Pros
The Pension is the only pro, and only if you're lucky and able to actually last that long.
Cons
Too many to list. To sum up working at Health Canada, the best words to describe it are "cut-throat". I worked in the Drug Analysis Service and it was one of the worst experiences I've ever had in my career. At my job there I tested seized police exhibits of narcotics to identify any substances which fall under the Controlled Drug and Substances Act. The job itself was interesting and you learn a lot, but the way management operates the lab is absolutely abhorrent. Your daily routine is grabbing police exhibits to be tested and certified for their content, but what management doesn't tell you when you start there is that everyone is pitted against each other. Don't believe for a second that anyone there is your friend, my first piece of advice. When you test your samples, you have a variety of instruments to use to get the testing done... but so does everyone else. When you set up your samples on an instrument at the start of the day, you'll come back at the end of the day expecting to get your data only to see that everyone else has bumped your sample queue right to the end with your samples haven't even being run yet, and everyone does this there. Management will then start coming at you asking why it's taking time to complete your samples and you saying that others are bumping your samples for analysis is just an excuse to them. Some have been so stressed with this happening there that they'll have deep seething outbursts right in the open and when this happens, it makes it very unsettling being there with the pressure management constantly instills on everyone causing this. Because of that pressure, no one there talks to each other. It makes it a very isolating and lonely work environment so don't expect to befriend anyone while you're there. If you're like me and enjoy being collegial with your colleagues, this is definitely NOT the place for you. Even asking for help with something is heavily frowned upon and can even get you into a lot trouble there, very fast. Management creates this expectation that when you come to work you have a figurative "gun" being pointed at you to get your work done. It makes it unbelievably demoralizing being in that kind of atmosphere but they justify it because "hey, you're working for the Federal Government, right?" Blame culture is beyond excessive at Health Canada. If something goes wrong, it is so easy for Health Canada to find someone and just blame them for something happening. They don't believe in "Root Cause Analysis" which is what finds the solution for every problem in pretty much any industry, so instead it's just easier for them to find someone and then blame for anything that goes wrong, even if it has nothing to do with you. To survive working there (my second piece of advice), just bite your tongue. Try your hardest to not bite it off but know that you only get the pension if you're lucky, and luck is not in abundance there. As everyone knows federal elections happen once every 4 years or less so after the next election you'll probably be looking for another job so don't stop looking. No one deserves the way Health Canada treats its employees.