The number of federal public servants working from home – including Reserve Bank, Treasury and other key department staff – has more than doubled since before the pandemic and nearly 40 per cent of 180,000 officials now work two to three days a week remotely, data show.

The shift is set to be locked in via a new sector-wide enterprise agreement that includes removing any caps on working from home. It puts the public service at odds with large white-collar employers in the private sector, such as the banks, which are seeking to get more workers back to the office.