Democrat Governor Tony Evers has quashed a GOP-backed bill that would have ordered tens of thousands of state employees to work in-person most of the time.
The original bill would have mandated in-person work for affected employees 100 percent of the time. Republican lawmakers later amended it to require in-office attendance during at least 80 percent of someone’s working hours in a given month. For many employees, that would have amounted to four days of in-person work each week.
In his veto message Friday, Evers said he opposes a “one-size-fits-all” mandate that would come at “great cost to taxpayers.”
“Under my administration, state government is working smarter and faster than ever before,” Evers wrote. “State agencies already are implementing robust accountability measures to ensure all state workers are fulfilling their responsibilities to the people of this state.”
A 2023 audit found that most Wisconsin state offices allow some form of remote work, although policies vary by agency.
“Without basic oversight, it’s nearly impossible to measure effectiveness and productivity,” state Rep. Amanda Nedweski, R-Pleasant Prairie, said just before the proposal cleared Wisconsin’s Assembly in September. “What began as an emergency response has become a permanent work entitlement.”
As amended, the legislation included an exception for workers who were already allowed to work remotely before the COVID-19 pandemic struck in 2020. It also would have exempted employees of the State of Wisconsin Investment Board, which manages state retirement funds and other assets.
The goal of the legislation was ensuring accountability, sponsors said.