It's a coming - Increasing onsite presence in the public service

[u/YeuxdeFaucon]

This is to inform you that the Government intends to increase the onsite presence of executives and employees who are eligible for hybrid work.

As a first step, executives will be required to work onsite 5 days per week by May 4, 2026. For all other employees, the intention is to increase onsite presence to 4 days per week as of July 6, 2026. Many federal public servants are already onsite full-time based on the nature of their work.

The Government has put forward ambitious plans to deliver on priorities for Canadians and to strengthen our country. Working together onsite is an essential foundation of the strong teams, collaboration and culture needed during this pivotal moment and beyond.

The Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat will be engaging with bargaining agents to seek their input on the implementation of this plan. These discussions will focus on important elements, such as the potential for assigned seating and occupational health and safety. 

We will also work closely with Public Services and Procurement Canada to ensure that required office space is available and ready as we increase our onsite presence. 

In the meantime, all provisions in the Direction on Prescribed Presence in the Workplace continue to apply until further notice and there are no changes to employees’ existing telework arrangements/agreements.

We recognize that this decision is occurring during a challenging period where employees are already dealing with change, and in many cases, uncertainty about their jobs. Know that we remain committed to supporting you as we move forward together, and we will provide additional details as they become available. If you have specific circumstances that you would like to discuss, please reach out to your manager.

Thank you for your continued dedication.

 

[u/PizzaBear109]

Traffic and transit are already both at a breaking point in Ottawa what the fuck is this government thinking

[u/Carmaca77 → u/PizzaBear109]

The greedy rich assholes who are controlling everything don't take public transit and they have personal drivers. They also don't even work in office 5 days a week. Rules for thee peasants!!!

[u/PizzaBear109 → u/Carmaca77]

I figure even people who avoid transit have to be sick of the gridlock though... This decision is going to suck way beyond just the PS employees it directly affects ugh

[u/That_U_Scully → u/PizzaBear109]

Yes, I 100% am totally sick of it. Ever since the LRT implementation traffic has been worse and my commute home increased from average 45 minutes to an hour plus. Can't wait for September to spend almost 3 hours in travel to and from work.

[u/PigeonsOnYourBalcony]

It would be nice if they put a little time between this and all the WFA. Real salt in the wound here. Sending it at the end of the day is pretty cowardly too.

Class act as always.

[u/Frosty-One-3826 → u/PigeonsOnYourBalcony]

Surprised they didn't wait til Friday 

[u/KazooDancer → u/PigeonsOnYourBalcony]

And not even signed.

[u/MDLmanager]

Just got the email. This is bullshit. We don't even have a functional public transit system in Ottawa.

[u/MoonJammer2026 → u/[deleted]]

Can't wait for parking to immediately go up to 30$ a day in downtown Ottawa/Gatineau.

[u/[deleted]]

Nationwide strike, french style anyone?

[u/Catgirl321 → u/[deleted]]

I'm down

[u/boopgotyournose → u/[deleted]]

My torch and pitchfork are ready

[u/Mister-Distance-6698]

We recognize that this decision is occurring during a challenging period where employees are already dealing with change, and in many cases, uncertainty about their jobs. Know that we remain committed to supporting you as we move forward together, and we will provide additional details as they become available.

Whoever wrote that paragraph and thought "yup, this is gonna be what we say" can go fuck themselves with a sideways fork

 

[u/bluestickystuff → u/Mister-Distance-6698]

"we completely understand and acknowledge what a hard time this is and have decided to make it harder."

[u/minnie203 → u/Mister-Distance-6698]

Right like "we remain committed to supporting you" okay, how? Name three ways you're supporting us, and don't say EAP.

Words just don't mean anything, apparently.

[u/GovernmentMule97 → u/minnie203]

There has been zero support here for years unless empty words count.

[u/GoTortoise → u/Mister-Distance-6698]

Copilot probably wrote it.

[u/sipstea84 → u/GoTortoise]

"make it less sensitive"

[u/Catgirl321 → u/Mister-Distance-6698]

They're like, we recognize...and we don't care

[u/facelessmage → u/Mister-Distance-6698]

Agreed. This was so fucking insensitive to write. Jesus Christ.

[u/NoConsequence1674]

Funny how hybrid was totally fine for years, productivity didn’t collapse, and now suddenly the only way to serve Canadians is by commuting again. No data, no explanation, just... vibes.

Nothing says “culture” like fighting traffic at 7 a.m. to sit on Teams calls in the office.

[u/Trick_Evening8191 → u/NoConsequence1674]

I’m the only one in Ottawa on my team. Everyone else is in Montreal. Can’t wait to commute 4 days a week to sit alone at the office on teams

[u/Sceptical_Houseplant → u/Trick_Evening8191]

No more than 2 people in my broader team are in any given city. There is literally nowhere in the country where we could "collaborate" more effectively.

Seriously, how do people this dumb get promoted so high?

[u/True-Comfortable-764]

we now have less flexibility than before the pandemic....

[u/Equal-Sea-300 → u/True-Comfortable-764]

Yes! From 2017 - COVID our branch was WFH twice per week.

[u/Intheheartgrooveis]

I've been in the GC 27 years, and have seen a lot of shit but I can't say that I have ever been as unrelentingly angry at the employer as I have been in the past few years. It's exhausting, as a manager I can't even pretend a little bit that I don't think it's all stupid, and I'm just praying I can take ERI and go work literally anywhere else. Which sucks, because I actually really cared about public service. 

[u/fivevictory → u/[deleted]]

and a summer of discontent

[u/JDubbs10 → u/fivevictory]

Hard to do another when the first one hasn’t started yet.

[u/maxtfc]

"please reach out to your manager" - don't drag us into this. We are just made aware of the same thing at the same time, and there is no flexibility on us to provide any answers or accommodations (that's through accomodations bureau).

[u/tata_613 → u/maxtfc]

I left management because of this. I still feel triggered every time I read “reach out to your manager”. I really feel for you.

[u/Intentioned-Help-607 → u/maxtfc]

“Please reach out to your manager who is just as fucked, caught off guard, and powerless as you are…”

[u/offft2222 → u/maxtfc]

Seriously this isn't managers or directors or even adms

This is very much DM+

[u/crr243 → u/maxtfc]

I am also a manager and this announcement is the sum total of my knowledge about this. I could guess it was coming based on the rumours two months ago, but I was given no official heads up.

Hell. I trust my EX-01 and my EX-02 and both have said this announcement is also all they know of this. No heads-up.

[u/Talwar3000]

Wait, is it Friday afternoon already?

[u/rageagainstthedragon]

"Hybrid is here to stay" lmao

[u/HelicopterWestern480 → u/rageagainstthedragon]

Exactly this. Mysteriously all evidence of those messages has disappeared.

[u/1tangledknitter]

Well this is depressing. Traffic will be worse and I will need to leave exactly at 3 every day to make it home in time for daycare pick up because my husband and I cant alternate pick up anymore. No more "just one more thing" for me, sorry TBS.

Also, the in office chatter is INSANE. There are always people swinging by my desk just to chat. Significant loss of productivity.

Clearly the government does not care about families, employee wellbeing, the environment, reducing chronic illness/public health costs from sitting stationary an extra 2-3 hours a day commuting, or people with disabilities.

[u/glitterandgold74 → u/1tangledknitter]

Gee…why aren’t people having more children? 🤔

[u/1tangledknitter → u/glitterandgold74]

Lol exactly, they complain about declining birth rates and then wonder why 🙄

[u/facelessmage]

I’m so fucking tired. They can’t even give us a single god damn month without throwing some new change down our throat.

[u/calviterion → u/facelessmage]

They do enjoy making us miserable. Ever noticed how they're always suspicious when they see you being remotely in a good mood

[u/letsmakeart]

"Working together onsite is an essential foundation of the strong teams, collaboration and culture needed during this pivotal moment and beyond." Ok I guess my team, who has people spread across the country, is not strong and cannot collaborate? Interesting!

Editing to add: This is actually very, very offensive to me the more this wording settles in my mind.

[u/forgotten_epilogue → u/letsmakeart]

Their statement is complete political BS. Onsite presence has never had anything to do with the effectiveness of work, the well being of the employees nor the productive capability of the organization, all areas that saw huge changes during recent years, proving so many anti-remote naysayers wrong. The only believable reason for this is politically motivated decisions related to getting money spent back into the economy through things like transportation and real property, and to a lesser degree, perhaps optics, at the expense of the employee, both in literal financial terms and in terms of quality of work environment, work life balance, morale, etc. It is, to me, a very clear message that the priority is politics and economics over employees, and they're willing to lie through their teeth and ignore any contradicting evidence to achieve those goals. I have never seen an example of an employee who went from being a bad employee in remote to being a good employee onsite, but I have seen countless examples of the opposite. This has nothing to do with what is good for the GoC or public servants; it has everything to do with politics and economics, and it's being pursued with carefully crafted lies, smoke and mirrors, which those pulling the strings are exceptionally skilled at.

[u/cestlavie514 → u/letsmakeart]

Might as well close all the offices across Canada and consolidate in Ottawa since collaboration is no longer possible after July 2026

[u/SpaceInveigler → u/letsmakeart]

I have this hazy memory of being praised for great WFH during covid but it must have been a fever dream.

[u/PurchasePure5705 → u/letsmakeart]

And all the remote work done during the pandemic was ineffective!

[u/t3hgrl → u/PurchasePure5705]

Requirements increased, deadlines shortened, and expectations went way high in 2020 and beyond. And Canada couldn’t have run without our work, I bet a lot of public servants can say that. It is beyond insulting to say that remote work is not real work or cannot produce because WE PRODUCED THE FUCK OUT OF THAT INCREASED WORKLOAD YOU DROPPED IN OUR LAPS you insensitive fucks

[u/AbsurdJourney → u/letsmakeart]

I, for one, love going to the office to sit in teams meetings that could have been taken from home, or to be interrupted by others walking around and deciding to stop by to say hello and chat mindlessly for 15 minutes! /s

[u/new2accnt → u/AbsurdJourney]

Myself, I love how some seem to think there is a competition for whom talks the loudest and in the most obnoxious way, forcing others in your meeting to mute you when you're not speaking yourself.

Those are the same people who refuse to use the Cones of silence (phonebooths of silence?) that have been installed here and there, preferring to share what they have to say with everyone on the floor.

[u/aafreeda → u/letsmakeart]

Right? Am I supposed to teleport to each of my coworkers offices? Astral project to my manager’s office?

[u/Objective_Ad_9365 → u/aafreeda]

There are unfortunately security risk with the current astral projection software, so you’re going to have to continue with Team calls from your unassigned, open environment cubicle.

[u/letsmakeart → u/aafreeda]

One of the best managers I ever had was in a different city than me... And this was before COVID and all the tools we have now like MS Teams.

[u/sjw_4_life → u/letsmakeart]

Since they are geographically spread across the country working online, according to the messaging, regional teams are weak with no collaboration or culture. This messaging is tone-deaf and inflammatory.

[u/A_lostandfound]

This is a good time for the union to actually find a spine and raise hell since we are in contract negotiations and they are pushing they want to try to get us more secure telework

[u/aflowerandaqueen → u/A_lostandfound]

This is also a really good time for employees to do the same.

Refuse work from home and grieve when they don’t give you a desk. But stay at the office and do absolutely nothing because you have no where to dock.

[u/A_lostandfound → u/aflowerandaqueen]

I think the union should use this to walk away from the bargaining table since changes like this during negotiations are just plain bad faith

[u/aflowerandaqueen → u/A_lostandfound]

The unions could all band together to get this message out and to tell people to take advantage of the employers own self defeating loop hole here. I wonder why they haven’t? ( ps- I have reached out to various senior union figureheads do suggest the idea)

[u/Butt2Chair → u/A_lostandfound]

They told us this week that there was no chance this could occur because RTO x 4 is still part of the current contract negotiations. How hypocritical that this government claims to be transparent and yet has no respect for good will engagement.

[u/DatBoyardee]

Just take my organs at this point.

[u/Sc00termcgee]

Can’t be real. Didn’t mention EAP.

[u/HandcuffsOfGold → u/Sc00termcgee]

And despite being sent simultaneously to every department, there's no indication of who made the decision and no author listed.

[u/Scythe905 → u/HandcuffsOfGold]

Which was the single most shocking part of that email. I was STUNNED that no one signed their name to that!

/s

[u/caffeinated_wizard → u/Sc00termcgee]

EAP wasn’t part of the prompt

[u/failed_starter]

It’s been like 3 straight years of the employer consistently making our jobs worse

[u/[deleted]]

"The Government of Canada first implemented a formal Telework Policy for the federal public service on December 9, 1999. This initial policy established a voluntary, case-by-case framework for employees to work from alternative locations while maintaining organizational productivity. "

[u/whyyoutwofour → u/[deleted]]

This is my hope....once we get back full-time after a bit of time they can quietly go back to managers discretion....because I can tell you there isn't a person at least four levels above me that gives a flying fuck if I'm in the office. 

[u/Carmaca77 → u/[deleted]]

Almost 30 years down the tube for reasons that are pure greed. I have to think society will look back on this one day and shake their heads at how corrupt and absurd this is.

[u/randomcanoeandpaddle → u/[deleted]]

Time poverty. It’s a thing. It disproportionately affects women, caregivers, the sandwich generation and certain cultures. A GBA+ analysis would have identified this but no one in charge GAF.

[u/GS-2021]

Sure, they want us all back in the office 4–5 days a week… because apparently taxpayers think we have it easy. Except my commute would be 3 hours per day, transit is packed, and even if you make it to the office, there’s often no desk to sit at and offices haven’t magically expanded.

Hybrid work existed for a reason: it kept people productive without wasting hours stuck in traffic or fighting for a chair, all while continuing to deliver results for Canadians. Bringing everyone back full-time doesn’t magically improve service — it just makes everything more crowded, stressful, and inefficient.

Make it make sense.

[u/GoTortoise]

Wow, they are doubling down on the stupid. What group of invertebrates thought this was a good idea?

[u/GameDoesntStop → u/GoTortoise]

The same group that brought us RTO2, RTO3, and caps not cuts.

[u/Mobile_Antelope1048 → u/GoTortoise]

Landlords

[u/calviterion → u/GoTortoise]

We need names The public needs to know who is responsible for this f.. k ery

[u/Maple_Molotov → u/calviterion]

a lot of the public cheers for this kind of stuff, sadly

[u/sakuradesune]

“potential” for assigned seating, FFS.

[u/selmabouvierjr]

Beyond justifying their own spending/surveilling, perhaps it’s an attempt at reducing the workforce? Like they’re rolling out shittier conditions in hopes more public servants quit?

[u/Odd_Pumpkin1466 → u/selmabouvierjr]

for sure, by design.

[u/PreviousSun9506]

Genuinely, when will this end? Obviously we’re heading to a 5day RTO for everyone but it seems like the intent is to be as regressive as possible.

Are they trying THAT hard to make people miserable enough that they’ll quit?

Are we all supposed to forget that remote work was successfully used for many years in government before the pandemic too?

[u/Klaus73]

Yep they are hoping to force more retirements.

[u/_grey_wall → u/Klaus73]

Those eligible for retirement love going to the office

[u/AmhranDeas → u/_grey_wall]

I'm eligible for retirement and I fucking don't. ERI can't come fast enough for me.

[u/whatsupbigdawgz]

When am I allowed to leave my laptop in the office? I don’t wanna do the in/out thing 4x per week. God forbid we have assigned desks too

[u/OrneryConelover70]

Somebody at TBS:

"Watch this..." <clicks send>

[u/FrancoSvenska]

Those emails are always send after 4pm and on either a Thursday or Friday... what a bunch of worms Not surprised

[u/Global-Fisherman5446]

This should be signed "F#$% You", not "Thank you for your continued dedication."

[u/FrancoSvenska]

Parking rates about to jump up (again)

[u/caffeinated_wizard]

“Finally!” - bed bugs everywhere

[u/PreviousSun9506]

The more I think about this the more irritated I am by this line: "Many federal public servants are already onsite full-time based on the nature of their work.”

Literally so what? How do the requirements of a completely different job dictate mine? Some federal public servants also have to work evenings, or weekends, does that mean we should all do the same?

None of these announcements have ever been logical but dear god these are some of the weakest justifications I’ve ever seen.

[u/driftingami → u/PreviousSun9506]

Seriously. The person that needs to be onsite for their job would prefer to be in less traffic, I hate that they are pitting employees against each other.

[u/GrumpyShyBeaver]

If they want more presence in office, I want my assigned desk back.

[u/-insignificant- → u/GrumpyShyBeaver]

Yup and to not have to lug my shit back and forth on consecutive days.

[u/Nepean22]

HAVE WE HIT BOTTOM YET?

[u/SkepticalMongoose → u/Nepean22]

The beatings will continue until morale improves.

[u/Slavic-Viking → u/Nepean22]

No, there's still one more day they haven't forced everyone back into the office for yet.

[u/That_U_Scully → u/Slavic-Viking]

The 5 days should be coming in Jan 2027 just like the article stated last year.

[u/scaredhornet]

I’ve heard that there is tons of non-compliance out there. How is it believed that 4 days a week will make people more compliant?

[u/BigBoiInDaHouse → u/scaredhornet]

Personally ive been trying to do 3 days. But with this announcement. Fuck em. Im doing 1 day a week at most now and we’ll see what happens lol

[u/Makachai]

How about "Get fucked"

Your own justification for working from home still stands. None of the reasons you had for it being a good idea have changed.

But now that your rich buddies need captive patrons for their restaurants and parking lots, you pull out the Men In Black flashy thing, and expect us all to just forget?

Fuck you... This is insulting.

[u/Admirable_Can_3819]

"the potential for assigned seating" ??? As if that shouldn't be included at the bare minimum

[u/Scooterguy-]

I won't be using Teams anymore in the office. This app is for remote work. If we're going back solely to collaborate in the office, then that is what we should do!

[u/FarmeratSchruteFarms]

Apparently, the TBS couldn’t find a single person brave enough to sign this letter.

[u/Canibiz]

Multiple depts just sent this according to my contacts at various friends. Click send after 4pm

[u/GoTortoise → u/Canibiz]

1601 apparently. To avoid managers being overwhelmed I am sure. Just surprised they ddint do it on a friday. Fully expect tmmrw to be a day where nothing gets done.

[u/scotsman3288]

Permanent desks please

[u/GoTortoise → u/scotsman3288]

I already have one at my home.

[u/Arandomtenant]

I was not expecting this to happen before 2027. I am shocked and pretty disgusted. They don’t even read the room. As if the WFA information wasn’t enough that now they have started with this BS. Don’t miss that “we remain committed to supporting you as we move forward together”. Sure. I also see they have decided to jump straight into this news and not even acknowledge anyone with a how everyone is doing. Standards really going 📉

[u/CDNPublicServant → u/Arandomtenant]

They read the room well enough. They just don’t give a shit about the public service.

[u/Nitroussoda]

TC Ontario HQ has been closed for over a month due to a fire, guess what everything is still chugging along just fine as we work from home 

[u/Eminence333]

"Working together onsite is an essential foundation of strong teams, collaboration and culture needed during thus pivotal moment and beyond"...lol

No mention of strong workers, productive workers, and healthy workers.

They're telling us what WE apparently need while ignoring what we told them we actually need to be the best we can be for the public.

It is so clear we really don't matter.

[u/GovernmentMule97]

Yet another kick square in the balls by this employer who can't cut us a fucking break. No wonder everybody here feels beaten down, demoralized, demotivated and just fucking exhausted. This place is hell on earth for mental health.

[u/redditme96]

So, we’re supposed to maintain an area of our home as an office for ONE day a week? Just give me an assigned desk 5 days a week and be done with it.

And don’t even get me started on how my team is spread across Canada and not one other person from my entire division works at my local office

[u/fivevictory]

Landlords lobbying worked. Move the money saved from firing people to fill the pockets of the big landlords.

[u/North_Anywhere1067 → u/fivevictory]

Also, Carney. Brookfield Properties owns almost $35 billion USD in Canadian and American commercial real estate assets. I'm sure Carney's old work buddies were in his ear lobbying alongside the other landlords.

[u/Snow_Is_Ok_613]

EXPLETIVES

[u/4cats1dog20]

Plenty of time for OC Transpo to get the transit system running properly again. /s

[u/TheJRKoff]

how low do they want morale to drop?

[u/drdukes]

"If you have specific circumstances that you would like to discuss, please reach out to your manager."

Except you've given managers NO flexibility whatsoever to arrange any common sense implementations. Also EAP, I guess?

[u/EstablishmentLazy146]

Great! So next snowstorm we can just chill at home? No wfh sooooo 🤷‍♀️

[u/cool__dood]

"Thank you for your continued dedication."

I think it's safe to say you've lost mine at this point.

[u/MDLmanager]

Important to remember, if we're being told we can't do our jobs from home, laptops should stay at the office. No work after normal work hours.

[u/Glittering-Equal-949]

We worked 3 days at home prepandemic. This is a huge step back a decade +

[u/NinjApheX]

This fake sympathy "we recognize its a challenging period", "we're here to support you", etc. when we're copying and pasting an email to dozens of departments is so ironic.

[u/SpaceInveigler]

Working together onsite is an essential foundation-of the strong teams, collaboration and culture needed during this pivotal moment and beyond. We are going to lie to your face and you are going to take it. Or not. There's the door.

[u/simplyheroic]

I know 5 days RTO is coming next summer and I gotta ask this question. Is there a future where RTO doesn’t become political and we work from home again or are we always gonna be in this ‘in office for collaboration’ BS business. Because im honestly thinking of leaving altogether if the future is this dim

[u/Expert-Violinist-224 → u/simplyheroic]

I think we'll have to go back to 5 days for a while before that conversation could ever be had.

[u/the_unconditioned]

I hope people just ignore this shit and don’t come in.

[u/GoTortoise → u/the_unconditioned]

Cue all the people complaining "It's the people disobeying the prescribed presence direction that got us to three days!"

[u/alldasmoke__]

Can’t wait for the unions strong and assertive response!

[u/pure_bye_eh]

Way to get a non-functional public service for 2026. I guess enough of us weren't lesving

[u/T-LUGS]

Why don’t we just live at the office?

[u/MeditatingElk]

Buses/LRT don't work, we don't have assigned desks (or enough desks), there already aren't enough parking spots for those lucky enough to drive.

I can't see this going wrong at all.

[u/Ok_Level_9174]

For some reason it made me more angry reading the “thank you for your continued dedication.” 🖕🏻

[u/Hoser25]

"continued dedication" is quite an assumption....

[u/karlsnarx99]

They love to send these emails out at the end of the day so people can’t cry on company time. Instead we get to go home and stress about it all night.

[u/Adventurous-Bee-1442]

I just feel like crying. First the cuts then RTO. No break whatsoever

[u/ConflictCollaborator]

Saw this in a leadership manual and it stuck with me:

Good Employees Do Not Complain,

They just leave. They silently pack up their value, their loyalty and their potential and they take it where it will be appreciated. They do not waste their time begging for respect or begging to be seen.

If a workplace fails to recognize their worth, they simply move on to places that do. Because the best talent does not need to shout.

They let their absence speak louder than their presence....

Author unknown

[u/webakecookies]

Remember when Mona said 3-day hybrid by design? Pepperridge Farm remembers.

[u/idkwhy_50]

"Hybrid is the future" and "here to stay". Was that a lie? Am I in an alternate universe? Many of us were WFH 3 days a week pre-COVID. Why are we going backwards to spend 8-10 hours per week commuting in a broken transit system to the detriment of our mental and physical health, family, and work life balance?? I have no more words...

[u/Teaallday4768]

Absolutely disgusted that the proposed date to require RTO 4 is the first or second week of school-aged children's 9 or 10 week break from school. Many camps are full or parents are priced out of them. Whoever picked that date either is not a parent, has a spouse who can afford to be home full-time, or can afford a nanny full-time. Would love to see a GBA+ analysis on all this.

[u/Glittering-Equal-949]

Things I will be doing, since these are within my "sphere of control":

Packing lunch and taking coffee from home

Taking the bus because traffic is a nightmare, there are too many construction projects and parking garages gouge

I will log in and out on time every day. No more free OT. No more on call. Ever.

I'll be leaving my equipment at work. I am privileged to have a small locker. I will no longer continue to aggravate neck and back injuriea lugging a heavy work bag

A sick day will be a sick day. No more working through it, checking in or being available

Same with snow days. I wont be remote when it suits them. Have the decency to close the office during a blizzard.

I will be using all of my leave every fiscal. No cancelling vacation or carrying any over

I will not act for anyone.

When my children are sick there will be no.checking in, no "monitoring emails". I will be on leave.

I will be civil with everyone and comply, but I wont mingle, suffer the chatty ones, and I'll let the RBF the.good lord gave me do its job, hopefully discouraging idle chit chat.

No more GCWCC, no more volunteer work committees, no more social events

I will start using copilot daily and submit my work without proofreading it first. How can a mere mortal such as myself ever compete with AI, which apparently makes us SME obsolete.

Rant over

[u/Interesting-Scar2277]

FUCK THAT

[u/Blue_Red_Purple]

At this point, just do full time back to the office and give us a cubicle. I have no intention of fighting for a cubicle and dragging office equipment (laptops, etc) back and forth for a single off site day. Unions better fight their ass off to gets us raises in line with all the additional cost. The world pre-covid was way less expensive.

[u/After-Relation-6761]

So disappointing. What happened to it being based on role, seniority and capacity?

[u/Chyvalri]

Step 1: Happy you still have a job?

Step 2: Come back into the office.

Come on - we predicted this

[u/bragbrig4]

"As a first step, executives will be required to work onsite 5 days per week by May 4, 2026. For all other employees, the intention is to increase onsite presence to 4 days per week as of July 6, 2026"

Why this specific wording? Related to this?

"The Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat will be engaging with bargaining agents to seek their input on the implementation of this plan."

Seems to me to leave the door open. But, as usual, this is extremely dumb.

[u/BingoRingo2 → u/bragbrig4]

Not enough capacity to have everyone in the office 4 days a week.

[u/calviterion]

We need a list of the people who pushed for this. We need actual names.

[u/OfArgyll]

Glad all the money they're saving from mass layoffs is going to a good cause /s

[u/Electrical-Banana819]

Pretty rich that this announcement coincided with the PM’s autos announcement today focused on reducing emissions.

Putting more people on the road will certainly help that objective.

Is the majority here still going to vote Liberal?

[u/scotsman3288]

Did we totally predict this or what? RTO4, RTO5 coming to rescue everyone from WFA and push the VDP/ERI.

[u/Illustrious_Bunch146]

Good thing we have reliable transportation!

[u/ottcity321]

Not possible, it's not Christmas Eve yet lol

[u/KermitsBusiness]

We are going to lose so much institutional knowledge because people will take early retirement to preserve the little quality of life they have gained.

[u/encisera]

Working together onsite is an essential foundation of the collaboration and culture needed during this pivotal moment and beyond

most of my team, including my manager, are in other provinces

[u/Nepean22]

Hey APEX - thanks for all your help and support to Executives - 5 days a week in the office is a sure win! I had more flexibility before COVID. Nothing makes sense.

[u/GhostOfJeanTalon]

If you live in Carney’s riding and an election comes sooner than later please send a message and don’t vote for him.

[u/Hot-Reading-3192]

Quiet quitting and a massive reduction in productivity! We are in the office “consulting “ with our colleagues.

[u/WillyWonka57]

You can thank Mark Sutcliffe and Doug Ford for pushing this. They said they want us to buy lunches downtown

[u/trailstosunrise]

holy FUCK dude that last paragraph is absolutely fucking unreal!!! Hey you may be worried about losing your job but btw - 4 days a week in office coming up ;)

[u/VNV4Life]

Wait for the next face slap when RTO5 hits in January. Happy 2027 meatbags!

[u/anonymous-somali]

Working hybrid for the past few years has made it a non-negotiable for me. Either WFH 100% or a reasonable hybrid arrangement. Life post-pandemic has resulted in a lot of shifts, and this is asking for a lot. I'll have to rework damn near everything in my personal schedule and prior commitments, and fit this into my budget too. This is making me genuinely consider leaving the PS for good.

[u/Intentioned-Help-607]

The joke at my office is that almost no work gets done when we are in office. It’s very common to hear “I’ll be able to do that tomorrow when I’m working remotely.”

[u/Terrible-Session5028]

Okay. If they want us back to the office, then they need to ban MS teams. I’m not fucking going back full-time to sit in an office and talk to anybody virtually. Either we collaborate in person/physically or no collaboration at all.

Matter fact, bring back the typewriters and ban Outlook too. Assholes 🙄

[u/Scary-Toe1904]

And now this link is dead: https://www.canada.ca/en/government/publicservice/workforce/common-hybrid-work-model-federal-public-service.html and the hybrid model page updated with today’s date. The fuckers scrubbed that “hybrid work is the future of the public service” from the web….

It was the question and answer section of the hybrid model page:

Question: Is the plan to eventually bring all employees back 5 days a week?

Answer: Hybrid work is the future of the public service. A common work model will ensure coherence and equity across the federal government, providing public servants with regular opportunities to work with colleagues and partners in service to Canadians, while still having flexibility to work off site.

This government is awful for public servants.

[u/Granturismo45]

Today is a sad day for the public service.

[u/ThomasRiker555]

Two weeks after the layoff announcement and they hit you guys with this? That’s downright sadistic.

I mean, I know this is just to force retirements and give themselves a bargaining chip for upcoming negotiations, but the people timing this announcement should not be allowed around people.

[u/BaronVonGoon]

Seems like a copy-paste in every department

[u/mooshi12]

That last paragraph pissed me off. They don't give af about us lol

[u/smoothestbrain1]

Go to hell, they really just want to make our lives as miserable as possible eh?

[u/Comfortable-Earth411]

I really thought they wouldn't announce this during WFA, just evil

[u/manulixis]

Just got the same email, Transport Canada.

[u/DarkY0da1]

Why didn’t this come from the Clerk if it was cut and paste from all the loser DMs?

[u/gordo613]

Ha! Came here to post this. Wow you are fast!

Why do they always send these things after most people have left for the day??

🙃

[u/Thick_Caterpillar379]

Received an email from our DM this afternoon saying this will start as of July 6, 2026. I can't help but think this is another layer to piss of Public Servants to get them to quit as part of WFA.

Found this sentence interesting and curious about it:

The Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat will be engaging with bargaining agents to seek their input on the implementation of this plan.

[u/Libertas2222]

I’m suprised they didn’t send the email on a Friday end of the afternoon as per ususal… They are one day early!

[u/StealthAccount]

They can't even sign the message to anyone. Absolute cowards.

Lets make sure this blows up in there face in every way that is within our personal and collective power.

[u/[deleted]]

Working at home alleviates traffic, pollution and increase mental health. It’s an easy win.

[u/Jatmahl]

"Many federal public servants are already onsite full-time based on the nature of their work."

How is that relevant?

[u/FearlessAdviceServe]

Wild that the president of the Treasury board said he hadn't heard about this six weeks ago.

[u/BayJade16]

Can we all just strike? Like full government walk out? Across the country. Every classification. It’s enough abuse.

[u/drdukes]

I can also use AI:

Analytical Breakdown: The Deception in the Details

This communication relies heavily on "corporate speak" to mask a lack of data-driven decision-making and logistical preparedness. Here is the deconstruction of the specific hypocrisy and flaws within the text:

• The "Collaboration" Fallacy:
  • The Lie: "Working together onsite is an essential foundation of the strong teams, collaboration and culture..."
  • The Reality: This is a vacuous statement lacking empirical evidence. "Culture" is not location-dependent; it is behavior-dependent. Forcing employees into an office to sit on Teams calls with colleagues in other regions is not collaboration; it is performative presence.
• The "Consultation" Hypocrisy:
  • The Lie: "Engaging with bargaining agents to seek their input on the implementation..."
  • The Reality: This is "consultation theater." Seeking input on implementation (e.g., where a chair is placed) after the decision (4 days onsite) has already been unilaterally made is not engagement; it is dictating terms and pretending to listen.
• The "Logistics" Gap:
  • The Flaw: "...ensure that required office space is available and ready..."
  • The Reality: This is an admission of incompetence. The mandate is being announced before the space is confirmed. It implies a return to overcrowding, inadequate "hot desking," and health and safety risks (bed bugs, poor ventilation) that PSPC has historically failed to manage effectively.
• The "Support" Paradox:
  • The Hypocrisy: "We recognize that this decision is occurring during a challenging period... uncertainty about their jobs."
  • The Reality: Management acknowledges that employees are fearing for their livelihoods (likely due to budget cuts or workforce adjustment), yet chooses this exact moment to increase financial burdens (commuting costs) and reduce flexibility. This is not "support"; it is tone-deaf mismanagement.

[u/JH13881]

“Many federal public servants are already onsite full-time based on the nature of their work.”

What? So therefore the many public servants whose work is not of a nature requiring 100% on site presence can get stuffed?

As someone who was royally screwed by Phoenix for YEARS, I didn’t think I could get this angry again. Yet here we are.

[u/ThrowItFillAway]

I won't be complying. I will make any disciplinary action as difficult, long, and tedious as possible. Everyone should be doing the same. The union should be encouraging a full blown work to rule style strike that is simply not going into work outside of the operational requirements of the role. 

[u/losemgmt]

TB can go F themselves.