Budget 2025 Update

Dear colleagues,

Further to my commitment to staying in touch, I am writing to provide an update since my last Budget 2025 all-staff message.

I am aware of reports of other federal departments or agencies having initiated Workforce Adjustment measures. I acknowledge, too, that many team members have questions about potential Budget-related job impacts here at Parks Canada and that uncertainty and anticipating change can be stressful.

First, I want to be clear that while we can anticipate impacts at Parks Canada because of the reductions announced in Budget 2025, no decisions regarding staff changes have been made at this time and no announcements regarding such changes are imminent. This is because we do not yet have a decision from the government regarding the status of “sunsetting” programs – programs which are anticipated to continue but for which funding renewal levels have not yet been announced by the government. This information, together with the expenditure reductions announced in the recent Budget, will be key to determining actual workforce impacts. It is my hope that we will receive confirmation of funding renewal levels in the near term so that we can communicate transparently with team members as soon as possible.

Second, I want to reaffirm that while we are in a time of transformation at Parks Canada, our mandate and purpose remain unchanged: we will continue to protect and present Canada’s natural and cultural heritage for current and future generations. What is evolving, though, is the way that we work together: how we strengthen partnerships to deliver programs; prioritize Indigenous stewardship; and organize ourselves to focus our time and resources on Parks Canada’s core business in delivering on our mandate.

Third, it is worth repeating that we have been planning for transformative change at Parks Canada for some time now ­– through our Integrated Business Planning activities, through measures aimed at addressing long-standing financial sustainability challenges, and through responses to government direction in recent federal Budgets. Budget 2025 and the current Comprehensive Expenditure Review process are additional factors to be considered in this ongoing transformation and the senior management team is devoting significant attention to the work that will be required to implement the changes needed.

And finally, as I noted in my last message, I have asked Andrew Campbell to take on the new role of Senior Vice-President, Transformation, effective January 15, 2026. Working closely with senior management colleagues, he will provide full-time, focused leadership to ensure that multiple transformation-related initiatives are aligned and moving forward in a coordinated, coherent way across functions and across field units.

As we undertake this work, we will continue to communicate any changes or decisions that may affect you. We will also continue our regular communications with your union leaders and share transformation-related updates through FlashInfo, ParksNet, internal messages, and team meetings. In the meantime, our commitment is to ensure that you have timely access to the information you need help you plan and make decisions that make sense for you.

For some of you, this may include consideration of the government’s recently announced, voluntary Early Retirement Incentive program, which is intended to help manage workforce reductions to the greatest extent possible through attrition and voluntary departures.

I want to emphasize, in closing, that no decisions regarding workforce changes have been made at this time and that no announcements are imminent. I also want to acknowledge, once again, that uncertainty and anticipating change can be stressful. If you need assistance, please remember that resources such as the Ombuds Office and the Employee and Family Assistance Program (1-800-268-7708 or 1-800-567-5803 for the hearing impaired) are available.

Through collaboration, transparency, and openness to transformative change, we will position the Agency to continue doing what it has done so well for 114 years: protect and present Canada’s natural and cultural heritage for generations to come.

Thank you for your continued dedication.

 
Ron Hallman                                                                           
President & CEO                                                                     

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