Federal organizations to spend more than $18 million on return-to-office - BNN Bloomberg

Federal government departments and agencies are set to spend more than $18 million to get their employees to work in the office more often. Thousands of federal public servants started a new work schedule in July requiring them to be on-site in the office four days a week. Executive public servants returned to the office full-time in May. In response to an order paper question from NDP MP Heather McPherson, 13 federal organizations said they plan to spend a combined $18,720,150 to reconfigure or acquire office space to accommodate the increased frequency of in-person work. Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada said it will spend almost $5.7 million, while Fisheries and Oceans Canada said it will spend $4.2 million. The Canada Border Services Agency estimated its costs at $3.9 million, while the Correctional Service of Canada said it plans to spend $1.37 million. NDP MP for Edmonton Strathcona Heather McPherson rises during Question Period on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Friday, April 17, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld Some federal organizations said they have no costs associated with return-to-office, or that they were still being assessed. Several referred questions to Public Services and Procurement Canada, which said it was still evaluating the cost. McPherson told The Canadian Press Wednesday the government clearly has not done the research to back up its claim that it’s cost-effective for workers to be back in the office. She said it’s likely the total cost will be much larger once responses from other departments and agencies become available.  “They don’t have the information that they would need to make a good, informed decision that protects the rights of workers in this country,” she said. “And yet they’re moving ahead with decisions that are hurting people, that are hurting families, that hurting individual workers in the country.” The responses to another order paper question asked by McPherson revealed that dozens of federal buildings have reported the presence of pests such as mice, rats, bats and bedbugs since 2020. McPherson said the government is not respecting the rights of workers by sending them back into “unsafe or unproductive” working conditions.  A lack of office space is delaying public servants’ return in some departments. A giant Canadian flag hangs on the side of a government office building in downtown Ottawa, Tuesday, June 30, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld Michèle LaRose, a spokesperson…