The federal government’s decision last week to require employees to return to the office four days a week, and executives five, has been framed by some as a necessary step toward productivity, accountability and organizational cohesion. But beneath the surface, this policy risks sending a far more damaging message: that presence still matters more than performance, and that trust remains conditional rather than foundational.
This is not simply a workplace policy shift. It is a signal about leadership, culture and how the federal government understands work in a post-pandemic world.
Let’s be clear: offices matter. Physical spaces enable collaboration, mentorship and shared identity in ways that are difficult to fully replicate online. Most organizations, including the federal public service, benefit when people come together with purpose. But the key word is purpose. Mandating attendance without clearly articulating why four days is better than three, or why executives require a different standard, risks turning a potentially constructive move into a blunt instrument.
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At its core, this decision reflects an unresolved tension between control and trust.
Trust-based organizations focus on results, not rituals. They ask: what does this team need to do its best work? What rhythms support learning, collaboration and well-being? Where does in-person time truly add value and where does it not? The answers are rarely uniform across departments, teams or roles.
By contrast, blanket mandates prioritize visibility over effectiveness. They assume that more days in the office automatically translates into better performance, stronger culture and improved accountability. The evidence for this is, at best, mixed. Culture is not built by attendance alone. It is built through clarity, leadership and shared purpose. Accountability is not enforced by desks. It is reinforced by expectations, feedback and meaningful work.
There is also a real human cost to consider. For many employees, remote and hybrid work unlocked accessibility, reduced burnout and expanded the federal talent pool beyond major urban centres. Reversing this flexibility disproportionately affects caregivers, people with disabilities and those for whom long commutes carry financial or personal strain. A policy designed to strengthen the public service should not inadvertently narrow who can sustainably participate in it.
Perhaps most concerning is what this decision suggests about the government’s readiness for the future of work. The question facing large organizations today is not whether offices should exist, but how they should function. The best employers earn the commute. Their offices must be designed for collaboration, learning and connection, not just occupancy. Without parallel investments in space strategy, leadership capability and new ways of working, increased attendance risks amplifying frustration rather than engagement.
This moment called for nuance. For dialogue. For a clear articulation of goals and trade-offs. Instead, the message many employees heard was simple: “The Government of Canada doesn’t trust public servants.”
That is a costly message, especially for an institution whose effectiveness depends on public trust and internal commitment.
There is still time to course-correct. The federal government can pair this mandate with flexibility at the margins, clearer outcome-based expectations and a renewed focus on why in-person work matters. It can treat offices as strategic assets rather than compliance mechanisms. And it can lead not by looking backward to pre-2020 norms, but by modelling what a modern, high-trust public service can be.
The future of work is not remote versus office. It is intentional versus accidental. And right now, Canadians deserve a public service that is thoughtfully designed for the world we are in, not the one we have already left behind.
Darren Fleming is the CEO and broker of record at Real Strategy Advisors in Ottawa.
