By Sebastian Johnston-Lindsay | The Peterborough Examiner
As the Ford government mandates public sector workers return to work five days a week beginning Monday, some employees are pushing back, citing a critical lack of space, concerns about costs and inconsistencies in how the mandate is being enforced.
In Peterborough, workers at Ontario Health atHome, which co-ordinates local home and community care and facilitates long-term care placement, organized a lunchtime action at their Clonsilla Avenue office, protesting the government’s decision.
One Ontario Health atHome employee, who asked to be identified only by her first name, Shirley, said the expectation of returning to working from the office full time is “unfair” and won’t lead to better work outcomes or greater productivity, noting the shift in workplace culture since the pandemic.
“COVID brought on a totally new environment of working,” she said. “We could see the years we’ve been working from home with COVID, nothing changed. Our work was still the same. The productivity and everything doesn’t go down; it probably goes up.”
The provincial government’s mandate is expected to affect approximately 60,000 public service workers across Ontario.
In an August 2025 statement, treasury board president Caroline Mulroney announced the government’s plan to switch to entirely in-person work.
“The return to a five days per week in-workplace standard represents the current workforce landscape in the province and it reinforces our commitment to reflecting the people and businesses we serve across Ontario,” the statement reads in part.
Since October, workers had been expected to be in office four days per week after previously only being required to work from the office three days a week.
In a news release Monday, the Canadian Union of Public Employees noted available office spaces have shrunk since 2019 and has “resulted in an uneven application of the return-to-office mandate” across the province.
“Workers at Ontario Health atHome have been working remotely to help deliver the essential home-care services Ontarians need,” the release states. “Now, on the whims of the Ford government, these workers are being forced back into office spaces that are not equipped to handle them all at once.”
Outside the Ontario Health atHome office, CUPE 3313 vice-president Troy Wilson held a sign reading “We’re at Work, Doug. Are you?”
Speaking to reporters, Wilson explained the work of his members is “the backbone” of the Ontario health-care system, noting the role they play in co-ordinating services for patients being discharged from hospitals and ensuring their needs are met when they arrive at home.
Wilson said the 200 members of his local are being affected by the legislation and that many of them haven’t worked from an office since before the pandemic. Many are being told existing offices are unable to accommodate them and are being instructed to continue working from home three days a week or entirely.
“Our concern right now is maintaining the adequate care and pay services for our patients at this time, and our concerns are not being met by this provincial legislation,” Wilson told reporters on Monday.
“We are looking to continue the support and excellent care that our members provide to the public, at the same time by not spending taxpayer dollars on needless office space.”
Wilson has concerns about the motivation behind the return to office, noting it will lead to more public money being spent on procuring, paying for and maintaining office space that would have been spent on services.
“My question for the taxpayers is would you prefer us continue working from home or paying for office space just to have us go sit?” Wilson asked.
“Instead of spending that money on patient care, we are now forced to spend that money — or I should say the employer is forced to spend money — on purchasing office space and trying to arrange office and lease contracts with corporate landlords.”
