Senator McPhedran: NDAs are tools intended to protect proprietary trade secrets, not to hide illegal wrongdoing. What is this government doing to protect employees from misuse of non‑disclosure agreements like we heard from testimony of employees of Sustainable Development Technology Canada when they addressed Parliament?

Hon. Marilou McPhedran: Senator Gold, because I don’t belong to any Senate caucus I wasn’t able to ask this question of the President of the Public Service Commission at Committee of the Whole last December, so I’m pleased to be able to ask you the question.

Can you inform this chamber if whole-of-government policy directives regulating the use of non-disclosure agreements, or NDAs, in resolving employee grievances about harassment exist? Does the government track frequency, cost and other related metrics related to the usage of NDAs in departments, Crown corporations and other entities receiving federal funding?