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The senior official responsible for overseeing the federal government’s transition from the failed Phoenix pay system to the new Dayforce software has announced he’s leaving his position.
Alex Benay was the associate deputy minister with Public Services and Procurement Canada. He announced his departure Wednesday, two days after the auditor general of Canada released a critical report on the project.
In an internal memo obtained by Radio-Canada, Benay said serving in the role has been a privilege and he didn’t take the decision to leave lightly. The letter to employees did not specify the reasons for his departure.
In a separate memo also obtained by CBC, deputy minister Arianne Reza said Benay is pursuing an opportunity outside the federal government.
Benay said in his letter he will work closely with the management team in the coming weeks to ensure a smooth transition.
‘He’s someone I respect’
Public Works and Procurement Minister Joël Lightbound said Benay is leaving the department in good order, and that his departure is not related to the auditor general’s report.
“I’m not worried, and he’s someone I respect,” Lightbound said.
Auditor General Karen Hogen said on Monday that she was concerned about the transition to the new pay system, particularly given the slow progress made in simplifying pay rules. She said standardizing pay rules before launching a new system was one of the key lessons learned from the Phoenix transition.
Her report highlighted that the government had missed its backlog elimination targets and that the preliminary cost estimates contained shortcomings.
Benay’s departure raises concerns for Sean O’Reilly, president of the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC).
“I appreciated Alex and what he brought to the table. He was one of the few people I dealt with on the Phoenix pay system who gave me some hope,” O’Reilly said.
Bruce Roy, president of the Government Services Union, which represents the majority of employees at the Department of Public Services and Procurement, said in a statement that he was surprised by Benay’s departure but declined to comment further.
