Ontario government employees will be expected to be full-time office workers by early January. The President of the provincial Treasury Board, Caroline Mulroney, has announced a phased return for the Ontario public service, which will begin with a minimum requirement to spend four days per week in formal government offices as of Oct. 20, 2025.

“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 says.

More than half of provincial employees can already be found in Ontario government offices from Monday through Friday, while the remainder have the option of working up to two days per week from remote locations. The new mandate, which will require five-day presence beginning the week of Jan. 5, 2026, is linked to the government’s other recently announced policies to fortify provincial economic resilience.

“As the government delivers on our plan to protect Ontario, we will continue to drive public service excellence for the people of Ontario,” Mulroney submits. “This transition is an important step that supports the government’s ongoing efforts to build a more competitive, resilient and self-reliant Ontario.”