Junior Economist

Important messages

We are committed to providing an inclusive and barrier-free work environment, starting with the hiring process. If you need to be accommodated during any phase of the evaluation process, please use the Contact information below to request specialized accommodation. All information received in relation to accommodation will be kept confidential.

Assessment accommodation

AAFC is committed to diversity and inclusion and is proud to be recognized as one of Canada’s best diversity employers. We welcome all applicants and strongly encourage candidates to self-declare if they belong to an Employment Equity designated group (i.e. Aboriginal Peoples, Persons with Disabilities, Visible Minorities or Women).

Duties

The Research and Analysis Directorate (RAD) operates within the Strategic Policy Branch (SPB) of AAFC and provide economic analysis, information, and forecasts related to the domestic and international agriculture and agri-food sectors. The directorate maintains expertise that is required to understand and interpret information from various sources, and provides this knowledge and analysis to the department. Some of the main responsibilities of RAD include:

• Providing information, analysis, and advice on issues related to the agri-food supply chain, including structure, performance, competitiveness and resource use of the food processing, distribution and bio-processing sectors.

• Providing economic analysis aimed at improving the sector’s environmental performance, increasing economic opportunities, and accelerating the development and adoption of innovative technologies as well as analysis of policy scenarios related to climate change, shifts in market structure, and other current trends affecting the agriculture sector from the national level to the sub-provincial level.

• Providing relevant analysis focused on farms, operators, and the primary agriculture sector as a whole by developing forecasts and scenario analysis on the short-term economic outlook of the primary sector and Business Risk Management (BRM) program payments, as well as analysis on the current structure, financial performance, and resilience of farms.

• Monitoring, researching, and analyzing developments in international agricultural policy to inform Canadian policy and program perspectives as well as analyzing and quantifying Canada’s domestic support programs to farmers and forecasting the performance of the Canadian agriculture and agri-food sector for the next decade through the Medium Term Outlook.

The Directorate houses various economic models including the OECD-METRO CGE trade model, the AGLINK-Cosimo model, the CRAM model and use such models to analyse various sensitive topics that affect the sector.

Work environment

• Do you like to work on diverse issues that have real world implications for Canadian consumers and businesses?

• Are you looking to improve your skills, experience and gain career development support?

• Do you have a passion for the agri-food sector and want to work on pressing economic issues, including agri-food labour file, food security, trade, climate change, competitiveness, and other farming issues?

• Do you want to contribute to the success and resilience of the Canadian agri-food sector and enhance food security status of Canadians?

If this sounds like you, consider working as an economist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC). We are currently seeking economists and recent economic graduates to work in the Research and Analysis Directorate (RAD) of AAFC. The team here contributes to the success of the Canadian agricultural sector by providing research and analytical support to better address current issues and opportunities facing the sector. We believe in investing in employee learning and career development. We support continuous learning by encouraging participation in academic and industry led conferences, in-house training, and overall skill development. As part of the position, the successful applicant will be placed in the EC development program. A central tenet of the program is ongoing learning and development.

Our office is located in Ottawa. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all employees are currently working full time form home. At this time it is not known when onsite work may resume. Once onsite work resumes there may be opportunities for staff to continue working from home part time. It is not currently known whether full time work from home will be an option in the long term. Full time work from home might be available for some staff, but this will depend on the nature of the position, as well as on departmental policies that are still evolving. As a result, AAFC can not guarantee that full time work from home would be available to successful applicants in this staffing process. We encourage interested applicants from all across Canada to apply for this position. If relocation to Ottawa is not an option for you there might still be opportunities for you as an economist with AAFC, though we can’t guarantee that at this time. Relocation requirements and work from home options would need to be discussed with the individual hiring managers prior to any final job offers. Therefore, individuals who believe they meet the listed essential qualifications of the position, regardless of where they live or work, are encouraged to apply.

AAFC is committed to diversity and inclusion and is proud to be recognized as one of Canada’s best diversity employers. We welcome all applicants and encourage candidates to self-declare if they belong to an Employment Equity designated group (i.e. Indigenous (Métis, Inuit, First Nations), persons with disabilities, visible minorities, and/or women).

Intent of the process

The immediate need is to staff 1 full time indeterminate position in Ottawa.

Although we are looking to fill 1 position, in the event that more candidates are found qualified, this selection process may be used to staff other positions within the AAFC’s Research and Analysis Directorate. A pool of qualified and partially qualified candidates may also be established to staff similar positions with various tenures, linguistic requirements and security requirements within AAFC.

The successful candidate will be placed in AAFC’s EC Development Program.

Positions to be filled: 1

Information you must provide

Your résumé.

In order to be considered, your application must clearly explain how you meet the following (essential qualifications)

EDUCATION:
Graduation with a Master’s degree in economics from a recognized post-secondary institution.

IF YOU HAVE FOREIGN CREDENTIALS, please follow the link below for information on how to obtain a degree equivalency. You must obtain an equivalency, at your own expense, in order to be considered for appointment into the public service.

Degree equivalency

EXPERIENCES:
Experience conducting economic research and analysis.
Experience working with large datasets.
Experience working in project teams.

If you possess any of the following, your application must also clearly explain how you meet it (other qualifications)

EDUCATION:
Master’s degree in agricultural economics.

Degree equivalency

EXPERIENCES:
Experience working on agricultural and agri-food issues.
Experience maintaining and helping develop models or databases that support policy research and analysis activities.
Experience working with various data suppliers including Statistics Canada, to obtain required data.
Experience in providing research findings to management.
Experience in research and analysis on topics related to environment, trade, agriculture, food, or labour.

The following will be applied / assessed at a later date (essential for the job)

Various language requirements
English or French Essential
Bilingual imperative BBB/BBB, CBC/CBC or CCC/CCC

Information on language requirements

Second Language Writing Skills Self-Assessment
In order to help you decide if you should apply to a bilingual position, an optional self-assessment of your writing skills in your second official language is available for you to take before completing your application.

For more information, please consult:
Unsupervised Internet Test of Second Language Writing Skills

KNOWLEDGE:
Knowledge of economic and statistical principles, practices, techniques, tools and methods.

COMPETENCIES:
Analytical thinking
Adaptability

ABILITIES:
Ability to communicate orally
Ability to communicate in writing
Ability to take initiative

The following may be applied / assessed at a later date (may be needed for the job)

KNOWLEDGE:
Knowledge of the agriculture industry and its component sectors.

Agriculture and Agri-food Canada recognizes that the diversity of its employee population contributes to its strength and integrity. We are committed to achieving employment equity and developing a highly capable workforce that is representative of Canadian Society. We encourage women (especially in non-traditional occupations), Indigenous peoples (Aboriginal peoples), persons with disabilities, and members of visible minority groups to apply and declare themselves as part of one or more of the Employment Equity groups as selection may be limited to candidates belonging to one or more of the groups.

Information on employment equity

Conditions of employment

All employees of the core public administration are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and attest to their vaccination status unless accommodated based on a medical contraindication, religion, or another prohibited ground for discrimination as defined under the Canadian Human Rights Act.

Various security clearance for each appointment action

Other information

The Public Service of Canada is committed to building a skilled and diverse workforce that reflects the Canadians we serve. We promote employment equity and encourage you to indicate if you belong to one of the designated groups when you apply.

Information on employment equity

ASSESSEMENT INFORMATION

You must meet all essential qualifications in order to be appointed to the position. Other qualifications may be a deciding factor in choosing the person to be appointed. Some essential and other qualifications will be assessed through your application. It is your responsibility to provide appropriate examples that illustrate how you meet each qualification. Failing to do so could result in your application being rejected.

Various assessment tools may be used, such as, standardized tests, interviews, references, board member knowledge, etc.

All communication relating to this process, including email correspondence may be used in the assessment of qualifications.

A random or top down selection of candidates may be used in the determination of those to be given further consideration in the assessment process.

Appointment decisions may be based on one or more of the following criteria:
- Matching of the individual's experience or qualifications to the strengths and weaknesses of the work team.
- Matching of the individual's experience or qualifications to the specific duties of the position being staffed.
- Depth, breadth, type of work-specific experience.
- Level/degree of one or more competencies/qualifications.

A test may be administered.

An interview may be administered.

Reference checks may be sought.

You must provide proof of your education credentials.

Asset qualifications may be used in the determination of those to be given further consideration in the assessment process.

APPLICATION & CORRESPONDENCE INFORMATION

Applications submitted by email will not be accepted. You must apply on-line through www.canada.ca/en/public-service-commission/jobs/services/gc-jobs.html.

Persons with disabilities preventing them from applying on-line are asked to contact the email referenced below under "Contact Information".

Persons are entitled to participate in the appointment process in the official language of their choice. Applicants are asked to indicate their preferred official language in their application.

Communication for this process will be sent via email. It is the responsibility of the candidate to ensure accurate contact information is provided and updated as required. Candidates who apply to this selection process should include an email address that accepts email from unknown users (some email systems block these types of email).


On October 6, 2021, the Government of Canada announced details of its plans to require vaccination across the federal public service. The details can be found on this site: https://www.canada.ca/en/treasury-board-secretariat/news/2021/10/backgrounder-covid-19-vaccine-requirement-for-the-federal-workforce.html

As per the new Policy on COVID-19 Vaccination for the Core Public Administration Including the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, federal public servants in the Core Public Administration and members of the RCMP must attest to their vaccination status. The requirement for employees to be fully vaccinated applies whether they are teleworking, working remotely or working on-site. This is a condition of employment and it applies to indeterminate (permanent), determinate (term), casual, and student hiring. Should you reach the point in the selection process where it is necessary to verify terms and conditions of employment then the hiring manager or a human resources representative will contact you in order to complete an attestation. The Policy can be found on this site: https://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/pol/doc-eng.aspx?id=32694

Preference

Preference will be given to veterans first and then to Canadian citizens and permanent residents, with the exception of a job located in Nunavut, where Nunavut Inuit will be appointed first.

Information on the preference to veterans

We thank all those who apply. Only those selected for further consideration will be contacted.