The union representing personnel at Global Affairs Canada claims that the diplomatic service is laying off dozens of its most qualified diplomats while asking other diplomats transferred from one continent to another to wait months to retrieve their personal effects.
These cuts come as Global Affairs implements its plans to meet the budgetary constraints imposed last year by Prime Minister Mark Carney.
The layoff targets set by the ministry have sparked outrage among former diplomats and international relations experts, who argue that these cuts contradict Ottawa’s efforts to gain influence in this period of geopolitical crisis.
“The staff reduction rate envisaged will hit foreign missions hard,” warned Pam Isfeld, a career diplomat and president of the Professional Association of Foreign Service Officers.
“I simply think that things have not been fully thought through,” she added.
Global Affairs Canada’s latest departmental plan, released on March 13, projects that the ministry will cut 1240 full-time equivalents by March 2029 – a reduction of 9.4% from a workforce that stood at 13,185 full-time equivalents in March 2025.
In January, the ministry sent notices to 3095 employees warning them they could lose their jobs, stating that some of them could be reassigned or spared if others resign or retire.
Global Affairs Canada indicated it needed to reduce its workforce by 12 to 13% by 2030.
Ms. Isfeld stated that these cuts target the elimination of a specialized level of officers, known as FS-04. Most employees at this level are either reclassified as executives or demoted, she explained, but 34 positions are simply eliminated.
In a written statement, the ministry did not dispute the information about the 34 layoffs.
“Global Affairs Canada is realigning its activities regarding foreign affairs to have a maximum impact in a changing geopolitical context. The ministry continues to maintain a strong and competent workforce within the diplomatic service, operating on a rotational system,” said spokesperson Thida Ith.
“As the need for FS-04 positions will be very limited in the future, FS-04 assignments will be temporarily filled by current ministry employees as required,” Ith added.
The ministry will continue recruiting at the lowest level and maintain a higher proportion of mid-level diplomats, according to Ith.
Ms. Isfeld explained that the FS-04 level is for roles requiring specific knowledge, such as a nuclear specialist assigned to the International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna.
“It’s a structural inconsistency to say that we will be active and engaged in this ambitious foreign policy – the legacy of the G7 presidency, Indo-Pacific issues, African issues, Ukrainian issues, climate financing, now all sorts of Arctic issues, cooperation with Nordic countries,” she stated.
“You have just eliminated the framework of the most experienced and specialized individuals. Your influence doesn’t really come from Ottawa press releases.”
Expense Reduction
In its departmental plan, Global Affairs projects saving half a billion dollars in the upcoming fiscal year, $747 million the following year, and $1.12 billion by the end of the fiscal year ending in March 2029.
The plan indicates that these savings will come from various sources, including efforts to refocus Canada’s diplomatic presence, streamline commercial services, link foreign aid and security initiatives to economic growth.
The document also states that Global Affairs will achieve unspecified efficiency gains across all its missions, sell some real estate abroad, and upgrade infrastructure and cyber security measures at these missions to reduce costs related to staff protection.
Global Affairs’ budget cuts precede a review of foreign policy expected to be released later this year.
This review could indicate which countries will see an increase in diplomatic posts, which missions may close or merge with others, and which themes will be central to the diplomatic service’s future concerns.
Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand stated that her ministry already had the broad outlines of Canada’s new foreign policy and could use it to define its staffing priorities.
