Mr. Speaker, on April 19, I had the privilege to ask a question of the President of the Treasury Board regarding regulations that were to be changed to ensure that widows and widowers of fallen Canadian soldiers would be allowed to participate fully with some priority in public service jobs.
The President of the Treasury Board assured me that those regulations would come through and I am very pleased today to say that the regulations were gazetted on May 12. I am hoping that will encourage government departments to seek out for employment the widows and spouses of fallen soldiers.
However, I am concerned about that because, since 2005, medically released Canadian Forces veterans have been eligible for priority employment themselves in the federal public service. I am talking about people who have been medically released and have returned home. These provisions have created important future career opportunities for veterans but, along with my colleague, Senator Percy Downe in the other house, we are concerned about the low participation levels of most federal government departments in the program, participation that is vital in making these opportunities a reality for our veterans.
Information provided by the Public Service Commission shows that, in 2007-08, 245 former Canadian Forces members registered with the Public Service Commission for referral to positions in the public service. The majority of the appointments were made by only one department, which was the Department of National Defence.
DND made 69% of all appointments. It was followed by the Correctional Service of Canada with 7%, Human Resources and Skills Development Canada with 6%, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police with 3% and Public Works and Government Services Canada with 3%. Veterans Affairs Canada hired only 2%. The remaining 10% were through a variety of departments. Sixty-seven veterans had their priority appointment status expire without finding a position in the public service. One left voluntarily before placement.
All of those statistics show that despite the 2005 initiative that tried to ensure that medically released soldiers had access to jobs, it is not happening. We need a more proactive understanding of this.
My concern is that, although the regulations have been changed to allow widows and widowers of fallen soldiers to get jobs, I have not seen an indication that the government will have a proactive program to support that employment practice.
I would ask the parliamentary secretary to respond to two questions. First, what are the government's plans to promote the employment of the widows and widowers of fallen soldiers in the public service? Second, what plans are being undertaken to ensure that medically released Canadian Forces veterans are given jobs, can find employment and have make meaning in their lives as they continue to contribute to Canada?
Our veterans are those who have contributed greatly to Canada's success to date and they want to participate in the future as well. They want to participate in the economic building of Canada and the public service is part of the way that they may express that concern for the building of Canada.
Now that the government has been made aware of this problem, I am hoping there will be some set of instructions to deputy ministers to follow the spirit and intent of those regulations that were done in 2005 with respect to medically released soldiers and also to widows and widowers of fallen soldiers.