Workers across the Ontario Public Service have been raising concerns about the Ford government’s sudden and arbitrary decision to eliminate hybrid work. On September 24, OPSEU/SEFPO stood alongside members from AMAPCEO and PEGO to call on the Ford government to reverse its decision.
Amanda Usher, Chair of the OPS Unified Bargaining Team, spoke at the rally and to media.
OPSEU In the News: Hybrid work rally
CBC: ‘Return to the Stone Age’: Ontario public servants rally against Ford’s return-to-office order
Amanda Usher, a committee chair with Ontario Public Service Employees Union who said she was at Thursday’s rally to show solidarity, called the in-office move “unacceptable,” saying it risks driving workers out of the public service.
“This is a disruption in their work-life balance, and all we’re asking is for the government to respect the work that has been [done]. We need to modernize to flexible work,” she said.
The Canadian Press: Ontario public servant unions rally against return-to-office mandates by province
Amanda Usher, a bargaining chair for another union that represents Ontario government workers, said in an interview that the province’s announcement brought about a lot of “anger and fear.” She said many members of the OPSEU union chose their jobs with the public service because of the hybrid arrangement’s allure.
“And now this government is disrespecting not just the workers, but the process that has been agreed to for many, many years,” she said.
Join the campaign: Keep Hybrid Work in the OPS