'Rich tapestry of irony': Union says Bank of Canada allowing work from home during strike

Bank of Canada security officers are seen picketing at the Bank of Canada in Ottawa on July 8, 2026. Photo by Jean Levac /POSTMEDIA

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The Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) leadership is calling out the Bank of Canada for allowing employees to work from home during a labour strike of its security guards while the rest of the public service returns to the office four days a week.

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“What a rich tapestry of irony this whole RTO thing is; the government of Canada really endorsed remote work and flexible work arrangements when it suited them,” said Ruth Lau MacDonald, PSAC regional executive vice-president for the National Capital Region.

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MacDonald added that there is “no tangible community benefit” for the four-day in-office return that began on July 6, and that the Bank of Canada is proving that remote work is a “lever” that federal employers can pull “when it works for them.”

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The Bank of Canada has been involved in a protracted labour dispute since June 23 with dozens of its security guards represented by PSAC.

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The security guards say they are fighting back against concessions, including cuts to paternity leave and scheduling rights changes that could claw back overtime hours, disrupt work-life balance and harm workers’ family life, according to the union.

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Since the labour dispute began, the Bank of Canada has had the majority of employees working from home, with maintenance and essential staff remaining on-site, according to Alex Silas, PSAC national executive vice-president and striking security guard.

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The Ottawa Citizen has also noticed little presence in and around the Bank of Canada’s main office on Wellington Street during the labour dispute.

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However, the Bank of Canada refused to say if a majority of employees are working from home, citing “security reasons.”

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Meanwhile, the Treasury Board four-day in-office directive sent public servants within the core public service back to the office four days a week on July 6.

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The decision has remained controversial for much of the federal public service and a central target for federal public service unions. However, the policy remains outside the purview of collective bargaining, leaving union and public servants to push back on the directive through other means.

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At a Canadian Association of Professional Employees rally against the Treasury Board’s return to office mandate on July 6, Silas slammed the federal government for having the Bank of Canada employees “working from home” during the strike, “showing that remote work works when employers want to do it.”

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For Silas, the strike and the return to office mandate is about “respect” in how employers are approaching their workforce at and away from the bargaining table.

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“The throughline is workers being disrespected, employers not valuing their workforces, and workers being fed up with that and taking a stand to fight for the fairness that we deserve,” Silas said of ongoing PSAC bargaining, the new return to office directive and the ongoing labour dispute.