The Abridged version:
- Gov. Gavin Newsom drew a hard line on requirements for state employees to work from their offices at least four days a week starting July 1.
- The governor said there is no room for negotiations. The state’s largest public sector union earlier this week accused him of unfair bargaining practices.
- Newsom originally ordered the four-day return last year but later backtracked during labor negotiations.
Gov. Gavin Newsom said Thursday he will follow through on a long-anticipated return to office mandate for state workers, taking a firm stance on a workplace issue hashed out between the state and unions for years.
“While I’m empathetic to change, we’ve been previewing this for years now and we want to get it done,” Newsom told reporters while unveiling his revised budget proposal.
When asked if the move to send state works back to offices was the starting point for negotiations with state workers’ unions, Newsom said, repeatedly, “No.”
“I want to get it done,” he said.
Four days a week by July 1
Newsom and Sacramento city leaders have long pushed for state workers to return to work in person, rolling back remote-work conditions tied to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Earlier this week, the governor outlined requirements for employees to work from their offices four days a week starting July 1, The Sacramento Bee reported.
The benefits of being primarily in person, Newsom said, include building a sense of team and community.
“It would be nice to see you again,” he said of state workers. “Nice to run into you in the hall. Nice to develop a relationship.”
At a cost to workers
Service Employees International Union Local 1000, California’s largest public sector union, accused the governor and state of not bargaining in good faith by imposing this latest directive.
The union also claimed it was not notified by the state and had no opportunity to negotiate, according to a filing with the Public Employment Relations Board.
Contracts between the state and SEIU are set to expire this summer.
Local union leaders and members have advocated for more flexible telework conditions, amid rising costs of parking, transportation and childcare.
Lawmaker ‘disappointed’ by governor’s stance
Assemblymember Josh Hoover, R-Folsom, said he was very disappointed to hear the governor doubling down.
“We have an opportunity to take strain off the state budget and save taxpayer dollars by embracing remote work where it makes sense,” Hoover said.
A state audit report last year estimated California could cut back on owned or leased office space and save up to $225 million if workers are remote at least three days a week.
Hoover is co-author of Assembly Bill 1729, bipartisan legislation that would require agencies to have a standing telework plan for employees. He told Abridged the Legislature is prepared to work with Newsom on a “reasonable compromise.”
Punted from last year
Newsom, in an executive order last March, had called for employees to work at least four days a week in office.
“In-person work makes us all stronger — period,” the governor said at the time.
But he backtracked on the directive months later during negotiations with labor unions. Newsom agreed to postpone the mandate by a year in exchange for workers accepting more modest compensation, effectively swapping smaller raises for the right to continue working remotely.
SEIU Local 1000 did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Newsom’s most recent update on negotiations.
Savannah Kuchar is a reporter covering education. She came to Sacramento to be a part of the Abridged team and contribute to a crucial local news source.
This story was updated at 4:50 p.m. May 14, 2026, to add information about a state auditor’s report and comment from Assemblymember Josh Hoover, R-Folsom.