Ontario civil servants will return to office full time, ending pandemic-era rules
Thousands of Ontario civil servants will return to the office full time next year, as the Ford government officially ends its pandemic policies.
The government said staff who are going to work three days a week will move to four days in October, then toward a full return by Jan. 5, 2026.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford said he believed people work better in the office, encouraging collaboration.
“I believe everyone’s more productive when they’re at work,” he said. “How do you mentor someone over the phone? You can’t. You got to look at them eye to eye or at the watercooler.”
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Treasury Board President Caroline Mulroney said the province had been studying how other governments and businesses handle the return to work before deciding to order all civil servants back.
“The return to a five days per week in-workplace standard represents the current workforce landscape in the province and it reinforces our commitment to reflecting the people and businesses we serve across Ontario,” she said in a statement.
An internal memo from Secretary of the Cabinet Michelle Di Emanuele, seen by Global News, echoed that the decision was “in line with an increasing number of organizations across the public and private sectors.”
“Our return to five days in-office per week will be guided by our commitment to flexibility, respect for collective agreements and in alignment with the Ontario Human Rights Code,” Di Emanuele wrote.
Dave Bulmer, the president of AMAPCEO, which represents Ontario’s civil servants, claimed the government was “hellbent” on stopping his members working from home.
“I am incensed by this morning’s announcement that the OPS will be returning to five days in the office in the new year,” he said in a statement. “The Secretary of Cabinet is now using policy to force through what couldn’t be wrested from us during free and fair collective bargaining.”
The announcement comes after some private sector companies, including several Canadian banks, have announced their own adjustments to hybrid work policies.
— With a file from The Canadian Press
© 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
Spirits maker Diageo will cease operations at its bottling facility in Amherstburg, Ont., early next year, as it shifts some bottling volume to the U.S., the company announced on Thursday.
The facility, which bottles Crown Royal products, will close in February in a move aimed at improving its North American supply chain.
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About 200 jobs will be affected.
“This was a difficult decision, but one that is crucial to improving the efficiency and resiliency of our supply chain network,” Marsha McIntosh, Diageo’s president of North America supply, said in a statement.
Diageo said it will engage with the community and find ways to support its employees through the transition, and work alongside Unifor to assist unionized workers.
The company said it will still maintain a “significant” footprint in Canada — including its headquarters and warehouse operations in the Greater Toronto Area, and bottling and distillation facilities in Manitoba and Quebec.
McIntosh added the company’s Crown Royal products will continue to be mashed, distilled and aged at its Canadian facilities.
© 2025 The Canadian Press
Toronto police say a 33-year-old man has been charged with attempted murder after allegedly striking two men with his car Wednesday evening.
Officers say they responded to reports of a collision in the area of Don Mills Road and Gateway Boulevard in the city’s North York neighbourhood just before 10:30 p.m.
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Police say two men got into an argument, leading to one man getting into his car and hitting the other man with it.
They say the man then put his car into reverse, striking a second man.
A man in his 50s was transported to hospital with serious injuries and the second man, in his 20s, had minor injuries.
Police say the suspect from Markham, Ont., faces several other charges as well, including two counts of assault with a weapon, uttering threats and dangerous driving.
© 2025 The Canadian Press
A court document shows a Lindsay, Ont., man facing charges for allegedly breaking into an apartment was carrying a crossbow when he was confronted by a tenant.
The resident, Jeremy David McDonald, is also facing assault charges in the incident on Aug. 18 — a fact that has generated widespread interest in the case.
Police information filed in court alleges that Michael Kyle Breen damaged a window and screen at McDonald’s home and carried a crossbow.
The court document says the 41-year-old Breen is charged with break and enter, possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose, mischief under $5,000 and failing to comply with a probation order.
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Police have said that Breen, who is scheduled to appear in court for a bail hearing next week, was already wanted for unrelated offences.
McDonald, the 44-year-old resident, was charged with aggravated assault and assault with a weapon after he allegedly “did endanger the life” of Breen.
Premier Doug Ford blasted the decision to charge the apartment resident, saying last week that it shows “something is broken.”
Kawartha Lakes Police Chief Kirk Robertson wrote in a statement Wednesday that he recognizes the incident has generated significant public interest and “emotional” responses, but called some of the reaction “unjust and inaccurate.”
Robertson wrote that individuals have the right to defend themselves and their property, but the law requires that any defensive action be proportionate to the threat faced.
“This means that while homeowners do have the right to protect themselves and their property, the use of force must be reasonable given the circumstances,” he wrote.
© 2025 The Canadian Press
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