After elected service, he continued work as vice president for a major regional gas utility company, and advised community leadership gatherings in South Carolina and beyond.

The chamber had a plan in place by late 1983, and French tire manufacturer Michelin decided to move its North America headquarters to Greenville in 1984, taking advantage of its location between Atlanta and Charlotte.

"[13] Workman lost to Liz J. Patterson in a close 49–51% election,[14] and attributed the outcome to home support for his challenger in Spartanburg County and Reagan's veto of a textile bill important to parts of the district.

[17] As mayor, Workman is credited with helping to build cultural ties to Greenville and establish a sistership with Bergamo, Italy;[18] he visited the northern Italian city in 1989 to discuss various exchanges.

[4] He oversaw construction of the $2.7 million Greenville Municipal Stadium after getting local banks to buy city revenue bonds,[21] continued Main Street redevelopment, and was involved with partnership negotiations for development of the Bon Secours Wellness Arena.

[9][22] In 1989, Workman urged a group of the state's city and county leaders to look beyond their annual budgets, in anticipation of eventual economic downturns and to control the gap between upper and lower class.

"[25] In the 1995 campaign for mayor, challenger Knox White criticized Workman's twelve years on the job as making him less effective, and pledged that he would introduce a term limit for the office.

[26][27] After losing reelection, Workman continued work as a vice president of Piedmont Natural Gas and took leadership roles in various organizations to promote local economic development.

"[30] Workman retired from Piedmont in February 2004 after 10 years of service, with Mike Forrester replacing him as vice president of the energy company's South Carolina operations.

[32] In the latter 1970s, while working for Governor Edwards, he had a key role in getting the Upstate region added to the multi-state Appalachia area, with annual funding from the commission going toward economic stimulants such as a network of state technical colleges.

Judge Bruce Howe Hendricks cited statements made by Workman in recommending non-dismissal of the federal suit, which ended with a cash settlement from the town in 2012 without admission of liability.