Telework
Veteran suicide hotline employees permitted to work remotely after concerns that in-office requirement would hurt service
One Veterans Crisis Line supervisor said the return to office mandate was creating confusion among staff, presented logistical challenges and could hurt recruitment.
NTEU leaders vow to fight amid IRS return-to-office mandate
Internal Revenue Service employees have just one week to prepare for the end of telework at the agency, as management disregards union contract provisions governing the workplace flexibility.
House Dems press administration on telework for military spouses
Although the Trump administration has issued guidance purportedly exempting the spouses of military service members from the president’s return-to-office mandate, lawmakers say some federal workers have heard differently.
EPA orders most workers back within weeks, breaking union covenants
The Office of Personnel Management previously issued guidance purporting to grant agencies the authority to disregard telework provisions in union contracts based on a blanket assertion of ‘management rights.’
OPM claims agencies can ignore union telework contracts
A new memo instructing agencies to cease enforcing union-negotiated telework policies under the guise of “management rights” could portend future assaults on collective bargaining.
Trump signs memo that claims to cancel late Biden-era union contracts
Although the president railed against collective bargaining agreements signed at the Social Security Administration and the Education Department shortly before his inauguration, it’s unlikely any of those deals will be upended by the measure.
Figuring out the ‘Fork in the Road’
The Trump administration’s “deferred resignation” offer has federal employees scrambling for answers and facing tough choices.
Agencies to soon detail how they will overcome unions, office space issues to bring all staff in-person
The White House and OPM are asking for specifics in how agencies will comply with Trump's return-to-office order.
OPM demands agencies comply with Trump’s telework order within 30 days
The State Department has already begun to implement the president’s memo cancelling telework agreements as of March 1 and remote work arrangements July 1, with exceptions for military spouses and employees with disabilities.
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Trump: Agencies should fire 'all' bureaucrats
Atop the president’s anticipated actions this week are executive orders moving to reinstate Schedule F, reduce unions’ bargaining rights and broad rollbacks of telework at federal agencies.
House Oversight Republicans open Congress with rants against telework, unions
The first hearing of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee was ostensibly about telework yet frequently devolved into anti-union rhetoric.
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Congressional Republicans dial up multiple bills to cull telework flexibility
The 119th Congress has started early on reintroducing or debuting new plans to reduce telework capabilities at federal agencies.
Ernst targets D.C.-area federal workers with trio of bills
Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, proposed legislation this week that would force agencies to move 30% of their D.C.-based workforce out of the region, mandate telework tracking, and push agencies to move their headquarters out of the nation’s capital.
Federal telework would be capped under a new House bill
Rep. Andy Ogles’ Show Up To Work Act would limit telework at federal agencies to 25% per pay period and require agency heads to certify performance gains for individual waivers.
Ernst’s report documenting telework ‘abuse’ obscures more than it reveals
The Iowa senator and head of a new caucus related to President-elect Trump’s planned government efficiency commission misrepresented key statistics regarding telework’s usage at federal agencies.
SSA, AFGE reach deal to lock in current telework levels until 2029
Union leaders said that for many, the workplace flexibility is the only thing preventing a mass exodus of overworked employees from the embattled agency.
Musk, Ramaswamy focus on slashing telework and federal employee attrition in initial meetings with Republicans
The government efficiency commissioners want to work with Congress to cement their reforms into law.
GSA begins process to reduce government’s footprint by 1.5 million square feet
The agency began the process to offload eight federal facilities across as many states as part of the effort to “right-size” the federal government’s physical footprint following telework’s expansion during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Agencies credit telework with recruiting, retention gains, GAO finds
A watchdog report examining telework use at four agencies found best practices still need implementation, but the presence, or absence, of telework as an option has affected their ability to attract talent.
Trump’s ‘DOGE’ commission promises mass federal layoffs, ending telework
The incoming administration will handle large-scale RIFs with compassion, Vivek Ramaswamy says.
