Scott vows legal appeal that returns state employees to Covid-era work from home rules
By Guy Page
Gov. Phil Scott sharply criticized the Wednesday, April 1 Vermont Labor Relations Board decision ordering his administration to rescind the post-Covid shutdown Hybrid Work Standard requiring state employees to return to thor workplace.
The State sent most employees to work from home as a health precaution in March, 2020, shortly after the epidemic broke out. In an August, 2025 press conference, Scott announced workers would be returning to their workplaces soon. Administration Secretary Susan Clark clarified several weeks later than workers would be returning to workplaces at least three days a week. The policy took effect December 1 – much to the consternation of the state employees’ union, the Vermont State Employees Association.
Calling the VLRB ‘broken’, Scott in an April 1 press release promised a swift legal appeal to the decision that allows state employees to return to the ‘status quo ante’ of working from home, as they were permitted to do during the Covid-19 health emergency.
The VLRB also offers reinstatement to any state employee who left due to the Hybrid Work Standard and “shall make all affected employees whole by reimbursing them for any monetary losses occasioned by the State’s unilateral adoption of the Hybrid Work Standard.”
The order was signed by Acting Chair David Boulanger, Gwenna Peters and Michelle Phelps. All three were appointed by Scott. Boulanger in particular has extensive union and negotiations experience, according to his biography. “As a teacher he was very active in the local union and served as a Grievance Committee Chairman and Chief Negotiator. In addition to his work at the local level, Mr. Boulanger served two terms as President of the Chittenden County Regional Bargaining Council. In 1988 he was hired as a UniServ Director (Field Representative) with the Vermont National Education Association. In that position he served as the principal advocate for local unions representing teachers and education support staff (paraprofessionals, bus drivers, custodians, clerical workers, technicians).”
The order of the 60 page decision reads as follows:
Based on the foregoing findings of fact and for the foregoing reasons, it is Ordered:
1. The State has refused to bargain in good faith and interfered with employees’ exercise of rights, in violation of 3 V.S.A. Section 961(1) and (5), through unilaterally implementing changes to telework protocols applicable to employees in all three Executive Branch bargaining units – i.e., the Non-Management Unit, the Supervisory Unit, and the Corrections Unit – by implementing the new Hybrid Work Standard without negotiating with the Vermont State Employees’ Association;
2. The State shall rescind the Hybrid Work Standard and shall return to the status quo ante with regard to the application of Policy 11.9 – Telework;
3. The State shall give all affected employees the opportunity to return to the telework patterns exercised prior to the implementation of the Hybrid Work Standard and shall offer reinstatement to any employee who has left State employment as a result of the State’s unilateral implementation of the Hybrid Work Standard;
4. The State shall make all affected employees whole by reimbursing them for any monetary losses occasioned by the State’s unilateral adoption of the Hybrid Work Standard;
5. The State shall cease and desist from failing to bargain in good faith with the Vermont State Employees’ Association over the required subject of bargaining of telework.
Gov. Scott’s statement reads in full:
“Today’s decision from the Vermont Labor Relations Board makes it clear the Labor Relations Board is broken, and a fair, unbiased process is impossible with the present Board makeup.
“The facts of the case, the precedent, the existing – union-negotiated – telework policy, state statute and the constitution are clear the State acted appropriately in setting a minimum in-office standard for state employees. No one could thoughtfully and objectively review the facts and documentation the State presented – alongside the convoluted and changing arguments the Union presented – and come to this conclusion.
“Worse than the decision itself is the path forward it presents, which is to roll back all the work and progress of the last several months and ask Vermont taxpayers to pay for the commuting costs and other expenses incurred as a result of working in the office. We find this to be an unacceptable outcome for the people of Vermont.
“Given the harm to Vermonters and our operations, and the extremely dangerous precedent this decision sets for future governors, we will appeal this flawed, biased decision made by a non-judicial Board outside the court of law.
“Governor Scott firmly believes our standard balances the interests of state employees with Vermonters’ expectations and our goals for team collaboration and communication. While he recognizes some of our employees disagree with our approach, he continues to see it as essential to our service to Vermonters and building strong, collaborative teams across agencies and departments.”
The VSEA welcomed the decision and compared Scott’s decision with executive decisions coming out of Washington:
“The members of the VSEA applaud the Vermont Labor Relations Board’s (VLRB) decision on the Unfair Labor Practice Charge filed by the VSEA in response to Governor Scott’s arbitrary decision to require state employees who have successfully worked remotely for years to return to commute.
“After 3 days of hearings, and testimony from numerous witnesses, the VLRB issued a fair and thoughtful decision, siding with the arguments of state employees across Vermont. The panel, comprised entirely of Scott appointees, included a neutral representative, a representative of labor and a human resources professional aligned with management and they found against the Governor unanimously.
“Governor Scott is not listening to the frontline workers who are telling him that remote work encourages more collaboration and better outcomes for the State.
“Governor Scott’s attack on this quasi-Judicial and independent body is reminiscent of the attacks on institutions coming from politicians in Washington D.C. Governor Scott, appointed the members of the VLRB to do exactly what they did, stand up for the rule of law. We find the Governor’s rhetoric to be dangerous and unaligned with the values of the people of the State of Vermont.”