Â鶹ӰÊÓ

Canada

    • As federal workers fight office mandate, study finds remote work has climate benefits

    A man works in an office in the financial district in London, England on Dec. 13, 2021. (Alberto Pezzali / AP) A man works in an office in the financial district in London, England on Dec. 13, 2021. (Alberto Pezzali / AP)
    Share

    A new report based on a large survey of federal public servants suggests remote work is associated with lower emissions — a finding that comes as workers decry a policy that requires them to be in the office more often.

    The analysis by Carleton University researchers, based on a survey of about 1,500 federal employees, suggests emissions associated with fully remote work in the National Capital Region are about 25 per cent lower than those linked to full-time office work.

    Remote workers in Quebec contribute even fewer emissions, the study finds, thanks largely to greener homes heated by electric baseboards rather than natural gas, and the province's virtually all-renewable energy grid.

    Researchers found each additional weekday a hybrid employee in the National Capital Region works remotely is associated with annual emissions reductions between about 235 to 350 kilograms of carbon emissions, roughly equivalent to burning up to 150 litres of gasoline.

    Those savings are largely attributed to lower transportation emissions from commuting and an assumed reduction in the federal government's office space.

    A major public-sector union was quick to laud the results, which co-author and PhD candidate Farzam Sepanta says underscore the sustainability of remote work.

    Sepanta says, however, that the survey does not consider long-term implications — such as whether more remote work could prompt people to move further away from office-concentrated urban centres, possibly leading to larger homes or longer commutes on office days.

    The Treasury Board Secretariat says the survey of its own department and other employees offers helpful baseline information about emissions, as well as recommendations in several areas relating to "greening" transportation and office space.

    In a written statement, Public Service Alliance of Canada National President Sharon DeSousa calls the study "eye-opening," and suggests the government is "squandering" a chance to build a modern workforce that "paves the way to a sustainable future."

    The union representing public servants has been fighting against a May mandate ordering federal employees to work three days in office, up from two.

    Sepanta says the survey only reflects emissions, and makes no findings about how remote work could affect other facets of work, from organizational culture to client expectations.

    This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 23, 2024.

    CTVNews.ca Top Stories

    The president and CEO of New Brunswick-based Covered Bridge Potato Chips is taking an 'extended leave of absence' after being charged with domestic violence this past weekend.

    A memorial is growing outside a Walmart in Halifax after a 19-year-old employee was found dead inside an oven in the store Saturday night.

    A search has started at Prairie Green Landfill for the remains of two victims of a serial killer.

    He is a familiar face to residents of a neighbourhood just west of Roncesvalles Avenue.

    • Vancouver Fire Rescue Services received its first shipment of new firefighting gear on Wednesday, advancing the department's plans to reduce cancer risk for its members.

    • A Real Canadian Superstore in B.C.'s Fraser Valley was evacuated Tuesday night due to a "suspicious" fire in the toilet paper aisle, according to authorities.

    • A man who fired at least 19 gunshots at an RCMP detachment in northern British Columbia, narrowly missing officers inside, has won a reduced prison sentence from the province's highest court, which ruled the sentencing judge failed to fully weigh the man's mental illness at the time.

    • He is a familiar face to residents of a neighbourhood just west of Roncesvalles Avenue.

    • The federal government says it can’t wait any longer for Ontario to end encampments in its cities and will offer money directly to municipalities, including Toronto, to fix the problem.

    • Speed was a possible factor in a Tuesday night rollover involving a semi-truck that left 17 cows dead. In a news release Wednesday, Calgary police said officers were called to the area of Stoney Trail S.E. and Macleod Trail S.E. around 8:10 p.m. for a reported rollover involving a semi-truck carrying 95 cattle.

    • The Smith government says it's coming to the defence of Albertans and its regulated professionals who have had their freedom of expression limited and forced into training beyond the scope of their practice.

    • Calgary police say thousands of dollars worth of stolen goods and a loaded shotgun were seized from an encampment in the community of Ogden.

    • BREAKING Â鶹ӰÊÓ

      BREAKING Â鶹ӰÊÓ

      One person has died and others have been injured after a two-vehicle collision involving a tractor trailer and a car on Highway 7 in eastern Ontario, according to police.

    • A Zamboni driver in western Quebec has been arrested on suspicion of impaired driving after a low-speed crash at a hockey rink on Monday.

    • Popular Kanata restaurant D'Arcy McGee's has suddenly closed its doors. In a post on Facebook Tuesday night, D'Arcy McGee's said, "We will sadly be closing our doors."

    • Nigel Berkley and CRARR plan to file complaints with the police ethics commissioner and the human rights commission after Berkley was repeatedly stopped while driving his mother's car over four months.

    • Montreal Mayor Valerie Plante will not be seeking re-election.

    • Quebec's Court of Appeal has upheld a landmark 2022 decision that found a law permitting random traffic stops by police led to racial profiling.

    • The Alberta Pharmacists' Association says government cuts to service compensation fees will be detrimental to pharmacists across the province.

    • An Edmonton tow truck operator has been charged after police say he refused to release a vehicle to its owner.

    • The Bank of Canada (BOC) announced a cut to the interest rate Wednesday and experts are expecting that will benefit Edmonton's housing market.

    • A memorial is growing outside a Walmart in Halifax after a 19-year-old employee was found dead inside an oven in the store Saturday night.

    • The president and CEO of New Brunswick-based Covered Bridge Potato Chips is taking an 'extended leave of absence' after being charged with domestic violence this past weekend.

    • The Nova Scotia government says it plans to reduce the province's harmonized sales tax (HST) rate by one percentage point next year.

    • A search has started at Prairie Green Landfill for the remains of two victims of a serial killer.

    • A 59-year-old man has died following a crash involving three vehicles that started after a tire fell off a car on the Trans-Canada Highway Wednesday morning in the RM of Tache.

    • Police are asking for the public's help finding a 27-year-old inmate who was mistakenly released from custody in Manitoba.

    • Regina police says officers will provide an update Thursday in its search for the suspect of a homicide that took place in the city during the summer of 2023.

    • Saskatchewan RCMP says it doesn't believe that a threat directed at Yorkton Regional High School is credible at this time.

    • Zackary Bellegarde, who faced multiple charges relating to the possession and distribution of child pornography, has pled guilty.

    • Detective Robert Hofstetter examined Erb’s home after her death and came to several conclusions based on the blood stains he found there.

    • Things could be looking up for Waterloo, Ont.-based company and former tech darling Sandvine, after being removed from the U.S. Department of Commerce Entity List earlier this week.

    • A former elementary school in downtown Cambridge has gotten a modern makeover.

    • Canada's discount airline is suspending operations to and from Saskatoon.

    • With the war in Ukraine still going on and Saskatchewan now home to hundreds of newcomers fleeing the attacks, there’s been a resurgence of a youth group here in Saskatoon.

    • Saskatoon Public Library workers are in a strike position following the rejection of a tentative agreement with the employer.

    • A Sudbury jury has found Felicity Altiman guilty of second-degree murder in the December 2020 stabbing death of a Sudbury man.

    • It only took minutes for North Bay pharmacist Brian Chute to be out $1,500 after fraudsters deceptively swapped his bank card with another.

    • Greater Sudbury has ended the employment of CAO Ed Archer, Mayor Paul Lefebvre announced suddenly Tuesday evening

    • A 27-year-old man is miraculously alive after his pickup went over Hawk Cliff near Port Stanley. Fire fighters estimate that from the top to bottom of the embankment is around 270 feet.

    • Police said the house is believed to be empty and abandoned and it's not known yet if the driver of the truck is injured.

    • Frustration over long wait times has spurred a doctor to create a new eating disorders clinic in London, Ont. ‘The Harbour’ is located inside Western University Research Park.

    • A haunted house in the Town of Innisfil is causing a real scare for some people a week before Halloween.

    • Barrie police conducted a search on Wednesday of the last place Autumn Shaganash was seen in hopes of giving her family some answers to her mysterious disappearance.

    • A 34-year-old motorcyclist has died following a collision in Barrie’s south end on Tuesday.

    • As hospitals elsewhere in Ontario reintroduce mask mandates due to rising respiratory illnesses, Windsor hospitals are taking a more measured approach.

    • Windsorites are speaking out regarding a recent social media trend that is terrorizing the city. Brandon Seguin was a victim of the TikTok door-knock challenge earlier this year, but didn’t know it. He and his wife were not home, but his 16-year-old daughter was with a two-year old sibling.

    • A man who fired at least 19 gunshots at an RCMP detachment in northern British Columbia, narrowly missing officers inside, has won a reduced prison sentence from the province's highest court, which ruled the sentencing judge failed to fully weigh the man's mental illness at the time.

    • An oil salvage operation is underway on the fragile wreckage of a U.S. army transport ship that sank almost 80 years ago off coastal British Columbia in a race to head off an eruption of thousands of litres of oil that a coast guard official says is "near imminent."

    • Green Party Leader Sonia Furstenau says the starting place to supporting whichever party comes to power in British Columbia is her party's platform.

    • Dave Lindsey began growing giant pumpkins to bring a bit of magic to his grandkids' Halloween.

    • A U.S. District Court judge in Montana has sentenced a 27-year-old man from Kelowna, B.C., to 18 months in prison for using fake names to buy guns with the aim of selling them in Canada.

    • Nearly two years after a man was stabbed to death in downtown Kelowna, RCMP have made an arrest in the case.

    • Following community feedback, times for WestJet flights between Medicine Hat and Calgary are changing.

    • A proposed coal mine — not tourism — is critical in revitalizing southwestern Alberta communities along the edge of the Rockies, a group in favour of a controversial project maintains.

    • Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says she's waiting for NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi to declare where he intends to run for office before she calls a byelection in Lethbridge.

    • The union representing the fire rangers with the Ministry of Natural Resources says money won’t fix the systemic problems in the workplace.

    • Rallies by a group called Voices Against Violence took place across the country on Monday, including Sault Ste. Marie.

    • An Indigenous group in northwestern Ontario shut down the highway for a couple of hours Monday morning in protest after ancestral remains were found at a construction site.

    N.L.

    Local Spotlight

    He is a familiar face to residents of a neighbourhood just west of Roncesvalles Avenue.

    A meteor lit up our region's sky last night – with a large fireball shooting across the horizon over Lake Erie at around 7:00 p.m.

    Residents of Ottawa's Rideauview neighbourhood say an aggressive wild turkey has become a problem.

    A man who lost his life while trying to rescue people from floodwaters, and a 13-year-old boy who saved his family from a dog attack, are among the Nova Scotians who received a medal for bravery Tuesday.

    A newly minted Winnipegger is hoping a world record attempt will help bring awareness for the need for more pump track facilities in the city.

    A Springfield, Ont. man is being hailed a 'hero' after running into his burning home to save his two infant children.

    Hortense Anglin was the oldest graduate to make her way across the platform at York University's Fall Convocation ceremony this week. At the age of 87, she graduated with an Honours degree in Religious Studies.

    Looking for a scare with good intentions this Halloween season? The ghosts and ghouls of Eganville, Ont. invite families to tour the Haunted Walk at Lekbor Manor.

    The image of a sleepy Saskatchewan small town with 'not a lot going on' is a well-known anecdote. However, one Saskatchewan company is hoping to change that – and allow communities both on and off the beaten path to share their stories and advertise what they have to offer.

    Politics

    Health

    Sci-Tech

    • A meteor lit up our region's sky last night – with a large fireball shooting across the horizon over Lake Erie at around 7:00 p.m.

    • The estimated population of North Atlantic right whales increased in 2023, but a group of international marine scientists say human behaviour still poses a significant threat to the critically endangered species.

    Entertainment

    Business

    Lifestyle

    Sports

    Autos

    Shopping Trends

    The Shopping Trends team is independent of the journalists at Â鶹ӰÊÓ. We may earn a commission when you use our links to shop. Read about us.

    Stay Connected
    Follow Â鶹ӰÊÓ