Statement of Merit Criteria (SOMC) and Conditions of Employment

Under the Public Service Employment Act (PSEA), an appointment is made on the basis of merit when a person to be appointed meets the essential qualifications for the work to be performed (including official language proficiency). Current or future asset qualifications, operational requirements, and organizational needs may also be considered.

The essential qualifications, asset qualifications, operational requirements and organizational needs, are collectively referred to as the merit criteria or qualifications.

Tools and Templates

Tips on building and updating a SOMC

Think about some of the following elements as you build your SOMC to ensure the merit criteria is appropriate for the position to be staffed.
- Before writing your merit criteria
  - Consider your organizational needs and context.
  - Read the job description and make sure it is up to date; think about what essential qualifications are required to perform the job.
  - Consider the official languages required to perform the duties.
  - Think about the employees currently performing the job and the results they achieve as a team; are there strengths you want to build on or gaps you need to fill.
- While writing your merit criteria
  - Check various resources for inspiration (i.e., previous SOMC, Job Description, GC Jobs, ESDC Competency Dictionary, Qualification Standards).
  - Limit the essential qualifications to those that are critical for the position and use asset qualifications to provide flexibility for building your team.
  - Keep in mind the assessment plan. Having too many merit criteria may lead to a complex assessment stage.
- After writing your merit criteria
  - Review your criteria for any potential systemic barriers for example:
    
    Qualifications that can only be acquired through previous government employment.
    
    Knowledge that can easily be learned on the job.
    
    Emphasis on experience versus ability.
  - Review your choice of language to ensure it is plain, neutral and will be interpreted the same way by all candidates.
  - Make sure your merit criteria are linked to the job, are realistic for the group and level of the position and can be assessed.
  - Think about whether the merit criteria are sufficient and if employees currently performing the job would meet these criteria. Insufficient or excessive merit criteria may affect the outcome of your appointment process.
Types of qualifications
- Official Languages (OL)
  - Proficiency in either or both of the official languages must be an essential qualification (PSEA).
  - Language requirements of positions must be objectively set to ensure compliance with Official Language obligations to the public and to ESDC employees (Section 91–Official Languages Act).
  - Non-imperative staffing is permitted in specific situations (TBS - Directive on OL for People Management).
  - Executive feeder group positions (EX minus 1 and 2) located in designated bilingual regions for language of work purposes, should be staffed at the CBC level (ESDC – Guideline on Identifying Language Requirements of Positions).
  - For help in establishing an appropriate bilingual linguistic profile, access the TBS tool for Determining the Linguistic Profile of Bilingual Positions.
  - Visit the OL Manager’s Toolkit webpage for further information and tools.
- Education
  - Essential education must meet minimum standards established by the Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS) (PSEA).
  - Occupational certifications must be met where required as part of Qualification Standards (e.g. eligibility for an accounting designation for FI-02 and above level positions).
  - Managers in Service Canada are normally expected to use pre-established education requirements identified in Service Management (SM) generic SOMCs.
- Experience, Knowledge, Personal Suitability, Abilities, Competencies
  - Merit criteria are linked to job functions and cannot not discriminate or create systemic barriers. They should be clear, concise, and distinguishable. (PSC - Effective Merit Criteria - A closer look at job opportunities in the public service).
  - All EX SOMCs must respect the EX Qualification Standard and include the Key Leadership Competencies plus mandatory experience factors by tier (TBS).
  - Managers in Service Canada are expected to use standardized and customizable Service Management (SM) generic SOMCs. With approval, changes can be made provided they are job-based and meet applicable legislation and policies.
- Asset Qualifications
  - Qualifications that could enhance the work to be performed.
  - Can include Education, Experience, Knowledge, Personal Suitability, Abilities and/or Competencies.
  - Additional education and/or language requirements other than the official languages can be included.
  - Persons with Priority Entitlements and Veterans (jobs open to the public) are not required to meet asset qualifications (PSEA & VHA).
- Organizational Needs
  - A flexible way for managers to meet their current or future needs to enhance the way the organization operates or fulfills its mandates that may be used for select appointments (PSEA).
  - Examples include: employment equity and placement of workforce adjustment (WFA) employees.
  - ESDC uses a mandatory standardized paragraph for employment equity and diversity on all advertised job opportunities. An HR Advisor will provide you with this paragraph.
- Operational Requirements
  - Requirements that are important to perform the work, that the employee may need to meet (PSEA).
  - Examples could include: travel, overtime.
  - Must respect collective agreements and Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS) policies.
- Conditions of Employment
  - Must be met before and maintained throughout employment in the position (PSEA).
  - Examples could include: security clearance, driver’s license.
  - Must be based on “bona fide operational requirements” for the position. Managers are required to consider accommodations or changes to the job to the point of “undue hardship” (Canadian Human Rights Act).
  - Visit the TBS FAQs on Conditions of employment.