Feds Spent Over $15M on Private Firms to Investigate Staff

The West Block of Parliament Hill is seen through the window of the Sir John A. Macdonald building in Ottawa on May 11, 2022. The Canadian Press/Sean Kilpatrick

Federal departments have spent over $15 million since 2018 on private firms to investigate their own employees, according to data tabled in the House of Commons.

Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) spent the most on investigations, at $3.9 million, but the department said the search was done manually and could be incomplete.