Covid-19: NY Starts Returning State Workers To Their Offices

State employees in New York will be back to work in-person at the office to pre-pandemic levels beginning in September.

New York has lifted the bulk of its COVID-19 restrictions.
Photo Credit: *ny.gov*

New York State employees are set to return to work in-person full-time by September.
Photo Credit: *Wikimedia Commons*

06/26/2021 7:30 a.m.

The Governor's Office of Employee Relations issued a memo last week providing guidance for how to safely return the state’s executive agencies and authorities, which employ nearly 115,000 employees in New York.

According to the department, between Friday, July 2, and Tuesday, Sept. 7, employees will have to be back in person at the workplace for multiple days per pay period, with the intention of returning them full-time by the end of that stretch.

By Sept. 7, all state workers are expected to be reporting to their offices, with some exceptions.

“Now, with New York’s progress in vaccinations and nation-leading decline in new COVID-19 cases, it is time for agencies and authorities to re-engage their employees and plan for a return to normal operations by no later than (Sept.) 7, 2021,” the memo states.

The state will continue to follow the guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and anyone unvaccinated will be required to wear a mask and social distance. Vaccinated New Yorkers can return to work as they would pre-pandemic.

 “After July 2, 2021 agencies and authorities may resume their own specific telecommuting programs that existed before the COVID 19 public health emergency.

“If they didn't have a telecommuting program or it no longer meets their needs, they may adopt and use the statewide program while they work to develop their own specific program.”

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