Celebrating the 50th Permanent Position at the Federal Public Service: Ashley Hagerman and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
In 2015, when LiveWorkPlay first began to explore the potential to develop federal public service careers for people with intellectual disabilities, we had high hopes that over time, a handful of people might be hired for short term contracts, or perhaps, long term contracts or even permanent (indeterminate) positions. In the early years, contract positions were the most common path, as we worked in partnership with coalitions of the willing in different federal departments and agencies, to develop a model of employment support, and build on the work of our Federal Employment Strategy Group. In 2020, together we reached 100 total hires, a milestone we celebrated with Health Canada.
Since the publication of our 2021 case study, the focus has shifted from contract employment to permanent employment. From the first indeterminate hire at the RCMP in 2019, through the challenges of the pandemic, today we celebrate 10 years of unwavering commitment to inclusive federal employment. It is such a perfect fit that we find ourselves in the middle of Public Service Neurodiversity Week 2025, ready to announce an incredible milestone: the 50th permanent hire from the LiveWorkPlay and federal public service partnership!
Congratulations to Ashley Hagerman, who has just accepted an indeterminate position with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada!
A career in the Federal Public Service is not a single event but a series of meaningful moments. Ashley began her journey with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) through a LiveWorkPlay youth employment initiative in the summer of 2016. She went on to complete a series of term contracts as a Data Capture Clerk, earning consistent praise from different managers, over the course of more than eight years as a high-performing and valued team member in Administrative Support.
We extend our gratitude to the more than 40 departments and agencies — and the hundreds of dedicated public servants — who have worked with LiveWorkPlay to make this historic 50th indeterminate hire possible. And most importantly, we thank and congratulate the more than 200 people with intellectual disabilities and autistic persons who have taken on this challenge. You have risked the uncertainty of the ups and downs of the labour market, and have honoured us with the opportunity to witness your work in service to the country of Canada.
We give the last word to Ashley’s colleague and Team Leader, Thea Klinger:
“Ashley is a very helpful and adaptable employee. She has taken on a great number of varied tasks over the years and she regularly juggles as many as 6 different tasks at a time, smoothly moving between different workflows, such as data entry, document scanning, and email management. Her quality work helps keep our directorate’s data and documents in order and up to date. We are so lucky to have her!”