Working from home has allowed Sarah Dinsmore to keep doing a job she loves.
The mum of one said she wouldn't be able to continue the meaningful work she does if she didn't have flexible work options.
"I'd be able to do my current role if I couldn't work from home at all, but to be honest, I'd probably consider going part-time and doing some shorter days," she said.
"I'd find it really hard juggling everything with family and work while my child's still so young."
Flexible working supporting women
Canberra public servants say the benefits of working from home are being undervalued as calls to return to central offices increase.
Local businesses and property owners have raised concerns around the economic future of Canberra's business districts if people continue to work from home.
But Ms Dinsmore believed the APS would be "locking out" a number of people if workers had to return to the office.
"I know colleagues like me who'd probably think about cutting back their hours or thinking about whether it was really the right place to work," she said.
"We'd probably be affecting the diversity of people who are working in the public service if we [had to go back to the office] instead of really reflecting the rest of the community."
Rebecca Fawcett from the Commonwealth Public Service Union said forcing people back into the office disproportionally impacts women.
She said enforcing office-based work would be a "step backwards".
"Employers that aren't supporting the workforce participation of women and people with a disability are missing out on the skills and experience of those workers," she said.
"Those employers will struggle to attract and retain the best employees, and they'll struggle to address gender equity and the gender pay gap."
Addressing gender equity
More than 55 per cent of APS employees have worked away from the office or from home, according to the 2023 census.
Allowing women the opportunity to manage their own work schedules and balance other responsibilities opens doors, Ms Fawcett said.
"A mum who needs to care for kids ... may have previously worked part-time to manage those demands. Now she may be able to work longer hours or full-time hours or be able to do higher level positions because the role can be structured around those other home and children demands that come up," she said.
In the last round of bargaining, APS workers were granted the right to work from home, with no limit on the number of days.
And according to Minister for Women Katy Gallagher, flexible working conditions are a key benefit for people choosing to work in the APS.
She said women shouldn't have to choose between their career and starting a family.
"The public sector has a higher proportion of employees - including women - working full-time, due to the normalisation of flexible working arrangements," she said.
"The Workplace Gender Equality Agency's most recent public sector scorecard shows that the public sector has achieved gender balance in every level of management and experience a considerably lower pay gap than in the private sector."
