Availability of desk space unclear as feds boost in-office time for public servants

By Canadian Press on February 17, 2026.

OTTAWA — Public Services and Procurement Canada will not answer repeated questions about whether there will be enough office space to accommodate the federal government’s new policy on in-office work.

Most public servants are expected to be in the office three days per week and executives are expected to attend the office four days per week, with the remaining days being worked remotely.

But executives will be required to be in the office full-time starting in May, and the federal government says other public servants must be in the office at least four days a week starting in July.

The Public Service Alliance of Canada has said there is already a shortage of office space and warns “the chaos will only get worse” as workers’ in-office time increases.

Sylvain Routier, a federal public servant living in the Ottawa area, says booking desk space is a struggle under the current rules and workers need to sign up a month in advance.

Public Services and Procurement Canada will only say it’s readjusting its plan to sell off or lease surplus office space in light of the new rules, and that 58 per cent of Crown-owned office buildings were assessed as being in “fair or better condition” as of March 2025.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 17, 2026.

Catherine Morrison, The Canadian Press