Houston Mayo9r John Whitmire has put a hard cease and desist date on roughly 1,600 municipal employees who've been allowed to work from their homes.

"The best way to serve the public is to work together in the office, enhancing collaboration and making the City of Houston more effective," Mayor Whitmire said.

Municipal employees were given the opportunity to work from home after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, with the city subsequently adopting a hybrid work policy that has allowed many employees to split time between their homes and offices.

The City of Houston has announced all employees will transition full-time to their assigned offices beginning on February 1.

Municipal workers will have to be back in-office starting Feb. 1 unless given an approved exception from management.