Port Townsend City Hall

Leader photo by Brian Kelly

The city of Port Townsend is trying a new strategy for worker retention and attracting prospective employees by adopting a telecommuting policy for city staff.

Unanimously approved by the Port Townsend City Council in its Jan. 17 business meeting, the resolution will give managers and employees the option of telecommuting — or working remotely from home — starting on a trial basis for three months.

“When COVID happened, we learned how to telecommute and I think a lot of folks in all industries did as well. We all learned about the viability of working from home,” City Attorney Heidi Greenwood said of the policy change.

“This telework policy is an attempt to use those lessons that we learned and to try and bring in those greater efficiencies,” she added.

TEST PERIOD

Before remote work arrangements are made permanent, employees and their supervisors must complete a three-month trial period, which lets either party request for the arrangement to be discontinued at any time during the trial.

City officials said telecommuting may allow a more effective use of workspace, improve productivity for certain jobs/employees, and aid in reducing stress on employees.

“I appreciate the robustness of this because I think it really protects both the employer and the employee,” Councilmember Libby Wennstrom said.

“I think we’re sort of forward thinking and I think that’s going to be an appeal to some people, particularly potential employees who may be in a period of transition where a partner is still working elsewhere and they’re trying to juggle [that],” she said. “This may be a real attraction and retention kind of thing of having this codified.”

CITY NEEDS COME FIRST

When a city employee requests to telecommute, the city will consider the request by looking at the needs of the position, department, and city; the employee’s past and present levels of performance, including dependability, self-initiative, self-sufficiency, and the ability to work unsupervised; whether the staff member’s department will be adequately staffed to meet minimum customer service demands; whether the employee can participate in remote meetings and communications during work hours; and whether the performance of the staff member’s duties is dependent upon the location of their workplace, according to city documents.

As the post-COVID workplace continues to evolve, the city hopes the policy change will provide more flexibility for current and potential staff members.

“It’s quite a changing environment as we all know, and we’re trying to stay competitive, stay local, stay operating the services that our residents demand and deserve … we’re trying to figure it out,” City Manager John Mauro said.

The number of people primarily working from home tripled between 2019 and 2021, according to the United States Census Bureau, with hybrid and fully-remote jobs likely to remain an option for employees for years to come.

“I have seen and heard so much pushback against businesses that won’t allow these sorts of policies. It basically writes off so many potential applicants for these positions,” said Councilmember Amy Howard. “We’ve already lost people because we weren’t able to do this so I am really excited to see it formalized.”

SOME TO STAY AT WORK

Not all city employees will be eligible for telecommuting, considering the in-person needs for Public Works Department officials and other departments that handle emergencies. Other factors barring workers from telecommuting are having job duties that are required to be performed at city facilities and employees who have received disciplinary action from an employment investigation.

Generally, most staff members will still be required to attend work in person at least two days a week, according to the city.

“I think we need to — as the world changes around us — also give some flexibility to try out things to see if they actually fit us,” Mauro said. “And if they don’t, to allow a dignified backing up and saying, ‘You know what, let’s try something different.’”