By Jeremy Brown and Isabella Nyiri

Thousands of state workers in Sacramento remain angry about Gov. Gavin Newsom’s recent order that they return to the office for work. Newsom first announced the requirement back in March, stressing that all state employees under his jurisdiction must return to the office by July 1. That means teleworking employees will now move to an in-office, four-day-a-week schedule. 

About 95,000 of California’s 225,000 state employees worked from home or in a hybrid setup when the governor signed his order.

Newsom claimed that in-person work will provide better communication, collaboration, service and accountability for Californians, while also improving the public’s trust in state government.

He added that the order will also help businesses and communities come back to life after the pandemic. This has been a major concern for stores, restaurants and cafes in Downtown Sacramento for nearly four years.

In a recent statement to reporters in Modesto, Newsom explained, “I want to see these neighborhoods, these downtowns come back to life: These poor mom and pops, they’re out of business or barely holding on. They’re just desperate to see people back on the sidewalks. I’d like to see people walking the streets again.”

Broader critics of the governor say that the reason those small businesses are in such dire straits in the first place is partly because of his own stay-at-home orders and mandated closure policies during COVID were implemented.

Many state workers disagree about the supposed small business benefits of Newsom’s return-to-the-office order, arguing that the changes coming with it won’t bring stores and restaurants in the area any new traction.

“I think with all of the inflation, our employees, state employees do not make enough money to eat at these high-class restaurants and so, no, we’re not going to be spending our money Downtown, we’re going to be putting that money into gas, groceries, child care or parking,” said Anica Walls, SEIU Local 1000 Union President. 

Workers have also called into question the Governor’s idea that the order will increase collaboration.

“I’d love to hear the Governor’s evidence that collaboration is suffering under remote work,” said one state worker who declined to be named out of concern for retaliation. “The reality is modern technology has made it easier than ever for teams to work together seamlessly from anywhere.”

Another state worker – who didn’t want to be named for the same reason – observed, “My work routine has changed only for the positive. My kids will need to go to a before and after school program now because I simply can’t get to the office on time without it.”

But these are not the only issues state workers have with the order.

“We know the environment is better,” Walls said. “We know that you know that we’re emitting less of a carbon footprint. It’s a better work-life balance for us personally.”

In 2024, the state’s own telework dashboard showed that working from home had saved approximately 41.7 million gallons of gas and avoided about 371,000 metric tons of carbon emissions. However, the telework dashboard is now inaccessible.

Even workers who will not be greatly affected by the order have some issues with it.

Angie Woodward, who has worked for the state for 10 years, lives very close to her office along the I-80 business loop. But she still commiserates with her coworkers who do not.

“If I lived outside the city with a family, I wouldn’t want to switch back to driving to the office,” Woodward admitted. “And I don’t want to increase my chance of injury from cars entering/exiting the highway during rush hour.”

When businesses in the Midtown area were asked how they think their sales will be affected by the order, many declined to comment.

“The data that we are seeing really matches the qualitative experience that we’ve been seeing Downtown, which has been a healthier amount of activity through the daytime hours,” said Scott Ford, Deputy Director of the Downtown Sacramento Partnership. 

Downtown Sacramento, along with other pockets and neighborhoods picking up where they left off in 2020, are continuing to see a spike in traffic . 

“I would say the blueprint for healthy, vibrant, active places are places that spur innovation from a professional side,” Ford noted. 

According to 2023 census data, nearly 20% of the working population in the city of Sacramento works from home.

Despite the disagreement with the mandate, some workers think there is room for a compromise. 

“I absolutely think there’s room for a middle ground,” Walls acknowledged. “We have divisions and agencies that are saying our people are productive, we’ve been able to do a lot more.”