New OPM memo on RTO
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Anonymous
Was it taken down? Now says bad gateway… Such foolishness. We’ve hired a ton of people remotely recently - as in including in a bunch of red states, and they are terrific. So now, they are going to say they all have to move to DC if they want to keep their jobs. I thought the idea was to move federal jobs out of DC? I guess they just want them to quit. They will quit I’m fairly certain. They are lawyers, young and with impressive resumes and reasons for being in other locations. And my office is incredibly busy and I would imagine likely to remain so and this really stinks. And the email that went around today about turning in people if you find out they’re trying to conceal a DEI office was giving real North Korea vibes. |
Anonymous
| Is there anything that can be done about this? This moronic man is ruining so many peoples’ lives. It’s maddening. |
Anonymous
Depends what your CBA says. |
Anonymous
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MEMORANDUM TO: Heads and Acting Heads of Departments and Agencies FROM: Charles Ezell, Acting Director, U.S. Office of Personnel Management DATE: January 22, 2025 RE: Guidance on Presidential Memorandum Return to In-Person Work. The U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is providing the following guidance to agencies regarding President Trump’s Presidential Memorandum (PM), Return to In-Person Work. I. Authority OPM is issuing this guidance under the Telework Flexibility Act of 2010, which requires agencies to consult with OPM in developing telework policies1 and tasks OPM with providing policy and policy guidance, 2 as well assisting agencies with establishing teleworking goals. 3 This guidance also implements OPM Director’s statutory duties to “secur[e] accuracy, uniformity, and justice in the functions of the Office” and “execut[e], administer[], and enforc[e] . . .the civil service rules and regulations of the President and the Office and the laws governing the civil service.”4 II. Background President Trump was elected with the mandate to increase the efficiency and accountability of the federal workforce. A glaring roadblock is that most federal offices presently are virtually abandoned. The vast majority of federal office workers have not returned to in-person work, even though the COVID-19 pandemic ended years ago.5 Many federal office workers never show up to 1 5 U.S.C. § 6504(a). 2 Id. § 6504(b)(1). 3 Id. § 6504(b)(2). This guidance supersedes entirely and cancels OPM’s August 7, 2024 Memorandum entitled “Guiding Factors for Designing Remote Work Policies and Programs,” the OPM Memorandum to Heads of Executive Departments and Agencies dated February 9, 2001, and any conflicting sections of OPM’s 2021 Guide to Telework and Remote Work in the Federal Government. 4 5 U.S.C. § 1103(a)(1) and (a)(5). 5 Report of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Majority Staff, The Lights Are On, But Everyone Is at Home: Why the New Administration Will Enter Largely Vacant Federal Offices (Jan. 15, 2025), https://oversight.house.gov/wpcontent/uploads/2025/01/011525_Telework-Staff-Report_FINAL.pdf |
Anonymous
Immediately like tomorrow? Next week? I also can’t access it on the site. |
Anonymous
I don’t think so. That’s clearly improper. |
Anonymous
| Anyone able to summarize all the points? It’s not opening up. So do bargaining unit people have to return immediately? What about agencies that set Feb. 17 or March 1? |
Anonymous
Next week. It mentioned 5 pm on 1/24. |
Anonymous
| Sorry, I closed the tab, but I believe it said that notification should go out by this Fri at 5p, and that agencies were recommended (something like that) to enforce in 30 days...that's what I remember, anyway. |
Anonymous
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the federal worksite at all. 6 Federal office buildings sit mostly empty, particularly Washington, D.C.-area agency headquarters offices, devastating the local economy and serving as a national embarrassment. 7 Virtually unrestricted telework has led to poorer government services and made it more difficult to supervise and train government workers. 8 Fairness requires that federal office employees show up to the worksite each day like most other American workers. In addition, during the Biden Administration, federal unions attempted to abuse the collective-bargaining process to guarantee full-time telework into the indefinite future and forestall any requirement to return to the office.9 The President’s PM directs agency heads to “take all necessary steps to terminate remote work arrangements and require employees to return to work in-person at their respective duty stations on a full-time basis” “as soon as practicable.” It allows agency heads to “make exemptions they deem necessary” and directs that the directive “be implemented consistent with applicable law.” The PM reflects a simple reality. The only way to get employees back to the office is to adopt a centralized policy requiring return-to-work for all agencies across the federal government.10 Seeking to cajole individual agencies to try to get employees to return to the worksite has not succeeded.11 III. Steps for Agencies to Return to Workers to the Office In light of the PM, agencies should take the following steps to return workers to the office. No later than 5:00 pm EST on Friday, January 24, 2025: 1. The agency head or acting agency head should revise their agency’s telework policy issued under 5 U.S.C. § 6502(a)(1)(A) to state that eligible employees must work full |
Anonymous
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time at their respective duty stations unless excused due to a disability, qualifying medical condition, or other compelling reason certified by the agency head and the employee’s supervisor. 2. The agency head or acting agency head should email all employees notifying them of the President Trump’s PM Return to In-Person Work, attach a copy of the PM, and notify employees of the agency’s intention to fully comply with the PM. (A copy of the PM is attached as Appendix 1). 3. The agency should notify OPM of the agency’s Telework Managing Officer, and assign that individual responsibility for complying with the guidance herein. Agencies should advise OPM of the date that the agency will be in full compliance with the new telework policy. If an employee’s official duty station is more than 50 miles from any existing agency office, the agency should take steps to move the employee’s duty station to the most appropriate agency office based on the employee’s duties and job function. OPM recommends that agencies set a target date of approximately 30 days for full compliance with the PM, subject to any exclusions granted by the agency and any collective bargaining obligations. Please send all reports requested by this document to tracking@opm.gov. Do not hesitate to contact OPM if you have any questions regarding these matters by email to tracking@opm.gov. cc: Chief Human Capital Officers (CHCOs), Deputy CHCOs, and Human Resources Directors |
Anonymous
It also isn’t happening, or if it is happening it’s isolated instances that are inconsistent with policy. |
Anonymous
Thanks to whoever managed to capture the full text! I was close... |
Anonymous
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so stupid. utterly moronic. agencies must be furious that he’s trying to tie their hands, they know they are going to lose tons of people. many agencies won’t care but some will, and they know they will lose good people. in any other world it would be reasonable for agencies to make use of the huge leeway they’ve been given in the memo and now the guidance to basically continue as normal with a few token changes, but everyone is trying to grovel at dear leader’s feet.
it’s absolutely going to wreak havoc one way or another, and at some point it’s going to have dire consequences for the public when agencies can’t fulfill their missions as effectively. let’s just hope he gets blamed for it and his band of idiot sycophants are driven so far out of power that they’re the ones subjected to this sort of draconian stupidity the next time around. unfortunately the dems are such feckless losers that they refuse to engage on this level and instead get wiped out of power. |
Anonymous
The 24th is in 2 days. That's a deadline for the agency to revise the telework policy. I read they want people back within 30 days. |