Canada's businesses appear to be having more success than their US counterparts in luring workers back to the office, but they're not happy that the Canadian government is "significantly lagging" in getting public-sector employees to return to government offices, according to an open letter sent this week to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's cabinet.

The letter, which was signed by 32 business associations, including the Canadian Chamber of Commerce and the Business Council of Canada, said the government—Canada's largest single employer—has set a poor example with a patchwork of RTO policies when it should be leading the effort.

"As businesses in these communities assess their long-term viability given the pandemic's damaging effect on downtown centers, restoring normal economic activity requires the federal government to act now," the letter said.