'Lives have changed': Federal workers in Greater Victoria resist mandate to return to office
CTV
Federal government employees in Greater Victoria and across the country will be mandated to return to the office for at least two to three days a week starting Jan. 16. By March 31, the hybrid work model will be fully implemented.
Federal government employees in Greater Victoria and across the country will be mandated to return to the office for at least two to three days a week starting Jan. 16. By March 31, the hybrid work model will be fully implemented.
“This is very good news for our restaurants and our retailers,” said Jeff Bray, CEO of the Downtown Victoria Business Association.
When the pandemic hit, many office workers began working from home. With 4,000 federal employees working in the capital region, that had a devastating impact on businesses.
“Some of them just didn’t survive because there were no customers,” said Bray. “For others, they’ve had to reduce their hours.”
“You now see a lot of restaurants not open for lunch.”
A recent survey of nearly 14,000 public service workers revealed a majority of them would rather work from home.
“There’s a lot of people whose lives have changed significantly since the pandemic,” said Jamey Mills, regional executive vice-president with the Public Service Alliance of Canada.
