The United States Government has announced that more Federal Public Servants will be allowed to work from home on a permanent basis than ever before — a move that will drastically alter the bureaucracy’s workplace culture.
The Administration of US President, Joe Biden announced the change while telling Federal Agencies more employees could return to their offices as the threat of the COVID-19 pandemic receded , scrapping the previous limit of 25 per cent occupancy.
As they make plans for a post-pandemic workplace, Agencies across the Government will be allowed to offer employees flexible schedules and remote work, depending on their needs, according to guidance from the Office of Management and Budget, the Office of Personnel Management and the General Services Administration.
“Evaluation of an employee’s performance should be based on factors such as accountability for results or quality of the work, and should not be affected by whether an employee is working in the office, teleworking, based remotely, or working a flexible work schedule,” the guidance said.
This amounts to a massive policy shift for the Federal Government, which has long lagged behind the private sector when it comes to offering remote work.
It is likely to be closely watched by other employers, since the Federal Government, with a workforce of 2.1 million, is the country’s largest employer.
The move shows how the thinking about the workplace has shifted inside the bureaucracy, which for decades has operated under a top-down, risk-averse model requiring employees to be in their seats to show they were working.
That approach has hampered efforts to attract new employees — especially the young talent the Public Service lacks, some officials said.
Chief Economist at Upwork, an online site for hiring freelancers, Adam Ozimek described it as a positive development.
“This isn’t just about making work better for people, but increasing access to talent and spreading opportunity across the US,” Mr Ozimek said.
However, the announcement was criticised by some Republicans in Congress who claimed that a slow return of Federal employees to the workplace had led to diminished services for the public.
Washington, 15 June, 2021
