Eastern Ontario mayor calls for regional offices for public servants, warns in-office mandate will ‘hurt communities’

The mayor of Casselman, Ont. is calling for regional offices for federal public servants, warning the new in-office mandate will hurt rural communities.

An eastern Ontario mayor is calling on the federal government to set up regional offices for federal public servants, warning the new in-office mandate will “hurt communities like ours.”

The Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat issued a new directive on in-office work in February. As of May 4, executives will be required to work on-site five days per week. All other federal employees in the core public service will need to be in the office for a minimum of four days per week, as of July 6.

The United Counties of Prescott and Russell Council approved a motion from Casselman Mayor Genevieve Lajoie last month, requesting the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat and federal departments “explore regionally accessible work options” within the national capital region.

In a post on Facebook, Lajoie said remote and hybrid work has made it possible for public servants to live in Casselman and other eastern Ontario communities, “raise their families here, spend money locally, volunteer, and build strong communities without needing to be in Ottawa every day.”

Lajoie said the “stricter in office requires” put that balance at risk, adding, “people are pushed closer to the city. Our local economy takes a hit. Businesses lose customers and revenue. Volunteer capacity drops, including for emergency services.”

“When policies make it harder for that workforce to live here, we are not just affecting rural communities, we are weakening access to the very talent the federal government depends on,” Lajoie said in the Facebook post.

“Policies made in urban centres, without understanding rural realities, do hurt communities like ours. That is why I brought this forward. Because if we do not advocate for ourselves, no one else will. I am fighting for our rural economy, our local businesses, and the people who call this region home. This is just the start. Now we build the case, bring the data forward, and push for real change.”

Lajoie’s motion noted many residents of Prescott and Russell, located east of Ottawa, are employed by the federal public service.

“Region-based flexibility, hybrid work options, and accessible regional workplaces can improve workforce inclusion regardless of where employees live, while supporting local spending, family stability, volunteerism, and rural quality of life,” said the motion approved by council.

The motion also called on the Council of the United Counties of Prescott and Russell to “formally affirm that federal workforce policy implementation has direct and significant regional implications and must account for regional geography, transportation realities, and workforce inclusion.”

Several municipal politicians across eastern Ontario have raised concerns about the federal government’s new in-office mandate for federal public servants.

In February, North Grenville Mayor Nancy Peckford said the federal government’s new mandate “reveals the clear bias for employing people living in the city” instead of nearby communities.

“To now insist on a minimum of four days (five for many) is an unequivocal signal that only those in Ottawa’s relatively small orbit work (and other major urban centres) should work for the public service, let alone attempt to excel,” Peckford said.

“That is unless you are willing to make a serious sacrifice of your time and well-being, and the climate. Because putting federal public servants back on the road five days a week will only worsen congestion and gridlock across the country.”

Orléans East-Cumberland Coun. Matthew Luloff called on the government to delay the four day a week in-office mandate until the O-Train East Extension opens later this year.

Orléans South-Navan Coun. Catherine Kitts warned suburban residents will be impacted by “sudden increases in mandatory commuting” unless there is “meaningful progress to improve transit reliability and expand the transportation infrastructure.”

“My concern then wasn’t about productivity or accountability, and it isn’t now. It was about whether our city is physically prepared for a large, simultaneous increase in commuting,” Kitts said.

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