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OTTAWA — Federal bureaucrats will be allowed to work from home if possible for the foreseeable future amidst the COVID-19 virus pandemic, the National Post has learned.

“Let me be crystal clear, we’ll be as flexible as humanly possible,” said Jean-Yves Duclos, president of the Treasury Board.

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The new directive from the Treasury Board Secretariat, which acts as the federal government’s employer, was to be issued on Friday to all federal departments.

Roughly 300,000 federal employees across Canada will be allowed to stay away from the office as long as their job allows it. Employees are encouraged to check with their managers to see how this new order applies to them.

For others whose presence at the workplace is vital to their job, such as some Parks Canada employees for example, new directives sent out Friday morning by the Chief Human Resources Officer ask to self-monitor closely for any symptoms of the virus.