Long-shuttered offices are starting to reopen across Canada after two long years of work-from-home mandates that have changed not only how millions of people do their jobs, but where they live, how they spend and what they expect from employers moving forward.

Experts have been discussing what the future of work in a post-COVID world might look like since the pandemic first hit back in March of 2020, many of them eventually coming to champion what's been dubbed a "hybrid approach" where employees spend part of their time at a physical office and the other part working remotely.

With pretty much all remaining capacity limits, vaccine passport requirements and other lockdown restrictions set to lift in Ontario next Tuesday, Toronto employers are under more pressure than ever to lay out concrete return-to-office plans, whether they plan to stay completely remote, want workers back full-time or some kind of combination.

Those looking to attract and retain talent may want to consider the latter, if they haven't yet: The results of a nationwide Angus Reid survey published this past summer showed that only a very small fraction of Ontarians (six per cent) actually want to return to the office every single day in the future.

Roughly 29 per cent of the same group said they want to keep on working from home full-time forever, but the vast majority of local respondents — 65 per cent — said they would prefer a hybrid model where they split time between their home offices and places of employment.

Fortunately for job seekers, some local companies have already announced or implemented hybrid work policies — with varying degrees of success.  

You can find the best among them on a new list of "Canada's Best Workplaces for Hybrid Work" from Microsoft and Great Place to Work Canada, which bills itself as the "global authority on workplace culture."

"We determined the best based on employee responses to the Hybrid Work Readiness Index survey statements, as well as the organization's workplace programs and practices that support and enable hybrid work, as assessed in the Hybrid Questionnaire," reads an intro to the 2022 hybrid workplace list.

"The organizations on this list champion the employee experience and use it as a driving force for their hybrid environments."

A total of 100 different Canadian companies appear in the roundup, 45 of them based in the City of Toronto.

Ontario is also well-represented — incredibly so — with 72 entries including from cities like Waterloo, Cambridge and GTA locales such as Mississauga, which has 12 entries on the list, Markham, Whitby, Brampton and Vaughan.

Montreal and Vancouver contributed seven and eight employers to the list, respectively.

Among the top employers in Toronto for hybrid work were in the sectors of information technology, financial services, professional services, health care, manufacturing and, in the case of The Nature Conservatory of Canada and Zynga, "other."

You can find all 100 companies listed below and learn more about them on the Great Place to Work website.

1. 360insights, Information Technology – Whitby, Ontario
2. 7shifts Inc., Information Technology – Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
3. Achievers, Information Technology – Toronto, Ontario
4. Ada Support, Information Technology- Toronto, Ontario
5. Admiral Insurance, Financial Services & Insurance – Halifax, Nova Scotia
6. AIR MILES, Professional Services – Toronto, Ontario
7. Alida, Information Technology – Toronto, Ontario
8. Appnovation Technologies Inc., Information Technology – Vancouver, British Columbia
9. Ashfield Healthcare Canada, Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals – Pointe-Claire, Quebec
10. Astellas Pharma Canada, Inc., Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals – Markham, Ontario
11. ATB Financial, Financial Services & Insurance – Edmonton, Alberta
12. Aviso Wealth, Financial Services & Insurance – Toronto, Ontario
13. Axonify, Information Technology – Waterloo, Ontario
14. Bath Fitter, Retail – Saint-eustache, Quebec
15. Baxter Canada, Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals- Mississauga, Ontario
16. Behaviour Interactive, Entertainment – Montreal, Quebec
17. Biogen Canada Inc., Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals – Toronto, Ontario
18. BlueCat, Information Technology – North York, Ontario
19. Bond Brand Loyalty, Professional Services – Mississauga, Ontario
20. Borrowell, Information Technology – Toronto, Ontario
21. Bounteous, Professional Services – Toronto, Ontario
22. Broadridge Financial Solutions, Financial Services & Insurance – Toronto, Ontario
23. Centurion Asset Management Inc., Real Estate – Toronto, Ontario
24. CI Financial Corp., Financial Services & Insurance – Toronto, Ontario
25. Cisco Systems Canada Co, Information Technology – Toronto, Ontario
26. Clark Wilson LLP, Professional Services – Vancouver, British Columbia
27. COBS Bread, Retail – Vancouver, British Columbia
28. Compass Group Canada, Hospitality – Mississauga, Ontario
29. CWB Financial Group, Financial Services & Insurance – Edmonton, Alberta
30. Dejero, Information Technology – Waterloo, Ontario
31. Doctors of BC, Professional Services- Vancouver, British Columbia
32. Dow, Manufacturing & Production- Calgary, Alberta
33. Equitable Bank, Financial Services & Insurance – Toronto, Ontario
34. FedEx Express Canada, Transportation- Mississauga, Ontario
35. goeasy Ltd, Financial Services & Insurance – Mississauga, Ontario
36. Grant Thornton LLP, Professional Services – Toronto, Ontario
37. Haventree Bank, Financial Services & Insurance – Toronto, Ontario
38. HI-FLYER FOOD (CANADA), INC, Hospitality- Calgary, Alberta
39. Hilti Canada Corporation, Construction – Mississauga, Ontario
40. Home Trust Company, Financial Services & Insurance- Toronto, Ontario
41. HomeStars Inc., Information Technology – Toronto, Ontario
42. HRdownloads, Professional Services – London, Ontario
43. IMCD Canada Limited, Other – Brampton, Ontario
44. Impres Inc., Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals – Cambridge, Ontario
45. Infosys Canada, Information Technology – Mississauga, Ontario
46. Introhive, Information Technology – Fredericton, New Brunswick
47. Intuit Canada, Information Technology – Toronto, Ontario
48. Jobber, Information Technology – Edmonton, Alberta
49. Klick Health, Professional Services – Toronto, Ontario
50. Knowledge First Financial, Financial Services & Insurance – Mississauga, Ontario
51. Lamour Group, Manufacturing & Production – Montreal, Quebec
52. LMI Technologies Inc., Manufacturing & Production – Burnaby, British Columbia
53. Match MG Canada Inc., Retail – Mississauga, Ontario
54. Medchart, Health Care- Toronto, Ontario
55. MediaCom, Professional Services – Toronto, Ontario
56. Medtronic Canada ULC, Health Care – Brampton, Ontario
57. Mister Safety Shoes Inc., Retail – North York, Ontario
58. Mondelez International, Manufacturing & Production – Toronto, Ontario
59. NewAge Products Inc., Other – Vaughan, Ontario
60. Northern Commerce, Professional Services – London, Ontario
61. Novartis Canada, Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals – Dorval, Quebec
62. Nulogy Corporation, Information Technology – Toronto, Ontario
63. O2E Brands, Professional Services – Vancouver, British Columbia
64. Online Business Systems, Information Technology – Winnipeg, Manitoba
65. Optimus SBR, Professional Services – Toronto, Ontario
66. PartnerStack, Information Technology – Toronto, Ontario
67. Petal, Information Technology – Quebec City, Quebec
68. Points.com Ltd, Information Technology – Toronto, Ontario
69. Proof Strategies Inc., Professional Services – Toronto, Ontario
70. Q4 Inc, Information Technology – Toronto, Ontario
71. Raymond James Ltd., Financial Services & Insurance – Vancouver, British Columbia
72. RBC, Financial Services & Insurance – Toronto, Ontario
73. Recipe Unlimited Corporation, Hospitality – Vaughan, Ontario
74. Rexall Pharmacy Group Ltd. Retail- Mississauga, Ontario
75. Richardson Wealth, Financial Services & Insurance, Toronto, Ontario
76. Ryan ULC, Professional Services -Mississauga, Ontario
77. Salesforce, Information Technology – Toronto, Ontario
78. SAP Canada, Information Technology – Toronto, Ontario
79. Scotiabank, Financial Services & Insurance – Toronto, Ontario
80. Service Corporation International (Canada) ULC, Professional Services – Vancouver, British Columbia
81. Siemens Healthineers, Health Care – Oakville, Ontario
82. Softchoice, Information Technology – Toronto, Ontario
83. Solutions Beyond Technologies, Information Technology – Montreal, Quebec
84. Southwire Canada, Industrial Services – Mississauga, Ontario
85. Stryker Canada ULC, Health Care – Waterdown, Ontario
86. Sun Life, Financial Services & Insurance – Toronto, Ontario
87. Swiss Reinsurance Company Ltd, Canadian Branch – Financial Services & Insurance, Toronto, Ontario
88. THE ALDO GROUP INC., Retail- Montreal, Quebec
89. The Nature Conservancy of Canada, Other, Toronto, Ontario
90. The PEER Group Inc., Information Technology – Kitchener, Ontario
91. Thinkific, Information Technology – Vancouver, British Columbia
92. Thomson Reuters Canada Limited, Information Technology – Toronto, Ontario
93. Traction on Demand, Information Technology – Burnaby, British Columbia
94. Tulip, Information Technology – Kitchener, Ontario
95. Underwriters Laboratories of Canada Inc. (UL Canada), Professional Services – Toronto, Ontario
96. Vendasta, Information Technology – Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
97. Visa Canada, Information Technology – Toronto, Ontario
98. Wave Financial Inc., Information Technology -Toronto, Ontario
99. Wavemaker Canada ULC, Media – Toronto, Ontario
100. Zynga Game Canada Ltd, Other – Toronto, Ontario