Federal organizations

Governor in Council appointments are made by the Governor General, on the advice of the King's Privy Council of Canada (Cabinet). The responsibilities of Governor in Council appointees range from making quasi-judicial decisions, to providing advice and recommendations on socio-economic development issues, to managing Crown corporations.

In this section, you will find information on the organizations to which the GIC makes appointments, as well as a complete list of appointees to those organizations. More specifically, for each organization, the following information is provided:

  • mandate
  • head office
  • board profiles, in the case of Crown Corporations
  • appointment provisions
  • eligibility requirements/conflict of interest, and
  • remuneration

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Appointment Provisions

The authority for most Governor in Council appointments is provided by statute. Statutory provisions with respect to the appointments vary greatly. In most cases, the statute specifies the appointment authority, the tenure and length of term of the appointment and, on occasion, the qualifications required.

Appointments are made by the Governor in Council through an Order in Council, which normally specifies the tenure of the appointment, the term of office and, in the case of most full-time appointments, the salary. Remuneration for part-time appointments is generally established in a separate Order in Council for the positions in the organization.

Governor in Council appointees hold office either on a part-time or a full-time basis; however, most appointments are part-time (e.g. a director on a board of directors of a Crown corporation). The tenure of an appointee is either during pleasure or during good behaviour. The term of an appointment is either for a specific or an indeterminate period. When a specific period is indicated in the Order in Council, the appointment lapses at its expiration unless there is a legislative provision to the contrary. The appointee may be reappointed to the same position but, since appointments are made at the discretion of the Governor in Council, renewal is not automatic. In some cases, statutory provisions prohibit reappointment to the same position.

Other Relevant Information

For each organization, there is a description of the appointment provisions, as stipulated in the enabling legislation or other authority. Please refer to the Statutes of Canada to obtain more detailed information.

Further information about appointments in the organizations appears under the following headings:

Eligibility/Conflicts

If applicable, conditions of eligibility are outlined in this section.

Consultation

If applicable, the consultations required with respect to an appointment are described in this section.

Quorum

If applicable, the quorum required for decisions by the governing body is included in this section.

Auditor

If an auditor is appointed to an organization by the Governor in Council, the conditions and specifications under which the appointment is made are described in this section.

Remuneration

Remuneration for part-time appointees appears under this heading, as well as explanatory information on the remuneration of full-time appointees when required. The majority of full-time appointees are paid within the DM/GC/GCQ/CEO salary ranges listed at the end of this section.

In addition, a few salary ranges are established outside the DM/GC/GCQ/CEO ranges.

It should be noted that some appointees serve without remuneration.

List of Appointees

For each organization, information is provided on appointees and their positions.

Title of the Position

The title of the position is the official title, as established by legislation or Order in Council.

Information on Appointees

Listed under the position titles are the names of the current incumbents and their city and province of residence at the time of appointment, whether the position or appointment is full-time or part-time and whether the individuals serve during good behaviour or during pleasure.

Appointment and Expiry Dates

The first date that appears beside the incumbent's name is the effective date of his or her first appointment to that particular position.

The date that the current appointment expires is the one appearing below the original appointment date. Directors, with the exception of officer-directors, in most Crown corporations continue in office after the expiry date, until they are replaced.

Level

If an appointee holds office on a full-time basis, the classified level of the position will normally be specified. Generally, part-time positions are not classified.

Vacant Positions

In the case of full-time positions and some part-time positions where there is no incumbent, the word VACANT will appear under the position title. The total number of vacancies is also indicated. It cannot be assumed that a vacant, or soon to be vacant, position will necessarily be filled.

In organizations where positions are established only when workload warrants, vacancies are not shown.