Derby
Crew Member
Fisheries 'workforce adjustment' worrisome for coastal communities
By Peter O'Neil, Postmedia News; With File From Judith Lavoie, Times Colonist December 13, 2011
The federal government insisted Monday it's committed to strong fisheries science research after sending letters to 400 Fisheries Department employees, including an estimated 200 scientists, to tell them they could be "affected" by "workforce adjustment."
Critics said the government is about to get rid of a large number of experts at a time when the public wants more science done to probe declining salmon stocks, the impact of fish farms and possible changes to oceans and rivers due to climate change.
B.C. New Democrat Fin Donnelly (New Westminster-Coquitlam) accused the government of acting contrary to the expected message coming out of the Cohen Commission, established in 2009 to look into the decline of the Fraser River sockeye salmon.
It is not yet known how the Pacific Region will be affected by the cuts, said Department of Fisheries and Oceans spokeswoman Melanie Carkner.
"Most of the employees who received a letter today will keep their job, be redeployed within the department or retire," she said.
The total impact on the staff of more than 11,000 will be less than one per cent a year for three years, Carkner said.
"While only 15 per cent of the department's workforce is in Ottawa, 26 per cent of the impact will be felt in Ottawa," she said.
The cuts, many of which are expected to be in areas such as science and conservation, will hurt coastal communities, Donnelly said. "Staffing cuts will hurt conservation, sciencebased management, research and marine safety, proving once again that this government is out of touch with the priorities of our coastal communities and those that make a living from the fishery."
Vancouver Island biologist Alexandra Morton, a frequent critic of the Fisheries Department, said the entire ministry needs to be shaken up, but she fears cuts will come from the front line instead of headquarters staff in Ottawa.
Ideally, the department should be split or the private sector should take responsibility for fish health and, ultimately, for saving West Coast salmon runs, Morton said.
"DFO should just write tickets. They have no interest in fish health," she said.
Fisheries Minister Keith Ashfield downplayed a report in the Ottawa Citizen Monday, which quoted union officials saying up to 280 of the 400 jobs in the Fisheries Department could disappear.
A similar letter was sent to a much smaller number of Canadian Coast Guard employees.
The letter is part of a "strategic review" initiative in the 2011 federal budget to find cost savings.
The Fisheries Department could face further turmoil after the 2012 federal budget, as the government moves to cut another $4 billion in annual spending. Top bureaucrats have been asked to provide two sets of proposed cuts ranging from five to 10 per cent of annual operating budgets.
© Copyright (c) The Victoria Times Colonist
Read more: http://www.timescolonist.com/techno...+communities/5850980/story.html#ixzz1gQdDFZ6E
By Peter O'Neil, Postmedia News; With File From Judith Lavoie, Times Colonist December 13, 2011
The federal government insisted Monday it's committed to strong fisheries science research after sending letters to 400 Fisheries Department employees, including an estimated 200 scientists, to tell them they could be "affected" by "workforce adjustment."
Critics said the government is about to get rid of a large number of experts at a time when the public wants more science done to probe declining salmon stocks, the impact of fish farms and possible changes to oceans and rivers due to climate change.
B.C. New Democrat Fin Donnelly (New Westminster-Coquitlam) accused the government of acting contrary to the expected message coming out of the Cohen Commission, established in 2009 to look into the decline of the Fraser River sockeye salmon.
It is not yet known how the Pacific Region will be affected by the cuts, said Department of Fisheries and Oceans spokeswoman Melanie Carkner.
"Most of the employees who received a letter today will keep their job, be redeployed within the department or retire," she said.
The total impact on the staff of more than 11,000 will be less than one per cent a year for three years, Carkner said.
"While only 15 per cent of the department's workforce is in Ottawa, 26 per cent of the impact will be felt in Ottawa," she said.
The cuts, many of which are expected to be in areas such as science and conservation, will hurt coastal communities, Donnelly said. "Staffing cuts will hurt conservation, sciencebased management, research and marine safety, proving once again that this government is out of touch with the priorities of our coastal communities and those that make a living from the fishery."
Vancouver Island biologist Alexandra Morton, a frequent critic of the Fisheries Department, said the entire ministry needs to be shaken up, but she fears cuts will come from the front line instead of headquarters staff in Ottawa.
Ideally, the department should be split or the private sector should take responsibility for fish health and, ultimately, for saving West Coast salmon runs, Morton said.
"DFO should just write tickets. They have no interest in fish health," she said.
Fisheries Minister Keith Ashfield downplayed a report in the Ottawa Citizen Monday, which quoted union officials saying up to 280 of the 400 jobs in the Fisheries Department could disappear.
A similar letter was sent to a much smaller number of Canadian Coast Guard employees.
The letter is part of a "strategic review" initiative in the 2011 federal budget to find cost savings.
The Fisheries Department could face further turmoil after the 2012 federal budget, as the government moves to cut another $4 billion in annual spending. Top bureaucrats have been asked to provide two sets of proposed cuts ranging from five to 10 per cent of annual operating budgets.
© Copyright (c) The Victoria Times Colonist
Read more: http://www.timescolonist.com/techno...+communities/5850980/story.html#ixzz1gQdDFZ6E
