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MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2025

VOLUME 120 - ISSUE 4 Not officially associated with the University of Florida

Published by Campus Communications, Inc. of Gainesville, Florida

UF return-to-work policy sparks commute chaos, staff ‘disillusionment’ EMPLOYEES SAY IN-PERSON WORK REQUIREMENTS FUEL TRAFFIC JAMS, PARKING NIGHTMARES AND DAILY STRESS

By Swasthi Maharaj Alligator Staff Writer

Long traffic backups and packed parking lots have become the norm for UF employees after the university’s full return-towork mandate took effect in August. UF revoked most hybrid and remote work agreements in a July 24 memo, some of which the university put in place during the Covid-19 pandemic. The announcement gave employees 30 days to return to work in person and said the decision “aligns with national trends across business, education and government sectors.” For 10 faculty and staff members who spoke to The Alligator, the order means waking up earlier in the morning, expecting hours of traffic each day and circling parking lots to secure rare spots. UF spokesperson Cynthia Roldán said

SEE RETURN TO WORK, PAGE 4

Juleidi Machuca // Alligator Staff

Students crossing Inner Road near UF’s campus on Aug. 27, 2025.

Gainesville coffee company, Indian grocery store talk tariff impacts

Local owners say their lives are changing; business experts say the changes have only begun By Kaysheri Haffner Alligator Staff Writer

Business has become a question of scraping past the bottom line for Tripp Pomeroy. As the owner of Sweetwater Organic Coffee Company in Gainesville, Pomeroy is one of many local business owners seeing smaller profits and less supplies since the Trump administration imposed sweeping tariffs in January. “It was already hard. It was already a cash crunch. And it was a scramble from crop to cup,” Pomeroy said. It’s not even about making a profit anymore; it’s just trying to break even, he said. It’s become a mounting task that feels out of range. With all the brusque changes to the tariff rates,

SPORTS/SPECIAL/CUTOUT

Football Story description finish with comma, pg#

Napier, Lagway react to USF spitting incident. Read more on pg. 11.

he said, he finds the new policies random and contradictory, leaving him unsure how to implement changes to his business. A federal appeals court ruled on Aug. 29 that most of President Donald Trump’s recent tariffs are not legal under the acts Trump cited. The Trump administration responded on Sept. 3 with a request for the Supreme Court to appeal the decision. The federal court said the executive power Trump used to enact the new taxes doesn't allow tariffs at this scale. For now, the tariffs will stay in place until October. On Aug. 27, the administration increased tariffs on imports from India and Brazil to 50%, while Canada’s rate was raised from 25% to 35% in July, according to BBC. National security tariffs set in June put a 50% tax on steel and aluminum, according to Congress.

Research

UF scientists develop new cancer vaccine, pg. 3

The Avenue: Food

5 must-try Gainesville coffee shops, pg. 6

“It's usually people on most modest incomes who see it first,” Pomeroy said. Sweetwater has been in business for 15 years, he said, and it’s part of a co-op made up of 21 different roasters in the U.S. and Canada. All members of the co-op import coffee directly from farmerowned cooperatives in Central and South America and Ethiopia. Since the tariffs, Pomeroy said, the co-op has lost upwards of $600,000. “We have to be stewards to the small-scale farmers and their co-ops, stewards to the environment, stewards to our wholesale customers and stewards to the people who drink our coffee,” he said.

SEE TARIFFS, PAGE 4

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