The Functionary newsletter | federal public-service insights | Kathryn May

A newsletter about the federal public service

The Functionary newsletter delivers trusted news, insider roundups, and analysis about the federal public service — helping you stay on top of the people, policies, and priorities that shape how government works.

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People tell us they love it. Follow how the federal public service reorganizes around the Carney government’s seven new priorities for Canada. The people, the pain points, the policymaking.

About the author:

Kathryn May covers and analyzes the federal public service for Policy Options, the news site of the IRPP. The Institute for Research on Public Policy is a national, non-partisan think tank.

Past editions:

07/10/2025 – The cuts
06/18/2025 – Enter Michael Sabia
06/10/2025 – The quiet reform
04/11/2025 – Anxiety. Depression. Burnout
03/26/2025 – Compensation
03/11/2025 – Hello, Mark Carney
02/03/2025 – Departments are scrambling
01/20/2025 – Quite the year shaping up

2024

11/04/2024 – “It’s stuck in Canada”
10/11/2024 – Relentlessly orthodox and contrarian
10/03/2024 – Remote work is far from dead
09/16/2024 – The lows and the lows of the three-day RTO
08/26/2024 – One year into the job
07/08/2024 – The disruptor in chief is back
06/12/2024 – 25 and out: The border guards’ wish list
05/28/2024 – Meanwhile, at the PSAC convention…. a war on Poilievre
05/17/2024 – Public-service ethics and a mea culpa
05/16/2024 – Office blues: PS sees red over RTO
04/23/2024 – Anil Arora’s way with numbers
03/05/2024 – Vintage Jodi: Legendary political operative
02/05/2024 – More big moves and a Service Canada reorganization
01/26/2024 – After the retreats, the new DM jobs begin

2023

12/22/2023 – Reports! Reports! Maybe a little holiday reading for the clerk?
11/29/2023 – Catherine Luelo’s departure. Plus: ArriveCAN jaw-droppers
11/03/2023 – The power of Ian Shugart
10/24/2023 – John Hannaford’s North Star
10/20/2023 – “The government shouldn’t need a crisis”
09/22/2023 – John Hannaford’s first big PS move
09/12/2023 – A new DM at Finance and a huuuge sigh of relief
08/16/2023 – The loss of two powerhouses
06/14/2023 – It’s your week! Plus: “Presence with purpose.”
06/09/2023 – A new clerk gets ready. Plus: Alex Benay, disruptor-in-chief, is back
05/25/2023 – The nitty-gritty of voting: A mandatory video. Plus: Michael Sabia’s move
05/15/2023 – After the scabotage, voting begins
04/27/2023 – Picket lines and paycheques
04/24/2023 – Strike day 6
04/18/2023 – Tick tick … strike?
04/14/2023 – Strike watch turning point
04/12/2023 – Strike watch begins
03/23/2023 – The madness of March
03/08/2023 – The frenzy over foreign interference and the contracting bonanza
01/18/2023 – RTO is here for real, plus scrutiny of McKinsey

2022

12/22/2022 – RTO and the poking of the bear
11/04/2022 – IT contracting, a wage deal and the business lobby
10/18/2022 – Poilievre’s shadow cabinet and Alberta’s new premier
10/12/2022 – The black hole of contract spending
10/05/2022 – That ’70s video, remote work heavily favoured, and a new PS health care plan
09/06/2022 – Language bonus
08/25/2022 – Subwaygate
07/21/2022 – The dog that didn’t bark
07/21/2022 – Welcome to The Functionary