Remote workers at Global Affairs say they're being forced to transfer to capital

Public servants with Global Affairs Canada (GAC) who have been teleworking full-time for the past several years from cities such as Montreal are now being required to work in offices in the National Capital Region. 

The workers were hired before or during the COVID-19 pandemic to work remotely, and some say they’re being forced to resign because they can't relocate.

"I’m angry," said one employee in French whose identity Radio-Canada agreed to protect because they fear reprisal from the employer.

Like others who spoke to Radio-Canada, the public servant said their family and personal circumstances make it difficult for them to move to the Ottawa-Gatineau region, nor can they commute there three or more times a week.

The worker said that prior to accepting the role, they had received verbal guarantees from their employer that they could work remotely.

"That was definitely one of my preliminary questions. Had I known that after a while I risked losing my job for that reason, I would never have applied," the employee said.

Radio-Canada spoke with two other public servants facing similar situations. Both said they feel caught off guard and fear disciplinary action if they do not comply with the new requirement.

They say they want to find another job within the federal government, but fear it will be difficult with the cuts announced in the latest budget.

"I've lost hope of returning to the government," one of them told Radio-Canada in French. 

"I find this management incredibly inhumane," another said in French.

By the end of 2025, 307 GAC employees were working fully remotely because they lived more than 125 kilometres from their workplace. In April 2024, when the department began compiling this data, 238 employees were in this situation.

In a written statement, GAC said telework agreements are separate from offer letters that are signed by public servants when they're hired. According to spokesperson Charlotte MacLeod, such agreements don't alter the designated location of a job, which is clearly indicated in the offer letter.

Radio-Canada was unable to confirm the telework agreements reached by the employees it spoke to, since they were made verbally, nor did GAC comment specifically on those verbal agreements.

The department declined to specify the extent of the discretionary power granted to assistant deputy ministers who review telework requests from employees, and also declined to clarify the criteria considered during these reviews.