This commentary is by Kate Lucier, who was a state employee for nearly 14 years. She lives in Underhill. We rarely see the perspective of public-sector employees spotlighted — or even considered — in media reports about the state workforce and the decisions impacting it, but the voices and e xperiences of Vermont’s state employees should have received much more attention in the past year as lives were upended and employee morale decimated. As a former Vermont state employee, I am finally free to express those thoughts and opinions without fear of reprisal. A few years ago, I participated in the Vermont Certified Public Manager Program, a two-year program run by the state of Vermont and the University of Vermont and designed to provide additional training to current and future leaders in Vermont state and municipal government. On many occasions, including in my resignation letter, I have written glowingly  about my experience of coming to know the members of my program cohort, employees from across Vermont’s executive branch agencies and departments, and employees of municipal government offices. The members of my cohort were engaged, dedicated, creative, compassionate and hard-working, and they participated in the program alongside their regular job duties. I have heard from members of other cohorts that the experience of being wowed by the outstanding public-sector colleagues in the program happens each time a new cohort is formed. I begin with that particular anecdote because it stands in stark contrast to the cavalier comments often made by those who have never worked in Vermont state government. Sadly, it also contrasts sharply with state leaders’ comments and decisions about state employees’ lives and livelihoods. I have noted, as have many of my former colleagues, that state leaders have invoked “Vermonters” and “taxpayers” when discussing the order for thousands of state employees to return to commuting to their cubicles three days a week. The Vermont Supreme Court upheld the policy Sept. 25. The state leaders’ comments make clear that decision-makers have not considered the views and experiences of state employees to be those of “Vermonters” or “taxpayers,” though, of course, the vast majority of state employees are both. It’s hard to imagine a less pro-Vermont action for leaders to take than regularly insulting employees by failing to recognize or value their dignity, work ethic, personal circumstances and worth. For those unaware of the work environments in the largest state office workplaces, in my experience, many employees sit in cubicles where speaking to others or attending virtual meetings — still the predominant meeting space for state employees — is disruptive and disallowed. So, while it is reported that the goal of the order is to improve communication and collaboration among employees, in my view it has created the opposite effect. State leaders’ decisions have decreased communication and collaboration, employee morale and productivity, and led some talented employees to leave and pursue work in more hospitable and dignified environments. READ MORE I want to say how impressed I’ve been by the dedication and care exhibited by most public-sector employees I’ve worked with and known. It’s extraordinarily easy, for reasons I can’t quite grasp, to stereotype those paid with taxpayer dollars as less talented, hard-working and valuable than those paid with private dollars. Vermont’s state employees are all of these things, and also often exhibit an extra dose of dedication to the common good. They live in our communities, raising families and contributing to what makes Vermont unique, and I believe Vermonters are more decent than many public and private comments about state employees would indicate. I hope my fellow Vermonters remember that much of what makes us the Brave Little State is that we value the dignity of work and recognize that Vermont’s opportunity to flourish will always be rooted in collective effort, in looking out for one another and in being able to imagine something beyond the outdated status quo. Read the story on VTDigger here: Vermont’s return-to-office order is an insult. ...read more read less