But one city says it's sticking with hybrid approach for staff
The Alberta government's deadline for a return to the office full-time starts Monday, ending the hybrid work arrangements introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic.
More than 29,000 workers across the province will be affected by the change, which has drawn contrasting reactions from downtown Edmonton businesses, city officials and the union representing provincial staff.
The Ministry of Finance said the shift back to in-person work is intended to “strengthen collaboration, accountability and service delivery,” according to a CTV News report. The ministry added that “the hybrid work model introduced during COVID-19 was always intended as a temporary measure to maintain operations during an unprecedented time,” and said flexibility “for individual cases will still exist where needed, depending on the job and worker circumstances.”
The Alberta government announced the move away from hybrid work in October 2025, noting that the policy in March 2022 following the lifting of the province’s public health work-from-home order.
“The policy was originally implemented in response to the public health crisis and will now be discontinued due to changing circumstances and sector trends,” said the province’s Deputy Ministers’ Council in a press release in October. “The Deputy Ministers’ Human Resource Integration Committee decision reflects similar actions taken by other organisations, including the Government of Ontario.”
Edmonton stays hybrid
Despite the coming change, the City of Edmonton is not mirroring the province’s approach. After union negotiations, the city is keeping a hybrid system that requires municipal staff to be in the office at least two days per week, CTV News reported. Employees who attend in person more than two days a week can access incentives such as having their own dedicated workspace.
Coun. Anne Stevenson (Ward O-day’min) said that while more commuters will help local businesses and add energy during the workday, the policy change alone will not resolve all of downtown’s challenges.
“There are still a lot of factors that need to be considered,” she said in the report, noting that even before the pandemic there were concerns about a pattern of workers arriving in the morning and leaving quickly after office hours. She pointed to the city’s efforts to grow the residential population in the core, with a report expected soon on Edmonton’s downtown residential incentive, which has helped spur the creation of hundreds of additional housing units over the past five years.
More than a year after Ottawa’s return-to-office mandate took effect, Canada’s largest employer is still struggling to track whether its employees are showing up, according to a previous report.
Union warns of employee turnover
The Alberta Union of Provincial Employees (AUPE) says a large number of its members are unhappy with the decision to end hybrid work for government staff.
“They appreciate the ability to have a flexible work schedule that allows them to work from home,” AUPE vice-president Bobby-Joe Borodey told CTV News. “We are concerned that this is a political decision and not an operational decision… we know that members still yield results working in a hybrid model.”
Under the current hybrid model, provincial employees can apply to work three days in the office and two days remotely each week. Starting Monday, those two remote days will no longer be available.
Borodey also warned that cancelling hybrid work could contribute to higher turnover as employees weigh other opportunities that preserve remote or flexible options.
Recently, one Ontario employer’s mandate for an employee to return to the office full-time after two decades with a hybrid work arrangement cost them nearly two years’ pay and benefits.
