Jeff Zients throws a hissy fit in a memo about RTO

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I believe we've seen an entire generation or two of Americans in big cities experience / discover an enormous shift in thinking about when, how, and why they work. I own a small business and its impacting me because my employees, who are younger, see the world differently. It's not going to be as easy as just sending out this memo and telling agency heads to make it happen.

But it’s not just that. For people with families, it’s about schools, housing and commutes. I’m perfectly happy to work 9-5:30. I don’t want to commute 2 hrs/day just so my kid can be enrolled in a decent school in a house I can afford. If Zients wants us middle-level feds (the backbone of our agencies) to stay put he needs to also pay attention to schools and housing prices. But I bet he’d be horrified to have his precious SFH neighborhood upzoned for apartments.

. It’s not just Zients. The politicians want to be re-elected. State and local government workers are back in the office. Different treatment for feds isn’t going to fly with voters.

Feds are already in the office, at least for hybrid. Some have to go in every day. Very few are still 100% WFH.

[Anonymous]

Feds are such whiners! Get your butts back to the office!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I believe we've seen an entire generation or two of Americans in big cities experience / discover an enormous shift in thinking about when, how, and why they work. I own a small business and its impacting me because my employees, who are younger, see the world differently. It's not going to be as easy as just sending out this memo and telling agency heads to make it happen.

But it’s not just that. For people with families, it’s about schools, housing and commutes. I’m perfectly happy to work 9-5:30. I don’t want to commute 2 hrs/day just so my kid can be enrolled in a decent school in a house I can afford. If Zients wants us middle-level feds (the backbone of our agencies) to stay put he needs to also pay attention to schools and housing prices. But I bet he’d be horrified to have his precious SFH neighborhood upzoned for apartments.

. It’s not just Zients. The politicians want to be re-elected. State and local government workers are back in the office. Different treatment for feds isn’t going to fly with voters.

I don’t think any voters are going one way or the other based on RTO policies. This clearly has a lot more to do with federal leases of commercial properties and putting some REITS in peril by letting feds stay home.

Oh, you are VERY mistaken.

LOL what a convincing argument.

You will see since many people cannot and will not tolerate the complete & disgusting hypocrisy of ignoring the environmental benefits of teleworking vs. RTO.
Feds are po'ed and will vote that way.

LOL right back at you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I believe we've seen an entire generation or two of Americans in big cities experience / discover an enormous shift in thinking about when, how, and why they work. I own a small business and its impacting me because my employees, who are younger, see the world differently. It's not going to be as easy as just sending out this memo and telling agency heads to make it happen.

But it’s not just that. For people with families, it’s about schools, housing and commutes. I’m perfectly happy to work 9-5:30. I don’t want to commute 2 hrs/day just so my kid can be enrolled in a decent school in a house I can afford. If Zients wants us middle-level feds (the backbone of our agencies) to stay put he needs to also pay attention to schools and housing prices. But I bet he’d be horrified to have his precious SFH neighborhood upzoned for apartments.

. It’s not just Zients. The politicians want to be re-elected. State and local government workers are back in the office. Different treatment for feds isn’t going to fly with voters.

I don’t think any voters are going one way or the other based on RTO policies. This clearly has a lot more to do with federal leases of commercial properties and putting some REITS in peril by letting feds stay home.

Oh, you are VERY mistaken.

LOL what a convincing argument.

You will see since many people cannot and will not tolerate the complete & disgusting hypocrisy of ignoring the environmental benefits of teleworking vs. RTO.
Feds are po'ed and will vote that way.

LOL right back at you.

Ok, so which presidential candidate should I vote for in 2024 who would let me maximize wfh as a fed?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I believe we've seen an entire generation or two of Americans in big cities experience / discover an enormous shift in thinking about when, how, and why they work. I own a small business and its impacting me because my employees, who are younger, see the world differently. It's not going to be as easy as just sending out this memo and telling agency heads to make it happen.

But it’s not just that. For people with families, it’s about schools, housing and commutes. I’m perfectly happy to work 9-5:30. I don’t want to commute 2 hrs/day just so my kid can be enrolled in a decent school in a house I can afford. If Zients wants us middle-level feds (the backbone of our agencies) to stay put he needs to also pay attention to schools and housing prices. But I bet he’d be horrified to have his precious SFH neighborhood upzoned for apartments.

. It’s not just Zients. The politicians want to be re-elected. State and local government workers are back in the office. Different treatment for feds isn’t going to fly with voters.

I don’t think any voters are going one way or the other based on RTO policies. This clearly has a lot more to do with federal leases of commercial properties and putting some REITS in peril by letting feds stay home.

Oh, you are VERY mistaken.

LOL what a convincing argument.

You will see since many people cannot and will not tolerate the complete & disgusting hypocrisy of ignoring the environmental benefits of teleworking vs. RTO.
Feds are po'ed and will vote that way.

LOL right back at you.

Ok, so which presidential candidate should I vote for in 2024 who would let me maximize wfh as a fed?

I don't know.
Jump in your time machine and let me know who will be running and what their position is.
Right now, people will remember the environmental hypocrisy and decision to go with the $$ commercial real estate lobbyists are paying.

[Anonymous]

Create some financial incentives for Feds to live within walking/cycling distance from their offices.
Make some promises about clean air in Federal buildings to minimize covid transmission in the coming surge.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I believe we've seen an entire generation or two of Americans in big cities experience / discover an enormous shift in thinking about when, how, and why they work. I own a small business and its impacting me because my employees, who are younger, see the world differently. It's not going to be as easy as just sending out this memo and telling agency heads to make it happen.

But it’s not just that. For people with families, it’s about schools, housing and commutes. I’m perfectly happy to work 9-5:30. I don’t want to commute 2 hrs/day just so my kid can be enrolled in a decent school in a house I can afford. If Zients wants us middle-level feds (the backbone of our agencies) to stay put he needs to also pay attention to schools and housing prices. But I bet he’d be horrified to have his precious SFH neighborhood upzoned for apartments.

. It’s not just Zients. The politicians want to be re-elected. State and local government workers are back in the office. Different treatment for feds isn’t going to fly with voters.

I don’t think any voters are going one way or the other based on RTO policies. This clearly has a lot more to do with federal leases of commercial properties and putting some REITS in peril by letting feds stay home.

Oh, you are VERY mistaken.

LOL what a convincing argument.

You will see since many people cannot and will not tolerate the complete & disgusting hypocrisy of ignoring the environmental benefits of teleworking vs. RTO.
Feds are po'ed and will vote that way.

LOL right back at you.

Ok, so which presidential candidate should I vote for in 2024 who would let me maximize wfh as a fed?

I don't know.
Jump in your time machine and let me know who will be running and what their position is.
Right now, people will remember the environmental hypocrisy and decision to go with the $$ commercial real estate lobbyists are paying.

Right now the front runners are Trump and Biden. Which one would be better on environmental issues? Which would be better to federal employees? If Trump loses to DeSantis do you think he’d be more of an environmentalist and pro civil servant?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I believe we've seen an entire generation or two of Americans in big cities experience / discover an enormous shift in thinking about when, how, and why they work. I own a small business and its impacting me because my employees, who are younger, see the world differently. It's not going to be as easy as just sending out this memo and telling agency heads to make it happen.

But it’s not just that. For people with families, it’s about schools, housing and commutes. I’m perfectly happy to work 9-5:30. I don’t want to commute 2 hrs/day just so my kid can be enrolled in a decent school in a house I can afford. If Zients wants us middle-level feds (the backbone of our agencies) to stay put he needs to also pay attention to schools and housing prices. But I bet he’d be horrified to have his precious SFH neighborhood upzoned for apartments.

. It’s not just Zients. The politicians want to be re-elected. State and local government workers are back in the office. Different treatment for feds isn’t going to fly with voters.

I don’t think any voters are going one way or the other based on RTO policies. This clearly has a lot more to do with federal leases of commercial properties and putting some REITS in peril by letting feds stay home.

Oh, you are VERY mistaken.

LOL what a convincing argument.

You will see since many people cannot and will not tolerate the complete & disgusting hypocrisy of ignoring the environmental benefits of teleworking vs. RTO.
Feds are po'ed and will vote that way.

LOL right back at you.

Ok, so which presidential candidate should I vote for in 2024 who would let me maximize wfh as a fed?

I don't know.
Jump in your time machine and let me know who will be running and what their position is.
Right now, people will remember the environmental hypocrisy and decision to go with the $$ commercial real estate lobbyists are paying.

Right now the front runners are Trump and Biden. Which one would be better on environmental issues? Which would be better to federal employees? If Trump loses to DeSantis do you think he’d be more of an environmentalist and pro civil servant?

Saaaay..who is going to the 2025 Super bowl?
Right now the front runners are Philly and KC.

Psst, the answer is neither but one hypocritically poses to be for the environment.
That's my point.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I believe we've seen an entire generation or two of Americans in big cities experience / discover an enormous shift in thinking about when, how, and why they work. I own a small business and its impacting me because my employees, who are younger, see the world differently. It's not going to be as easy as just sending out this memo and telling agency heads to make it happen.

But it’s not just that. For people with families, it’s about schools, housing and commutes. I’m perfectly happy to work 9-5:30. I don’t want to commute 2 hrs/day just so my kid can be enrolled in a decent school in a house I can afford. If Zients wants us middle-level feds (the backbone of our agencies) to stay put he needs to also pay attention to schools and housing prices. But I bet he’d be horrified to have his precious SFH neighborhood upzoned for apartments.

. It’s not just Zients. The politicians want to be re-elected. State and local government workers are back in the office. Different treatment for feds isn’t going to fly with voters.

I don’t think any voters are going one way or the other based on RTO policies. This clearly has a lot more to do with federal leases of commercial properties and putting some REITS in peril by letting feds stay home.

Oh, you are VERY mistaken.

LOL what a convincing argument.

You will see since many people cannot and will not tolerate the complete & disgusting hypocrisy of ignoring the environmental benefits of teleworking vs. RTO.
Feds are po'ed and will vote that way.

LOL right back at you.

Ok, so which presidential candidate should I vote for in 2024 who would let me maximize wfh as a fed?

I don't know.
Jump in your time machine and let me know who will be running and what their position is.
Right now, people will remember the environmental hypocrisy and decision to go with the $$ commercial real estate lobbyists are paying.

Right now the front runners are Trump and Biden. Which one would be better on environmental issues? Which would be better to federal employees? If Trump loses to DeSantis do you think he’d be more of an environmentalist and pro civil servant?

Saaaay..who is going to the 2025 Super bowl?
Right now the front runners are Philly and KC.

Psst, the answer is neither but one hypocritically poses to be for the environment.
That's my point.

Dumb comparison. No one knows who is going to the Super Bowl in 2025 but this far in advance it is likely those are your candidates. Let’s say they’re not though, are the Republican and democratic parties pretty equal on environmental issues? Equally supportive of federal employees?

I know that liberals love to be disappointed in anyone less than perfect on their issues but their decision to stay home in protest is how we get republicans. Imagine if we had president Gore whose top issue was climate change back in 2000.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I believe we've seen an entire generation or two of Americans in big cities experience / discover an enormous shift in thinking about when, how, and why they work. I own a small business and its impacting me because my employees, who are younger, see the world differently. It's not going to be as easy as just sending out this memo and telling agency heads to make it happen.

But it’s not just that. For people with families, it’s about schools, housing and commutes. I’m perfectly happy to work 9-5:30. I don’t want to commute 2 hrs/day just so my kid can be enrolled in a decent school in a house I can afford. If Zients wants us middle-level feds (the backbone of our agencies) to stay put he needs to also pay attention to schools and housing prices. But I bet he’d be horrified to have his precious SFH neighborhood upzoned for apartments.

. It’s not just Zients. The politicians want to be re-elected. State and local government workers are back in the office. Different treatment for feds isn’t going to fly with voters.

Some fed offices have been fully remote for a long time, like PTO. There is zero groundswelling of political pressure to return feds to the office other than that manufactured by the commercial real estate interests. on the right you have the Rs who seize on it as a way to bash federal workers, but joke’s on you if you think RTO would stop that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Create some financial incentives for Feds to live within walking/cycling distance from their offices.
Make some promises about clean air in Federal buildings to minimize covid transmission in the coming surge.

How about increase locality pay to reflect the actual cost of living in the DMV? Roll back FERS-FRAE? Child care subsidy?

If the answer is “Congress won’t increase the budget” then STFU and stop trying to take away a major benefit from feds for no reason.

[Anonymous]

[mastodon] try

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Create some financial incentives for Feds to live within walking/cycling distance from their offices.
Make some promises about clean air in Federal buildings to minimize covid transmission in the coming surge.

How about increase locality pay to reflect the actual cost of living in the DMV? Roll back FERS-FRAE? Child care subsidy?

If the answer is “Congress won’t increase the budget” then STFU and stop trying to take away a major benefit from feds for no reason.

Why should only Feds get increased locality pay. Teachers have to work in person 5 days a week and make less than you. What about the workers at Panera, Starbucks, Target, Safeway, etc.

[Anonymous]

I think Zients is right. I know some Feds who take their work and mission very seriously and they are all back in the office at least 3 days a week. It is mostly the lazy ass Feds who are complaining

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:[mastodon] try

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Create some financial incentives for Feds to live within walking/cycling distance from their offices.
Make some promises about clean air in Federal buildings to minimize covid transmission in the coming surge.

How about increase locality pay to reflect the actual cost of living in the DMV? Roll back FERS-FRAE? Child care subsidy?

If the answer is “Congress won’t increase the budget” then STFU and stop trying to take away a major benefit from feds for no reason.

Why should only Feds get increased locality pay. Teachers have to work in person 5 days a week and make less than you. What about the workers at Panera, Starbucks, Target, Safeway, etc.

Maybe you should start your own union, or take it up with your union.

The discussion here is my management taking away a very important benefit for lousy reasons.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think Zients is right. I know some Feds who take their work and mission very seriously and they are all back in the office at least 3 days a week. It is mostly the lazy ass Feds who are complaining

That’s not true in my office. We all are productive 4 days a week at home then we come in 1x a week and waste time “constructively engaging”.

Remember when people joked about the guy who was always chatting with people and keeping them from getting their work done and now we’re being told that is the most important part of the work day. 🙄