The federal government’s push to bring public servants back to the office three days a week is colliding with an awkward reality: many departments don’t actually have enough space to accommodate them.
In May, Ottawa announced that federal employees would be expected to spend 60 per cent of their work time at the office, with executives required to show up four days a week. On paper, this sounds like a plan to restore collaboration, improve oversight, and boost productivity. In practice, it looks more like a logistical mess.
How can public servants return to offices that simply don’t have enough desks or meeting rooms? The government can’t champion “hybrid work” as a balanced approach while ignoring the basic infrastructure needed to make it viable. Asking people to commute in only to perch in a hallway, hover over hot desks, or struggle to book a workspace isn’t just inefficient it’s demoralizing.
The pandemic showed that federal workers can deliver results outside traditional office walls. Rather than rushing back to a rigid schedule that strains already limited office capacity, the government should be rethinking its approach. A more flexible system built around outcomes, not optics would acknowledge the realities of both space shortages and the evolving nature of work.
Until Ottawa addresses its own office-space crunch, forcing people back three days a week isn’t about collaboration or productivity. It’s about appearances. And appearances alone don’t get the public service’s work done.
