Walz Orders State Workers Back To Office Half-Time, Unions Outraged

ST. PAUL, MN — Gov. Tim Walz on Tuesday ordered state employees to work in person for at least 50 percent of their scheduled workdays beginning June 1. Unions affected by the decision have already signaled they plan to fight the move.

According to Walz's office, around 60 percent of state employees already work in person and did so throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

"This approach balances the flexibility of telework with the workplace advantages of being in office," Walz said. "Having more state employees in the office means that collaboration can happen more quickly and state agencies can build strong organizational cultures more easily."

The new policy includes an exemption for employees who live more than 75 miles from their primary work location, which Walz said allows the state to continue attracting top talent from all corners of Minnesota.

The shift is also aimed at boosting the economic health of office districts like downtown St. Paul by bringing more foot traffic to local businesses and public spaces. Officials noted that many major Minnesota employers have also begun requiring in-person workdays.

At least two public employee unions quickly condemned the move.

AFSCME Council 5 Executive Director Bart Andersen said, "The [Walz] Administration’s decision to impose sweeping workplace policy changes without engaging our union and labor partners first is not just unacceptable—it’s an act of blatant disrespect."

"I am appalled and disgusted to see Governor Walz attempting to claw back telework agreements under the guise of ‘organic collaboration’ and ‘stewardship of office space," Minnesota Association of Professional Employees (MAPE) President Megan Dayton said.

"Let’s call this what it really is: This is a unilateral move by a bad boss without consultation or consideration of the very staff he claims to care deeply about investing in."

Dayton continued: "I never thought the same public worker attacks and micromanaging mannerisms of our federal administration would be mirrored in Minnesota. For administrators to unleash this kind of chaos on hard working employees when we’re about to start negotiating our next contract feels, at best, hypocritical, at mid, a strategic effort to erode the progress we’ve made to enhance our working conditions and productivity, and at worst, a short-sighted attempt at engineered attrition."

No specific legal action from either union was announced. But the new policy announced Tuesday sets the stage for a tense showdown between the typically union-friendly Walz and state labor leaders.