Bill C-27

62-63-64 ELIZABETH II

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CHAPTER 5

An Act to amend the Public Service Employment Act (enhancing hiring opportunities for certain serving and former members of the Canadian Forces)

[Assented to 31st March, 2015]

Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:

SHORT TITLE

1. This Act may be cited as the Veterans Hiring Act.

PUBLIC SERVICE EMPLOYMENT ACT

2. Paragraph 22(2)(a) of the Public Service Employment Act is replaced by the following:

(a) establishing for any person or class of persons a right to be appointed — in priority to all persons other than those referred to in sections 39.1 and 40 and subsections 41(1) and (4) — during the period specified by the Commission, to any position for which the Commission is satisfied that they meet the essential qualifications referred to in paragraph 30(2)(a);

3. (1) The portion of subsection 35.1(1) of the Act before paragraph (b) is replaced by the following:

35.1 (1) A member of the Canadian Forces who has accumulated at least three years of service and is not employed in the public service for an indeterminate period

(a) may participate in an advertised internal appointment process; and

(2) Section 35.1 of the Act is amended by adding the following after subsection (1):

(1.1) For the purpose of paragraph (1)(a), if a criterion in relation to belonging to any of the designated groups, as defined in section 3 of the Employment Equity Act, is established under section 34, the member shall meet that criterion.

4. The Act is amended by adding the following after section 35.1:

35.11 (1) A person who is not enrolled in the Canadian Forces, has served at least three years in the Canadian Forces, has been honourably released within the meaning of regulations made under the National Defence Act and is not employed in the public service for an indeterminate period

(a) may, during a period of five years after their date of release, participate in an advertised internal appointment process; and

(b) has the right to make a complaint under section 77.

(2) A person who participates in a process referred to in subsection (1) is, for the purpose of the process, deemed to be a person employed in the public service.

(3) For the purpose of paragraph (1)(a), if a criterion in relation to belonging to any of the designated groups, as defined in section 3 of the Employment Equity Act, is established under section 34, the person shall meet that criterion.

5. Section 38 of the Act is replaced by the following:

38. Paragraph 30(2)(b) does not apply in relation to any appointment made under subsection 15(6) (re-appointment on revocation by deputy head), section 39.1 (priority — members of the Canadian Forces) or 40 (priorities — surplus employees), subsection 41(1) or (4) (other priorities) or section 73 (re-appointment on revocation by Commission) or 86 (re-appointment following Tribunal order), or under any regulations made under paragraph 22(2)(a).

6. (1) The portion of subsection 39(1) of the Act before paragraph (a) is replaced by the following:

39. (1) In an advertised external appointment process, subject to any priorities established under paragraph 22(2)(a) and by sections 39.1, 40 and 41, any of the following who, in the Commission’s opinion, meet the essential qualifications referred to in paragraph 30(2)(a) shall be appointed ahead of other candidates, in the following order:

(2) Section 39 of the Act is amended by adding the following after subsection (2):

(3) With respect to a veteran referred to in paragraph (f) of the definition “veteran” within the meaning of the schedule, the order of appointment set out in subsection (1) is valid for a period of five years after the veteran’s date of release.

7. The Act is amended by adding the following after section 39:

39.1 (1) Despite sections 40 and 41, priority for appointment over all other persons is to be given, during the period determined by the Commission, to a person who was released from the Canadian Forces for medical reasons that the Minister of Veterans Affairs determines are attributable to service, who belongs to a class determined by the Commission and who meets the requirements established by the Commission.

(2) A person referred to in subsection (1) has a priority for appointment with respect to any position if the Commission is satisfied that the person meets the essential qualifications referred to in paragraph 30(2)(a).

8. Section 43 of the Act is replaced by the following:

43. Despite sections 39.1, 40 and 41 and any regulations made under paragraph 22(2)(a), if the Commission considers that the appointment of a person who has a right to be appointed in priority to other persons under any of those provisions will result in another person having a priority right, the Commission may decide not to apply that provision in that case.

9. Subsection 53(2) of the Act is replaced by the following:

(2) A deputy head may deploy a person without regard to any other person’s right to be appointed under section 39.1 or subsection 41(1) or (4) or any regulations made under paragraph 22(2)(a).

10. Section 87 of the Act is replaced by the following:

87. No complaint may be made under section 77 in respect of an appointment made under subsection 15(6) (re-appointment on revocation by deputy head), section 39.1 (priority — members of the Canadian Forces) or 40 (priorities — surplus employees), subsection 41(1) or (4) (other priorities) or section 73 (re-appointment on revocation by Commission) or 86 (re-appointment following Tribunal order) or under any regulations made under paragraph 22(2)(a).

11. The schedule to the Act is amended by replacing the reference after the heading “SCHEDULE” with the following:

12. (1) The definition “survivor of a vet-eran” in section 1 of the schedule to the Act is replaced by the following:

“survivor of a veteran” means the surviving spouse or surviving common-law partner of a person who, being a veteran referred to in any of paragraphs (a) to (e) of the definition “veteran”, died from causes arising during the service by virtue of which the person became a veteran;

(2) The definition “veteran” in the sched-ule to the Act is amended by striking out “or” at the end of paragraph (d), by adding “or” at the end of paragraph (e) and by adding the following after paragraph (e):

(f) has served at least three years in the Canadian Forces, has been honourably released within the meaning of regulations made under the National Defence Act and is not employed in the public service for an indeterminate period.

TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS

13. (1) Section 39.1 of the Public Service Employment Act applies to a person who is described in any of paragraphs 8(1)(a) to (e) of the Public Service Employment Regulations, who has had an entitlement to a priority under section 8 of those Regulations at any time during the period that begins on April 1, 2012 and ends on the day before the day on which this Act comes into force and who has been released from the Canadian Forces for medical reasons that the Minister of Veterans Affairs determines are attribut-able to service, unless, during that period, the person has been appointed to a position in the public service for an indeterminate period or declined such an appointment without good and sufficient reason.

(2) For the purposes of subsection (1), the entitlement to the priority established by section 39.1 of the Public Service Employment Act ends on the earliest of

(a) the day that is five years after the day on which this Act comes into force,

(b) the day on which the person is appointed to a position in the public service for an indeterminate period, and

(c) the day on which the person declines an appointment to a position in the public service for an indeterminate period without good and sufficient reason.

COORDINATING AMENDMENTS

14. (1) In this section, “other Act” means the Economic Action Plan 2013 Act, No. 2.

(2) On the first day on which both section 351 of the other Act and section 4 of this Act are in force:

(a) paragraph 35.11(1)(b) of the Public Service Employment Act is replaced by the following:

(b) has the right to make a complaint under section 77 or 78.

(b) subsection 77(4) of the Public Service Employment Act is replaced by the following:

(4) No complaint may be made under subsection (1) in respect of an appointment under subsection 15(6) (reappointment on revocation by deputy head), section 39.1 (priority — members of the Canadian Forces), section 40 (priorities — surplus employees), subsection 41(1) or (4) (other priorities), section 73 (reappointment on revocation by Commission) or section 86 (reappointment following Tribunal order), or under any regulations made under paragraph 22(2)(a).

(c) subsection 78(2) of the Public Service Employment Act is replaced by the following:

(2) No complaint may be made under subsection (1) in respect of an appointment under subsection 15(6) (reappointment on revocation by deputy head), section 39.1 (priority — members of the Canadian Forces), section 40 (priorities — surplus employees), subsection 41(1) or (4) (other priorities), section 73 (reappointment on revocation by Commission) or section 86 (reappointment following Tribunal order), or under any regulations made under paragraph 22(2)(a).

(3) If section 414 of the other Act comes into force before section 5 of this Act, then, on the day on which that section 5 comes into force, the Public Service Employment Act is amended by replacing “Tribunal” with “Board” in the following provisions:

(a) section 38;

(b) subsection 77(4);

(c) subsection 78(2); and

(d) section 87.

(4) If section 414 of the other Act comes into force on the same day as section 5 of this Act, then sections 5 and 10 of this Act are deemed to have come into force before that section 414.

COMING INTO FORCE

15. This Act, other than section 14, comes into force on a day to be fixed by order of the Governor in Council.