Saw the Trump comment re: telework and dismissal, any words of sane advice

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How about: go to work.

How about you learn to read before commenting. Idiot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So Trump was talking about a union contract for SSA workers. I imagine that just breaking a union contract is going to result in some sort of lawsuit. Details of who decides what have been discussed in many threads here. At any rate, it’s going to be slow and not some sort of instantaneous thing Trump can do to those SSA employees overnight.

He'll make it happen, believe him

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just don’t see how this works from a traffic perspective.

Have to get rid of all these social engineering experiments like goofy bike lanes.

And public transportation. Metro and buses are getting cut.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just don’t see how this works from a traffic perspective.

Have to get rid of all these social engineering experiments like goofy bike lanes.

And public transportation. Metro and buses are getting cut.

Only because people aren’t riding. If demand comes back they will increase service.

[Anonymous]

Many people are willing to pay for parking 1day a week but will be back on metro fur 5 days which Is free with subsidy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Saw this directly from Trump not doge https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-challenges-union-deal-remote-work-policies-federal-workers/#

I am not union so no lawsuits to drag out - just a remote employee with stellar performance. Besides looking for jobs in private sector what else can I do? Have been a remote employee since pre pandemic. You all have been sane in your commentary about doge but it seems that all hope is lost with it coming from Trump now. I really love my job and I’d move back if it wasn’t for my kids and schools.

I mean ... he was also going to build a wall along the entire southern border of the US.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So Trump has no idea that many of us were working from home long before Covid? And there is no office space for us now??

I am not union either OP...and I think we are most at risk. We will be back first and more. I think there will be many unplanned messy retirements with no transition time.

Of course he knows this. But unfortunately this is playing really well with the folks who don't.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here - have a few years and moved due to husbands job and my agency transitioned my role to remote because of my portfolio. I am far, far away and I truly miss DC but we cannot afford it and kids are in elementary school.

I find so much meaning in my work and I’d be willing to even go in satellite offices but I don’t know if that is enough. It just makes me sad that the address of my work will drive if I keep my job. I wonder if I’m being too positive and hopeful and should be jumping ship instead.

Seems like back to office means back to some office. Why don’t you think a satellite office works? Obviously there are millions of workers that don’t work in the DC area at all that will report to a satellite office.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here - have a few years and moved due to husbands job and my agency transitioned my role to remote because of my portfolio. I am far, far away and I truly miss DC but we cannot afford it and kids are in elementary school.

I find so much meaning in my work and I’d be willing to even go in satellite offices but I don’t know if that is enough. It just makes me sad that the address of my work will drive if I keep my job. I wonder if I’m being too positive and hopeful and should be jumping ship instead.

I get what you are saying and if you were truly remote before covid I would think you’d be fine. But keep in mind that there are no guarantees with any job, be it public or private. Lot’s of people in the private sector are sad when they get laid off too. It sucks. Hope you find a work around.

I’m fully remote as well (not local). I don’t feel like any of trumps/doge comments differentiate between telework and remote. I wish they would clarify that. I suppose they will in time. I’m a single parent so I’m pretty stressed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here - have a few years and moved due to husbands job and my agency transitioned my role to remote because of my portfolio. I am far, far away and I truly miss DC but we cannot afford it and kids are in elementary school.

I find so much meaning in my work and I’d be willing to even go in satellite offices but I don’t know if that is enough. It just makes me sad that the address of my work will drive if I keep my job. I wonder if I’m being too positive and hopeful and should be jumping ship instead.

I get what you are saying and if you were truly remote before covid I would think you’d be fine. But keep in mind that there are no guarantees with any job, be it public or private. Lot’s of people in the private sector are sad when they get laid off too. It sucks. Hope you find a work around.

DP, but I’m tired of people making comparisons to what happens in the private sector. Feds accepted their jobs based on the protections and benefits of the public sector including giving up careers making more money. I’m 15 years in and teleworked for a decade prior to COVID. I chose this over making more money because I wanted work/life balance as a mom.

My DH is private sector so I’m aware of what can happen in the private sector. But he makes more money than me including employee stock and bonuses.

I and many Feds are having the rug pulled out from under us by a president who doesn’t give a crap about this country. He’s doing it to create a civil service full of loyalists and so he can destroy programs he doesn’t like without going through Congress. So no, this is a absolutely nothing like anything that has happened in the private sector.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just don’t see how this works from a traffic perspective.

Have to get rid of all these social engineering experiments like goofy bike lanes.

Yes. They were implemented during Covid when nobody was driving downtown so their impact on congestion wasn’t immediately felt.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here - have a few years and moved due to husbands job and my agency transitioned my role to remote because of my portfolio. I am far, far away and I truly miss DC but we cannot afford it and kids are in elementary school.

I find so much meaning in my work and I’d be willing to even go in satellite offices but I don’t know if that is enough. It just makes me sad that the address of my work will drive if I keep my job. I wonder if I’m being too positive and hopeful and should be jumping ship instead.

I get what you are saying and if you were truly remote before covid I would think you’d be fine. But keep in mind that there are no guarantees with any job, be it public or private. Lot’s of people in the private sector are sad when they get laid off too. It sucks. Hope you find a work around.

DP, but I’m tired of people making comparisons to what happens in the private sector. Feds accepted their jobs based on the protections and benefits of the public sector including giving up careers making more money. I’m 15 years in and teleworked for a decade prior to COVID. I chose this over making more money because I wanted work/life balance as a mom.

My DH is private sector so I’m aware of what can happen in the private sector. But he makes more money than me including employee stock and bonuses.

I and many Feds are having the rug pulled out from under us by a president who doesn’t give a crap about this country. He’s doing it to create a civil service full of loyalists and so he can destroy programs he doesn’t like without going through Congress. So no, this is a absolutely nothing like anything that has happened in the private sector.

This is what bugs me. So, what does your work/life balance mean for the taxpayers that fund your salary, excellent benefits and pension? There is also no guarantee you'd be making tons of money/get an excellent role in the private sector.

There are tremendous benefits in government jobs all of which are funded by taxpayers. Going to pick up Joey from school at 3PM and then signing on at 4:30PM to send one email and call it a day is not work/life balance. There are plenty of jobs that give flexibility if you need to leave occasionally, but it is when people use it frequently that it can be a problem.

Don't you think Elon Musk will have IT check to see when everyone has been working? People seem concerned about badge swipes. They can access information/usage from any equipment they own. My spouse was in a meeting (not gov) which showed all sorts of data about people not working/getting stuff done. He was concerned about a team member who said they were working and my spouse went on the system after it became a pattern and realized the person signed on and worked for maybe a couple hours and then used some kind of device (mouse mover or some such) to make it look like they were working. My spouse also realized pretty quickly this person was using AI to do work/emails. They would send an email here or there/hard to reach. When my spouse got this information, then IT was contacted and they got even more. Who knows maybe they even do these system checks, I don't know, but I would be more concerned about it happening in the coming months.

If you're worried and you are meant to be in the office and are close-by I would go in. And if you are remote then work your hours and make sure you're actually working in the system. Either way it will take time (I think) so just apply for roles you'd actually take and keep in touch with people in your network so that if you get laid off, you aren't just contacting people when you need something.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly people, OP was remote before covid, what are you talking about "go to work?"

I don't know, I was hired remote and I'm also worried. I certainly can't afford a house in or near DC. Our best hope is that 1) they'll go after management-directed remote work last, and 2) they'll station us in close by offices instead of requiring us to move.

Yeah, look at the previous posts. I don’t think this is what is being targeted. It is the people who were full time in office prior to covid who have been home for most of the past 4 years. While I am sure many get their work done, I get that it is a perception problem (and bo doubt some do abuse it) for positions of public trust. I have no problem whatsoever ordering people back to work.

It’s not “back to work”, we all work, and personally, I work more at home, it’s back to the office.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here - have a few years and moved due to husbands job and my agency transitioned my role to remote because of my portfolio. I am far, far away and I truly miss DC but we cannot afford it and kids are in elementary school.

I find so much meaning in my work and I’d be willing to even go in satellite offices but I don’t know if that is enough. It just makes me sad that the address of my work will drive if I keep my job. I wonder if I’m being too positive and hopeful and should be jumping ship instead.

I get what you are saying and if you were truly remote before covid I would think you’d be fine. But keep in mind that there are no guarantees with any job, be it public or private. Lot’s of people in the private sector are sad when they get laid off too. It sucks. Hope you find a work around.

DP, but I’m tired of people making comparisons to what happens in the private sector. Feds accepted their jobs based on the protections and benefits of the public sector including giving up careers making more money. I’m 15 years in and teleworked for a decade prior to COVID. I chose this over making more money because I wanted work/life balance as a mom.

My DH is private sector so I’m aware of what can happen in the private sector. But he makes more money than me including employee stock and bonuses.

I and many Feds are having the rug pulled out from under us by a president who doesn’t give a crap about this country. He’s doing it to create a civil service full of loyalists and so he can destroy programs he doesn’t like without going through Congress. So no, this is a absolutely nothing like anything that has happened in the private sector.

You are guaranteed nothing. Spare me your post about hating Trump. Federal employment is not a social service. I personally love that performance can be tied to compensation. Get rid of the dead weight.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here - have a few years and moved due to husbands job and my agency transitioned my role to remote because of my portfolio. I am far, far away and I truly miss DC but we cannot afford it and kids are in elementary school.

I find so much meaning in my work and I’d be willing to even go in satellite offices but I don’t know if that is enough. It just makes me sad that the address of my work will drive if I keep my job. I wonder if I’m being too positive and hopeful and should be jumping ship instead.

I get what you are saying and if you were truly remote before covid I would think you’d be fine. But keep in mind that there are no guarantees with any job, be it public or private. Lot’s of people in the private sector are sad when they get laid off too. It sucks. Hope you find a work around.

DP, but I’m tired of people making comparisons to what happens in the private sector. Feds accepted their jobs based on the protections and benefits of the public sector including giving up careers making more money. I’m 15 years in and teleworked for a decade prior to COVID. I chose this over making more money because I wanted work/life balance as a mom.

My DH is private sector so I’m aware of what can happen in the private sector. But he makes more money than me including employee stock and bonuses.

I and many Feds are having the rug pulled out from under us by a president who doesn’t give a crap about this country. He’s doing it to create a civil service full of loyalists and so he can destroy programs he doesn’t like without going through Congress. So no, this is a absolutely nothing like anything that has happened in the private sector.

This is what bugs me. So, what does your work/life balance mean for the taxpayers that fund your salary, excellent benefits and pension? There is also no guarantee you'd be making tons of money/get an excellent role in the private sector.

There are tremendous benefits in government jobs all of which are funded by taxpayers. Going to pick up Joey from school at 3PM and then signing on at 4:30PM to send one email and call it a day is not work/life balance. There are plenty of jobs that give flexibility if you need to leave occasionally, but it is when people use it frequently that it can be a problem.

Don't you think Elon Musk will have IT check to see when everyone has been working? People seem concerned about badge swipes. They can access information/usage from any equipment they own. My spouse was in a meeting (not gov) which showed all sorts of data about people not working/getting stuff done. He was concerned about a team member who said they were working and my spouse went on the system after it became a pattern and realized the person signed on and worked for maybe a couple hours and then used some kind of device (mouse mover or some such) to make it look like they were working. My spouse also realized pretty quickly this person was using AI to do work/emails. They would send an email here or there/hard to reach. When my spouse got this information, then IT was contacted and they got even more. Who knows maybe they even do these system checks, I don't know, but I would be more concerned about it happening in the coming months.

If you're worried and you are meant to be in the office and are close-by I would go in. And if you are remote then work your hours and make sure you're actually working in the system. Either way it will take time (I think) so just apply for roles you'd actually take and keep in touch with people in your network so that if you get laid off, you aren't just contacting people when you need something.

Well a) this is not what happens. What actually happens is that I’m able to work 7-3:30 (while spouse shifts later hours). Without me needing to commute, we can have a parent home with our kids in the afternoon to them to activities and start dinner. This literally costs the taxpayers nothing especially since I’m in a very independent research and writing role, and b/c I have coworkers in different time zones I really only have mid day core meeting hours when we overlap.

b) I don’t have an office. I was teleworking most days before COVID. I did have an office about 15 min from my home but we moved out of the building and I don’t have an office to go back to. Are my coworkers and I supposed to return to a broom closet that OMB scrounges up?

c) I know I can get a higher paying job because I went to a tier 1 law school and have gotten offers. But I like the work/life balance. These benefits are how the government retains quality employees without paying private sector pay.

d) I would welcome software that tracks what I do, I already assume IT could look into what I am doing if they had reason to. I am always readily available (aside from taking my lunch break) and my work gets done.

And even if you don’t give a crap about me or any particular fed employee, you should wake up and realize what this administration is trying to do to our federal workforce. This is unprecedented. Literally everything is going to be run by billionaires who are trying to scare our civil workforce into compliance with threats. Look how well things have been going since Citizens United in 2010 … hint: the billionaires don’t care about us. This is all an attempt to weaken, control, and de-regulate our government to benefit corporations.

You likely have way more in common with the federal employees getting displaced than you do with the ruling class. Today it’s trying to get feds to quit but they’ll just as easily turn on you and any other private sector employee for the smallest perceived benefit.