News Releases

News Release - Manitoba

January 30, 2020

Manitoba Government Announces Additional Controls for More Efficient and Responsive Public-Sector Management

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Provincial Commitment Will Bolster Front Lines and Protect Services: Fielding

The Manitoba government is taking fresh steps to bolster the front lines and protect public-sector services through additional controls on executive management compensation levels, renewed focus on flattening top-heavy management structures and reviewing management spans and layers, Finance Minister Scott Fielding announced today.

“On behalf of all Manitobans, we have an ongoing responsibility to fix the province’s finances and protect public services,” said Fielding.  “Part of our government’s all-hands-on-deck approach will continue to include focus on executive compensation and overall management levels.  We expect public-sector entities to follow our example and be aligned with established priorities.  This means setting the tone from the top to protect and deliver better services, and provide more responsive front-line support.”

These efforts will continue to be led and applied across summary government operations.  The government’s latest steps are:
•    providing direction to Crown corporations, post-secondary institutions and school divisions to clearly set and control executive compensation limits,
•    conducting a review of spans of control and layers of supervision to optimize manager-to-employer ratios, and
•    reducing overall management levels by 15 per cent. 

In addition to producing operational improvements, the resulting savings would be redirected to bolster and sustain front-line services, noted the minister.

These steps build upon earlier government initiatives, such as reducing the size of cabinet, leading by example on internal compensation levels, reducing the number of managers in core government by 15 per cent, reviewing the spans and layers in the civil service, guiding collective bargaining by sustainability considerations throughout the public sector and introducing the recent The Public Sector Executive Compensation Act.

Specific directives to Crowns, post-secondary institutions and school divisions on executive compensation levels mirror those previously adopted by the provincial government including a 1.75 per cent cap over four years.  The directive includes:
•    no increases for the first 24-month period and where current terms and conditions of employment provide for one or more salary increases, this directive shall take effect one year after the last increase takes effect; 
•    no more than 0.75 per cent increase for the next 12-month period; and
•    no more than one per cent increase for the final 12-month period.

“We’re committed to ensuring that appropriate management structures and practices are in place to deliver the best services and value for money.  This includes ensuring that front-line voices can be most effectively heard,” said Fielding.  “Taxpayers’ dollars should be prioritized on front-line services – next to the student, the ratepayer and the customer – for better outcomes.”

The province has also initiated a tender process to engage consulting services to review and assess executive compensation, classification approaches and optimum spans and layers of management.  The help of outside experts will ensure this centrally co-ordinated review reflects best practices and is fairly applied across the broader public service, said Fielding.

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