OTTAWA — A federal worker lost her job earlier this year for fudging her resume in five different applications for various jobs in the public service.
An internal government briefing note says the employee “provided false information” about her credentials on five applications and misrepresented her work experience on three of those applications.
The briefing note to the deputy minister of Public Works and Government Services Canada says managers became suspicious after noticing some irregularities in the woman’s job applications, specifically “the depth and breadth” of her job experience before and after she joined the department. The briefing note says her work history “appeared contradictory.”
The bureaucrat’s name, the details of the investigation and what jobs she held were redacted from an April 17, 2015 briefing note, a copy of which was obtained by The Canadian Press under the Access to Information Act.
The Public Service Commission, which acts as a watchdog over hiring in the public service, decided the employee should lose her job.
If the woman seeks full-time employment in the federal government in the next three years, she’ll need the commission’s approval first.
If she lands a part-time job or finds work through one of the government’s student programs, the commission plans to send her supervisor a letter outlining the findings of their fraud investigation.
The incident is one of a small number of fraud cases the federal public service deals with on an annual basis.
There were 79 allegations of fraud in the 2013-2014 fiscal year out of 72,000 hires and job changes. The Public Service Commission noted in its most recent annual report that fraud continued “to be of concern.”
Fraud cases include falsifying documents such as diplomas, misrepresentation of work experience, education or professional credentials, cheating during tests and not disclosing a personal relationship with someone involved in making a hiring decision.
In the last 14 months, the commission says it has completed 94 fraud investigations, including investigations that were opened before April 2014. Of those investigations completed, 66 were founded and 28 unfounded.
The commission says it still has 49 investigations ongoing.