How did city employees’ first full week back in office go? Depends on who you ask

PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — So-called water cooler chats are a time-honored way to build teamwork in an office and sometimes generate new ideas. It’s one of the things hard to replicate while working from home.

But Philadelphia’s Chief Administrative Officer Camille Duchaussee said the city was caught off guard by how literally that changed when workers returned to the office this week.

“We are going through water jugs more quickly than we anticipated,” she said. “We now know we need to increase our water order.”

DuChaussee said it’s one of the adjustments the city is finding it must make with all workers now back in the office. Last week, a judge upheld Mayor Cherelle Parker’s full-time back-to-office order for city employees, requiring them all in-person for the first time since the pandemic.

About 4,000 Philadelphia workers returned — and they did not get a reprieve from Friday morning’s global internet disruption . They were told to come in, capping their first week back in the office by cleaning up the fallout.

Dave Wilson of District Council 47, the union that represents many of the returning workers, said the first week back was “chaotic.” Issues were greater than refilling water jugs.

“Not enough seating, rodents, smells, leaking air conditioning units,” he described.

He said two workers resigned, but he expects more to follow in the coming weeks. The union tried unsuccessfully to halt the back-to-office action in court but continues to pursue arbitration. Wilson said the city has not come through with the emergency dependent care it promised, and some employees with disabilities are still waiting to hear if they can get a waiver to work from home.

“Morale is at an all-time low,” he said. “Folks have less trust in their employer. People are evaluating new jobs, new career options.”

The city did try to lift morale with treats, like Crabfries and water ice, and discount coupons to Center City lunch and happy hour spots. Those were largely arranged by the hospitality industry — which is unreservedly happy to see the workers back.

DuChaussee continues to have faith in Parker ’s vision of a more visible, accessible workforce.

“I absolutely believe this is a good policy and it can and will work,” she said. “We are happy to have our colleagues around us and available for us to move forward with the expectations that we’d like to create within the city.”