Women less likely than men to get flexible work arrangements: survey

A woman walks through Toronto's financial district on Monday, July 30, 2018. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graeme Roy

TORONTO — A new survey suggests many Canadians prefer hybrid or fully remote work, but women are less likely than men to work at places that offer such flexibility.

The research from women’s advancement nonprofit Catalyst Canada found 33 per cent of women respondents and 35 per cent of men who participated in the survey have hybrid work arrangements.

About one in five participants do not have access to flexible work of any kind.

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While the women surveyed were more likely than male participants to prefer hybrid or fully remote work, 22 per cent of women say their employer does not offer flexible work at all.

About 15 per cent of men say employers don’t have flexible work arrangements.

The research was based on interviews with 955 Canadians last fall and comes as many workplaces are mandating staff to return to the office for increasing numbers of days each week.

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The polling industry’s professional body, the Canadian Research Insights Council, says online surveys cannot be assigned a margin of error because they do not randomly sample the population.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 2, 2026.

Tara Deschamps, The Canadian Press