Portland State U. Employees Ordered to Return to Working on Campus
“it is important that we continue to work toward returning PSU to pre-pandemic levels of campus vibrancy”
How long ago was the pandemic? It’s amazing that these people are just being ordered to return now.
Oregon Live reports:
Portland State University employees must return to working on campus or nearby
Portland State University employees will soon have to return to working on campus or another university-designated spot in the Portland area, the university’s human resources department announced internally on June 4.
The new directive has extremely limited exceptions and goes into effect immediately for new hires. The approximately 130 current employees who live outside driving distance to Portland and as far away as the East Coast will have until September 2026 to begin working locally unless they qualify for an exemption, according to emails provided to The Oregonian/OregonLive. The 130 employees represent less than 4% of the university’s 3,300 non-student workers.
For at least some departments and employees, there will also be an expectation of in-office work. An email sent to Portland State’s research and graduate studies workers stated that the university is “working toward a norm where employees are on campus at least four days per week.”
New hires will begin working from campus at least four days a week, President Ann Cudd wrote in a universitywide message Wednesday.
These announcements are part of Cudd’s efforts to revitalize the university’s campus and increase face-to-face interactions, according to Cudd’s announcement and spokesperson Katy Swordfisk.
“it is important that we continue to work toward returning PSU to pre-pandemic levels of campus vibrancy,” Cudd wrote. “An active campus environment serves not only our students and our community but also our city and our region.”
In recent years, the number of employees working from states other than Oregon and Washington has grown and many of those positions do not need to be remote, Swordfisk said. Remote work has made the campus less active and increased “administrative and compliance burdens,” she added.
DONATE
Donations tax deductible
to the full extent allowed by law.
