Prime Minister Mark Carney hinted in December that a change to the work-from-home policy was coming.Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press
The federal government will require public servants to be in the office at least four days a week as of July 6 while executives will need to be on-site five days a week starting May 4, according to a new policy issued Thursday.
The directive sent to deputy ministers said the government intends to increase the on-site presence of those who are eligible for hybrid work.
“We will be engaging with bargaining agents to seek their input on implementing this plan. These discussions will focus on important elements, such as the potential for allocation of assigned seating and occupational health and safety.”
Bill Matthews, the Secretary of the Treasury Board, along with Chief Human Resources Officer Jacqueline Bogden and her associate Francis Trudel issued the directive.
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The letter pledged that adequate office space would be available for the change. It also said that working together on-site “is an essential foundation of the strong teams, collaboration and culture needed during this pivotal moment and beyond.”
As was the case for most office jobs during the pandemic, many public servants who were able to were allowed to work from home as a health and safety measure.
After the peak of the pandemic, the government formally adopted a hybrid work model. That policy was updated in September, 2024, to require public servants to work on-site for a minimum of three days per week, while executives were required to be in the office four days a week.
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Prime Minister Mark Carney had hinted in December that a change to the policy was in the works.
He said at the time that the government needs to ensure that public servants have the kind of offices and workspaces that will make their jobs as “interesting and impactful as possible.”
Public-service unions have strongly criticized plans for increased on-site requirements.
They argue that the experience of the pandemic has shown workers can be effective from home and that any new changes should be based on evidence.
Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe has long called for an increased on-site requirement, saying that hybrid work is hurting the city’s downtown core.
As of last year, there were 348,625 non-executives in the federal public service and 9,340 executives.
The Nov. 4 federal budget outlined a plan to reduce the size of the public service to roughly 330,000 by the end of 2028-29.
Union leader Sean O’Reilly, president of the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada, said the in-person mandate is not supported by evidence.
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Further, he said it arrives at a difficult time when public servants are already under stress because of the wave of notices departments are issuing about potential job cuts.
“I actually feel this announcement is insulting and disrespectful to our members,” he said in an interview. “They’re already going through a hard time with work-force adjustment, and now to get this on a Thursday afternoon really is not helping anyone’s mental health or helping the anxiety that exists within the membership.”
Sharon DeSousa, president of the Public Service Alliance of Canada, called the new policy “a slap in the face to all federal public service workers across this country.”
In a statement, she said altering the in-office mandate in the middle of contract negotiations “is grounds for legal action” and that the union is examining its options.
Nathan Prier, president of the Canadian Association of Professional Employees, said in a statement that public servants have proven they are more productive when teleworking.
“This announcement demonstrates that this government has both a willful disregard for reality and absolute contempt for its employees and taxpayers,” he said.