Federal employees now required to be in the office 3 days a week

As tens of thousands of public servants return to the office for at least three days a week starting this week, public service unions and some employees are voicing frustration with the federal government’s new hybrid work policy.

Leah Schmidt, speaking at a union protest in downtown Ottawa on Monday morning, expressed concerns about the new policy. "It's challenging. We were told there isn't enough desk space for everyone, so we're not quite sure how this is going to work," Schmidt said. "We've heard the term 'hunger games' thrown around quite a bit in terms of desk booking, which is not how I want to go into the workday."

Under the new policy, federal employees in the core public service must work in the office a minimum of three days a week, while executives are required to be on-site at least four days. This change affects 282,152 employees in the core public service, with the government advising that departments and agencies outside this core should adopt similar practices.

However, some federal departments are struggling with space limitations. Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada (HICC) reported that its offices at 180 Kent St. and 427 Laurier Ave. in the National Capital Region (NCR) cannot fully accommodate the updated hybrid work model due to departmental growth. "While we do not yet have a specific timeframe for when additional space will be available for HICC employees in the NCR, we are actively working with Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) to seek solutions for full implementation of the updated common hybrid work model," HICC stated.

Statistics Canada also faces space issues for employees in Vancouver, Toronto, and Montreal.

On the first day of the new policy, the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC), the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC), and other federal unions held a rally in downtown Ottawa. Sharon DeSousa, PSAC’s national president, told CTV Morning Live, "What we want is a remote work policy with consultation that actually works. We want the future of the federal public service to be more innovative, meeting the needs – not just of the public but of the workers as well. We want a future of work that is different, more inclusive, and supports work-life balance."

DeSousa highlighted problems with federal buildings, including issues with pests and insufficient space. "It makes no sense to go back to a workplace that doesn’t meet the needs of the workers. It makes no sense when they’re able to do it from home comfortably and meet their own work-life balance needs," she said.

Public service worker Scarlott Kelly criticized the lack of consultation on the new policy. "Personally, I work in policy. I need to read, I need to think. In the office, it's not a good environment. There are too many voices, there's no privacy," Kelly said. "At home, there's way more security, space, and quietness to think and work. So I cannot work, technically, in the office."

PIPSC plans to submit a petition to department deputy ministers, demanding approval for a broad departmental exemption from the return-to-office mandate. Last month, the Federal Court agreed to review PSAC's application to overturn the new office mandate, but no court date has been set. PSAC has also launched a $1-million advertising campaign against the new mandate and is urging members to sign an online petition to have it repealed.

DeSousa dismissed the government's justification for in-office work as being about "office culture or collaboration." "They’re still meeting virtually, so why go in? Just to log in and meet with people virtually. It makes no sense," she said.

The federal government has asserted its right to adjust hybrid work arrangements, noting these changes are not part of the collective agreements from 2023. The government mentioned that Public Services and Procurement Canada has been preparing office spaces for the return. "As issues arise, we are committed to working quickly to address them. We also know that some departments will need additional time to ensure their workplaces are ready, such as buildings currently under renovation," the government stated in a letter to employees on September 3. "All organizations will actively seek employee feedback to ensure the transition to increased on-site work is characterized by open dialogue and continuous improvement."

Statistics Canada has acknowledged it cannot accommodate all employees in its Vancouver, Toronto, and Montreal offices this fall. "Statistics Canada is well positioned to implement the revised direction on prescribed presence in the workplace, effective September 9, 2024. The agency has sufficient space to accommodate employees except in the Vancouver, Toronto, and Montreal offices," StatsCan said in a statement. "A formal notification was sent to employees indicating that office capacity in these cities is currently insufficient to meet the 60 percent on-site requirement set for September 9, 2024, due to a limited number of desks. Therefore, employees in these regions will continue with their 40 percent on-site schedule until further notice."

In March 2023, the Treasury Board Secretariat introduced a "common hybrid work model" for the core public administration, requiring employees to be in the office at least two or three days a week.

Mayor Mark Sutcliffe expressed optimism that the new hybrid work rules will revitalize downtown Ottawa, which has seen a 38 percent decline in visits to the core since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. "The more people who are downtown, the better it is for our economy, and we don’t want to have a hollowed-out downtown core," Sutcliffe told Newstalk 580 CFRA's The Morning Rush with Bill Carroll. "I’m hopeful we’ll see increased activity and vibrancy in the downtown core in the weeks ahead."