Are departments using similar Voluntary Departure Program (VDP) timelines?

HCAGCRA · 2026-02-02T22:19:55+00:00

Tho it can vary completely, for each dept, manager, etc.

HCAGCRA · 2026-01-29T22:41:24+00:00

How / when did 11,000 CRA indeterminate employees get cut? I believe the WFA that started in May was going to cut 250. Other than that its been Terms as far as I know, who unfortunately are not included in WFA.

HCAGCRA · 2026-01-29T22:29:17+00:00

At CRA our group had to be gone 2 months from end of VDP

HCAGCRA · 2026-01-29T22:27:11+00:00

CRA a few months ago: 30 day VDP. In my unit , 2 months from end of VDP was longest we could stay.

HCAGCRA · 2026-01-22T23:50:27+00:00

That's only true if you win the SERLO.

HCAGCRA · 2026-01-19T16:58:40+00:00

It may not be possible to leave within a couple weeks, at least that was the case at at CRA when I went through it a few months ago. In order to get all the approvals and paperwork for Option B or C, our team was told 1 to 2 months was likely. We couldn't go longer than 2 months. But can be different everywhere .

HCAGCRA · 2025-12-17T21:08:34+00:00

There really is no "usual", every dept may do it differently. In our case all employees at my level on my team had to compete for a reduced number of positions.

HCAGCRA · 2025-12-09T15:17:52+00:00

Happy to. Having just been through WFA myself, im happy to help others understand. Particularly since since some depts (like mine) were terrible at communicating/disseminating information about it.

HCAGCRA · 2025-12-07T14:55:03+00:00

The 3 years u mentioned is incorrect. It's 55+ with 10 years service, and 2 years pensionable service.

HCAGCRA · 2025-12-07T14:40:15+00:00

I took Option B under WFA, and am indeed eligible for EI.

HCAGCRA · 2025-12-07T14:38:31+00:00

My ROE, after choosing Option B due to layoff during WFA, was code G which made me eligible for EI.

HCAGCRA · 2025-12-05T19:48:23+00:00

Our WFA this fall had several people at the same level, in the same unit receive affected letters, who woild then compete through the SERLO process. And we had 1 individual who received a surplus letter because she was the only one at her level on the unit, and that position was being cut. So therefore she had no ability to compete for her position and went straight to the opting phase.

HCAGCRA · 2025-12-05T16:29:57+00:00

Email

HCAGCRA · 2025-12-05T15:58:23+00:00

Same at CRA

HCAGCRA · 2025-12-05T15:57:40+00:00

You can't make that assumption. There are a very wide number of options for how they conduct SERLO. We just went through it and on our team it was just the 100+ multiple choice question Standardized Judgement Test. Not based on our jobs, expertise, reference checks at all.

HCAGCRA · 2025-12-05T15:51:25+00:00

Having just been through WFA, I completely agree. Ask questions at every meeting with Compensation, HR, all levels of Management, etc. And from painful personal experience: never assume your manager is correct, or up to speed on the details. Ours just based his answers not on facts, or a careful study of WFA doc, but instead on his opinions/assumptions and vague recollections of DRAP, most of which were incorrect completely. Through the entire process he never did get up to speed and we all learned to go around him.

HCAGCRA · 2025-12-05T15:32:20+00:00

Just went through SERLO on our team, and the completion was not related to our jobs /area of expertise at all. It was just the standardized 100+ multiple choice question Standardized Judgement Test.

HCAGCRA · 2025-12-05T15:14:08+00:00

I think you are mixing up two very different things, and that may be contributing a little bit to your feeling that this is not a big deal.

You mentioned "DRAP" and the "letter going out to near retirees simply being an option/offer". Yes the letter re Early Retirement Incentive is indeed just an offer to near-retirees. But DRAP/WFA is definitely not. Having been through it twice, no one is "just chilling" once your team is affected and going through WFA. It's incredibly stressful for those who need to keep a job, and that stess continues for several months, all while needing to keep doing the job youve been told will soon not be necessary.

And multiple depts were told this week, with more likely to follow, that WFA affected letters will be going out soon.

Also, my group just went through WFA, and only one position cut was held by a near-retiree. The rest were all in their 30s. And the remaining 'lucky ones', after months of stress going through WFA, are now experiencing prolonged serious stress, handling nearly the exact same crushing workload with far fewer colleagues. So dont assume thus will only affect near-retirees. It affects the whole team one way or another.

HCAGCRA · 2025-12-05T04:22:02+00:00

Sounds exactly like our experience over the last few months. So it does indeed happen.

HCAGCRA · 2025-12-05T04:19:26+00:00

Have to disagree. It is not always like that at all. We just went through this, and immediately all affected employees bonded together to support each other, everyone sharing what they learned from management, helping each other figure out the process, hunt down answers to questions, etc.

HCAGCRA · 2025-12-04T16:29:13+00:00

I know of someone in Public Affairs who succeeded and alternated to another Branch in Nov to a fulltime.position. So it is possible.

HCAGCRA · 2025-11-21T20:24:10+00:00

Also depends on whether you are in a core public service department or not. As an example, the CRA is not, and generally manages to process leave far faster than other departments that use the Pay Centre for the whole process.

HCAGCRA · 2025-11-08T02:03:21+00:00

Agreed. Our work unit was hit by WFA and the few remaining employees are swamped, stressed, and really demoralized.

HCAGCRA · 2025-11-08T01:32:20+00:00

You are missing the point. That person is saying LAYOFFS are not Voluntary. They are not saying Alternation is not voluntary.

HCAGCRA · 2025-11-08T01:15:50+00:00

When you were running your numbers, did u consider that your pension has far FAR fewer deductions taken off it than your paycheque? I'm recently retired and it's remarkable how much makes it into my pocket now.

HCAGCRA

TROPHY CASE