Tens of thousands of Social Security Administration staffers have secured the ability to continue teleworking until late October 2029, thanks to a recent agreement signed between their union and the agency. This deal, which was signed just before the departure of SSA Commissioner Martin O’Malley, ensures that American Federation of Government Employees members at the agency can maintain their current levels of telework.
Under the updated contract, AFGE members at the Social Security Administration will have to report to the office between two and five days a week, depending on their job roles. The union, representing 42,000 workers at the agency, has played a crucial role in securing this agreement, which aims to prevent higher attrition rates and maintain staffing levels to better serve the public.
On the other hand, the incoming Trump administration's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) is advocating for federal workers to return to the office full time in an effort to reduce the federal workforce and cut spending. DOGE, led by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, is planning to eliminate telecommuting privileges for federal employees, with the goal of increasing in-person work requirements.
Despite these proposed changes, the telework privileges for many unionized federal workers are protected by collective bargaining agreements, making it challenging to alter the terms without negotiations. Currently, about 1.1 million federal staffers are eligible for telework, with approximately 228,000 employees in fully remote positions.
Overall, federal employees who are eligible for telecommuting spend just over 61% of their regular working hours in person, according to the Office of Management and Budget. The Biden administration has been encouraging agencies to increase the time telework-eligible employees spend in the office, emphasizing the importance of finding a balance between remote work and in-person collaboration.
