addition, the Service Canada site also enables clients to provide feedback on their user experience through questions with multiple choice answers and a rating scale. Service Canada's Internet availability exceeded the 95% target for 24/7 access, achieving accessibility 99.3% of the time. This was a factor in enabling Canadians and other users to make more than 22.3 million visits to the Service Canada site during 2006-2007, quadrupling the number of visits in 2005-2006.

Service Canada staff and the Canadians who turn to them for answers and assistance began to benefit from a redesigned Service Canada intranet site, which replaced more than 40 sites that had been in previous use. The new intranet site provides consistent tools and information that help employees find what they need in the workplace more easily and more quickly.

Priority 2: Achieving and Rewarding a Service Excellence Culture

When citizens deal with people who provide government services and who do so efficiently and responsively, they gain a greater confidence in government. In the same way, when client service is prized and supported, employees know that their personal commitment to service excellence is respected and valued. The plan to build the culture of service excellence that is central to plans for Service Canada had the following three elements: Building for Service Excellence; Achieving Service Excellence by Enhancing Employee Skills and Capabilities and Rewarding Service Excellence.

Building for Service Excellence

Service Canada identified key themes and activities that it will use to build a culture of service excellence over the medium term, including defining the skills, behaviours and competencies that are linked to service excellence. Service Canada is determined to create a new government career built around efficient and effective service delivery. To reflect an evolution of the work functions of performing program specific transactions, to delivering holistic, citizen-centred service, Service Canada has reclassified 5000 employees. Service Canada also initiated a program of service excellence training, delivered through the Service Canada College (as described below).

Targeted recruitment represented another step in establishing service delivery as a career path. For example, a new visible minority recruitment program was launched to enable Service Canada staffing to reflect the communities it serves, complemented by a university recruitment strategy.

To ensure that staff has the necessary skills, Service Canada created an "Investing in our People" framework to attract, develop and retain talent. It engaged staff through information efforts that included town hall meetings, enabling employees to ask questions directly of senior managers. A new "Rumour Busters" Intranet site allowed employees to post questions and concerns. Service Canada implemented a human resource planning process linked to the achievement of business objectives at both the strategic and operational levels and developed a range of human resource policies and tools under the new regime established through the Public Service Modernization Act. Its new Governance Framework for Official Languages was put in place to reinforce respect for both official languages and the use by employees of the official language of their choice.

There were also initial steps across many initiatives that will be finalized and implemented over the coming years, such as the development of generic service delivery roles, establishing a baseline to gauge improvements in the Service Canada culture of service excellence and introduction of a revamped employee wellness program and an informal conflict management system to promote employee well-being in Service Canada.

Achieving Service Excellence by Enhancing Employee Skills and Capabilities

As planned, the Service Canada College was formally launched with the opening of the Galleria learning centre in Regina in September 2006, after substantial work to develop curricula and arrange staff participation.¹⁵ The College provides comprehensive management of learning with a coordinated approach to training and funding the learning needs of the organization. It is the physical focus for Service Canada's commitment to ensuring that staff receives the citizen-centred service training they need to achieve the organization's goals. Service Canada also launched a new Service Excellence Certification Program to ensure that those who deal with clients, as well as their managers, are knowledgeable first points of contact¹⁶.

Service Canada College partnered with the Canada School of Public Service to develop and implement a service delivery curriculum for use across the government. Service Canada also provided specialized courses to managers and employees. These included training to support new Service Canada service offerings including pleasure craft licensing and the Universal Child Care Benefit as well as courses and orientation programs provided by Service Canada regions.

Rewarding Service Excellence

The Government of Canada wants Canadians to experience service excellence every time they deal with Service Canada, whether in person, on the phone or through electronic services. To move towards that goal in 2006-2007, Service Canada launched some immediate actions such as a new Pride and Recognition program to recognize employee service innovation and excellence, and those who "go the extra mile" in serving Canadians. The program included the first national Service Canada awards ceremony, which took place in Regina.

To stabilize the Service Canada executive ranks and plan for succession, the organization developed a targeted human resources strategy and implemented innovations in leadership training. Also, as a means to strengthen and clarify accountabilities, a new approach to the development of senior executive-level Performance Management Agreements was implemented.

Priority 3: Strengthening Accountability and Transparency

A central Service Canada commitment was to report on service progress to Parliament and Canadians. In addition to the material provided through the Departmental Performance Report, and Report on Plans and Priorities, Service Canada developed the first Service Canada Annual Report.¹⁷ It explained the background of Service Canada, service delivery improvements, integrity strategies, partnership building and, most relevant to this priority, Service Canada's commitments to service. The Service Canada Annual Report described the Service Charter and Service Standards that outline what Canadians can expect from Service Canada and how they can provide feedback.¹⁸ It also provided information on Service Canada and the detailed Performance Scorecard for 2005-2006. The 2006-2007 Scorecard results are included in the next Report.

A key element in improved transparency and service improvement was the work of the Office for Client Satisfaction.¹⁹ During 2006-2007, the Office received almost 2,000 formal pieces of feedback during the year (179 suggestions, 306 compliments, 730 complaints and 779 referrals of feedback to other departments). Based on analysis of that feedback, the Office for Client Satisfaction has developed recommendations for improvements to the delivery of benefits and services that are to be submitted to Service Canada management for review and consideration. The Office for Client Satisfaction met its own service standards of returning 99.9% of calls from individuals within 24 hours (excepting weekends and holidays) and replying to 100% of inquiries within seven days.

A new role, the Fairness Advisor, was established²⁰. The Office of the Fairness Advisor was put in place to provide an independent and impartial means for community service delivery organizations to address any issues they have with Service Canada. Organizations were encouraged to contact the Office of the Fairness Advisor with concerns or complaints about the administration or delivery of grants and contributions programs that they are unable to resolve with Service Canada. The Fairness Advisor acts as an independent and objective fact-finder in these cases. The Office of the Fairness Advisor is also a point of contact for dialogue and feedback on issues of fairness, integrity and respect of the rules surrounding those programs. When Service Canada issues a call for proposals to community service delivery organizations, in order to provide specific services to a community, the Office of the Fairness Advisor observes the evaluation of these proposals by Service Canada staff.

Achievements Against Priorities

Seamless, Citizen-Centred Service
Priority: Transforming service to Canadians
Plan:	2006-2007 Achievements
Implementing our Service Strategies for Client Communities	Client advisory groups created (e.g., people with disabilities, voluntary sector, official language minority communities) that generated action plans and identified specific improvements to services Enhanced accessibility for Canadians with disabilities at Service Canada Centres and on the Service Canada website Strategies introduced to guide and improve services to newcomers to Canada and official language minority communities and Aboriginal people and communities
Undertaking business and product development	13 new service offerings: Delivery of Pleasure Craft Licences; Apprenticeship Incentive Grant; Information provided for the Targeted Initiative for Older Workers; Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative; Historical Recognition Initiatives; Integrated Death Notification; Information and referrals concerning the Universal Child Care Benefit; Promoting Canada Savings Programs; Targeted Assistance for Employment Insurance Recipients; Royal Canadian Mounted Policy Recruitment Awareness; Department of National Defence Recruitment Awareness; Canada Summer Jobs; Newborn Registration Services in Ontario Expansion of Passport Receiving Agent services to 93 locations to meet demand
Expanding our regional and community presence	171 new points of service added to reach a total of 587 (10.1% over target for year and above accessibility target) Achieved extended hours including evenings and weekends in some 53 locations against a target of 60 sites A new Service Canada "brand" and visual identity to establish recognition among Canadians, resulting in a 7% increase in call demand
Integrating call centres	The Service Canada 1-800 O-Canada general information met service level targets Canada Pension Plan and Employment Insurance telephone services introduced service improvements to mitigate impacts of funding constraints Review of the Interactive voice response service was completed and a plan developed for service improvements A plan for the implementation of a National Quality Assurance Program was finalized. A new Common Reference Tool was implemented for National Call Centre and In-Person agents so that consistent information can be provided on all existing or new programs and services
Renewing Internet and Intranet Services	New website launched offering clearer access to information Visits to the Service Canada website quadrupled over 2005-2006 levels Online transactions doubled over 2005-2006 levels 24/7 access 99.3% of the time A "Talk to Me" feature reads out contents of page to clients A new intranet site replaced 40 sites and offers consistent tools and information for Service Canada staff
Priority: Achieving and rewarding a service excellence culture
Building for service excellence	Reclassification of staff to deliver holistic, citizen-centred service tailored to needs of individual citizen and communities Staff recruitment includes a focus on visible minorities and new university graduates A new "Investing in People" framework organizes Service Canada staff recruitment, retention and development A proactive communications program designed to let staff be heard Human resources planning, policies and tools updated A new official languages framework Initial work on many other Human Resources-related actions
Achieving service excellence	Developed and opened the new Service Canada College, supported by a new curriculum with training staff in place Partnership with Canada School of Public Service for a government service delivery curriculum Specialized training provided to support delivery of new service offerings and other corporate needs
Rewarding service excellence	A new pride & recognition program honours innovative and client service oriented staff New service excellence awards given nationally, plus regional actions Framework for a leadership development program created Performance Management Agreements include standardized commitments based on Service Canada priorities Experiments with other forms of leadership learning
Priority: Strengthening accountability and transparency
Reporting on our commitments to Canadians and Parliamentarians	Service Charter, Service Standards and Performance Scorecard established and reported on comprehensively through the first Service Canada Annual Report The Office for Client Satisfaction addressed almost 2,000 items of feedback from clients. The Office of the Fairness Advisor was created to support relations with service delivery partner organizations relating to the grants and contributions program issues.

Program Activity: Integrity

As an organization that issues over $70 billion in benefits to Canadians annually, Canadians expect Service Canada to ensure that these benefits go to the right people, in the right amounts and for the purposes for which they were intended. Service Canada continued to place a strong emphasis on the use of risk management strategies to identify the best ways to improve the integrity of program operations, demonstrate sound stewardship of public funds and generate savings. That work took place under the Integrity priority which was originally organized in the Report on Plans and Priorities under two elements, Establishing Enterprise Integrity and Meeting our Saving Commitment. A third element, Achieving Processing Automation, was moved to this priority from the "Work as a Collaborative and Networked Government" priority to better reflect its importance to achieving Service Canada integrity goals.

Priority: Strengthening Accountability and Transparency

Establishing Enterprise Integrity

The centrepiece of Service Canada's commitment to integrity was to strengthen the Social Insurance Number as a safe and secure common identifier for Service Canada's Social Insurance Number-based programs. To help achieve this, Service Canada undertook a number of initiatives to further enhance the integrity of information in the Social Insurance Register. This work will enable Service Canada to establish clear and concrete goals for Social Insurance Register completeness, accuracy and reliability and to measure and report on these goals beginning in fiscal year 2007-2008. It will also address one of the Auditor General's recommendations related to the Social Insurance Number, which are described in greater detail below. Another key initiative to further enhance the integrity of information in the Social Insurance Register is the vital events linkages initiative, which is a process to standardize data exchanges with the organizations in provincial and territorial governments that are responsible for recording vital events, such as births and deaths.

As part of Service Canada's ongoing work, there were 9,000 Social Insurance Number investigations related to issues such as suspected abuse and assistance to individuals and organizations faced with compromised Social Insurance Numbers. To make Canadians aware of proper and improper uses of their Social Insurance Numbers, Service Canada developed a Social Insurance Number Code of Practice for citizens, employers, employees and Service Canada partners. Service Canada posted the Code on its website and developed a preliminary marketing strategy.²¹

Identity authentication is the process by which Service Canada ensures authorized access to its personalized services by drawing on the Social Insurance Register data. During 2006-2007, Service Canada authenticated identities for over 11.7 million transactions in the online channel alone, acting as the front door of My Service Canada Account. This directly contributed to the integrity of the Social Insurance Registry database, relying on up-to-date vital statistics information and ensured proper access controls were and continue to be in place. This increasing data integrity was linked to other innovations, such as full implementation of Social Insurance Number Rapid Access. This risk-based Social Insurance Number issuance process allows Canadians with all the necessary documents to apply for and receive a Social Insurance Number in one visit to a Service Canada Centre. During 2006-2007, more than one million Social Insurance Number applications were processed or 67% of all applications using rapid access.

In the Report on Plans and Priorities, Service Canada committed to expand its risk analysis capacity and its enterprise-wide quality framework, both of which contribute to achieving Service Integrity by providing the correct service offering to meet the client's full entitlement to benefits and services. Both commitments were achieved. It strengthened risk management processes that were integrated across the organization and in its business plans. At a more targeted level, Service Canada successfully tested the concepts of integrating a risk-based approach into the client service experience model. This approach will provide citizens with services that are tailored to their needs and will allow better targeting of integrity activities.

Service Canada is building an enterprise-wide quality measurement system to better assess compliance with program authorities, as well as the accuracy of payments. This measurement system will help Service Canada ensure that the activities which it implements to mitigate and manage risk are applied correctly, and that service accuracy targets are achieved.

In February 2007, the Auditor General issued a Follow-up Status Report on the Management of the Social Insurance Number.²² It reviewed the progress of Human Resources and Social Development Canada, Service Canada and Treasury Board Secretariat in responding to recommendations in the 2002 Follow-up Report of the Auditor General.

The Auditor General's report noted satisfactory progress on several aspects of Social Insurance Number management within Human Resources and Social Development Canada and Service Canada's responsibility including the redesign of the Social Insurance Number issuance process, updated standards for proving identity and in identifying and investigating Social Insurance Number-related fraud. The review also noted that current efforts underway and plans to develop a comprehensive quality measurement and reporting system for the Social Insurance Register indicate a positive direction. However, the Office of the Auditor General found that not enough progress had been made on Integrity goals for the Social Insurance Register. The work described above is intended to address this issue.

Meeting Our Savings Commitments

Having achieved $292 million in savings in operating costs and program payments in 2005-2006, Service Canada generated $424 million of savings in 2006-2007.

A key contributor to achieving savings was the range of program integrity strategies. In 2006-2007, these included the implementation of increased preventative Claimant Information Sessions and risk-based claimant entitlement interviews to ensure the payments go only to eligible individuals. Service Canada also increased automated data-match program investigations to detect people who did not report earnings or absences from Canada while on claim. In addition, Canada Pension Plan and Old Age Security investigation programs were implemented that used information on deaths from provincial data to ensure that payments stopped as soon after a death as possible and other services were offered such as survivor benefits, as appropriate.

Benefit Processing Integrity

Service Canada made significant improvements to its benefit processing environment through the course of 2006-2007. Service Canada implemented rigorous forecasting, planning, tracking and reporting for effective workload management through normal and peak periods in order to ensure that the $70B in benefit payments that Service Canada makes to Canadians were processed on time at a consistently high level of quality.

Service Canada exceeded its targets in a number of areas. For example, Service Canada achieved a national result of 92.8% for processing Canada Pension Plan retirement benefit payments within 30 days, well above the target of 85 %. Service Canada also surpassed its target of rendering 70% of Canada Pension Plan Disability reconsideration decisions within 120 days, achieving a level of 81.6%, up from 68.6 % in 2005-2006. Nationally, 94.1% of Old Age Security benefits were paid within 30 days.

A number of changes and improvements were also made to Employment Insurance benefit payment processes to address the challenges posed by summer and winter peak periods. As a result, 79.7% of Canadians who needed Employment Insurance benefits received their payments in the 28 days following receipt of claim against a target of 80%. Despite the introduction of new legislative and major changes to processes, the accuracy rate of Employment Insurance claims calculation was 94.5% against a target of 95%.

Achieving Processing Automation

A review of Employment Insurance payment processes resulted in simplified and standardized processes and procedures before the normal winter increase in claims allowing for a 10% increase in productivity and better service to Canadians.

Service Canada recognizes that automation of the processes used to administer benefit programs improves program integrity. Automation eliminates the errors that arise in manual processing such as data not correctly entered and it prevents delays that arise when documents have to await manual data entry.

The benefit programs that Service Canada delivers represented early uses of electronic systems. For example, 92.7% of the Employment Insurance applications are now received online.²³ These services have allowed Service Canada to be seen as leading e-government initiatives - and one that sees more opportunities to increase the automation of service delivery processes.

To build on this base, Service Canada continued to expand its use of increasingly automated processes to achieve internal operational efficiencies and improved effectiveness. Receiving Records of Employment (ROE) electronically is essential in order to automate the calculation of claims: 24.8% of Records of Employment representing some 55,000 businesses were submitted electronically achieving a 9.1% increase over the 15.7% that were submitted electronically the previous fiscal year. This was 24,000 more employers than a year earlier, well ahead of the target of 15,500 new employers on Records of Employment Web. Other improvements include the digitization of Records of Employment, permitting Service Canada staff to obtain copies electronically through the Service Canada intranet or by e-mail when they are reviewing a file.

During the year, automated claims processing was used for 21,000 initial claims for Employment Insurance benefits exceeding the target of 3% and 171,000 applications to renew existing Employment Insurance claims. The renewal claim activity covered 31.5% of all such claims, exceeding the 30% target. One benefit of the increased automation of processing was that Service Canada staff in the regions were able to balance workloads across the country during the winter peak period. This resulted in improved service to Canadians.

Achievements Against Priorities

Integrity
Plan:	2006-2007 Achievements
Priority: Strengthening accountability and transparency
Establishing enterprise integrity	Social Insurance Number system strengthened through 9,000 investigations of possible frauds Social Insurance Number Code of Practice launched to inform Canadians and key stakeholders of ways to use Social Insurance Numbers properly Progress in online authentication of identity, enabling Canadians to establish their identify by validating 11.7 million transactions against the Social Insurance Registry and provide authorized access to services Social Insurance Number Rapid Access implemented, 1 million applications processed Social Insurance Number Quality Management System piloted Expanded risk analysis capacity Framework for an enterprise-wide quality developed Risk-based approaches used to guide audit choices and business planning and investigations Responded to Auditor General´s report on Social Insurance Numbers, set out plans for improvements Developed draft key Performance Indicators for Social Insurance Register accuracy, completeness and reliability
Meeting our saving commitments	Has exceeded $355 million savings target Targeted activities to address most common forms of abuse in Employment Insurance and public pension benefit programs
Benefit Processing Integrity	Implemented rigorous forecasting, planning, tracking and reporting for effective workload management through normal and peak periods Exceeded targets for processing Canada Pension Plan retirement benefit; Canada Pension Plan Disability reconsideration decisions and Old Age Security benefits Improvements made to Employment Insurance benefit payment processes
Achieving processing automation	Achievement of improved program integrity through expanded automated processing of Employment Insurance applications Greater employer use of automated Record of Employment generation and submission (Record of Employment-Web) Implementation of Employment Insurance simplified and standardized processes and procedures Record of Employment Automation of internal Service Canada functions and processes.

Program Activity: Work as a Collaborative and Network Government

Service Canada partners with other government organizations to provide Canadians with single window access to government programs and services. Key aspects of collaborative and networked government to achieve better client information integration and automate those processes involving client information. The work of this program activity took place under the two priorities, namely, Transforming Services to Canadians and Achieving Client Information Integration.

Priority 1: Transforming Service to Canadians

Many of the initiatives that are helping to transform direct services to Canadians were described in earlier portions of this Report, particularly under the program activity: "Seamless, Citizen-centred Service." The focus under this program activity was to expand relations with other departments and government organizations through two planning elements: Building Our Capacity as the Government of Canada network of choice and building partnership strategies.

Building our Capacity as the Government of Canada Network of Choice

By the end of 2006-2007, Service Canada was delivering services on behalf of 13 federal departments, agencies and organizations (Agriculture and Agri-food Canada, Canadian Heritage, Canada Revenue Agency, Citizenship and Immigration Canada, Correctional Service Canada, Human Resources and Social Development Canada, Indian Residential Schools Resolution Canada, National Defence, Passport Canada, Public Works and Government Services Canada, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Transport Canada and Veterans Affairs Canada).

Service Canada pursued its commitment to use the best approaches possible to provide services on behalf of partners. For example, it issued more than 123,000 pleasure craft licences in the first year of this activity on behalf of Transport Canada.²⁴ A key to that result was an agreement with Service Canada, Transport Canada and Service New Brunswick, which developed an automated system with 24/7 access to processing licence applications in New Brunswick. This initiative received a Public Service Award for excellence, recognizing the strong partnership approach.

Service Canada completed ten pilot projects that provided direct telephone access to Canada Revenue Agency services that involved more than 14,000 service requests. In Quebec, four Service Canada Centres continued a pilot providing access to Citizenship and Immigration Canada services and also experimented with an additional pilot project involving Canada Revenue Agency services. The commitment to partnerships was mutual, as indicated by the Service Canada pilot project in Manitoba to cost-share resources with Parks Canada to provide year-round services in Churchill and seasonal services in Riding Mountain National Park.

Building Partnership Strategies

Of the 13 federal departments and agencies listed under the previous element of this priority, five were either new Service Canada partners during the year or were the source of new service offerings. Service Canada provided access to Canadians on behalf of Human Resources and Social Development Canada to the new Universal Child Care Benefit and the Apprenticeship Incentive Grant.^25-26 The Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Department of National Defence began work with Service Canada to support their recruitment efforts. The Department of Canadian Heritage worked through Service Canada to deliver the Chinese Head Tax Initiative, just as Indian Residential Schools Resolution Canada did for the Common Experience Payment.²⁷

Service Canada worked work with other departments and agencies in support of the work of the Independent Blue Ribbon Panel on Grants and Contributions. This reflected Service Canada's strong relationships with the voluntary sector and its delivery of many grants and contributions programs.²⁸

Many Service Canada partnerships took place at the regional level. These included planning and coordination of intergovernmental agreements and collaboration with provincial and territorial governments on issues of shared interest, particularly related to labour market issues.

In Ontario, the Canada-Ontario Labour Market Development Agreement that came into effect on January 1, 2007 involved the transfer of design and delivery responsibilities for Employment Insurance-funded labour market programming to the provincial government.²⁹ While the agreement involved the transfer of 13,000 contribution agreements and the salaries for 670 positions as well as operating costs, it took place with no negative impacts on Ontarians. In many communities, co-location agreements between Service Canada and provincial ministries meant that local residents, businesses and service delivery partners continued to deal with the same staff, who were now provincial employees, and continued to receive services through Service Canada Centres. This complemented another effort in Ontario to develop a memorandum of understanding with the Ontario government's Service Ontario to achieve collaborative service delivery for one-stop service.

In central Alberta, a June 2006 pilot project brought together services related to Canada Pension Plan Disability Benefits and the Alberta Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped program. The introduction of a streamlined application and screening process meant that people with disabilities seeking benefits faced fewer steps in getting the benefits to which they were entitled from each program and had a far smaller risk of potential overpayments between both programs. The streamlining also reduced operating costs for the two governments by making the process far more efficient for all involved. Based on the success in that part of the province, a second phase began for people in southern Alberta in February 2007.

Priority 2: Achieving Client Information Integration

Canadians have often complained about having to provide the same information over and over when applying for different government programs. Consistent with its citizen-centred approach, Service Canada is addressing this issue by creating a single, integrated set of information on individual clients-all supported by appropriate privacy protections-that can be drawn on when they apply for benefits or services. In developing this information base, Service Canada used a 2006-2007 plan containing three elements (as set out in the Report on Plans and Priorities). However, as noted earlier, one element, Achieving Processing Automation, has been reported with Service Canada's integrity commitments. The remaining two elements within this priority are: Establishing a One-Client View and Achieving Information Integration, and Transforming Vital Events Management.

Establishing a One-Client View and Achieving Information Integration

To provide high-quality service to Canadians, Service Canada staff needs to be able to use the most complete information possible on individuals. While taking privacy issues into account and ensuring appropriate privacy protection, as the systems are designed, Service Canada is bringing together approaches and best practices from other organizations to collect, use and integrate information to better serve Canadians. Integrating information reduces the administrative burden for Canadians who deal with Service Canada and brings more efficiency, since Service Canada staff gain a clear view of what data is required and can merge duplicated data. The creation of this integrated "one client view" is complex and requires substantial planning and testing to achieve the best results with the most efficient use of public funds, all the while respecting Privacy legislation and guidelines. During the year, Service Canada developed a One Client View Strategy and identified three different concepts for how it could be developed further. Testing of different client interaction scenarios began to compare the concepts to likely "real world" uses by Canadians.

Transforming Vital Events Management

Accurate identity information in the Social Insurance Register is a critical requirement for citizen-centred service and to address abuse in social programs Human Resources and Social Development Canada and Service Canada have been seeking to improve the integrity of Social Insurance Register data by moving from manual information entry based on inputs from many sources to standardized exchanges with the organizations in provincial and territorial governments that are responsible for recording vital events such as births and deaths. Working with provinces and territories and with other federal departments, Service Canada has been able to increase the accuracy of the Social Insurance Register through more timely and complete updates of vital event information such as birth, death and immigration data.

During the year, Service Canada worked towards developing a government-wide approach to the management of vital events, as well as an implementation strategy and business plan. It signed a memorandum of understanding on vital events with the Government of Alberta, which added to the two in place with Ontario and British Columbia that enable the validation of identity documents.

In Ontario, province-wide implementation of the new Newborn Registration Service was launched in September 2006.³⁰ Almost 16,000 families took advantage of the service that enables them to apply online to register the birth of their child, obtain a birth certificate and a Social Insurance Number through a single application. A similar process with British Columbia was developed and tested for implementation in April 2007.

Approximately 45,000 historical death records and over 92,000 death notifications from Ontario were received and matched against the Social Insurance Register. In addition, nearly 226,000 historical death records were received from British Columbia and over 700,000 historical death records were received from Alberta.

Negotiations were undertaken between Service Canada and Citizenship and Immigration Canada toward agreements that, when finalized and implemented, will enable newcomers to Canada to apply for a Social Insurance Number during the immigration process and will give Service Canada access to Citizenship and Immigration Canada's citizenship database to validate the data provided by the applicant.

Achievements Against Priorities

Work as a Collaborative and Networked Government
Priority: Transforming service to Canadians
Plan:	2006-2007 Achievements
Building our capacity as the Government of Canada network of choice	Service Canada delivered services on behalf of 13 federal organizations Year 1 of service for Transport Canada resulted in 123,312 pleasure craft licences issued The Canada Pension Plan-Employment Insurance Contributors project consists of reviewing, correcting and collecting applicable Canada Pension Plan-Employment Insurance contributions by Canada Revenue Agency Local services responded to emergencies, (for example, ensuring business owners and residents who lost jobs as the result of a fire in Saskatchewan could benefit from Service Canada service offerings) and planning took place to be ready for pandemic influenza
Building partnership strategies	5 new or expanded agreements with federal organizations for Service Canada service delivery Support for work of the Blue Ribbon Panel on Grants and Contributions Managed the transfer of labour market program responsibilities (including staff and resources) in Ontario to the provincial government, while providing seamless service over the transition Individual Service Canada-provincial delivery initiatives and planning
Priority: Achieving client information integration
Establishing a one client view and achieving information integration	One Client View Strategy developed with 3 concepts for its further development created and tested
Transforming vital events management	Agreements with British Columbia and Alberta to share data on vital events (including on \births and deaths) Implementation of Ontario Newborn Registration Service for parents Received death data from British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario and implemented ongoing death notification with Ontario

 

Program Indicators

Service Indicators	Notes
Increase in number of Service Canada points of service (from 320 in March 2005) Target:533 Result: 587
24/7 availability of Internet - information and transaction(compared to March 2005 where only information was accessible online) Target: 95% Result: 99.3%
Percentage of calls answered by an agent within 180 seconds Target:95% Result: 58.5%	Result for the Canada Student Loans Program: 98.4%: Result for Canada Pension Plan and Old Age Security: 85% Result for Employment Insurance: 44% within 180 seconds Result for Employment Insurance: 67% within 5 minutes A number of changes were made to address the service challenges posed by Employment Insurance's summer and winter peak periods. As a result of these continuous improvements, Employment Insurance call centres were successful in achieving a 72% service level in March at the height of the winter-peak period.
Extend hours of service in Service Canada Centres (from 0 in March 2005) Target: 60 Result: 53
Percentage of availability of the Interactive Voice Response System Target: 95% Result: 98%
Maintain or reduce number of official language complaints Target: Actual results to be reported Result: 23
Establish Official Language Minority Community Groups points of service (from 0 in March 2005) Target: 17 Result: 33	Of the 33, 23 are outreach sites, including 1 community partner
Offer service in languages other than English or French (from 0 in March 2005) Target: 10 Result: 19	A total of 7 fact sheets/publications were made available in languages other than English or French (in 7 Aboriginal languages/dialects and in 12 foreign languages)
Provide of forms online in formats accessible for people with disabilities Target: 10 Result: 11
Percentage of notifications sent within seven days of receipt of applications Target: 80% Result: 65.6%	Includes the automated and non-automated notifications for Canada Pension Plan, Employment Insurance in addition to the Old Age Security inquiries. Results will improve with automation of claims (Old Age Security planned for 2009).
Percentage of Employment Insurance payments issued within 28 days of filing Target: 80% Result: 79.7%
Percentage of passports delivered by Passport Canada within 20 working days of receiving the application from Service Canada, excluding mailing time Target: 90% Result: Accountability rests with Passport Canada to report on results	Memorandum of Understanding between Human Resources and Social Development Canada and Passport Canada was signed where there was an agreement to measure the "effectiveness of the Passport Receiving Agents (Service Canada)". Indicators were developed to measure critical and non-critical errors committed by Service Canada as a receiving agent.
Percentage of Canada Pension Plan retirement first payment within the month of entitlement Target: 85% Result: 92.8%
Percentage of Old Age Security first payment issued within 30 days of entitlement Target: 90% Result: 94.1%
Percentage of pleasure craft licences issued in one visit (service not offered in March 2005) Target: 90% Result: 80%	Results will increase as employees obtain 'Commissioner of Oath´ authority
Percentage of Social Insurance Numbers issued in one visit (service not offered in March 2005) Target: 90% Result: 67%	Results for this new service showed a steady increase throughout the fiscal year from a base of 0.
Maintain or increase client satisfaction Target: Actual result to be reported Result: Not available	Survey not conducted.

The following indicators also provide information concerning the Department's performance.

Additional Measures

Indicators	Notes
Web Usage Target: Actual volumes to be reported Result: 22,364,438
Phone Usage - Agent Calls (Total number of specialized and general call answered by agents) Target: Actual volumes to be reported Result: 11,227,567
Phone Usage - interactive voice response system calls Target: Actual volumes to be reported Result: 49,541,252
Service Canada Centre visits (in-person) Target: Actual volumes to be reported Result: 9,275,672
Accuracy rate of Employment Insurance benefit payments Target: 95% Result: 94.8%
Employment Insurance Appeals scheduled to be heard by the Board of Referees within 30 days of receipt of the appeal Target: 90% Result: 87.1%
Employment Insurance client appeal dockets received at the office of the Umpire within 60 days from date of appeal filing (date of receipt) Target: 100% Result: 99.5%
Number of employment programs clients served Target: 675,000 Result: 661,714 including former and non-insured Employment Benefits and Support Measures claimants	In the 2006-2007 results, there were an additional 44,977 Career Placements participants served
Annual increase in job seekers in Job Bank Target: increase by 5% Result: increased by 49%	Important increase likely due to the consolidation of Job Bank and Job Cluster services (which includes Job Alert from Training and Careers). This item is reflected by the number of visits to our site (94 million for 2006-2007 versus 63 million for 2005-2006).
Client satisfaction with labour market information products and services - usefulness in conducting a job search Target: Actual result to be reported Result: Not available	Survey was not conducted.
Passport applications handled Target: Actual result to be reported Result: 67,260
Pleasure Craft Licences applications handled Target: Actual result to be reported Result: 123,312
Social Insurance Number Applications (requests) received Target: Actual result to be reported Result: 1,564,224
Canada Pension Plan Applications (processed) Target: Actual result to be reported Result: 614,173
Employment Insurance Applications (initial and renewal claims received) Target: Actual result to be reported Result: 2,702,444
Old Age Security Applications (processed) Target: Actual result to be reported Result: 808,972	Volume does not include the 1,390,375 Guaranteed Income Supplement automatic renewals
Number of new Service Offerings Target: Actual result to be reported Result: 14

For more details on programs supporting this activity, please see Section IV - Other Items of Interest

Financial and Human Resources 2006-20007

Service Canada
Gross Operating Expenditures Financial Resources(in millions of dollars)	Planned Spending	Authorities	Actuals
Labour Market	1,259.9	1,160.8	1,158.6
Homelessness	22.8	17.6	17.6
Workplace Skills	53.1	62.6	62.5
Service Delivery	556.5	587.8	568.5
Total Service Canada	1,892.3	1,828.8	1,807.2
Full Time Equivalents	20,531	19,597	19,597

 

DPR Expenditure Profile 2006-2007

Service Canada
	(millions of dollars)
	Planned Spending	Authorities	Actuals
Budgetary
Operating Costs (Vote 1&10)	563.3	580.8	571.1
Delivery Cost related to:
Employment Insurance Account	1,138.4	1,022.6	1,015.9
Canada Pension Plan	190.6	225.4	220.2
Sub-total	1,329.0	1,248.0	1,236.1
Gross Operating Costs	1,892.3a	1,828.8a	1,807.2a
Delivered on behalf of Human Resources and Social Development Canadab
Voted Grand and Contributions (Vote 5&15)	686.1	756.4	680.6
Statutory Payments
Old Age Security	23,255.0	22,878.8	22,878.8
Guaranteed Income Supplement	6,820.0	6,901.1	6,901.1
Allowance Payments	500.0	504.1	504.1
Sub-total Statutory Payments	30,575.0	30,284.0	30,284.0
Canada Pension Plan benefits	26,132.3	26,115.3	26,115.3
Employment Insurance benefits
Part I	12,442.0	11,992.5	11,992.5
Part II	2,048.9	2,050.3	2,046.1
Sub-total Employment Insurance benefits	14,490.9	14,042.8	14,038.6
LMDA - System Enhancement Costs	7.6	7.6	5.5
LMDA - Office Re-fit	1.0	1.0	0.7
Total Statutory Transfer Payments	71,206.8	70,450.7	70,444.1
Total Delived on behalf of HRSDC	71,892.9c	71,207.1c	71,124.7c
Consolidated Total	73,785.2	73,035.9	72,931.9
aIncludes statutory items for employee benefit plans. bThe financial strategy for Service Canada establishes that statutory funds, including Employment Insurance, Canada Pension Plan, Old Age Security and voted grants and contributions related to the delivery specified programs are allocated annually by HRSDC. cThis amount directly benefits Canadians or organizations and is delivered on behalf of HRSDC.

 

Financial and Human Resources 2006-2007

Service Delivery
Gross Spending (in millions of dollars)	Planned Spending	Autorities	Actual
Human Resource and Skills Development Canada
Gross Operating Expenditures	109.4	122.4	117.5
Social Development Canada
Gross Operating Expenditures	447.1	522.7	498.4
Total	556.5	645.1	615.9
Full Time Equivalents	6,305	6,422	6,422

 

Details by Program and Services 2006-2007

Service Delivery
Financial Resources (in millions of dollars)
	Planned Spending	Auhorities	Actual Spending
Service Delivery - Human Resource and Skills Development Canada	75.8	80.6	75.9
Allocated Corpprate Services a	33.6	41.8	41.6
Sub-Total	109.4	122.4	117.5
Service Delivery - Social Development Canadal	447.1	522.4	489.2
Otherb	-	0.3	0.2
Totalc	556.5	645.1	615.9
Human Resources
Total FTE	6,305	6,422	6,422
aCorporate Services resources related to the Minister's Office, the Deputy Minister's Office, the Comptroller's Office and the Shared Services have been prorated to each Strategic Outcome. bOther category is for resources which are not directly related to the sub-activities identified. cThis amount includes resources for the delivery of programs and services by Service Canada. For a full accounting of Service Canada's operations please refer to the following table.

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