Mayor Daniel Lurie’s return-to-office directive will be delayed until August after a deal was struck Monday between two major unions and city officials that allows for more flexibility for workers.
The International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers Local 21 and Service Employees International Union Local 1021, which collectively represent some 24,000 workers, said their members will be subject to the mayor’s order starting Aug. 18. The employees include engineers, healthcare, and clerical workers.
The mayor had originally called for city employees to return to their workplaces four days a week starting April 28 in an effort to enhance city services and close the chapter on widespread work-from-home practices that remain popular among San Francisco’s private-sector workforce. The effort is part of Lurie’s goal to revitalize San Francisco’s economy, especially its beleaguered downtown core.
The mayor’s announcement in February noted that about a third of the city’s 30,000-plus employees were working in person fewer than four days a week. The order mentioned that employees could be granted accommodations for family-related situations.
In an email sent to members on Monday, Local 21 said it had approached city leaders with a “number of critical questions” about the return-to-office directive.
Meet the SF100
The Standard’s highly subjective, surely divisive list of who holds power, influence, and attention in San Francisco in 2025
Departments that have limited physical workspaces have the ability to further delay implementation, according to the agreement.
Employees with special schedules will be able to work from home one day per week. Regularly scheduled employees with caregiver responsibilities can petition for additional work-from-home privileges, and a denied request can be filed with the city’s human resources department.
“In a nutshell, the city just dropped us on this out of the blue,” said SEIU Local 1021 President Theresa Rutherford, whose union represents mostly healthcare workers. “Without any preparation.”
Jennifer Esteen, a nurse and SEIU Local 1021 vice president of organizing, said the city is unprepared to accommodate the return-to-work directive because of limitations in office space.
“If every worker came back to every office space, we would be sitting workers on street corners,” she said. “People would have no desk to sit at.”
A spokesperson for the mayor’s office did not respond to a request for comment. The human resources department declined to comment.
This is a developing story and will be updated.