United States General Services Administration

Interagency Telework Issues Working Group Subcommittee DRAFT Reports

United States Office of Personnel Management

Definition of Telework
(Agency identified item under VI, J)

We recommend that the term "telework" be adopted as an umbrella term in recognition of the fact that work is being performed at alternative work sites within the commuting area or outside the commuting area of the regular office including remote locations. Alternative work sites may include the employee's home, telecenter, satellite office, field installation or other location,

Telecommuting is a more restrictive term that connotes work performed at an alternative work site to reduce the costs, stress, and time it takes to commute to and from the principle office. Telecommuting is more limited in scope than telework, because it implies that the alternative work site is located within the commuting area of the principal office and that some form of electronic (computer and/or telephone) connectivity enables work to be performed away from the office.

Now that legislation has been enacted requiring agencies to have a telecommuting policy in place, there needs to be a more formal structure for implementing telework programs with an official definition. Telework needs to be integrated into the regulatory framework on pay and travel regulations (see report on duty station determinations) in recognition of the fact that employees may be performing work at an alternative work site in a different commuting area.

Eligibility
(Agency identified item under VI, C, D, N, P, and Q)

We recommend that OPM establish policy that all Federal employees are potentially eligible to participate in telework, unless excluded by their agency objective criteria that is equitable, reasonable and understandable.

We recommend that OPM requires each individual agency to identify and define its exclusions (of its tasks in positions, not on the title of a position) that may not be suitable for telework in its telework policy.

Tracking Teleworking Participants
(Agency identified item under VI, B)

We recommend that the OPM clarify with the office of Congressman Wolf on the types (i.e., regular and reoccurring one day a week, ad hoc (otherwise known as episodic or situational, one or two times a year, medical and disabled accommodations) of teleworking that will be counted as part of the twenty-five percent. Then OPM should develop specific guidance for agencies to follow.

We recommend that the General Services Administration (GSA) be the primary custodian for collecting and reporting the new Teleworking requirements through the utilization of the Federal Employees Clean Air Incentives Act Fiscal Report. Currently, this report requires agencies to report certain information on teleworking. We further recommend that the information being reported be expanded to include more pertinent information as a result of the new reporting requirement. Attached is a draft of the report modifications being recommended.

We recommend that OPM require each eligible Federal agency to establish a system for tracking teleworkers and pertinent data required under Telework Incentives on the Federal Employees Clean Air Incentives Act Fiscal Year Report. The type of system will be at the agency=s discretion, as long as it captures the pertinent information required on the Federal Clean Air Incentive Act Fiscal Report. Examples of systems could be the Time and Attendance System, an internal database, or a central we-based system.

Work Hours Flexibilities - Overtime
(Agency identified item under VI, M)

Hours of Work

It is recommended that Government-wide policy on the work schedules be varied as follows for all employees, including teleworkers, to achieve an optimum balance between maximizing the flexibility of work schedules, while at the same time ensuring employees are accessible and responsive to operational needs, and their supervisors as required. Regardless of the working hours arrangements agreed, supervisors must schedule an employee's actual work requirements.

In the short-term, agencies will provide for increased flexibility in work schedules for all employees, including those who telework, to optimize the effectiveness oft these arrangements. Agencies will choose from an unlimited range of work schedules within existing legislative parameters to maximize flexibility, including:

• The teleworker working a different work schedule at home than at the main worksite, but still within the traditional parameters of approved work schedules for main worksite (Option A of the supporting research paper).
• "Any 80 (Monday through Friday)" work schedule (Option B of the supporting research paper); and
• "Any 80 (Monday through Saturday)" work schedule (Option C of the supporting research paper).

• any need for employees to be available during established "core hours"
• the number of days spent teleworking vs "in office" days; and
• the minimum number of hours per day spent in the main worksite.

In the long-term, the existing impediments to work schedule flexibility will be removed to allow agencies to adopt an "Anytime-Anywhere" system (as described under Option D of the supporting research paper). This will require amendment to 5 U.S.C. 6122(a)(1) to remove the legal requirement for core hours; 5 CFR 610.111(d) to remove the entitlement to Sunday pay for employees whose tour of duty include hours on Sunday; and 5 USC 6101 to amend the definition of standard and non-standard work schedules to accommodate the increased flexibility.

Telework Days

It is recommended that Government-wide policy state: There are no limits on the number of telecommuting days vs. "in-office" days per week for teleworkers, and agencies will develop flexible procedures that allow supervisors and teleworkers to determine the best balance for individual situations.

Combining Teleworking with Alternative Work Schedules

It is recommended that Government-wide policy state that: Teleworkers, like all employees, are eligible to work AWS, without restriction, based on the employee's job requirements and personal circumstances (as described in Option C of supporting research paper).

Overtime

It is recommended that Government-wide policy on overtime for teleworkers be clarified as outlined in Section 5.4 of the supporting research paper, to make it clear that: Supervisors will ensure that employees, whether telecommuting or working in the main office, only work overtime with prior approval and are paid only for overtime officially ordered and approved.

Duty Station Determinations
(Agency identified item under VI, H, K, L, O and VIII B, C)

All relevant regulations should reference or utilize the definition for Aofficial duty station@ that is in the Guide for Processing Personnel Actions. However, the Guide should be changed to delete the first sentence in paragraph 3 B - "The location of an employee's work site is the location of the employee's desk or the place where the employee normally performs his or her duties." Instead, the definitions and resultant determinations for "local commute", "remote commute," and "remote work" in the attached "Proposed Definitions and Applications for Duty Station Determinations" document should be adopted and incorporated in the applicable regulations and Guide.

Because of the travel, reduction-in-force, and, particularly, locality pay impacts of duty station determinations, agencies should establish procedures that inform affected employees and their supervisors/managers of the impacts of a change in duty station before arrangements are finalized. Agencies should identify whether the employee's new duty station constitutes a separate competitive area in the employee's telework agreement.

Revise the applicable sections of the DSSR to authorize agencies to limit the total amount of allowances for full-time employees that request to telework from an overseas location to an amount not less than the locality pay for the locality in which the employee's organization is located when the total amount of au theorized allowances plus base pay exceed the locality pay area for the assigned organization (note: this recommendation has been presented to the Department of State Office of Allowances staff and is pending acceptance).

Revise Section 302.1.3 of the FTR to include "remote commute" telework situations under subparagraph (2) Discretionary coverage so that agencies can be responsive to employee requests to relocate outside their normal commuting area, change their duty station determination appropriately to reflect that location, and not be obligated to pay all travel expenses associated with regular commutes to the assigned office (note: this recommendation has been presented to the GSA travel policy staff and is pending further discussion with that staff).

Revise the applicable parts of the FTR and 5 CFR that specify the mileage radius of the duty station to delete the mileage so it is unlimited miles. This will not change compensating employees for official travel beyond the employee=s normal commute to the employee=s main office or alternative work site.

Revise 5 CFR 550.112(j)(2) and 551.422(b) to reflect that, when a home is approved as a designated work location, travel to and from home during approved work schedules is normally hours of work; however, this does not preclude a supervisor from adjusting daily work schedules when travel home may be needed for personal reasons, such as to remove a sick child from a day care provider or to avoid unusual traffic problems.

Documenting the Agreement
(Agency identified item under VI, C)

We recommend that each agency determine when a written agreement is required to document the terms and conditions of a telework arrangement between the agency and an employee, and identify the terms or conditions that must be incorporated in such agreements to protect the employee=s rights and the employer from liabilities.

We recommend that each agency establish retention and storage requirements to document its telework agreements with employees.

We recommend that each agency determine how often and in what manner a telework arrangement is reviewed and recertified by the supervisor and the employee.

We recommend that OPM design a prototype telework agreement for regularly scheduled telework arrangements and another that agencies can use to document on a blanket basis the terms of arrangements that are not regularly scheduled.

Closure of Main Office or Early Dismissal
(Agency identified item under VI, I)

If telework is to fully benefit the Federal Government we recommend that some policy changes be implemented. These policies should be promulgated on the OPM/GSA telework website and clearly communicated to all federal agencies. Sample telework agreements, Q & A's, and case studies that clearly communicate this guidance should be included on the website to assist managers and agencies in decision-making.

Dismissal for emergencies is clearly not intended as a benefit; rather, it protects employees and other citizens in the local area during dangerous weather or some other threatening situation. For those whose work is unaffected by the emergency, it is difficult to justify the "benefit" of dismissal.

Recommendation 1: Contrary to the current OPM guidance on telecommuting during hazardous weather shutdown, we feel that teleworkers who are able to continue working during emergency shutdown should do so - including those who are under current telework agreements but not on their designated "telework day." This enables the individual/workgroup/agency (whichever are applicable) to maintain some level of function during an emergency shutdown, and empowers managers and employees to make decisions based on the individual circumstances. "Able to continue working" should take into account family situations in which dependents may make working from home impossible.

Guidance given on telework from OPM and all other agencies should make the implications of this clear - particularly regarding the compensation issues. Recommendations should be made to agencies that telework agreements spell out the fact that teleworkers are expected to continue work if possible during a shutdown; and that they do not receive additional compensation (pay and/or time off) for this work. Telework agreements should also clearly spell out the arrangement that the manner and employee come to regarding dependents affected by shutdowns as well. Sample agreement templates on the OPM/GSA telework website should include this language.

Recommendation 2: There are inequities in the current policies regarding telework, AWS, and leave. Individuals who are teleworking are to be dismissed during closure regardless of whether or not they remain functional; thereby defining dismissal as a "benefit" that should be extended to all employees. Employees who are on leave are not charged their leave time for an emergency closure as well. However, individuals on their AWS day are not given a compensatory AWS day if there is an emergency closure.

So that the emergency closure policy is applied equally to everyone, during an emergency closure those already on leave are still charged their leave time, and those on AWS are not granted compensatory time off. Rectifying these inequities is important to successful telework guidance; these various policies should be seen in the larger picture of employee time and attendance expectations and should also avoid obvious inequities.

Recommendation 3: Teleworkers who are "shut down" in their home office and are unable to come into work are not charged leave. For instance, if a blizzard has taken out the electricity (and therefore the connectivity) of a teleworker who must be connected in order to perform job functions, and the weather also prevents them from traveling to the work site, then they should be excused in the same way that they would be if the primary work site was shut down. Managers will have to take responsibility for making decisions on a case-by-case basis, but the OPM/GSA telework website and documents should give some good samples/case studies.

Recommendation 4: Teleworkers who cannot continue to work from home due to an emergency, but could come to the primary work site should do so, as long as the shutdown happens early enough in the day. If a shutdown happens close to the end of the day (and this would depend on the length of the commute) they should be granted administrative leave for the remainder of the day.

Dependent Care
Agency identified item under VI, R)

We recommend that OPM and GSA modify the current guidance to include that while teleworking is not a substitute for dependent care, there may be situations where the employee's productivity is optimized through a temporary telework arrangement to facilitate dependent care. Some examples of these arrangements are: 1) a permanent day care provider is unavailable on short notice, whether it be child and/or elderly adult care; 2) a child is sick and can not attend school; 3) an elderly adult is sick and can not attend a day care; 4) a child's school is closed for the day due to weather or other emergencies, etc.; 5) an elderly adult needs to be taken to a doctor's appointment. In these situations there is a dual benefit for both the manager and the employee. The teleworker may continue to work with minimal interruption. Also, the teleworker may only be required to take minimal sick leave to meet the situation. This would be a win-win situation for management and the employee.

We recommend that OPM and GSA modify the current guidance to allow teleworkers to have in-home caregivers for child and/or elderly adult care during their teleworking days within the understanding that the arrangement will not interfere with their workday. This will allow the elimination of taking a child and/or elderly adult from the home environment. Also, this flexibility will allow parents to spend break and lunch time with a child or elderly adult. This will provide the same accommodation that their colleagues at the main work site may have available to them.

We support the recommendation to change the current work schedule alternatives to allow a 24/7 operation. A 24/7 operation will be of benefit to the whole workforce, whether they are a teleworker or not. The flexibility will allow employees to have options to balance their work and family responsibilities. The end result is a more productive employee with a higher morale.

Performance Management
(Agency identified item under VI, N)

We recommend that OPM emphasize in their guidance to top-level management, managers, and supervisors that there is no difference in managing their employees in a traditional work site than an employee at a remote location. The same performance management is used in both environments (i.e., planning the work, setting expectations, monitoring performance and recognizing employees) with no expectation or requirement for higher productivity by teleworker.

We recommend that top-level management, managers, and supervisors be educated on managing their employees regardless of their physical location, with some additional emphasis on teleworkers (i.e. communication via telephone and e-mail rather than visually, arranging meetings that allow the teleworker to be connected via telephone, etc.).

We recommend that OPM modify the current guidance to state, "it is an agency's discretion to establish the minimum requirements for eligibility, to include the performance rating"; and, eliminate the current requirement for a fully successful or equal depending on the agency rating plan. Don't want to eliminate use of telework to new employees because of performance criteria.

We recommend agencies have an ongoing campaign to market telework within agencies by showing that employees performance generally does not decline and share success stories that organizations continue to meet their goals and objectives.

Recruitment and Retention
Agency identified item under VI, G)

Agencies will ensure that the special needs of disabled employees are addressed when determining enhancements need to information technology for telework positions. Specifically, agencies will include disabled employees on design teams when making arrangements for a disabled employee(s) to work at home. Agencies will also use telework as a means of compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act in order to retain valued employees; reduce employee turnover and recruitment costs; and, control the rising cost of disability benefits.

Agencies will address "equity issues" or the "digital divide" by considering how to use technology to narrow the digital divide by considering: increased use of telecenters since they bring the work closer to the employee; better use of telecommunication technologies to provide job opportunities to job seekers; better use of technology to provide cost-effective ways to deliver training to job seekers who lack local job opportunities; use of mobile training centers for job seekers; advertisements to job seekers about training opportunities for teleworking that includes partnerships with local universities and community colleges to provide appropriate training; use of the USDA cooperative extension workers and facilities for assistance.

The Human Resources Management Council will make telework an agenda item and establish a subcommittee to address recommendations from the telewrok workgroup.

Human Resources Directors will send memorandums to managers emphasizing that the use of telework as a recruitment and retention tool is expected and they will be held accountable for results.

Federal agencies will work with the OPM employment group to develop a reporting mechanism using the CPDF to facilitate reporting on participation in telework programs.

OPM and GSA will develop a "best practices" website spotlighting private and public organizations that have made the use of telework for recruitment and retention purposes a priority, for example-AT&T, the Department of Labor, etc.

OPM will conduct annual surveys of how agencies are using steelwork for recruitment and retention purposes and use the results to track performance.

When conducting job fairs agencies will emphasize telework opportunities.

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