South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster’s office said Tuesday a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union over the legality of his executive order requiring nonessential state workers return to their workplaces was “ridiculous.”

“South Carolinians all over the state have been going to work, in person, throughout the last year and they have been able to do it safely,” McMaster spokesman Brian Symmes said in a statement. “It’s ridiculous to think that requiring employees to go to work is discriminatory in any way.”