OTTAWA, January 20, 2026 — Deep workforce cuts at Health Canada will weaken the systems Canadians rely on to ensure the safety of their food, medications, and medical devices, warns the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada, following confirmation that hundreds of specialized scientific, regulatory, and consumer safety jobs are being eliminated.
“These cuts don’t just affect workers – this is healthcare, they affect every Canadian,” said Sean O’Reilly, President of PIPSC. “These are the experts who make sure the medication in your cabinet is safe to take, the food in your fridge won’t make your family sick, and dangerous products are pulled off store shelves before they cause harm”.
Health Canada is responsible for reviewing and approving prescription drugs, vaccines, and medical devices; monitoring and responding to infectious diseases and foodborne outbreaks; enforcing safety standards; and protecting Canadians from environmental risks in air and water.
PIPSC warns that slashing capacity at Health Canada allows small problems to become serious failures.
“When you weaken the government’s ability to regulate drugs and health products, issue recalls and alerts, and respond to infectious diseases, risks go undetected and warnings come too late,” said O’Reilly. “These experts help Canadians act quickly because they act quickly. You cannot cut public health without increasing risk.”
The union is also deeply concerned about the loss of specialized scientific expertise that cannot be easily replaced. “At a time when Canadians expect strong oversight and rapid responses to health threats, these cuts move us in the opposite direction,” O’Reilly added. “Canadians deserve a proactive, evidence-based, and adequately resourced health system, not one that is less prepared for the crises of tomorrow.”
PIPSC is calling on the federal government to reconsider the scope of these cuts and to meaningfully assess their long-term impacts on public health, safety, and service delivery.
PIPSC represents over 85,000 public-sector professionals across the country, most of them employed by the federal government. Follow us on Facebook, on X (formerly known as Twitter) and on Instagram.
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For more information: Johanne Fillion, 613-883-4900 (mobile), jfillion@pipsc.ca