San Mateo County Community College District to continue remote work

A recent survey of 102 managers in the district, 92 of whom oversee hybrid teams, found that managers reportedly felt the hybrid program has either improved or had no impact on office operations with employees seeming happier and more engaged when compared to working on site five days a week and were more productive or at least as productive as when in person. A strong majority of managers also reportedly felt the program has had a positive impact on employee retention and that hybrid schedules could help entice future employees.

“I believe strongly that, in my best judgment, that this is the way we go,” Chancellor Mike Claire said during a board meeting Wednesday, Dec. 14. “This district has always had a reputation of being a step ahead on a lot of things. … We don’t necessarily need to be a step ahead on this but we cannot afford to be a step behind and if we don’t seriously consider this, when we look at our competitors in the employment market, we will be a step behind. It is my strong feeling that’s what would occur.” 

The proposal put forward would allow eligible employees to work remotely up to two days a week through May 2024. Team managers would have the final say over which positions could be done partly remotely but employees would have the chance to appeal the decision if denied through the Human Resources department.

Arielle Smith, a general counselor and president of the College of San Mateo’s Academic Senate, argued the last two years have allowed staff to refine remote work operations and encouraged the board to support the proposal and to trust staff to do their jobs. 

“I will proudly say that while it was not always easy, we were successful in pivoting to continue to serve students during that time,” Smith said, noting staff have not always felt the board’s confidence in them. “What we need you, as the Board of Trustees, to do is to empower us to refine what hybrid service delivery actually looks like.”

Student Trustee Lesly Ta threw her full support behind staff’s proposal and, in general, trustees said they supported some model for remote work, agreeing it’s likely how work will be done well into the future. But they also shared concerns. 

Rather than allowing up to two days of remote work a week, board Trustee Richard Holober said he’d prefer the pilot program to begin with one day of remote work and suggested the district consider four-day work weeks with slightly longer work days for some employees. 

Holober also acknowledged that online services have been a major benefit for students, as identified in a survey in October. However, he also argued students should have the option of in-person support as well. 

“I do think there’s a real difference here that we need to keep straight in our head — that what students find works is very important for them but that does not necessitate remote employment occurring. It’s for the flexibility of our students,” Holober said.

Board President Lisa Petrides said she liked that HR would play a role in reviewing requests for hybrid schedules; but, she’d also like to know more about how staff intend to monitor the program and its effects on services. 

Similarly, board Vice President John Pimentel noted his strong support of hybrid schedules and would like to know more about who would actually qualify for the program, which he argued is too broad of a policy to be considered a pilot program. Claire estimated about 1,000 employees could qualify for the program — instructional and facility staff would not be eligible — but further specifics on which roles could go remote was not immediately available. 

“I think that’s great for enrollment, I think that’s great for our mission, I think it improves our relevance for the community in terms of making our services more readily and widely available,” Pimental said. “It feels, to me, like this is a step, on one hand, in the right direction for a modern workforce but it also feels like a step, potentially, into an unknown direction in terms of workplace rights that could complicate our ability to deliver our mission.” 

Given the need for further information, the board directed staff to extend its current remote work program until more details have been worked out. Later next semester, they said they’d like to see a plan with details about program oversight and a review of which roles can go either fully remote, be done hybrid or not remote at all.