Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC; ; )
[''Employment and Social Development Canada'' is the applied title under the Federal Identity Program; the legal title is Department of Employment and Social Development ().] is a
department of the
Government of Canada
The Government of Canada (), formally His Majesty's Government (), is the body responsible for the federation, federal administration of Canada. The term ''Government of Canada'' refers specifically to the executive, which includes Minister of t ...
responsible for social programs and the labour market at the federal level. The department delivers a number of federal government programs and services including
Employment Insurance (EI),
Service Canada centres,
Canada Student Loan Program (CSLP),
Canada Pension Plan
The Canada Pension Plan (CPP; ) is a contributory, earnings-related social insurance program. It is one of the two major components of Canada's public retirement income system, the other being Old Age Security (OAS). Other parts of Canada's retir ...
(CPP), issuing
social insurance numbers (SIN) and the federal
Labour Program among other things.
Employment and Social Development Canada is part of the membership of the
Inter-American Conference on Social Security, a technical and specialized international organization, which has the objective of promoting the development of social protection and security in America.
History
Background
The Department of Human Resources and Skills Development was created in December 2003, when
Human Resources Development Canada (HRDC) was split into two separate departments: Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC) and
Social Development Canada (SDC). Though they continued to share many common services and operations, Human Resources and Skills Development Canada was to focus on workforce-related aspects of the former HRDC portfolio, while SDC was to focus on social support programs for children, families and seniors. The split was given formal legal effect when the ''Department of Human Resources and Skills Development Act'' and the ''Department of Social Development Act'' were
enacted in July 2005.
Recombined
Upon taking office in February 2006, the
Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...
government of
Stephen Harper announced it would recombine the two departments, and through a series of
orders in council, Social Development Canada was folded into HRSDC.
From 2006 to 2008, Social Development's preceding role was reflected by
styling the Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development as the "Minister of Human Resources and Social Development", and by changing the department's applied title to "Human Resources and Social Development Canada". This practice ended in late 2008 when the title was changed to "Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development." The post was later referred to as "Minister of Employment and Social Development" when the department was renamed.
On November 4, 2015, the department underwent
machinery of government
The machinery of government (sometimes abbreviated as MoG) is the interconnected structures and processes of government, such as the functions and accountability of departments in the executive branch of government. The term is used particul ...
changes which saw the employment responsibilities transfer to the Labour Minister resulting in the newly re-titled
Minister of Employment, Workforce and Labour. The Social Development aspects were then shaped into the
Minister of Families, Children and Social Development.
On March 14, 2025, responsibility for the department was consolidated into a single ministerial post, the
Minister of Jobs and Families.
Sub-agencies, programs and activities
Sub-agencies of ESDC include:
*
Service Canada
**
Service Canada Centres for Youth
*
Canada Student Loans Program
*
Canada Employment Insurance Commission
*
Canada Pension Plan
The Canada Pension Plan (CPP; ) is a contributory, earnings-related social insurance program. It is one of the two major components of Canada's public retirement income system, the other being Old Age Security (OAS). Other parts of Canada's retir ...
*National Seniors Council
*
Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program
*
Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service
*
Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation
*
Canada Industrial Relations Board
ESDC delivers $87 billion in programs and services and has approximately 24,000 employees. Approximately 19,000 of those employees work under the
Service Canada banner.
Officials and structure
Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Labour –
Steven MacKinnon
** Deputy Minister of Employment and Social Development – Paul Thompson
** Senior Associate Deputy Minister of Employment and Social Development – Kristina Namiesniowski
** Business Lead, Benefits Delivery Modernization - John Ostrander
*
Minister of Citizens' Services -
Terry Beech
** Associate Deputy Minister of Employment and Social Development and Chief Operating Officer for Service Canada – Cliff Groen
*
Minister of Seniors -
Joanne Thompson
** Deputy Minister of Labour and Associate Deputy Minister of Employment and Social Development – Sandra Hassan
*
Minister of Families, Children and Social Development –
Jenna Sudds
*
Minister of Diversity, Inclusion and Persons with Disabilities -
Kamal Khera
*
Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Youth -
Marci Ien
Controversies
2012/2013 privacy breach
On January 11, 2013, Minister
Diane Finley announced that a hard drive containing information of 583,000 student loan borrowers had been lost from a Canada Student Loans Program (CSLP)/HRSDC office in Gatineau, Quebec. Borrowers who registered a loan between 2000 and 2006 were potentially affected. The information on the hard drive contained full names,
social insurance numbers, contact information, and loan balances. The hard drive also contained information on 250 HRSDC employees. Concerns of privacy breaches and identity theft led to the filing of three class-action suits against the federal government on behalf of the affected students.
On January 18, 2013, the Office of the
Privacy Commissioner of Canada stated that a formal investigation had been launched. The stated outcome of this investigation was to provide information to organizations and individuals to improve privacy protection.
The RCMP was notified but is waiting for the outcome of the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada's investigation to do their own investigation.
This incident has become known as "1 in 60", representing the ratio of affected individuals to the Canadian population as a whole.
Canada Summer Jobs program
In 2018, the government of
Justin Trudeau introduced a new mandatory criteria for eligible employers and projects of the Canada Summer Jobs program, for which "the core mandate of the organization must respect individual human rights in Canada, including the values underlying the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (Charter) as well as other rights" like the "
reproductive rights
Reproductive rights are legal rights and freedoms relating to human reproduction, reproduction and reproductive health that vary amongst countries around the world. The World Health Organization defines reproductive rights:
Reproductive rights ...
and the right to be free from discrimination". After facing nine ongoing Federal Court challenges and the complaints of the
Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops
The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB; ) is the national assembly of the bishop (Catholic Church), bishops of the Catholic Church in Canada. It was founded in 1943, and was officially recognized by the Holy See in 1948. Since the Sec ...
in union with the Canadian Council of Christian Charities, the requirement was rewritten and became a mandatory point for eligible projects and job activities, which must not "actively work to undermine or restrict a woman's access to sexual and reproductive health services".
See also
*
Poverty in Canada
References
Notes
External links
Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Employment and Social Development Canada
Federal departments and agencies of Canada
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
Children, young people and families ministries of Canada
Ministries established in 2003
2003 establishments in Canada
Employment in Canada