The Vermont Labor Relations Board has overturned a controversial return-to-office requirement that Gov. Phil Scott’s administration implemented late last year.
Starting Dec. 1, 2025, many state employees were required to come into the office at least three days a week. The policy change covered roughly 3,000 employees, or about a third of the state's workforce.
The administration's plan was meant to roll back a dramatic expansion of remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic.
More: Vermont state employees react to Gov. Scott’s return-to-office order
The Vermont State Employees' Association tried to block the measure and argued that the issue was subject to collective bargaining. In a decision issued Wednesday, the labor relations board agreed.
Gov. Phil Scott blasted the decision — and the board itself — and vowed to appeal to the Vermont Supreme Court.
At a Statehouse press conference, the governor called the ruling "biased” and said it was “disappointing, but not surprising, understanding the makeup of the board. I mean it's all weighted towards labor."
Scott appointed four of the board’s members and reappointed the fifth, who initially served under then-Gov. Peter Shumlin.
The board not only overturned Scott’s return-to-office mandate; it also ordered the state to rehire any employees who’d left their jobs as a result and to compensate employees for “for any monetary losses” brought on by the policy change.
More: 'It's an equity issue': Gov. Phil Scott defends his return-to-office order
Scott said taxpayers could be the big losers if this decision is allowed to stand. “It could be like restitution for commuting, maybe for child care, all kinds of things associated with a return to office, that taxpayers will pay,” he said.
VSEA Executive Director Steve Howard said the decision underscores the importance of state labor practices. “The governor had a weak argument — somebody should have told him no — when he decided to just change state policy and upend collective bargaining."
And Howard said the ruling was an important victory for the state employees' union. “It’s a message to the governor about what are the limits to his power and it’s also a message to our members that shows that when we’re unified, when we fight, we win.”
