San Luis ends remote work for city employees

SAN LUIS, Ariz. – San Luis employees who have been working from home during the pandemic will return full time to city offices by early next month.

The San Luis City Council has ordered department heads to be back in their normal workplaces on April 5 and all other employees to be back May 3.

A year ago, as the number of coronavirus cases in the area mounted, the city allowed some of its employees to alternately work remotely as part of measures to contain COVID-19.

But with the number of cases having dropped, council members Luis Cabrera, Africa Luna-Carrasco and Gloria Torres said at a recent work session that the time has come for return to full staffing of city offices and work sites. The three said they have received complaints from residents about not receiving prompt service in understaffed municipal offices.

“At City Hall some employees are not present on certain days,” Cabrera said. “I’m not saying they’re not working, but we want them to return to City Hall.”

Torres noted that other large organizations in south Yuma County has previously returned to full staffing of their offices, among them the city of Somerton and the Comite de Bienestar, a non-profit housing developer in San Luis.

The three council members said they believe a drop in COVID-19 risk levels in recent weeks justifies an end to staggered shifts. But Mayor Gerardo Sanchez said he was concerned the coronavirus could still spread of among employees if all returned at once to their places of employment at the city.

Sanchez proposed that employees return to municipal offices once they’ve received their second doses of COVID-19 vaccine. He also suggested and department heads make a return to city workplaces at the same time as other employees.

His proposal was rejected by other council members.

In other action, the council on a 4-3 vote chose Luna-Carrasco to serve as the city’s vice mayor, succeeding Matias Rosales.

Arguing against the move was Sanchez, who said city needs someone in that role with experience in dealing with several significant issues, among them the expansion of the U.S. Port of Entry at San Luis, a project long sought by San Luis officials. Sanchez noted Rosales had attended numerous meetings on the issue with federal and Mexican officials.

Rosales was named vice mayor in November, succeeding outgoing Councilwoman Maria Cecilia Cruz. He said he hoped to serve as vice mayor until December, completing a one-year term.

“I know I don’t have the experience to deal with some issues,” Luna-Carrasco said, “but I have to start somewhere. I have the willingness to serve my community and to put all my effort into learning.”