Remote work may be billed as the future of work, but in Canada it’s in retreat. Statistics Canada (Stat Can) data shows 790,000 fewer remote workers since 2022, while 1.5 million more became daily commuters. Policymakers have driven the shift to prop up big-city downtowns—leaving households to pay the price in both time and money.
Canadian Remote Work In Retreat: 790k Fewer Flexible Workers
Canadian workers by usual place of work. In percentage points.
Source: Statistics Canada; Better Dwelling.
Canadian remote work fell sharply—not just as a share, but in terms of actual headcount. Just 17.4% of workers were remote in May 2025, down from 22.4% in 2022, including a 1.3 percentage point decline in the past year. The headcount fell from 4.48 million in 2022 to 3.69 million in 2025—790,000 fewer remote workers. The aggressive clawback of pandemic-era flexibility has cost workers millions of hours in commuting.
Canada Adds 1.5 Million Commuters Who Lose An Hour Each Day (More If They Take Transit)
Canada’s army of commuters only grew with the clawback. The share of workers who commute to work hit 77.6% in May, up 2.6 points since 2020. Over that period the headcount of commuters climbed 1.45 million to 16.44 million. About 3 in 4 workers now lose nearly an hour each day, averaging 53.4 minutes per day commuting. Public transit users spend nearly two-thirds longer, averaging 88.2 minutes round-trip—the equivalent of nearly a full night’s sleep over a 5-day work week.
Hybrid Work: Canadian Employers Embrace The Worst of Both Worlds
Work from home is out, but the hybrid model (some days in office) is gaining steam. Hybrid workers climbed from 2.6% to 5.1% between 2022 and 2025, rising from 520,000 to 1.08 million. Nearly doubling its share over three years makes it the fastest-growing segment, but at just 1 in 20 workers it’s far from a paradigm shift.
Instead, hybrid leaves workers with the worst of both worlds: a few days at home, but still tethered to pricey urban cores. And that’s by design.
Remote Work A Boon For Small Cities—Its Unwinding May Reverse It
The reversal of work from home is part of a broader push to revive pricey downtown cores. Remote work during the pandemic let people keep big-city wages while moving to less expensive regions. Small towns and households both benefited, with families keeping more disposable income and spending it locally.
But this left office towers vacant and surrounding streets with far less traffic. After pressure from business associations, policymakers moved to undo those shifts and bring activity back to big cities. In doing so, they risk reversing the gains small towns made—and creating a net loss for households, as more income is drained by housing and commuting costs.
Imagine being one of the people who elected a central banker to run the country and be surprised when he creates an asset bubble.
I don’t know if they can boost the psychological price level at this point but it’s clear they’re going to try.
Jim, your statement has no relevance with this article. The PM does not control big corporations and it’s the corporations who made the decision to bring people back to the office.
The corpos, under political pressure..
Multiple pressures create asset bubbles. It is always so easy to blame it on the policy makers and the government – but they try to fix something and the “fix” breaks something else. It’s called trying to keep voters happy – when really, someone always needs to take one for the team. Wages not keeping up with inflation caused a market for people to do what was unthinkable 25 years ago: rent out your home or a large part of it part-time for income: Air Bnb. Then the more capitalistic and greedy people started buying investment properties not to cater to the “regular” rental market – instead to the short term rental (traditional hotel/motel/bed and breakfast market). So now you have a rental market with a shortage and investors bidding up the prices of cheaper homes up edging out buyers who wanted to live in these homes and..??? So if central bankers raise interest rates, exactly “how” would that have solved all those problems? Technology, changing demographics, land shortages, not to mention anyone noticed the price of building supplies up over 25% in the last 5 years? Bought a can of paint lately? So in the end, blame who you want, but you better have a list, because if you don’t your missing 90% of the picture if you think this was caused by one entity. Oh yeah…record immigration over the last 10 years. Just thought to throw that in as well. See what I mean?
Developers must be behind this move so that they can fill their developments in the downtown core and avoid bankruptcies. Developers don’t believe in efficiencies, so let’s make the working economy poor.
You are 100% correct.
It doesnt make sense how a leftist government want to reduce gas emissions with a net 0 plan but actually leave policy in place to have working people continue to spend on gas and creating a congested city. Something is wrong with that mindset
LOL calling the current federal govt “Leftist” is hilarious. If they actually were, workers would have more flexibility than they currently have. Also just 2 days ago, Slug ford is trying to get people back. Most govts prioritize capital and CEOs, it’s never about doing what’s best for regular workers. Neoliberalism is the enemy of the common worker.
It’s also only because of Leftist policy we have any worker rights at all. You take all that for granted while cheering for the Slug fords of the world. Insane.
Jim, your statement has no relevance with this article. The PM does not control big corporations and it’s the corporations who made the decision to bring people back to the office.
I own a small drafting office and this article mirrors our long held belief: collaboration disappears when employees are isolated at home. Even with technology.
Further also important is the office arrangement and culture. I have always tried to provide a larger than necessary work space. Doing so affords a level of privacy for both isolated work and collaboration with out jeopardizing peoples natural shame of asking questions in a group environment.
We don’t care. No one forced you to open an office. No one forced you to pick the location you selected yourself. No one forced you to self-appoint as CEO.
It’s not my responsibility nor anyone else’s to prop up any downtown core. Ohhhhh a big office space, whoop di doo. That doesn’t solve a person’s traffic or commute problem, or childcare/eldercare, illness, etc. You don’t like remote work because you lose some control, and that drives people like you insane by not having 100% control of your workers 100% of the Working Day. Truly disgusting anti-labour mindset. Take some personal responsibility for your choices you made, as the Right loves to say.
^Noice
Two words: climate change.
It seems we as a society have decided that if we don’t talk about it and don’t address it it will cease to exist. Choosing the economy over the environment is the height of short sighted. We humans are cooked.
Medium rare or well done?