The Manitoba Civil Service Commission appears to have walked back on an order for Government workers in the Canadian Province to begin returning to their offices.
Initially the Commission said all advanced education and skills, and immigration employees were to return to the office by 22 February.
Issuing a new memo just one day later, it said working remotely would still be an option across all Departments.
“Each work area continues to have different operational and organisational needs,” the Commission said.
“Employees are able to return to the workplace and each area must assess what that return will look like for their circumstances, while still following the guidance of public health and determining how flexible work can be supported.”
A Provincial Government spokesperson said there was no order to return to the office “but Public Servants have been notified they may consider a return to the office”.
President of the Manitoba Government and General Employees’ Union, Kyle Ross said people want a return to normal — when and where it was safe.
“Many union members were concerned the sudden plan to relax public health restrictions was aggressive, and health-care workers were particularly worried the move could overwhelm the hospital system,” Mr Ross (pictured) said.
Meanwhile, the Canada School of Public Service (CSPS) has selected learning technology provider, D2L to deliver its learning innovation platform “to enable the ongoing education and professional development of the Canadian Public Service”.
President of the CSPS, Taki Sarantakis said the school was introducing the first enterprise-wide modern platform in the entire Public Service — “cloud-based, mobile, infinitely scalable”.
“This is a game changer for learning in the Government of Canada and serves as a pathfinder project for the digital community,” Mr Sarantakis said.
Winnipeg, 17 February 2022
