In accordance with President Donald Trump’s executive order mandating in-person employment, the Department of Veterans Affairs issued an order on Monday for the majority of its remote workers to return to the office by February 24.
A large number of federal workers have been working remotely since the COVID-19 epidemic in 2020.
According to Trump’s earlier directive, all federal workers must consent by Thursday to terminate the remote work arrangement.
In response, Trump promised to grant anyone who decline a “dignified, fair departure from the federal government utilizing a deferred resignation program.”
On January 22, the heads of agencies received a letter from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management mandating that they update work planned by January 24 and put it into effect within 30 days.
A document outlining guidelines for collective bargaining commitments was released on Monday.
The first organization to make the regulations public was the Veterans Administration.
Unless exempted by a disability, qualifying medical condition, or other compelling cause, eligible employees are required to work full-time at their agency workplaces, according to the agency.
Military spouses with permanent change of station orders may also be eligible for exceptions.
Over 20% of VA’s workforce of over 479,000 people work remotely or via telework.
With the exception of non-bargaining unit employees, most workers who do not return to work by February 24 will be fired by April 28.
At a later time, the requirements for employees of the negotiating unit will be disclosed.
Supervisors and non-bargaining unit workers who live more than 50 miles from an agency facility will continue to have their remote work and telework agreements in place.
The organization stated that further information about these agreements will be available soon.
“This is a commonsense step toward treating all VA employees equally,” acting VA Secretary Todd Hunter stated. “Most VA clinical staff don’t have the luxury of working remotely, and we believe the performance, collaboration and productivity of the department will improve if all VA employees are held to the same standard.”
In his first day as president, Trump signed an executive order requiring 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.”
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The order has come under investigation.
“Providing eligible employees with the opportunity to work hybrid schedules is a key tool for recruiting and retaining workers in both the public and private sectors,” American Federation of Government Employees National President Everett Kelley stated on Jan. 20.
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There may not be enough office space to handle an increase in on-site employees due to the popularity of hybrid work, which has led many agencies to try to sell off premises that are expensive to maintain and combine underused office space.
Doug Collins, a former member of the U.S. House from Georgia, is still pending confirmation.
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