PSAC warns federal budget could lead to 70,000 job cuts in the public service

The union warns 70,000 public service jobs are at risk if the federal government trims jobs to pre-pandemic levels. CTV’s Natalie van Rooy reports.

The Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) is warning of the possibility of deep job cuts in the federal public service ahead of Liberals’ first budget under Prime Minister Mark Carney.

Earlier this week, Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne suggested the size of the public service has grown too large and that it should be trimmed back to pre-pandemic levels.

“We need to bring back the civil service to a sustainable level,” Champagne said Wednesday.

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“And I think people have seen, and they will see in the budget, if you look at how many people we have today and what we had before COVID-19, we need to get back to something more sustainable.”

In a post on social media, PSAC called the upcoming federal budget “a recipe for disaster.”

The post includes a quote from PSAC National President Sharon DeSousa, who says, “Champagne’s comments on returning to pre-COVID staff numbers mean that 70,000 public service workers could lose their jobs, leaving a hollowed-out public service to run vital services that keep our country safe.”

“Our world has changed since COVID-19, and public services are stretched thin. Gutting the services that families, veterans, and the elderly rely on now is reckless,” PSAC says.

The size of the federal public service shrunk by nearly 10,000 jobs in 2025 compared to the year prior, but it is still just under 70,000 jobs higher than it was in 2019. According to the Treasury Board, there are 357,965 total employees across all federal departments and agencies this year. In 2019, there were 287,983 employees, or 69,982 fewer people than today.

The population of Canada has grown by an estimated 4.3 million people since 2019, based on Statistics Canada data.

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The budget will be tabled in the House of Commons on Nov. 4. In a recent speech to students at the University of Ottawa, Carney said the upcoming budget will include “generational investments,” but would also require “some sacrifices.”

During the 2025 election campaign, the Liberal Party said it was committed to “capping, not cutting public service employment.”

With files from CTVNews.ca’s Spencer Van Dyk and CTV News Ottawa’s Josh Pringle