The mayor of Ottawa is urging the FBI to bring workers back to the center to rescue local businesses

OTTAWA – The mayor of the Canadian capital urges the federal government to send its workers back to their downtown offices to strengthen flaking local businesses.

Jim Watson says Ottawa has one of the highest COVID-19 vaccination rates in any major city in the country and that it is safe for workers to return.

He has appealed directly to CFO President Mona Fortier to bring employees to the center so they can go back to buy lunch, pay for dry cleaning and otherwise spend in local businesses.

The Canadian Federation of Independent Business claims that Ottawa has been hit particularly hard compared to other city centers that have been starved by customers since the beginning of the pandemic.

The CFIB says customers in Ottawa disappeared, a massive anti-government protest in the city center forced businesses to close for weeks, and the federal government has been slower than others to bring its employees back to the office.

Fortier was not immediately available for comment.

This report from The Canadian Press was first published on March 22, 2022.