Question Period Note: Hybrid Work in the Public Service

Is the government going to require all public servants to return to the office full time?

• The Government has put forward ambitious plans to deliver on priorities for Canadians and to strengthen our country.
• Working together onsite, with all hands on deck, is an essential foundation needed during this pivotal moment and beyond.
• This why we announced our intention to increase the onsite presence of public service employees.
• Since May 4, 2026, executives are required to work onsite 5 days per week. For all other employees, the intention is to have them work onsite 4 days a week as of July 6, 2026.
• We’ve engaged with bargaining agents to seek their input on the implementation of this plan.

The Treasury Board Secretariat introduced the Direction on prescribed presence in the workplace in December 2022, requiring those who were eligible for telework to work onsite 2-3 days per week by March 2023. In May 2024 the Direction was updated to three days per week for non-executives and four days per week for executives as of September 9, 2024.
On February 5, 2026, the Government announced its intention to increase the onsite presence of executives and employees who are eligible for hybrid work. As a first step, executives were 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. The announcement also indicated that TBS would engage Bargaining Agents to obtain their feedback on the implementation of this intention.
Subsequently, TBS held four engagement sessions with Bargaining Agents in February 2026 covering key topics related to the implementation of the Government’s announced intention, such as assigned seating and occupational health and safety.
Since summer 2025, bargaining units representing about 70% of employees have begun the collective bargaining process. To date in this round of collective bargaining, the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) and the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PISPC), collectively representing over 200,000 employees, have put forward bargaining proposals that seek to enshrine telework in collective agreements. The employer continues to maintain its position that the location of work should remain an exclusive management right.

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