The city of Philadelphia is putting an end to its COVID era remote work policy and requiring all full-time city employees to return to the office five days a week this summer.
Mayor Cherelle Parker announced on Monday that employees will begin working in-office again on July 15 to create a "more visible and accessible government." The decision comes after nearly three years of a virtual work policy that was put in place at the height of the pandemic.
"Employee presence at the workplace allows for more personal and productive interactions," Parker said in her announcement. "It facilitates communication. It promotes social connections as well as collaboration, innovation and inclusion."
About 80% of the city's 26,000 employees have been working fully in person since last year, according to Parker, while the others have spent between 31 and 75 hours per-pay-period on site.
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American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 2187, the union representing many of the city’s professional and supervisory employees, said the mayor's decision was unilaterally imposed rather than going through collective bargaining.
The group's president, David Wilson, said in a statement Monday that the policy would make the municipal worker shortage the city has suffered since the pandemic even worse. He also argued that the change beginning over the summer will likely complicate schedules for parents, as children are out of school.
"It has become clearer than ever that the mayor doesn't care for her city work force," Wilson said. "Her actions speak louder than words."
Parker said her administration does not believe the new policy requires collective bargaining.
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The mayor added that changes were made to be more worker-friendly, including extending paid parental leave from six weeks to eight weeks and designating the Friday after Thanksgiving as a holiday.
Officials also said there will be relaxed restrictions on the use of sick leave to care for family members.
Business leaders, meanwhile, praised the decision, which they believe will benefit workers and the vibrancy of Philadelphia’s downtown area of Center City.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
