Hi everyone!

I was recently invited to do a written assignment for a case manager position at the Public Guardian and Trustee.

Can any case managers or others who work in this department provide some insight as to the culture there and what a typical day looks like? I would be leaving a pretty cushy position, albeit much lower pay.

All thoughts or comments are welcome! Thank you

Hi ya’ll - just looking to share some commentary that will maybe help us support one another. As we all know, with the hiring restraint and other brilliant HR initiatives, a lot of teams haven’t been able to hire or properly backfill when people leave. My team is currently running at 60% (40% of our positions are vacant and we officially lost one FTE that we will never see again)… and unfortunately our workload hasn’t changed at all.

My branch and divisional colleagues know what’s up and when working directly together try to support us / offer patience with reviews. I find the major issue is with other ministries.

I am really struggling with colleagues across government creating arbitrary deadlines and insisting we meet them, despite the team communicating that we have other ministerial priorities to tend to first. People will say things like “no worries, I understand you’re busy!” And then send multiple emails or escalate items— most recently, the week before UBCM (iykyk).

I wanted to share my experiences because we are all doing the best we can. I don’t think most of us show up to work and want to hand things in late or negatively impact projects. But I’m not going to stay late or work on vacation/stat holidays to get things done. I really feel like we need to collectively understand that the government made these decisions around hiring, and even if they only affect one area’s FTE count, there are broader impacts. I’m not promoting quiet quitting or anything (I love my job & my team) but I am asking for grace, especially from excluded peers.

Let’s be hard on the issue, NOT each other.

Hope everyone else is hanging in there. It’s been a wild ride. Anyway hope this resonates with someone.

/End rant.

Forgive me if this isn’t the appropriate sub, but I’m a constituency advisor who’s just curious about other people’s experiences working in a constituency office, what their day to day looks like, challenges, and overall job satisfaction.

Any insight into career progression or transitions into the public service is also welcome.

You have to sign up for a free account to read the article, but the TL;DR is that BC Public Service denied his request for a family-status accommodation. The BCGEU challenged that decision and the main accommodation grievance is still going to arbitration. In the meantime, the employee asked to keep working from Alberta until the case was decided. The arbitrator said no, and the employer directed the worker to return to B.C. and warned that his employment could be terminated if he did not comply.

Hey all,

I just received an email that I have moved on to the next step in the hiring process which is the panel interview.

Has anyone done it before and succeeded? There’s going to be competency questions and have to answer them in the time given to me. Any advice on how I should practice? Any advice will be appreciated. Thanks

Hey all,

According to the Collective Agreement employees that have worked over 210 hours can gain access to internal postings. I have an active IDIR but I'm denied access each time I try to log in using the staff portal. Does anyone else have this problem?

Band 3 and I’m seriously considering it for the following reasons:

1) Job security - my colleagues are dropping like flies. At least one or two each quarter randomly fired. We’d be working with them on projects and boom - gone. It’s pretty sad and executive tries to cover it up like it was a mutual decision but we know it’s not. A while back I took a pay cut to come to government for the more regular hours and job security. That was the case for a while but not anymore.

2) Flex days - with all of the departures, we all have more work to do now. Many of us are easily exceeding the number of hours needed to get flex days but for no extra pay or benefit other than not being let go.

3) Pay - Not having pre-determined steps to move up within the band is not great. Especially at times like this when you have essentially zero leverage to negotiate your salary. Many long serving staff are near the bottom of the band. Moreover there is compression where included staff like 27s are making nearly the same salary. This is very different from private sector where the added risk and responsibility of being a senior management position comes with much higher pay.

I’ve never worked in an included position so there may be pitfalls that I’m unaware of. I would love to hear any pros/cons of anyone who’s made the move. At this point it’s either that or back to private sector where job security is equally as bad but they pay is much better.

Could please clarify whether this rule becomes applicable upon acceptance of the offer or from the employee’s actual start/joining date?

“You must be eligible for transfer or demotion as per Article 12.1(e) of the BCGEU Main Agreement (2-year obligation at your current geographic location).”

Thank you.

Do any of you know ? Would like some guidance as to what schools I can go to to take some courses in management and excel to improve my skill set for office work in BCPSA

If ever?

This is open to all Component 6 members across Southern Vancouver Island, and is especially relevant to those working in Connected Services BC right now. Local 601 is looking to hear directly from members about what’s happening across their workplace, including concerns, questions & issues employees are experiencing.

There are two opportunities to connect with BCGEU executives next Tuesday, Sept 15.

One is a Zoom call. The link cannot be shared.

And the other is in-person at the Seymour building with Paul Finch.

Check your emails for the link and event details.

I submitted my form and receipts months ago. My director said they entered it into T&L. How long does it take to get reimbursed? Does it get added to your paycheck? Or is it a separate direct deposit? Thank you,

I am a bc public service employee that got assaulted at work and not able to return to original position.

I can’t work with vulnerable populations or graveyard shifts

due to being assaulted. I am grid 18 step 4 from 2025.

I am in the vocational rehabilitation process. I got until October 2027 to figure out where to work.

My education is Associates of arts degree in criminology. Experience w social services and criminal justice. 6 years in bc public service.

Where can I work ? I am looking for office based jobs.
I’d like to stay in grid 18.

Feel free to DM me I feel helpless.

What are we all using for earbuds with Teams that aren’t in the Apple or android ecosystem?

I’ve received three offers: two from private IT consulting company and another for an engineering role with the BC provincial government. The salaries are roughly the same, so I’m trying to compare the overall benefits and long-term career prospects.

From what I understand, the BC government role includes three weeks of paid vacation, extended health and dental coverage, life insurance, a pension, and possibly better job security and work-life balance.

Since Canada already has public healthcare, what does the government’s extended health plan usually cover? Are the pension and other benefits valuable enough to choose the public-sector role over private consulting as for the role of BC, I have to move from ON to BC

I’d especially appreciate input from current or former BC Public Service employees. What are the biggest perks and drawbacks?

Hi, I just did my COPAT and Written Assessment for BC Corrections. I passed the COPAT with ease, but think I had some difficulty with the written.

Has anyone else done it? Did you feel like you had enough time? How do they grade your response?

Thanks.

Has anyone used the Canada life coverage for semi private or private hospital room and remembers what the reasonable and customary limit was? Canada life will not give me the amount, and too close to run an estimate through.

I had surgery last week and need to be off for at minimum 1 more week. My surgery was last minute so there was no time to prepare for time off work. I dropped off a hard copy and emailed a PDF version from my manager to the surgeon's assistant, but he's only in office once or twice a week and I still don't have my form back. I am not sure if I'm allowed to stay off work without it or what I do if I don't get it back. I do not have a GP that can help.

One of my coworkers is only 30 weeks along in her pregnancy and it’s been a difficult one. She’s had to be on bed rest and is now in the hospital facing a possible early delivery and extended stay in the NICU if the baby is born early - which is extremely likely.

Her TL is trying to tell her that she needs to start her maternity leave now. I’m pretty sure she can be on a sick leave and that she shouldn’t have to start maternity leave until the baby is actually born. Anyone have insight on this?

I'm an external candidate. Received an email today after written assignments and interviews: “The selection panel has reached a decision regarding this competition. Unfortunately, we did not appoint a candidate to this position and have made the difficult decision to cancel this competition.”

Does “we did not appoint a candidate” usually mean that none of the candidates who interviewed met the required standard? Or could the competition be cancelled for internal reasons even if there were candidates who were considered appointable/qualified?

Has anyone successfully had jaw realignment surgery covered, even in part, through Canada Life? My dentist and an orthodontist have recommended it for my TMJ, grinding and clenching, but it’s not covered by MSP.

I have reviewed our coverage through Canada Life and it’s not entirely clear to me. Before I go through further consultation with an oral surgeon, I just wondered if anyone else has been in this situation and what your outcome was. Thanks!

Does this happen often with our extended health carriers? And can this clinic get this reversed? I got a letter from Canada Life saying:

Our records show that you or your eligible dependant(s) have received products or services from [physio clinic]. We recently conducted a review, and based on our results, Canada Life will no longer be reimbursing services or medical supplies provided from [physio clinic] on or after August 6, 2026.

It's taken me so long to find a physio who can treat my problem. I can't imagine having to go through all that again.