California Governor Newsom’s order for state government employees to return to the office full-time went into effect on July 1st, affecting approximately 108,000 full-time public servants who had been working remotely for the past 6 years. The employees are now required to be back in the office at least four days a week after their extended period of telecommuting.
Facing face-to-face work can make us collectively stronger – there is no doubt about it. Governor Newsom stated in a press release that working together improves collaboration, fosters innovation, and enhances a sense of responsibility. This move is aimed at enhancing government services and problem-solving abilities to deliver better results for the people of California. All agencies and departments under Newsom’s administration are mandated to update their hybrid telework policies, although individual employees can apply for exceptions based on their circumstances.
Despite strong opposition from labor unions and legal actions taken, the policy was implemented as scheduled. According to the Governor’s office data, California has approximately 224,000 full-time employees, with over half of them already working in the office daily, including law enforcement officers, healthcare workers, maintenance staff, and security inspectors. California became the first state in the U.S. to issue a stay-at-home order in response to the COVID-19 pandemic on March 19, 2020. Since then, remote work has gradually become a prevalent work model adopted by both public and private sectors nationwide.
SEIU Local 1000, the largest union representing around 100,000 state government employees in California, has been consistently against the return-to-office directive. They filed a complaint of unfair labor practices with the State Public Employment Relations Board on June 24, alleging that the government did not provide the union with negotiation opportunities before implementing the new policy.
On July 1st, union members staged a rally at the California State Capitol building in Sacramento to protest the formal implementation of the return-to-office policy. Earlier, on June 20th, the union sued Newsom and the California Department of Human Resources, questioning the legality of the directive and demanding that the state court rule on the government’s violation of administrative procedures.
SEIU Local 1000 Chair Anica Walls stated that state government employees successfully transitioned to remote work during the pandemic, saving taxpayer money, reducing pollution, and improving the quality of public services. She criticized the Governor’s unilateral action to overturn these achievements behind closed doors.
The union highlighted that the shift to remote work by the state government resulted in savings of around $700 million. Additionally, this month, another lawsuit filed by the California State Attorneys, Administrative Law Judges, and Hearing Officers in the Public Employment Relations Board sought to block the enforcement of the return-to-office order, citing violations of California environmental quality regulations. However, a judge in Oakland rejected their request.