Premier of Ontario Doug Ford’s mandate that forces all public servants to return to the office full-time with the justification that the move will increase productivity and consumption is a way for the government to push the blame for receding economic stability among Ontarians onto the working class.
In August, Ford announced that the government was ending remote work for public servants and gradually mandating their return to the office full-time.
For the past few years, post-pandemic hybrid work measures have remained in place for public servants, mandating that they spend three days in the office with the ability to work from home for the rest of the work week.
Ford now says that public servants must work in the office four days a week beginning Oct. 20 and build up to full-time work in the office beginning Jan. 5 of next year.
The decision comes with the justification that public servants are more productive when they work in the office as opposed to remotely from home, with Ford saying that establishing mentorship connections at work is impossible to do if you’re working “over a phone.”
Productivity is not the only factor behind this decision. According to Ford, small businesses surrounding government offices “basically just died” with the rise of hybrid work among public servants, as he says they consume less when working remotely.
The implication in Ford’s justification for sending public servants back to the office is that government workers spending two more days of the work week at home is entirely responsible for killing small businesses.
When examining the issue of financial losses amongst small businesses in the context of the relentless high cost of living and intense tariff war, Ford’s assertion that remote work is to blame isn’t too convincing.
Though it is undeniable that less foot traffic around the businesses surrounding government offices has led to some financial losses over the years following the pandemic — as confirmed by the businesses housed in Toronto’s PATH stretch — I am reluctant to believe that sending public servants back to the office full-time will bring any meaningful relief to local businesses.
Small businesses are facing a plethora of barriers restricting their capacity to maintain financial stability. The tariff war incited by U.S. President Donald Trump remains ongoing and continues to change Canada’s political and economic realities.
According to CBC News, U.S. tariffs have put Canada on the path to having a weaker dollar and have sent global markets into “wild swings and rock bottom lows.” Thus, it is clear that many small businesses that must import any kinds of materials or items have experienced the impact of global tariffs.
Further, raising costs of production materials leads to consumer items becoming more expensive — which can be seen across all sectors from groceries to cars and other commodities.
Evidently, life has become more expensive for all Canadians.
The rising cost of living combined with tariffs causing an unpredictable economy creates a double impact on small businesses: items are becoming more expensive to produce, and disposable income is receding among consumers.
So, even when public servants return to the office full-time, will they even be able to return to pre-pandemic consumption levels?
According to results from the Bank of Canada’s Survey of Consumer Expectations, consumer spending has slowly improved since the pandemic but declining confidence in Canada’s labour market paired alongside concerns about Canada’s trade war with the U.S. led consumers to “intend to spend more cautiously.”
Though the report shows some optimism for local businesses with findings that consumers intend to buy more Canadian products amidst the tariff conflict, declining consumer spending still poses a threat to struggling local businesses.
Arguably, forcing public servants back to work may even place these workers in worse economic positions, as issues like transportation and childcare could increase financial burdens as remote work comes to a halt.
Ultimately, the Ford government has forced the responsibility of Ontario’s unpredictable economic climate onto workers. Mandating public servants back to work is another example of policy acting as a Band-Aid to avoid dealing with the larger economic issues Ontario is facing.
Instead of meaningfully attending to the needs of small businesses and Ontarians facing financial struggles in general, the provincial government has instead dedicated their time to a policy that turns the responsibility of their duties back onto workers — as if these workers aren’t the ones already facing the consequences of living within a shaky economy.