Transcript
SCOTT DETROW, HOST:
To Philadelphia now, where all city workers have been ordered to return to the office five days a week starting Monday. Thousands of workers are fighting the mandate and have sued the city. A Philadelphia judge heard arguments today on whether to delay the return. It is the latest flashpoint in an ongoing debate about how and where people work best. NPR's Andrea Hsu has more.
ANDREA HSU, BYLINE: It was just two months ago that Philadelphia's new mayor, Cherelle Parker, announced in a statement that all 26,000 city employees must report to work in person, full-time, starting July 15. And this week, she made clear she's not backing down.
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CHERELLE PARKER: I made a decision that I stand by firmly.
HSU: Unions representing roughly 3,000 municipal workers have sued the city, arguing that changes to work arrangements must be negotiated. The unions have asked for a delay. They worry parents can't find enough child care soon enough. And what's more, they say the city's buildings have some new residents that need to be evicted, like birds.
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BOBBY DAVIS: No one should have to come to work with birds flying all around.
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HSU: That was union representative Bobby Davis at the city council hearing last month. What's happening in Philadelphia is a microcosm of the heated debate over return-to-work policies that's ongoing across the country. While some employers have permanently settled into hybrid work, a growing number of others - banks on Wall Street, Boeing, UPS - want people on-site every day. In Philadelphia, Mayor Parker reminded her city of the public employees who have never had the option to be remote.
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PARKER: Our sanitation workers, our police officers, our firefighters, our correctional officers...
HSU: And many more. Increasingly, we're hearing this argument that workplaces will function better if everyone is in the same space, even those who've proven they can do their jobs well working from home. It's partly an equity issue. At that same city council hearing, Philadelphia's chief administrative officer, Camille Duchaussee, touched on this when she explained the return-to-office push.
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CAMILLE DUCHAUSSEE: Productivity in and of itself was not the driver for this decision.
HSU: The driver, she said, was a leadership philosophy.
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DUCHAUSSEE: We believe having our colleagues in person leads to better communication, leads to better mental health, leads to more equity, inclusion.
HSU: Whatever the judge's decision on the mandate, many city workers are already saying, if they're forced to abide by that philosophy, they'll look for a new job elsewhere.
Andrea Hsu, NPR News. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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