GeekWire: City of Seattle increasing in-office work to three days for more than 13,000 employees

This article was originally published by GeekWire on Aug. 5, 2024.

By Kurt Schlosser

The City of Seattle announced Monday that it will increase the required number of days for in-office work for executive branch employees from two days to three starting this fall. The move will impact more than 13,000 workers.

Joining Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell’s call to bring employees back more days of the week, regional public and private employers such as King County and Sound Transit also announced plans to adjust in-person policies.

“As a city and an employer, we strive to provide the best services to our residents, to build a great office culture for our employees, and to learn the best lessons from the pandemic and modern organizational behavior — and that includes recognizing the benefits of in-person teamwork,” Harrell said in a news release.

The City of Seattle was one of the first regional employers to bring employees back to the office, at least two days per week, in 2022. More than 65% of city employees were already reporting to worksites throughout the pandemic to perform non-remote, essential functions.

The city government has nearly 14,000 total employees and approximately 13,300 of them work for executive branch departments and offices.

The move could boost activity in downtown Seattle, which has struggled to rebound fully from the pandemic, especially relative to other U.S. cities.

“We’re trying to do everything possible to get ourselves back to normalcy,” Harrell said last week at an event for Seattle’s AI2 Incubator, which is opening a new AI event space downtown.

But mandates for in-office work aren’t always well received by the employees they impact, who have become accustomed to new work-life balance, reduced commute times and more. Amazon, which set a 3-days-per-week mandate in May 2023, has felt pushback from employees, including more than 30,000 in an internal “Remote Advocacy” Slack channel where workers air their grievances.

Amazon cheered the move Monday by Harrell and others.

“As members of the Puget Sound community, it’s encouraging to see this positive step from the City of Seattle and King County,” said Shannon Loew, vice president of global real estate and facilities at Amazon. “I’ve experienced firsthand the collaboration and innovation that can happen when our teams work together in person. We look forward to seeing more people downtown to support local small businesses and help our public spaces and parks feel even more vibrant.”

Harrell said the city’s two-day in-person hybrid policy has already led to “improved collaboration, a strengthened ability to foster conversations and explore new ideas, enhanced community and relationship building, and a real commitment to mentorship and employee growth.”

The shift to three days will start Nov. 4.

Karen Estevenin is executive director of PROTEC17, a union that represents more than 3,300 City of Seattle workers.

“We firmly believe that increasing in-office minimums has a disproportionate and negative impact on working families — particularly for women and people of color with dependent care responsibilities,” Estevenin said in a statement emailed to GeekWire. “We continue to have conversations with the City about the impacts of these changes to our members and their families, and are hopeful that together we can be more forward thinking about the future of work.”

King County also plans a shift to at least three days a week, beginning with executive branch department directors in November. Each department director will develop a plan by January 2025 for an increased on-site schedule and strategy for hybrid workers.

Goran Sparrman, Interim CEO of Sound Transit, also announced that that agency will shift to a culture that prioritizes in-person work. He said, “Sound Transit is ready to provide the mobility backbone that supports downtown Seattle reaching its full potential.”

Getting more workers downtown has been a priority for the past couple years as Harrell and others have encouraged larger employers such as Amazon to put necessary return-to-office mandates in place. Amazon, which employs 50,000 corporate and tech workers in Seattle, has seen increased activity around its headquarters campus, mainly Tuesday through Thursday, and businesses around the company’s buildings are feeling the positive effects.

The Downtown Seattle Association has said previously that the number of workers returning downtown could be helped by a commitment from public sector employers, where DSA said there has been a “significant lag” in return to office.

DSA President and CEO Jon Scholes called the move Monday by Harrell “good for the city, the public and for downtown.”

“Data we’re tracking shows that more employers are making similar decisions and the back to the office momentum continues,” Scholes added.

In the latest update to its “Revitalization Dashboard,” DSA said there were more than 93,000 average daily workers in June — the highest average since the start of the pandemic. But foot traffic is still about 36% below pre-pandemic levels from 2020.

Rachel Smith, president and CEO of the Seattle Metro Chamber, also praised in-person work and the city’s announcement.

“Humans are an essential element of vibrant downtowns — something that is a priority for us and Mayor Harrell,” Smith said. “Today’s announcement is a good move for City of Seattle employees and residents alike.”

The Chamber said the number of downtown businesses with employees in the office at least two or more days a week is up 13 points from a spring 2023 survey.

Seattle City Council President Sara Nelson said during DSA’s “State of Downtown” event in March, when she was working on increasing the number of days in office for the Legislative Department, that “the vibe is totally different” and people can be more productive in person.

“Even if we never get back to the levels before the pandemic, that doesn’t mean we don’t keep trying and we have to build those numbers up,” Nelson said at the time.

At last week’s AI2 Incubator event, Markham McIntyre, director of Seattle’s Office of Economic Development, called an AI hub a way to bring more people downtown.

“The best economic development play we can make is to get downtown humming again,” McIntyre added.

Last month in Philadelphia, the mayor ordered all 26,000 city employees back to the office, five days a week, and employee unions argued that such a dramatic change in work arrangements must be negotiated. NPR reported about city workers citing personal health struggles and family caregiving responsibilities that make working on-site untenable. At a city council hearing, workers testified about how hybrid work has allowed them to serve the city while also serving their families, taking children to medical appointments and being present for elders.