Archived [2020-04-01] - Terms and Conditions of Employment for Students

These terms and conditions take effect on January 1, 2007 and supersede the version dated January 2006.

Unless provided herein, the definitions shall be those used in the Directive on Terms and Conditions of Employment.

A deputy head may authorize any person employed in his or her department to exercise any of the powers, functions or duties of the deputy head under these terms and conditions.

Students are defined as employees under the Financial Administration Act and the Government Employees Compensation Act. However, they are not subject to the Public Service Labour Relations Act, and an exclusion order under the Public Service Employment Act precludes their eligibility for closed competitions while they are working as students.

This section applies to all students participating in a non-paid assignment program, such as the Secondary School Co-op Education Program.

Non-paid assignments are usually arranged on a half-day basis. This does not preclude other scheduling arrangements that the student, school and manager might negotiate. Assignments with working days longer than the standard 7.5-hour working day are not appropriate.

The delegated manager may pay the student a travel allowance of up to the value of a “round-trip” daily or monthly public transit fare, whichever is less, between the student’s school, work site and home, or the reverse.

Managers must ensure that an authorized work-education agreement precedes any student assignment. Under this agreement, the relevant school administration must provide workers’ compensation for the student, in case the student is disabled by a workplace injury.

This section applies to all persons engaged under one of the employment programs described in Student Employment Programs in the Federal Government.

The delegated manager shall set the student’s hours of work consistent with the relevant collective agreement and departmental practice.

1. The relevant collective agreement shall be the collective agreement of the predominant group whose duties the student is understudying or performing in part during the assignment period.
2. All letters of offer shall clearly state the relevant collective agreement.

1. Subject to these regulations and any other enactment of the Treasury Board, a student assigned under one of the student employment programs is entitled to be paid a biweekly salary for the services rendered, at the appropriate pay rate (see Student Rates of Pay).
2. All rates also apply to formal apprenticeship programs.
3. Return to footnote ** referrer Notwithstanding subsections 3.4(a) and 3.4(b) above, the Secretary of the Treasury Board authorizes deputy heads to preclude payment of a salary, allowance, stipend or honorarium to Canadian students registered in academic credit programs and employed by their organization for work outside of Canada when such payment may jeopardize the status of their visa or work permit.

1. A student shall be compensated for overtime according to the relevant collective agreement, provided

   • the delegated manager required the student to work overtime;
   • the student did not control the duration of the overtime period; and
   • the delegated manager certifies the duration of the overtime worked, and authorizes the compensation.
2. Notwithstanding the payment options under the relevant collective agreement, a student may not be compensated for overtime in the form of compensatory leave.

Students are not entitled to acting pay.

Students are entitled to the following benefits, to be administered in accordance with the provisions of the relevant collective agreement:

• call-back pay;
• standby pay;
• reporting pay;
• shift and weekend premium;
• penological factor allowance;
• travelling time; and
• overtime meal allowance.

Students are not entitled to the bilingualism bonus.

With the exception of bereavement leave, a student is not entitled to leave with pay.

In lieu of vacation, students are entitled to vacation pay, equal to four per cent of their total regular and overtime earnings.

1. A student on full-time assignment is entitled to pay for a designated holiday, provided he or she is not on leave without pay on the working day preceding and the working day following that holiday.
2. A student on part-time assignment shall not be paid for the designated holidays but shall, instead be paid based on the principles found in the relevant collective agreement.
3. For students engaged in foreign assignments, delegated managers may substitute the equivalent number of local designated holidays falling within the specified work terms.

1. Every student shall be granted bereavement leave for a period of up to three consecutive calendar days, to include the day of the funeral, when a member of the immediate family dies. Such leave is to be without pay for the first three months of continuous employment, and with pay thereafter.
2. Immediate family is defined as father, mother (or alternatively stepparents, foster parents), brother, sister, spouse (or common-law spouse residing with the student), dependent child, stepchild, ward, father-in-law, mother-in-law and relative permanently residing in the student’s household or with whom the student permanently resides.

Students are not entitled to paid sick leave and do not accrue sick leave credits.

The delegated manager may grant leave without pay for any purpose, but not beyond the specified period of the student’s assignment.

1. A student with at least three months of continuous employment who is laid off before the end of his or her assignment without being given two weeks’ notice shall receive compensation in lieu of notice. In cases of termination of employment for disciplinary reasons, refer to section 3.19 Discipline.
2. The compensation will equal two weeks’ pay or pay to the end of the specified period of the assignment, whichever is less.
3. If the student is re-assigned to the Public Service before the end of the period for which compensation had been paid, he or she shall repay that part of the compensation representing the time from the date of re-assignment to the end of the original compensable period.

Where required, students must have appropriate security clearances.

Students assigned to work in an isolated post, as defined in the Isolated Posts and Government Housing Directive, are eligible for the relevant environment allowance, the living cost differential, and the fuels and utilities differential, based on the classification of the post.

Subject to any other enactment of the Treasury Board, the deputy head may:

• establish standards of discipline for students on assignment; and
• prescribe, impose, vary or rescind, in whole or in part, the financial and other penalties, including suspension and termination of assignment, that may be applied for breaches of discipline or misconduct.

Compensation for students working in part-time assignments shall be based on the principles found in the students’ relevant collective agreements.

If a student employed under a student employment program is subsequently appointed to the Public Service, assignments may be counted as continuous employment, provided they meet the relevant criteria of the applicable terms and conditions of employment.

For students participating in the 2017 Indigenous Youth Summer Employment Opportunity Special Project, the delegated manager may provide accommodations as prescribed by the Chief Human Resources Officer.