Casual Employment

A casual worker is a person employed on a casual basis hired from outside of the Public Service of Canada for a maximum of 90 working days per calendar year (January to December) within the same department.

  • Why consider this staffing action
    • To fill unforeseen temporary vacancies;
    • To work on short term projects;
    • To work on backlogs or meet temporary increases in workload;
    • To hire employees with specialized skills who require minimum training.
  • What you need to know
    • Classification Group and Level
      • Sub-delegated managers determine the duties to be performed and the associated group and level for which a casual will be compensated. If the duties are not reflected under the manager's organizational structure, refer to the National Work Description Bank or submit a request in the HRSC Portal to help determine the appropriate group and level.
    • Merit and Recourse
      • Casual workers are not 'employees' under the Public Service Employment Act and are not subject to merit (i.e., not required to meet the SOMC, qualification standards, and linguistic requirements) or recourse to the Federal Public Sector Labour Relations and Employment Board (FPSLREB).

      However:

      • Sub-delegated managers are to ensure that the casual worker possesses the necessary skills (including language) to meet the operational requirements of the work to be performed.
    • 90 working days
      • Sub-delegated managers are responsible for ensuring employment periods (including extensions) do not exceed 90 working days in a calendar year.
      • There is no waiting period to be eligible to work for ESDC even if the casual worker has already worked 90 days in another department.
      • A working day includes all days the employee reports for work, regardless of the number of hours worked (a full day or an hour).
      • Leave without pay, weekends and statutory holidays do not count as workdays (unless the casual worker actually works on those days).
      • Under a compressed schedule, the compressed day off counts as a day worked.
    • Security
      • Employees must have a valid security clearance that meets the security level required for the position being staffed.
      • For new hires to ESDC, submit security clearance requests to the appropriate Regional Security Office (RSO) as early as possible to avoid delays in the processing of your staffing action.
      • Refer to the Validation of Security for Staffing Requests Chart to know the security confirmation process for your staffing action.
    • Vaccination Requirement
    • Employment and Schedule
    • Pay
      • Casual workers are paid with salary dollars.
      • As per Part 2 of the Appendix of the Directive on Terms and Conditions of Employment, on appointment from outside the Public Service:
        • The rate of pay is to be the minimum rate of the pay scale applicable to the position to which the person is appointed.
        • The sub-delegated manager has the discretion to appoint a person above the minimum salary only when one of the following conditions applies:
          1. shortage of skilled labour in the field involved, as evidenced by local or regional labour market surveys from recognized institutions;
          2. unusual difficulties in filling the position with properly qualified candidates (for example, the minimum rate of pay is not competitive with the rates offered by local or regional employers for similar duties); or
          3. operational conditions require the presence of a highly skilled or experienced person who can assume the full duties of the position immediately upon taking employment (for example, there is no alternative but to pay above the minimum because training a novice person would impose an unacceptable burden on the employing organization).
    • Retirees

      An employment contract with a continuous employment period of more than 6 months has consequences for employees already receiving a pension. Retirees should always consult the Pension Centre before accepting a new job. Note that a period of leave without pay does not constitute a break in the continuous employment period.

    • Travel

      When an employee is required to work in another city or region, outside their regular workplace, they could be deemed to be in travel status. This movement is covered by the National Joint Council Travel Directive. For questions related to travel, contact the Finance and other Related Services Sector on the Gateway for Travel Support.

    • Entitlements
      Casual workers Are entitled to:Casual workers are Not entitled to:
      Terms and Conditions of Employment Grieve as they are not covered by a collective agreement
      Supervise employees and have financial signing authority Performance Pay or Bilingualism Bonus
      Apply to external advertised appointment processes Apply or be considered for internal processes (appointments or deployments)
      Overtime pay Overtime in compensatory days off
      4% vacation pay in lieu of paid vacation leave Earn leave credits or vacation with pay
      Leave without pay Paid Sick Leave
      Bereavement leave – up to 3 consecutive calendar days - Paid leave after 3 months of continuous employment Health Care and Dental Care - unless they complete 6 months of continuous employment (or are offered employment of 6-months or more in one contract in which case they are eligible immediately)
      Full time: Pay for a statutory holiday
      Part-time: Earn 4.25% of their salary in lieu of the statutory holiday      		 Pension Plan - unless they complete 6 months of continuous employment
      Acting Pay (if assigned to perform duties of a higher classification level)  
    • Additional Information

      For more information, visit the Treasury Board's Casual Worker FAQ.

  • Required documents
    • Initial Hire
    • Extension
    • If Applicable
      • Dual remuneration: A written certification from the delegated authority of the organization in which the person occupies their substantive position that the performance of additional service in another organization does not impair the person's effectiveness in their substantive position.
  • Submitting a request
    • Step 1: Obtain the following
      • Consult the Terms of Reference of your branch/regional Workforce Management Committee (WMC) to determine if WMC approval is required.
      • Employee PRI: If the employee is new to the Public Service, obtain a PRI.
      • If a temporary resident or temporary foreign worker is hired, ensure they have a valid work permit for the duration of the employment.
    • Step 2: Complete the request form
    • Step 3: Submit your request
      • The staffing sub-delegated manager with financial signing authority, for the identified cost centre, under the Financial Administration Act (FAA) assumes full responsibility for the request.
    • Step 4: Contract and signatures
      • After HR review, a contract or letter of offer will be issued through the HRSC Portal request for signature.
      • Read the contract/letter carefully and return it once signed by all parties as per the provided instructions.
        • If any amendments are required, please advise HR. Do not make handwritten amendments or use a PDF editor.

    Tip for Initial Hire:

    If the casual worker is new to ESDC or has a break in service with ESDC of one workday or more, the following pay documents will be requested with the signed letter of offer. You can provide them to the casual worker in advance while you wait for the letter of offer to be prepared.

HRSC Casual Employment (opens in a new window)