City of Ottawa employees returning to office 5 days a week ‘about creating a great culture’: Mayor

Ottawa City Hall is seen in this undated file photo. (CTV News Ottawa)

The City of Ottawa ordering all employees back to the office five days a week in the new year is about “getting the team back together,” according to Mayor Mark Sutcliffe.

City Manager Wendy Stephanson announced on Tuesday the city will return to “five days in the office as the new standard for all City employees” starting Jan. 1.

“The collective return to a five-day office standard for all City employees will help strengthen the organizational culture and build confidence and trust in the City’s ability to continue to provide responsive and reliable service to the public,” Stephanson said in a memo to council.

• City of Ottawa to require all employees in the office 5 days a week starting in January

Speaking on Newstalk 580 CFRA’s The Morning Rush with Bill Carroll, Mayor Sutcliffe said several employers, including the Ontario government and major banks, are ending hybrid arrangements and requiring employees to be in the office five days a week.

“I have the greatest respect for City of Ottawa employees. I think it’s about creating the right workplace culture and collaboration and mentorship and coaching and creativity and innovation,” Sutcliffe said Wednesday morning.

“It’s about building a great culture in a great workplace.”

The mayor said the decision to change the work arrangements was made by the city manager.

Approximately 85 per cent of city employees already report onsite or to an office each day, which covers OC Transpo, firefighters, paramedics, Road Services, library staff, recreation and other departments.

Sutcliffe estimates 2,400 to 2,500 municipal employees were reporting to the office two to four days a week, with the entire workforce spending an average of 4.65 days a week in the office.

The mayor says employees returning to the office five days a week is “about workplace culture.”

“Picture for a second somebody who’s 25 to 30 years old starting their career at the City of Ottawa or in a different workplace. They deserve and need to have the opportunity to learn on the job and learn from others who have more experience than you,” Sutcliffe said.

The mayor adds the City of Ottawa needs to “align with the marketplace” as other employers change work arrangements for employees.

Several councillors have stated their objection to Ottawa mandating all employees return to the office five days a week in the new year.

Coun. Jeff Leiper expressed his “profound disappointment” with the office mandate, calling it a “short-sighted decision that serves no one well.”

“A decision to force workers back to work five days a week is simply going to add more car traffic to our roads,” Leiper told CTV News Ottawa on Tuesday.

“That’s going to mean longer commutes; commuting is expensive.”

Leiper adds, “The world has changed since the pandemic.”

“One of the things we’ve learned over the years since the lockdowns is how effectively teams can work working virtually,” Leiper said. “There’s a lot of great work being done by city employees working virtually.”

Leiper says the City of Ottawa wants to build “more complete communities” so people can work closer to home.

Coun. Shawn Menard said on X, “Forcing workers to commute into the office five days a week, rather than offering some modest flexible work arrangements (i.e. giving employees a choice), is a poor decision for quality of life and for productivity.”