Canada Revenue Agency Reviews

I worked at Canada Revenue Agency as a contractor

Pros – Friendly co-workers. Good work-life balance (no having to work after work hours). Flexible work schedule options.

Cons – Tasks can get very redundant.

I worked at Canada Revenue Agency as a contractor for less than a year

Pros – -Friendly coworkers and supervisors
-Learn a lot about tax returns

Cons – -Repetitive work
-Work in a place with no windows

I worked at Canada Revenue Agency as an intern for less than a year

Pros – The people are great - you really get to know the people you work with, and the potlucks are fun. The work is very interesting - you are responsible for quite a bit from the beginning. Hours are standard, which is great since there's no overtime

Cons – Bad/inefficient work flow/distribution. There's always a lot of work to be done, but the way it is distributed to employees needs to be fixed. There was a whole month that I basically had nothing to do, and days were pretty boring because you have very limited internet access

Advice to Senior Management – The basic structure of how work is done really needs to be changed. It certainly proves the government's reputation as being slow and inefficient

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

I have been working at Canada Revenue Agency full-time for more than a year

Pros – Good compensation package
Great work-life balance
Supportive supervisors and positive work environment
Interesting, engaging and meaningful work
Lots of opportunity for varied career choices and advancements

Cons – Being a public agency and a large organization, there are inherent inefficiencies and red tapes that result from a large bureaucracy. Dealing with these can sometimes be stressful.

Advice to Senior Management – Keep channels of communication open between management and staff

I have been working at Canada Revenue Agency full-time for more than 8 years

Pros – Work life balance and you will always have a job.

Cons – People hate to hear about where I work.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend – I'm optimistic about the outlook for this company

I have been working at Canada Revenue Agency

Pros – This is a nice place if you are just starting your career. Some good processes are in place.

Cons – There is too much bureaucracy. There is not much room for moving up. This is not a progressive environment. Innovation and new ideas are not encouraged.

Advice to Senior Management – Offer more opportunities for employee leadership development.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

I worked at Canada Revenue Agency full-time for more than 3 years

Pros – great staff, welcoming environment, and you learn a lot about working with tight deadlines

Cons – It was a very structured environment, and some tasks routine

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend – I'm not optimistic about the outlook for this company

I have been working at Canada Revenue Agency

Pros – Very stress free. What can't be done today, will be done tomorrow.
Being permanent allows you to float through different areas in the agency.
Two guaranteed salary increases per year.
Insane amounts of vacation, sick, personal and volunteer leave.

Cons – Competency based Human ressource management. You cannot move up unless you pass a series of qualification tests, which are ambiguous and do not relate to the job.
Don't expect your pay to go through when you arrive. Some people wait up to 2-4 months to get their first pay due to the slow compensation area.
Work can be painstakingly boring.

Advice to Senior Management – Hire people based on their performance and skills, not on an ambiguous test that does not prove any potential skills.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

I have been working at Canada Revenue Agency full-time for more than 3 years

Pros – For most jobs in CRA, you are granted a true 9 to 5 job with flexible hours and great health benefits. The pay is overly generous for some positions while a bit under paid for others. It gets very easy to become comfortable with your financial situation.

Cons – Being a new employee at this organization automatically makes you feel like a second class citizen. The union will not care about you, management sees you as the easiest target to layoff to reduce budget as you will have no employment rights, promotions and career ladders are muddled by office politics and seniority, the coworkers you work with are frequently not qualified to do their jobs. Contracts are given out with 3 to 4 month terms after the initial 1 year contract and extensions are routinely given out during the last week of the current contract before it expires.

Advice to Senior Management – Gain the ability to communicate to your employees. Every time we find out about layoffs and workforce adjustment from the news, the moral in the office shatters. Sometimes telling your employees that you will uphold the minimal legal responsibilities to keep your employment doesn't inspire any confidence the employee has for the organization.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend – I'm not optimistic about the outlook for this company

I have been working at Canada Revenue Agency full-time for more than 3 years

Pros – CRA offers very good training especially for auditors. It also has flexible work schedules including compressed hours. Great benefits such as study days if you are taking professional designations, health and dental insurance, and vacation.

Cons – Moving up is largely based on length of service and seniority so you may find that you have to wait 2-4 years before you get more responsibility. Career progression information is sometimes hard to find. You really have to ask around or dig deep to get information.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend