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'Paying business more to do the same work that has traditionally been done in-house ... is obviously not cost effective.' - Bob Bymoen.
Regina (23 Feb. 2010) - Privatizing information technology services in Saskatchewan will benefit private business at the expense of provincial citizens, says the Saskatchewan Government and General Employees' Union (SGEU/NUPGE).
Information Technology Office Minister June Draude held meetings last week with private information technology (IT) representatives to discuss the government's privatization plans.
"Paying business more to do the same work that has traditionally been done in-house by government workers is obviously not cost effective," says SGEU president Bob Bymoen.
"In the first place, the contract employees are often paid significantly more than government workers, and then business owners take a substantial profit off the top. The bottom line is that it costs taxpayers more."
Bymoen says Saskatchewan voters should also be concerned about a 'brain drain' from the province.
"We are in danger of losing specialized knowledge and skills in the IT area, as more and more of this work gets contracted out. We may well see this work leaving not only our province but our country in the future," he said.
"It's in our best interests as a province to keep IT capacity within our own government. We don't want to see our money, or the technological capabilities in this area leave the province."
SGEU says the province's right-wing Saskatchewan Party (SP) government is pushing privatization behind the scenes despite assuring voters when it was elected that it did not have a privatization agenda.
Meanwhile, the government has also announced the sale of 23 rental cabins at Greenwater Lake Provincial Park.
"Again, the people of Saskatchewan lose out because private business owners need to either charge more or erode the quality of services in order to make a profit," Bymoen notes.
"We expect the government to be open and transparent about the effect of privatizing these services. Saskatchewan people have the right to know whether they will be paying more for the services that have been provided publicly in the past. And we need to be assured that profit and technological know how stay in our province," he argues.
"The government should be strengthening our internal capacity, not putting us at the mercy of business interests who have no real commitment to our province or its people."
NUPGE
The National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) is one of Canada's largest labour organizations with over 340,000 members. Our mission is to improve the lives of working families and to build a stronger Canada by ensuring our common wealth is used for the common good. NUPGE