Ottawa, June 12, 2023 – Today is the first day of National Public Service Week, a time meant to “recognize the value of the services rendered by federal public service employees.” But recent data pulled from a survey of members of the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC) shows that the majority of these employees are not feeling valued – particularly when it comes to Return To Office (RTO) policies. 

“Six months into the implementation of a one-size-fits-all return to office order, our members report that the policy has undermined their productivity, increased their cost of living, forced them to waste time in traffic – and it hasn’t improved collaboration,” said PIPSC President Jennifer Carr. 

Seventy percent of survey respondents reported being dissatisfied with how RTO policies were implemented – citing issues like the commuting time and cost, work-life balance, and environmental impacts as top concerns. 

And contrary to the Treasury Board’s rationale behind the order, positive outcomes are hard to identify. Sixty-one percent of respondents said productivity has gotten worse, and most respondents said the impact on collaboration is at best neutral. 

Furthermore, 80% of meetings are still happening virtually. 

“Public service professionals have been ordered into an office to be part of a Zoom or Teams call they could have dialed into from home,” said Carr. “The proposed benefits of returning to the office are nowhere to be found.”

One key issue is that, in spite of having been issued a RTO directive, the majority of federal employees no longer have dedicated offices to return to – in fact, 65% of respondents are still sharing workstations. 

“At PIPSC we support the principle of “presence with purpose”: being at the office when justified by operational needs. We continue to advocate for what was promised: a hybrid-by-design approach that considers employees’ unique circumstances and job requirements,” said Carr. “It’s time for the government to work with us and develop a modern workplace that includes flexible work arrangements, properly equipped work spaces, and a high priority on health and safety.”

PIPSC represents over 72,000 public service professionals working for the federal government as well as some provincial departments and agencies. In May 2023, PIPSC conducted an online survey of more than 68,000 of its members working for Federal Departments or Agencies, to assess how the members feel after returning to the office. More than 17% responded to the survey.

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For more information: Johanne Fillion, 613-883-4900 (mobile), jfillion@pipsc.ca

National Public Service Week begins on June 11, and we have a lot of things to shine a light on this year – particularly the hard work of PIPSC members delivering important public services from coast to coast to coast.

I have been so proud to see you all continue to go above and beyond for Canadians during what continues to be such a difficult and unusual time. And I was deeply moved by your demonstrations of incredible solidarity towards your fellow public servants on picket lines across the country.

For National Public Service Week, we will be celebrating all of that and more. 

We’ll be teeing up these celebrations with a series of Telephone Town Halls. On these calls, we’ll discuss the outcomes of the recent PSAC strike, get an update from our Labour Relations team on the bargaining landscape, and have a question and answer session to give me a chance to hear from you. 

Joining the town hall will be easy – all you have to do is answer the phone when we call.

The schedule for these Telephone Town Halls is:

• English East Coast Call - June 5 at 6pm Eastern Time 
• French East Coast Call - June 6 at 6pm EasternTime
• West Coast Call - June 7 at 5pm Pacific Time

If we don’t have your number – or if you miss our call – you can connect by dialing 877-229-8493 and entering ID Code 112851.

You can also tune in to the livestream at this link.

Thank you so much for all of the agility and dedication you have shown this year. I know we have a lot to talk about.

I can’t wait to hear what you’ve got to say.

PIPSC President Jennifer Carr has released the following statement:

I am proud to see that union activism has moved Canada’s largest employer to offer a better deal to PSAC workers. The improvements made to this deal will benefit every worker in this country - public or private, unionized or unrepresented. 

The federal government tried to force PSAC to accept an offer that was not only bad for PSAC workers, but bad for workers everywhere. But PSAC workers fought back – for all of us. And they secured a better deal. 

For PIPSC members, the fight for a better deal continues. We will pursue our members’ priorities at our negotiation tables. I’m proud of the solidarity shown by PIPSC members marching alongside their PSAC colleagues on those historic picket lines. The same energy will carry us forward as we continue our negotiations in the months ahead. 

The PSAC strike at Canada Revenue Agency continues while the two sides negotiate. We continue to stand in solidarity with our Union of Taxation Employees colleagues until they have reached a fair deal. 

I also thank the Canadian public for their show of support to striking workers. Canadians defied the expectations of certain politicians and commentators, showing a strong level of support for public service workers’ demands - from fair wages to remote and flexible work options. The growing solidarity among workers from all sectors sends a strong message to all employers that Canada’s workers expect a fair deal that respects their contributions to our economy.

If you care about good wages and working conditions – for yourself, your colleagues, and for hardworking people everywhere –  the best thing you can do is support striking PSAC workers and join a picket in solidarity. Join the picket this Thursday at 12:00 PM.

Please keep in mind that you must join the picket on your own time (for example, your unpaid lunch break).

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