California union pushes work-from-home bill |
| The Professional Engineers in California Government, the union which represents more than 15,000 state engineers who mostly work for Caltrans and in environmental agencies, is advocating for legislation to make remote work a permanent option for state workers. Assemblymember Alex Lee, a Democrat from Milpitas, has introduced a bill that mandates state agencies to provide work-from-home options “to the fullest extent possible” and to justify any in-person requirements. Ted Toppin, executive director of the union, emphasized that the goal is to establish a state policy supporting flexible telework, which he says benefits both employees and taxpayers. The bill also aims to create a dashboard to track annual savings from remote work, which could amount to $225m annually, according to a state auditor's report. Toppin observed: “Saving money, protecting the environment, cutting traffic, recruiting and training staff. Those are shared goals of all Californians.” The report notes that the engineers union has a reputation for wins at the bargaining table. |
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