In what may signal a troubling shift in workplace well-being, Canadian federal public servants are reporting unprecedented levels of stress and burnout, according to the latest Public Service Employee Survey. The comprehensive assessment, which gathered responses from over 170,000 public servants across 86 federal organizations, paints a concerning picture of deteriorating mental health within the government workforce.
The survey results, released Tuesday, reveal that 25% of respondents reported experiencing “high to very high stress” at work—marking a significant 6-percentage-point increase from the previous year’s findings. Perhaps more troubling is that only 59% of public servants described their workplace mental health as “good or very good,” continuing a downward trend that began well before the pandemic disruptions.
“These numbers reflect the cumulative impact of pandemic-related disruptions, return-to-office mandates, and increasing workloads,” explained Dr. Elaine Chang, workplace psychologist and government policy advisor. “When nearly a quarter of your workforce reports high stress levels, it signals systemic issues that require immediate attention.”
The Public Service Employee Survey has been conducted annually since 1999, serving as a critical barometer for the health of Canada’s largest employer. This year’s results arrive amid ongoing tensions between the federal government and public sector unions over return-to-office policies and workload concerns.
Most concerning for leadership should be the stark decline in workplace satisfaction metrics. Only 67% of respondents indicated they would recommend their department as a “great place to work”—down 5 percentage points from 2022. Meanwhile, 27% reported feeling emotionally drained after their workday, representing a 4-percentage-point increase from last year.
Treasury Board President Anita Anand acknowledged the findings in a statement: “The well-being of public servants remains a top priority for our government. We are carefully reviewing these results and will work collaboratively with departments to develop targeted support strategies.”
The survey also highlighted disparities in stress levels across departments. Employees at Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada reported the highest stress levels at 33%, followed by Employment and Social Development Canada at 29%. Both departments have faced significant operational pressures during the post-pandemic recovery period.
Mental health advocates within the public service point to several factors contributing to the decline, including understaffing, increasingly complex workloads, and inconsistent implementation of hybrid work arrangements.
“The flexibility that helped many public servants manage their work-life balance during the pandemic has been eroded in some departments,” noted Jennifer Carr, president of the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada. “Combined with increasing demands and inadequate resources, we’re seeing the predictable outcome—a workforce under strain.”
Economic pressures may be amplifying workplace stress as well. With inflation cutting into purchasing power and housing costs continuing to rise across major urban centers where many federal offices are located, financial concerns are adding another layer of anxiety for many public servants.
The government has announced plans to enhance mental health resources, including expanded access to counseling services and the implementation of the new Federal Public Service Workplace Mental Health Strategy. However, union representatives argue these measures address symptoms rather than root causes.
“Meaningful improvement will require structural changes to workload expectations, management practices, and workplace flexibility policies,” said Chris Aylward, president of the Public Service Alliance of Canada, in response to the survey findings.
As the federal government navigates post-pandemic workplace transformations, the declining mental health metrics raise crucial questions about sustainable work practices in the public service. With recruitment and retention already challenging in key sectors, addressing these concerning trends has become not just a wellness issue but an operational imperative.
What remains to be seen is whether the federal government will treat these findings as a catalyst for meaningful workplace reform, or whether Canada’s public servants will continue bearing the increasing weight of institutional stress in the years ahead?
