Federal organizations to spend at least $18 million on return to office

The federal government is spending millions of dollars on RTO-4. Photo by Jean Levac /Postmedia

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Federal departments and agencies are projected to spend more than $18 million on the government’s policy requiring most public servants to work from offices four days a week.

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In response to what’s called an order paper question by NDP MP Heather McPherson, 13 federal organizations revealed the amount they expect to spend on accommodating more public servants working in the office. An order paper question is a formal request from a member of Parliament to a federal institution for information.

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Of the 81 responding departments and agencies, 12 said they had no costs associated with the new policy. There were 56 organizations who did not disclose their projected costs or referred such questions to Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC), the government’s property manager.

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In February, the federal government announced it was increasing the number of days that most public servants would have to work in offices. The new changes came into effect in May for executives, who are now back in the office full-time, and in July for employees, who must work in person for four days a week.

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In its response to McPherson’s questions, the Treasury Board confirmed that “no specific metrics, assessments, or studies” were used to develop the new in-office requirements. The response echoed comments made by Bill Matthews, the top public servant at the Treasury Board, who has said the policy was based on a “philosophical choice.”

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The government currently only has enough office space to accommodate 90 per cent of government workers, and some departments have had to delay their implementation of the new policy as a result.

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The Ottawa Citizen previously reported that PSPC has not acquired any net new office space since the government announced the new policy, but the department is “considering” increasing its portfolio “over the next few months.”

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In her order paper question, McPherson asked for projected costs “associated with reconfiguring or reacquiring office space” to accommodate the new policy, commonly known as RTO-4.

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Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada had the highest disclosed projected costs, and said it expects to spend $5,695,000 on “temporary adjustments aimed at modernizing workspace, optimizing the use of office space, and responding to evolving accommodation needs.”

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The Department of Fisheries and Oceans had the second highest projected costs with $4.2 million. The department said it will spend that funding on supporting “accommodation-related projects across its facilities nationwide.”

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The Canada Border Services Agency projected that its costs would be $3.9 million.

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Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, one of the departments that has delayed the implementation of RTO-4, said it plans to spend an estimated $2 million “subject to refinement.”