Daily Archives: October 28, 2019

A fourth federal government office building is being treated for bedbugs, and while Public Services and Procurement Canada says the problem remains low-level, one union says it has the potential to cause bigger trouble.

Workers at 22 Eddy St. in Gatineau were working from home Thursday.

From what Ive been told, its only on the eighth floor that they have found some (bedbugs), said Eddy Bourque of the Public Service Alliance of Canada.

But as weve seen with the workplace on Crmazie, they thought it was just one floor and when they did testing it was found on every single floor. So I think this is bringing awareness of the problem.

Google street view of 22 Eddy St.Postmedia

It seems like were seeing a trend here and I know in Montreal its the same thing.

The bugs can hitch a ride in a handbag or on someones clothing and travel to the employees home, he said. The union wants their employer to pay for cases where a workers home is contaminated after exposure at work.

Its a concern for the health and safety of the members.

PSPC wrote to say a small number of bugs were discovered at 22 Eddy on Tuesday, adding: Immediate action was taken that same evening and included specialized removal of affected office equipment, specialized inspection of work stations and common areas, steam cleaning of affected and adjacent work stations and installation of specialized traps. On October 25, the pest control company will proceed with treatment of the entire floor where the bed bugs were discovered. Employees of the affected workstations area have been asked by their employer, Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC), to work from home until the situation has been resolved. The pest control specialists have implemented measures that are allowing continued occupation of the rest of the building.

Three other government office buildings were recently affected by bedbugs:

350 King Edward Ave. Bugs were found, the area was sprayed, and PSPC says bugs have not been found recently.

70 Crmazie in Gatineau, where workers were recently sent home to allow for spraying and cleaning.

325 Queen St. on the seventh floor west. This has been a low-level infestation lasting from the summer of 2018 until recently, PSPC says. It says bugs continued to show up in traps in a small area, one or two at a time, but they have not been seen in recent checks.

Bedbugs are good at hiding in carpets, upholstery and dark corners. They come out at night and bite people as they sleep. The bites do not cause disease but can become itchy or sore. Extreme cases can cause significant blood loss.

Ottawa Public Health has extensive information on bedbugs online.

tspears@postmedia.com

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Fourth federal government office building treated for bedbugs - Ottawa Citizen