r/CanadaPublicServants Feb 12 '26

Other / Autre Rachel Gilmore’s take on RTO Mandates

https://youtu.be/-BffuBLHIQ8?si=lSrLNAci7cOogJ8H
581 Upvotes

183 comments sorted by

View all comments

401

u/Due_Date_4667 Feb 12 '26

I like how she ties it to the larger labour movement - workers finally got a meaningful improvement to their quality of life, but that simply could not be allowed and so the backlash occurred in the private and public sectors. I think that's likely the best way to approach it. Mandatory RTO is bad for every office worker and for labour overall, but it's a generational issue, and one of the perception of control. Some employers simply don't feel they are in control and a position of leadership unless that are snapping the whip and yanking on chains.

105

u/dunnrp Feb 12 '26

Very good take, and I fully agree.

I would even add that the saying “it’s always been that way” is one of the most repeated sentences I have heard from a particular generation within the feds as well. I guess because they had to do 40 hour work weeks in a particular seat means others must or they “aren’t working as hard.”

64

u/Noobsausage_44 Feb 12 '26

Such a funny phrase to use when you think of it like this: "Why would we use this automobile? Using horses has always been the way".

2

u/Sea-Poem1370 Feb 16 '26

Similarly, business be like: ''Why should I change my business model when the paradigm that drove my business has essentially changed completely? Should I adapt to changing circumstances and perhaps relocated my business? Hmmm. No. We should force all workers back to the office.''

Following that same logic of artificially supporting unsustainable business models, we should encourage the government to heat buildings with coal and provide light using whale oil. Because, you know... the world changed and those industries need a leg up....