Various factors draw people to work in public sector
It wasn’t until her third year at University of Western Ontario that Amy Campbell found her calling.
That year, the health sciences student took an occupational health and safety course and was instantly intrigued. She took another course in her fourth year and decided this would be the focus of her career. Campbell enrolled in a postgraduate diploma program in the specialization at Mcmaster University and simultaneously earned a certificate in case management through continuing education.
“It’s really hard for people coming out of university to figure out what they want to do and where they want to go,” says Campbell, now a 26-year-old health and safety officer for the federal labour program with Human Resources and Skills Development Canada.
After completing her edu- cation, she worked for a brief period in the private sector as a health and safety co-ordinator for a medium-sized company. Four years ago she was offered her current job in the public sector.
“Every single day is totally different,” Campbell says. “You never know where you’re going to end up (or) what type of work you’re going to get.”
What lures people to work in the public sector — and the satisfaction they derive from it — varies almost as widely as the scope of jobs available. Campbell gets tremendous satisfaction from knowing she’s making workplaces safer and potentially saving lives. She investigates accidents and fatalities and enforces occupational health and safety rules under the Canada Labour Code.
Health and safety officers travel around to various types of work sites across the country each day, from airports to railways, trucking companies and various federal departments. While the nature of her work demands that she be on call at times, it was precisely a flexible schedule and job security that she was seeking in a career.
“Certain benefits exist in terms of work-life balance,” she says. “One of the things that drew me to the public sector was job security.”
With potential cuts looming as the Conservative government looks for ways to cut the federal deficit, she knows job security is not as assured as it used to be. “If any shrinking happens in the department at all, I think the impact is felt throughout the organization,” she says.
While she hopes to enjoy a long career in the public sector, she knows her skills are valuable elsewhere.
“I had no idea of all the different work that would be available (and) all the things the public relies on in one way or another,” Campbell says. “The skills are trans- ferable and the experience is highly sought after in the private sector.” Private companies regularly hire experienced former health and safety officers and inspectors to ensure compliance with labour codes.
Many people, like June Winger, didn’t set out to work in the public sector. Winger is a decontamination technologist who trains Canadian and NATO Forces at CFB Suffield near Medicine Hat, Alta., on what to do in the event of chemical, biological, nuclear or explosive incidents.
“When I was a little girl, I never really wanted to grow up to be a (decontamination technologist),” Winger says with a laugh. “What brought me to it was the uniqueness. It really makes you feel like you’re part of something.”
As a highly trained emergency responder working for the Counter Terrorism Technology Centre at CFB Suffield, she spends her days setting up live scenarios in different locations using live chemical agents to prepare troops for real-life situations they might encounter.
“It’s very unusual to work in this sort of field,” Winger says. “You get a lot of different opportunities that you probably wouldn’t otherwise.”
At a moment’s notice, she must be ready to join firefighters, RCMP bomb technicians and identification teams and paramedics.
“We train all of these people on what to do (in an emergency),” she says. She started out in public service after being hired by the Department of National Defence to help recruit women into the skilled trades for the department. She says she feels proud of what she’s been able to accomplish in both roles. Still in the early stages of her career, Campbell hopes she has a good future ahead of her in the public sector, despite the current job uncertainty.
“It was my understanding that there would be greater opportunities with such a large employer, and also job security,” she says.