BURST
The B.C. public service is facing poor morale and job satisfaction at a time when the government has paused hiring and only recently lifted a ban on promotions, according to a new survey conducted by the government and obtained by Postmedia.
Of the 21,342 employees that participated in the 2026 edition of the “work environment survey” between March 3 and March 24, 58 per cent said they would describe their work unit’s morale as positive or high.
That is a 13-point drop from the last time the survey was conducted in 2024, when 71 per cent said morale was high among their immediate colleagues.
Even fewer public servants said that essential information flows effectively from executives to staff, with only 53 per cent saying they feel that is the case, a seven-point drop from 2024.
Employee satisfaction dropped on every question the survey asked, includes one about morale, workload and how workers feel they are treated in their office.
Shannon Salter, the head of the public service and deputy minister to Premier David Eby, said in a note to employees on Thursday alongside the survey results that she understands the concerns many have shared since the hiring freeze was put in place in February 2025.
The ban on promotions and salary bumps within the public service that has now been lifted came later.
“It’s clear some of the trends since the last full (survey) in 2024 align with the pressures you have been feeling, and I am committed to working alongside your executive and leadership teams to co-ordinate a response with clear actions to help us address the challenges and support you better,” said Salter.
“One action we are taking right away is a change to the current lateral-first hiring approach, which was implemented to steady staffing levels , support responsible hiring practices and talent mobility, and apply consistent, governmentwide oversight to hiring decisions.”
She said that the lifting of the lateral-first approach is possible because “staffing has stabilized.”
The ban on hiring remains in place as the provincial NDP government continues its efforts to save money by reducing the size of the public service by the equivalent of 2,500 full-time positions over the next three years.
One public servant who spoke to Postmedia on the condition of anonymity said that management has understood the issues with morale for a while, but has not done much to fix it.
They also wondered if the government actually wants to address the unhappiness within the ranks so long as it doesn’t get to unmanageable levels, given the goal of reducing the number of people employed by the province.
“We had this town hall in April 2025, where they basically said we’re starting expenditure review. Costs are out of control, We’ve got to bring them in, so we’re going to freeze hiring. From there, they impose lateral-only hiring processes and things like that,” said the public servant.
“There has just been a lot of stuff that I think has chipped away at morale overall. And obviously, let’s not forget the eight-week strike (by the B.C. General Employees Union).”
For Paul Finch, the head of the BCGEU that represents roughly 36,000 unionized public servants and over 100,000 British Columbians in both the public and private sectors, the survey demonstrates the fact that many workers are having to do more with less.
He said B.C. has less front line government workers than much of the rest of the country even as the province has gone on a hiring spree of excluded managers in recent years.
“I think it’s generally understood where the issues are,” said Finch.
“We certainly meet with and communicate with the leadership of the public service on a regular basis, and I do think (Salter) has been responsive. It’s not an accident that she removed the restriction on non-lateral hiring and promotions with the workplace environment survey results.”
The union leader said he is happy overall with the new collective agreement the BCGEU reached with the government in the fall after the eight-week strike, which will give unionized government workers a salary increase of three per cent a year for four years.
The problem, said Finch, is getting the government to stick to its obligations, including provisions around remote work and retroactive pay promised as part of the new collective agreement.
Salter was not made available to comment Friday and the Ministry of Finance did not provide comment by deadline.