Reference Number: PSDPA 2018-2019-006
Organization: Employment and Social Development Canada
File Identification Number: PSDPA 2018-2019-006
File Identification Date: 2020-10-27
Findings and Conclusions: a contravention of any Act of Parliament or of the legislature of a province, or of any regulations made under any such Act, other than a contravention of section 19 of this Act; a serious breach of a code of conduct established under section 5 or 6; knowingly directing or counselling a person to commit a wrongdoing set out in any of paragraphs (a) to (e)
Case Description: ESDC’s Senior Disclosure Officer received a disclosure of wrongdoing under the Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act, alleging wrongdoing under section 8 (e) and (f) of the Act. An investigation was conducted and a manager was found to have committed wrongdoing by directing or counselling an employee to commit wrongdoing, and seriously breaching the Departmental Code of Conduct. The investigation also found that the Internal Integrity and Security Office in the Western Canada and Territories Region had committed wrongdoing by contravening the Government Contracts Regulations and TBS Contracting Policy.
Recommendations and Corrective Measures: The appropriate corrective or administrative measures are being determined for the individual(s) found to have committed, or involved in, wrongdoing. The following additional control measures are being implemented to prevent, avoid, and/or address the issue of inappropriate use of the Government Acquisition Card:A team of Chief Financial Officer Branch procurement specialists have been communicating with regional security officials since May 2018 to assess the security requirements across the department. The goal is to arrive at an overall procurement strategy that will result in larger competitive contracts being put in place that managers in Internal Integrity and Security offices can leverage to satisfy their security needs; Government Acquisition Cardholders will continue to be advised to not use their acquisition cards for any requirements that require a Statement of Work or that require clauses to address security clearances, protection of personal information or the creation of intellectual property; The Government Acquisition Cardholders Quick Reference Guide and the Acquisition Card Policy will continue to be regularly updated to mitigate the risk of misuse; The Chief Financial Officer’s Branch will review the past and ongoing transactions between ESDC and the private security company, identify any unacceptable transactions, and implement corrective measures to ensure that the proper procurement practices are put in place immediately with regards to the procurement of security services; and The directorate that monitors the use of acquisition cards, within the Chief Financial Officer’s Branch, will consider: Internal Audit Services recommendations and the Annual Stewardship Validation Process, a regional practice, as a reference guide and source of best practices for managers in validating acquisition card issuance and usage.