The federal government will expect public servants back in the office three days a week beginning later this year.
A federal government source who is not authorized to speak publicly about the matter confirmed to Radio-Canada what the French-language newspaper Le Droit first reported Monday.
The source said the policy shift is due to come into effect in September, but added that could change.
It’s a major alteration to the twice-a-week hybrid model that prompted some 155,000 Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) members to walk off the job last year in what their union called a “watershed moment” for workers’ rights.
“Now, you will be protected from arbitrary decisions about remote work by the government,” PSAC said in a statement last June.
Ten months later, both PSAC and the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC) say they’ve been blindsided.
“It absolutely catches us by surprise,” said Stéphanie Montreuil, head of public affairs for PIPSC. “It came with no warning and no consultations from our part.”
Montreuil said some members are still heading into the office only to participate in virtual meetings.
“We’ve advocated for presence with purpose,” she said.
Ottawa’s Queen Street appeared nearly deserted on Monday. Ontario Premier Doug Ford has urged federal workers to return to the office and boost the local economy. (Stu Mills/CBC)
3 days ‘a good start,’ Ford says
In Ottawa on an unrelated visit Monday, Ontario Premier Doug Ford reiterated his call for federal public servants in the capital to get back to the office and breathe life back into the city’s often deserted downtown.
“Three days is a good start,” Ford said, reacting to the news. “When you’re coming here, go out for lunch, maybe go into a store, pick something up, go to the mall — that’s what we need, that’s what stirs the economy.”
Treasury Board President Anita Anand did not comment on the report.
But Minister of Public Services and Procurement Jean-Yves Duclos said individual ministries would maintain the final word on how employees return to the office.
“All departments need to contribute to the conversations that are taking place with Treasury Board,” Duclos said.
The 2024 federal budget set a 10-year target for cutting Public Services and Procurement Canada’s office portfolio in half. (Stu Mills/CBC)
Neither PIPSC nor PSAC would speculate about how members of the two giant unions might react to the news.
In downtown Ottawa, public servant Tannis Labelle wasn’t keen on the idea of returning to the office for a third day.
“It adds to my work day, it takes away from my family life — I think it’s a waste of time,” she said.
With that anticipated reduction of federal government office space and no firm plan for an end to hybrid working on the horizon, many public servants are questioning not only when they’ll return to the office, but where and even how.
Health Canada has authorized Novavax’s updated COVID-19 vaccine that protects against currently circulating variants of the virus.
The protein-based vaccine, called Nuvaxovid, has been reformulated to target the JN.1 subvariant of Omicron.
It will replace the previous version of the vaccine, which targeted the XBB.1.5 subvariant of Omicron.
Health Canada recently asked provinces and territories to get rid of their older COVID-19 vaccines to ensure the most current vaccine will be used during this fall’s respiratory virus season.
Earlier this week, Health Canada approved Moderna’s updated mRNA COVID vaccine.
It is still reviewing Pfizer’s updated mRNA vaccine, with a decision expected soon.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
Canadian Press health coverage receives support through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.
Note to readers: This is a corrected story. A previous version erroneously described the Novavax vaccine as an mRNA shot.
HALIFAX – The federal Fisheries Department says an endangered North Atlantic right whale has become entangled in gear in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
The department says the whale was sighted Wednesday by a Transport Canada aerial surveillance team northeast of the Gaspé Peninsula, off Anticosti Island.
Officials say it’s not known what type of gear has entangled the whale or where the gear came from.
Based on observation, experts at the New England Aquarium have confirmed the whale is a female known as Chiminea.
The department says it is continuing to monitor the area and if the whale is located and conditions allow, efforts will be made to disentangle the animal.
Last October, the North Atlantic Right Whale Consortium estimated there were 356 North Atlantic right whales left on the planet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
VANCOUVER – Canadian pop icon Nelly Furtado has been named one of three headliners for the opening ceremony of the upcoming Invictus Games.
Furtado, from Victoria, will share the stage with alt-pop star Roxane Bruneau of Delson, Que., and American singer-songwriter Noah Kahan.
They’ll be part of the show that opens the multi-sport event in Vancouver and Whistler, B.C., in February.
The Invictus Games sees wounded, injured, and sick military service members and Veterans compete in 11 disciplines.
The Vancouver Whistler 2025 Games will be the first of seven editions to feature winter adaptive sports, including alpine skiing, Nordic skiing, skeleton and wheelchair curling.
British Columbia’s Lower Mainland will host the Invictus Games from Feb. 8-16.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
