Government Temporary Help Services Advisory Committee Meeting Record of Decision –
Thursday, September 09, 2010

• Agenda
• Record of Decisions

Agenda

Thursday, September 09, 2010
9:30 to 11:30 AM
Place du Portage
Gatineau, Quebec

1. Staff Changes
2. THS Communiqué Update
3. PSC Study Results
4. Supplier Assessments 
5. THS 2010 Refresh Update
6. Other
   • Methods of Supply Decision Tree ~ Susan Anderson
   • THS National Strategy ~ John Penhale
7. Round Table

Record of Decisions

In Attendance

• Rick Sztramko (Chair), PWGSC
• Phil Battaglini, PWGSC
• Rita Brown, PWGSC
• Stephanie Riley, PWGSC
• Carla Schonauer, PWGSC
• Roland Dimitriu, PWGSC
• Susan Anderson, Presenter, Office of Small and Medium Enterprise (OSME-PWGSC)
• Caroline Carson, Health Canada (HC)
• Brenda Harlow, Natural Resources Canada NRCan
• Jean-Claude Azar, Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO)
• Jeremy Ingle, The Association of Canadian Search, Employment and Staffing Services (ACSESS)
• Martin Chenier, ACSESS
• Isabelle Copeland, ACSESS
• Meredith Egan, ACSESS
• Dan Moorcroft, QMR Consulting & Professional Staffing
• Paul Gagnon, Portage Personnel

Absent

• Joanne Cattai, PWGSC
• Julie Chartrand, Library and Archives Canada (LAC)
• Susan Ireland-Nadeau, Department of National Defence (DND)
• Fraser Sullivan, (DND)
• Darin Hayduk, Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC)

Item 1: Introduction

• THS staff changes announced
  • Helen Seto assumes new role in Client Engagement Sector, Commodity Management Directorate as of August 2010
  • Lan Mao returns to Procurement Strategies Division THS team
  • Stephanie Riley will be SO Authority and Lan Mao will be SA Authority as of September 2010

Item 2: THS Communiqué Update

• THS communiqués on THS Protocols and Standards – Code of Ethics & Standards and Fair Trade Practice  was finalized and posted on THS web site for federal department clients’ information for suppliers.

Action: Suppliers to distribute communiqué to all temporary help employees.

Item 3: PSC Study Results

• An update was provided by the committee chair, on the Public Service Commission (PSC) on Temporary Help Services study. The study will be tabled with the Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates in early October 2010.
• PSC based its general findings on the fiscal year (2007-2008). The study findings will be included in the Public Service Commission’s Annual Report to the House of Commons.

Action: The advisory committee may form a sub-committee to address the study findings.

Item 4: Supplier Assessments

• Discussion on how the Canadian Industrial Security Directorate’s (CISD) required Individual Consent Form is being populated by some THS suppliers.

Action: PWGSC willcontact CISD within the next week. PWGSC may schedule a CISD presentation if required, as an update to the January 2010 committee meeting on security requirement for THS resources.

Item 5: THS 2010 Refresh Update

• An update on the anticipated release date of the THS 2010 refresh solicitation was addressed.

Action: PWGSC to develop a timeline of 1-2 months for posting the refresh solicitation on MERX.

Item 6: Other

• Presentation by OSME on the Methods of Supply Decision Tree. Discussion on the Government of Canada's Buy and Sell website which will be launched September 24, 2010.

Action: OSME to send a draft of the Methods of Supply Decision Tree to THS team for comment. THS team to forward to advisory committee members for their comments.

• Update on the THS National Strategy
  A three-day meeting with PWGSC Regions on the temporary help Methods of Supply and to develop a consistent standardized Temp Help System as a National approach.

Action: Client Engagement Sector (CES) to give a presentation on THS National Strategy at a later date.

Item 7: Round Table

Bilingual Competency Requirements in THS

• Discussion on bilingual requirement and language levels. Department clients are requesting that suppliers provide or ensure their resources meet, second language requirements based on the Public Service language testing (ie: CBC, BBB) when filling a request for availability. As language assessments in the private sector are not graded in the same manner as public service testing, client departments need a language requirement guide to follow.

Action: Martin Chenier and Jean-Claude Azar to create a list of levels for bilingual requirements.

Affiliated THS Companies

• Discussion on the practice of some companies posting low prices in order to see the requirements of an order then passing the requirement to their affiliated companies who have the advantage of preparing for that order in second round. Affiliated companies are responding with proposals to a requirement, to which they did not receive an initial invitation to fill.

Action: PWGSC to contact the competition bureau to address the issue above.