California state workers waiting for new coronavirus guidance after shelter-in-place orders
Gov. Gavin Newsom did not provide new coronavirus guidance for state workers during a press conference Tuesday evening, saying his administration is still working out details.
He plans to issue guidelines later Tuesday or Wednesday morning.
State workers in many offices are still required to report to work, even in the Bay Area and Sacramento County where local public officials have issued shelter-in-place directives Monday and Tuesday.
Newsom said at the news conference that his administration sent draft guidance out to agency leaders and that his cabinet secretary, Ana Matosantos, was reviewing their responses before issuing a final directive.
The administration is also in talks with union leaders, Newsom said.
On Sunday, Newsom said the guidance would be based on determinations of which workers are “essential” and which are “non-essential.”
“People have, let’s be candid, a different sense of what’s essential and what’s non-essential,” Newsom told reporters Tuesday.
He said he was looking to push more of the non-essential workforce to work from home.
He said many public employees are working under teleworking agreements now, based on previous guidance the administration sent to department leaders.
Department leaders and mid-level managers have interpreted the guidance differently, state workers have told The Sacramento Bee. Some departments have granted broad permission for remote work, while others have withheld it from most workers, state workers have said.
Newsom said the new directive would have “a little more acuity” and be “a little more top-down.”
Newsom has issued a statewide directive that workers over 65 should stay home as much as possible, yet not all departments have specified what workers over that age should do. Some workers over 65 and those who are at increased risk due to medical conditions have been told they must use all available leave time before being considered for administrative time off, according to emails from state executives obtained by The Bee.
This story was originally published March 17, 2020 at 6:18 PM.