Full-Time Equivalents in the Federal Public Service – 2024-25 Departmental Plans

Over 2006-07 to 2022-23 the federal public service expanded from 335,000¹ full-time equivalents (FTEs) to 432,000—an increase of over 96,000 FTEs.

According to the 2024-25 Departmental Plans (DPs),² the number of FTEs is expected to have reached 439,000 in 2023-24.³  This represents an increase of almost 20,000 FTEs compared to last year’s plans.  The Canada Revenue Agency, Employment and Social Development Canada, and Public Service and Procurement Canada account for half of this increase.

The number of FTEs are then projected to decline, falling to 399,000 FTEs in 2026-27.  That said, this projected decline, even if it materializes, still leaves the number of FTEs well above its pre-pandemic peak (382,000 in 2019-20).  Moreover, current plans do not include additional FTEs that will likely result from potential new measures announced by the Government in Budget 2024.

Based on the past three years of Departmental Plans, a pattern has emerged where the projected profile of FTEs (reaching a peak and then declining), is revised upward across the planning horizon in subsequent DPs. For example, the 2023-24 DPs indicated that the number of FTEs peaked in 2022-23 and would then start to decline in 2023-24.  However, the 2024-25 DPs show that FTEs will now peak at 439,000 in 2023-24 (exceeding FTEs in 2022-23 by over 7,000 FTEs) and then decline but remain above previously planned levels.