California state officials are fighting Newsom’s mandate to return to office

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Gov. Gavin Newsom’s mandate that state employees return to the office four days a week is back in effect, and many state employees are scrambling to stop it with little time.

Dozens of them appeared at a Senate hearing Wednesday to support a bill that would strengthen telecommuting standards for government agencies and — they hope — lead to more flexibility than Newsom would allow.

Senate Committee on Labor, Public Employment and Retirement advanced with the proposal by a 4-1 vote. The measure itself will not suspend the governor’s July 1 term, which Newsom says will increase accountability, revitalize downtown Sacramento and improve government services.

Instead, the bill would allow agencies to shape their own policies. Citing a State Audit for 2024Assemblyman Alex Lee, the bill’s author, said allowing state employees to telecommute would save the state money, reduce pollution and boost employee productivity and morale.

• LeeMilpitas Democrat: “As we fight the affordability crisis, we want to make sure our downtowns and urban centers are not places where workers should be, but where workers i want to be. … It’s not fair to shackle our employees to the office to be the whole backbone of the center.”

Lee’s proposal would also require agencies to provide a written justification if employees must work in the office, and the state Department of General Services would have to create a dashboard to show the cost-effectiveness and other benefits of the state’s telecommuting programs.

Like many employers, California state government has embraced remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic. Starting in 2024, Newsom calls for public employees to return to the office, initially requiring two days off the work week, then increasing it to four. Although a four-day term was supposed to begin last year, Newsom postpone the policy for some government worker unions during labor negotiations as a way to reduce wage costs.

State worker unions — except for those representing public safety employees — support Lee’s measure. They include the state’s largest, SEIU Local 1000, which is in contract negotiations with Newsom. He has given at least $2 million to current California lawmakers, according to CalMatters Digital Democracy Database.

One state official from the California Department of Pesticide Regulation said at the hearing, “We’ve spent seven years and millions of dollars trying to go paperless. . . . I can do my job evaluating pesticides from the space station if I have to.”

More civil servant news: Health insurance plans for California public employees will not be required to extend coverage for GLP-1 weight loss drugs. Last week we told you about the legislation that would be in place required CalPERS to provide this benefit to its 1.3 million members. But this part of the bill was removed at a session of the National Assembly this week after the pension fund and health insurer said it would increase premiums and cost taxpayers about $187 million a year.