Scoop: Biden pushes to end remote work era for feds
Source: Axios
Why it matters: It's Biden's most overt push yet to get federal employees to return to their offices — a dynamic many businesses also have struggled with as Americans continue to embrace remote work despite the pandemic waning.
Driving the news: In an email to the Cabinet on Friday, White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients wrote: "We are returning to in-person work because it is critical to the well-being of our teams and will enable us to deliver better results for the American people."
He added: "As we look towards the fall, and with the end of the COVID-19 public health emergency, your agencies will be implementing increases in the amount of in-person work for your team. This is a priority of the President — and I am looking to each of you to aggressively execute this shift in September and October."
Read more: https://www.axios.com/2023/08/04/biden-end-remote-work-federal-employees
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claudette
(5,455 posts)Most people I know would rather work from home and will look for employment elsewhere if they are forced to return to office to work. It’s less expensive for both employees and employer so I don’t see the plus side.
madville
(7,842 posts)Only had to dress up a little if I had video conferences/calls, caught up on lots of movies and shows and YouTube channels, could walk the dog a few times while on scheduled breaks.
Honestly, working from home made me realize how little I was actually doing when physically at the office, 80% of it was just socializing and attending pointless meetings and training sessions more than anything.
I left not too long after they made us come back to the office, it was tedious after having been exposed to the freedom of working from home.
milestogo
(22,634 posts)and making them come back to they office won't mean they suck any less.
Really bad idea.
brooklynite
(96,882 posts)Which ones are you thinking of?
milestogo
(22,634 posts)It sucks for me.
TwilightZone
(28,836 posts)milestogo
(22,634 posts)I'm not going to say any more about it on DU.
TexasBushwhacker
(21,095 posts)
marybourg
(13,589 posts)Most people I know were thrilled and relieved to transition from their private medical insurance to Medicare (can’t speak for those on Advantage).
SKKY
(12,751 posts)...but, like any job, it is what you make it. 
LastLiberal in PalmSprings
(13,284 posts)Gotta love AI. My query to Bing was: how do results of remote work compare to results of on site work Here was the response:
Studies have shown that remote workers tend to be more productive than their on-site counterparts. This is because remote workers have more control over their environment and can create a workspace that is conducive to their needs. Remote workers also tend to have fewer distractions and interruptions than on-site workers.
However, on-site employees work on average an hour less each day. On-site workers spend 15% of their typical workday communicating with teams on Zoom, Teams, Slack or other platforms, while remote workers spend 25% of their day on similar tasks.
A report found that remote workers believed their teams “possess a collective energy that transcends physical separation,” while on-site workers felt more connected to their colleagues.
Research from Owl Labs found that remote and hybrid employees were 22% happier than workers in an onsite office environment and stayed in their jobs longer. Plus, remote workers had less stress, more focus and were more productive than when they toiled in the office.
=========================================
Of course, this doesn't take into account the 1-3 hours on-site employees spend commuting, which translates into more time spent with the family.
MayReasonRule
(4,015 posts)
patricia92243
(12,971 posts)horribly over crowded cities.
Kennah
(14,555 posts)Wicked Blue
(8,469 posts)Returning to the office for him would mean commuting 34 miles to Virginia and 34 miles back to Maryland, over the nightmare American Legion Bridge as well as I-66.
It will significantly increase fossil-fuel carbon emissions frrom all the increased Beltway traffic.
It's time-wasting and exhausting for workers, particularly those in tech fields who work long, irregular hours, sometimes seven days a week.
There are going to be a lot of people quitting or retiring early.
intheflow
(30,019 posts)The carbon costs of commuting is not being considered, which undermines the environmental work the administration is doing. Also - why? What is the obsession about desk workers having to be onsite? I haven’t heard a single reason for this other than it’s time to get back to normal after COVID.
BlueIn_W_Pa
(842 posts)It will significantly increase fossil-fuel carbon emissions from all the increased Beltway traffic.
It's time-wasting and exhausting for workers, particularly those in tech fields who work long, irregular hours, sometimes seven days a week.
Nittersing
(8,125 posts)There are so many plusses for working at home.
Lithos
(26,605 posts)Biden's work experience is based on his ability to network - to read and communicate with people. His experience and understanding are for the first two generations of work - namely the farmer, the industrial worker, and the people who directly service them (restaurant workers, retail workers, etc.). I can guarantee you he has zero understanding of how information and knowledge-service people work and how technology has enabled their ability to work virtually. He, like many with that kind of background, thinks that if you can't see someone at a desk, they must not be working.
I put far more productive hours into my job, but I have a greater work-life balance. I get to spend more time with my kids and help be a better co-parent with my wife. My health is better; my stress levels are lower. Plus, I am more flexible in my ability to work with my team, whose members span all four continental time zones and several in Europe.
This is one of the big perks my company gives - I'm glad they do it as it costs them nothing (actually saves them a ton of money), and it gives me a great benefit. It is probably one of the best golden handcuffs possible these days.
So, Biden - I disagree with this policy.
LisaM
(29,502 posts)I work in trademarks. The Examiners mostly work from home these days. Before remote work (and I am talking pre-Covid) it seemed that the Examiners actually conferred with each other and would seek out opinions of senior colleagues. Now they seem to dwell on minutiae and come up with ridiculous objections that create more work on the applicant end. The newer attorneys just don't have the in person exposure to attorneys with more experience and institutional knowledge that would help them do a better job.
That's my biggest objection, that people aren't exposed to more seasoned coworkers with far more experience so that they can noodle and throw around ideas in person (or even in a social setting), particularly in situations where they aren't being recorded or everything is in writing. Some in-person contact can be extremely helpful.
I didn't see that Biden wanted people in the office 100% of the time. Just "more".
Lithos
(26,605 posts)TBH, your senior people do not want to be bothered but are too "nice" to say no in person. The fix is to change their motivation. And I am sad they are not self-motivated.
In my field, I am a Principal Software/Data Engineer working for a Fortune 20, so I am one of those "senior" people. My scales are billions of $$$ and hundreds of millions of customers. I have team members in the US in each time zone from East Coast to West Coast, Monterrey (MX), and all over Eastern Europe - Serbia, Poland, Ukraine, and Georgia. We will never be "face to face" - we must use technology to work with people regardless of location. We succeed. But to succeed, you have to want to succeed.
Like my peers up and down the ladder, we're strongly incentivized to mentor and develop junior engineers. And it is not just for the money or reviews, but a general love of the technology. We can't go play with "fun" things until we have grown people who can work with us to develop new products.
The other thing Remote work has opened up, which is so powerful, is Diversity. Diversity of people, diversity of experience, diversity of mind. I do not think this is possible when limited to people who can only work (even occasionally) from one physical location. We have more diversity than many companies in the Bay Area or New York City. Diversity is one of the most misunderstood and powerful unlocks Remote work enables.
Remote work makes my life better, but it also makes my company better. I have the metrics and outcomes to prove it (but I can not share them for obvious reasons).
LisaM
(29,502 posts)I just said that some in-person contact is helpful. It's particularly helpful if you can liaise with coworkers off the record. It's very freeing to share ideas where everything isn't recorded.
I don't think you read what I wrote. There is a lot of value for WFH, but sometimes in-person interaction is very important . I get tired of arguing with baby attorneys who don't have the benefit of the institutional knowledge their older colleagues can provide.
How we have come to devalue institutional knowledge in the workplace is a whole different issue, but overall, I favor a hybrid workplace, with people coming in 2-5 days a month.
Joinfortmill
(20,139 posts)There are challenges, though, and it isn't for everyone.
honest.abe
(9,238 posts)SKKY
(12,751 posts)...federal buildings that are in many cases empty, yet the Government is paying huge amounts of money to maintain them. I think a better approach would be to direct each agency to do a study on which jobs can be "domiciled" without a negative effect on agency productivity, and then use that data to launch a Government-wide restructure of resources. We would save tons of money for sure, I think productivity would increase because from my experience most of my co-workers feel they're more productive working from home, and it would create a more agile and flexible Federal workforce. But to be honest, I've been working from home for just over a year now and I am not a fan. At all. But, that's me and I fully understand I am in the minority here.
cstanleytech
(28,234 posts)means that there is reduced need for office space.
COL Mustard
(7,999 posts)I'm inside the Beltway. I happen to work in a Federally owned facility but I know we lease a lot of square footage around the area. The main people who suffer from remote work are the small businesses that serve breakfast and lunch to the workers who went home in 2020, and the other service businesses like dry cleaners. Many of them left and won't be back. I'm thinking specifically of Crystal City, where I used to work and how much that's changed.
I understand that many Feds want to work from home forever, but our workplace (and many others) is not set up to accommodate that. Our workforce is expected to be in office 2x/pay period and most do that no problem, but there's always an outlier or two who make it hard for the rest of us.
Lithos
(26,605 posts)I now buy tacos and get more coffee (and the occasional beer in the afternoon) from my neighborhood stores. Instead of dropping coins into the vending machines at work or having to eat corporate meals from fast food joints that would have lined my commute, I get to support my local businesses, especially those who are trying to make a living in my neighborhood - can't think of a better way to shop local.
McDonald's makes less, but my local kiosk in my neighborhood makes more. As for Dry cleaners - I'm in IT - we have been T-shirts and jeans for ages, so unless I need to clean my suit for some wedding or funeral, they do not get my business even when I do commute.
cstanleytech
(28,234 posts)an office to work so that companies can save money due to not having to lease or own a larger office area.
After all there are probably a number of jobs that it would simply be impractical to have people work remotely.
Rebl2
(17,422 posts)my sister works for sent the majority of people home to work when the pandemic started. They had built a new office and moved into it in 2018. They have added so many employees since then, my sister now works in office two days a week and home three days a week so there isn’t over crowding in the office. They would have to add on to have room for everyone to return to the office. My sister doesn’t mind working from home because it’s a long drive to the office and there always seems to be roadwork somewhere along the way.
Hestia
(3,818 posts)was going to look - the structure of local economies was going to change in orders of magnitude.
Instead of mi, mi, mi think of how the Country runs and how the WH and Policy Makers (let us hope that they are among the bestest and brightest) have to come up with a plan to keep the Economic engines going and people sitting at home ordering in and eating and playing with their children or pets with the toys that were ordered in is not a driver of any Economic policy in any reality anywhere.
PJB's admin has been pounding the raising of taxes on million/billionaires in almost all fiscal bills that has been brought to the floors of both chambers. Why do you think the GQP members keep running to the Supreme Court? They are fighting hard to cut taxes and tie it to social policy bills. SFDD - same fight different day.
TexasBushwhacker
(21,095 posts)
PatrickforB
(15,348 posts)The only reason Biden is taking this step is to placate the Wall Street investment community, which is afraid that landlords (investors) who own empty office space will begin defaulting on their loans, which the Wall Street greed lizards are afraid will cause more bank failures.
Biden aside, this is just more management bullshit driving this. It is designed to put workers back under closer control, and jettison the hard-won life work balance achieved through full remote and hybrid schedules. Not only will it end up hurting morale instead of helping, but it will increase carbon emissions from the huge federal workforce at a time when our government should be SETTING THE EXAMPLE.
Bottom line, we must stop allowing the Wall Street tail to wag the dog (Main Street). These Wall Street people don't give a shit about workers. Not one shit. People are nothing but hands to them, to be exploited by squeezing as much work as possible from them while giving them the lowest possible pay and cheapest benefits.
This system is unsustainable and this will not help.
It is a bad idea.
Joinfortmill
(20,139 posts)onetexan
(13,913 posts)decision given he may be aware of things we don't. So i'm not going to rush to rash judge his decision.
SKKY
(12,751 posts)...placating Wall Street doesn't even crack the top 20. But, that's just from meetings I have been in at the Federal agency I work for where this is almost always a top of discussion.
PatrickforB
(15,348 posts)I would be quite interested in hearing these reasons that bring calling workers back to the office to the 'top of discussion.'
According to the most recent Gallup survey, 43% of engaged workers are still actively looking for better opportunities, and according to the new SWAA data from WFH (Work from home), which originates from the Census Household Pulse Survey as well as the BLS pandemic era surveys, upwards of 40% of the entire labor force is working full-remote or on hybrid schedules. Yet unsurprisingly, there is pushback from managers and owners of local businesses, who are concerned with how best to provide younger workers with opportunities for informal mentoring. And again, our elected officials are experiencing strong 'push' from the owners of empty office space to force workers to return to the office. Retailers in downtown areas are also pushing to get their lunchtime shoppers back.
In my shop our local elected officials are engaged now in a space study, which involves getting rid of the leases on some of the more expensive buildings, and creating new collaborative work spaces that can be shared across departments based on staggered hybrid schedules. We need to save money, you see, because devolution of federal government to state and local levels is often unfunded or under funded.
It is always ironic to me that Congress has never met a missile system or carrier or fighter jet they didn't like, but when it comes to using federal funding for programs that help us on Main Street, like affordable, debt-free healthcare, dental care and postsecondary education, not so much.
You must remember (excuse my cynicism, please) that your managers are carefully coached by HR and the top executives in their offices in how to present the imperative to go 'back to the office' in ways that don't upset workers, cause accelerated attrition, and hurt the recruitment process. This is called 'manager-speak' and tends to be only loosely related to common English. It is equally important to remember that what is driving the elected officials, including President Biden, may not even be advanced by your OPM and executive managers. The administration drives policy, but this is often disguised by other related and plausible reasons that are partly true, but never the whole story.
So what are these top reasons for forcing workers back to the office who have discovered much better work-life balance, save time that would otherwise be wasted commuting, save money on gas, and have been able to increase productivity so they can do more work more efficiently in less time while still being able to take care of other things? And, to my other point - WHY are we not setting the example in reducing carbon emissions? When Obama began to allow remote work in 2009, this was the policy reason advanced. What's wrong with that now, and what imperative is more important than reducing carbon emissions?
Why does President Biden, who is the ex-Senator from Delaware, seem to be reversing this policy that was working so well? Note that I say ex-Senator from Delaware because in that role he did in fact represent his constituents well, both corporate and individual if you look at his legislative record. I do recognize we need to be mindful of the needs of businesses, but it has been quite refreshing, has it not, to see how the pendulum is swinging back in favor of the worker due to structural scarcity in the labor market?
Hestia
(3,818 posts)employees, due to the fact that they more than likely have longevity to even begin to mention work-life balance in their hours. That option has always been there, it's called PTO or Comp Time.
I'm sure monitors will be cranking up as soon as everyone comes back to physical locations, but I wonder if emissions would actually go down overall. 1) the push for EV & HV's & safe high speed electric trains, which will help drop emissions, has been high on PBO & PJB's lists for the last 18 years, with Kerry as eco/conomist as emissary for the globe. 2) less vehicles running around the surrounding metro area(s) with them being parked during the day. (Solar Panels should be installed for shaded carports to help bring emissions levels down.)
There would possibly be a rise in emissions during certain times of day, but there is a possibility they may drop overall at the end of the day.
Now, to teach those who will be first time commuters how to drive...
Journeyman
(15,422 posts)all those commuters off the road meant less fuel to get them to and from work and traffic through the day flowed better and used less fuel with fewer cars on the road.
Ah, well. Guess we'll go back to mucking it all up again. So much for commitment to solving one of our most devilish issues.
angrychair
(11,720 posts)With the stated objective of the president. I don't understand the motivation.
WFH has dramatically cut the carbon footprint of government operations and throughout the country.
This seems so counterintuitive.
Blues Heron
(8,416 posts)its going up not down.
Had an article in our paper yesterday about that.
Blues Heron
(8,416 posts)I just procured several dozen more kf94 masks for whatever this thing throws at us, and right on cue a friend I had been hanging out talking with informed me they just tested positive (for rebound though I dont think they were symptomatic)
slightlv
(7,444 posts)The generation before mine (as well as many IN my generation) can't wrap their heads around remote work=more productive work. They think if your butt isn't in a seat they can see, then you're goofing off. And it doesn't make any difference how much or what you do to prove the opposite to them. They weren't raised in WFH managerial environment, and damn it... they know better than everybody else.
Note: I do have a dog in this game. I was forced into early retirement because my department head at DoD wouldn't get behind me WFH 2 days a week. This was due to my fibromyalgia and was supported and annotated by my rheumatologist. I finally had to give up fighting because the stress was making my condition so much worse. EVERY bit of work I did at that office was accomplished on a WiFi connection. And could only be done that way. It didn't make any difference where my butt was sitting, I was still going to have to use WiFi.
Two years later, *everybody* in that office was working from home due to Covid. I have never gotten over it, and I don't know how to get over the bitterness I feel about it. I wasn't ready to retire, loved my work and my clients (who were all in remote bases across the world). Even the Help Desk support I gave them was on WiFi, of course. (sigh)...
But this dept head idiot actually made the "butt in the office chair" statement. He's now retired, himself. I wish him the worst that retirement can offer him.
Until this country turns its face to the 21st century and beyond, workers will never be more than wage slaves... and now, it seems like it doesn't make any difference which party has the big chair. What a disappointment.
CTyankee
(67,807 posts)when my children's caregiver was sick or unavailable, and I had to work from home. It was fine until my kids got home from school and then I had constant interruptions despite my telling them I was working and needed to be left alone. They squabbled over everything and my business calls were often interrupted by kids yelling and tussling. They are great adults and they weren't brats. They just wanted my attention, I think...
sakabatou
(45,789 posts)BlueIn_W_Pa
(842 posts)cities want people back for the economic impact. Banks and the wealthy want commercial real estate values to stop plummeting.
Joinfortmill
(20,139 posts)MayReasonRule
(4,015 posts)What a disgustingly dangerous, disheartening action.
When the party of reason fails to act reasonably it’s straight up infuriating.
Here’s to each and every one of those federal workers standing up to this idiocy.
onetexan
(13,913 posts)Covid w persist as colds & flu persist. But the national emergency declaration had to end given there were political consequences (ex: billions of $ in funding to combat the emergency & get everyone vaxxed, providing health coverage for those sick w covid without insurance, and providing financial assistance for those unemployed during the height of the pandemic) and critical decisions driving that declaration.
MayReasonRule
(4,015 posts)Calling this disgusting is not even close to the proper level of denigration that this travesty deserves.
I'll be voting for Biden for President. I've no other viable choice.
That being said...
This decision is plainly wrong and injurious to our entire nation.
May reason rule where delusion dwells.
area51
(12,572 posts)honest.abe
(9,238 posts)The worst of it is over.
https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#trends_weeklydeaths_select_00
MayReasonRule
(4,015 posts)Thank you for the response! 
Here's a CDC site tracking the most relevant data along with discussion of it's implications.
honest.abe
(9,238 posts)MayReasonRule
(4,015 posts)On that we can agree!
honest.abe
(9,238 posts) MayReasonRule
(4,015 posts)Bayesian analysis is an exemplary tool.
Nonetheless, our statistical modeling is still rudimentary at best. I agree that we are not at a current peak of deaths by COVID, I disagree that the pandemic is over. That is statistically not even close to being an accurate representation of the faxts in evidence.
I'll be voting for Biden because of his policy stances and in spite of his policy stances.
This is an in spite of for me mine and ours.
Here's to the rule of reason. Here's to the democratic rule of the Democratic Party!
honest.abe
(9,238 posts)MayReasonRule
(4,015 posts)I understand it's a political hot-potato. That doesn't mean it was a decision based in fact. In fact, political hot-potato decisions tend towards not being based in fact.
Happy Saturday!
We're heading out for some mid-morning crappie fishing!
honest.abe
(9,238 posts)Enjoy your fishing!
MayReasonRule
(4,015 posts)Thanks for the well wishes!
Here's to our mutual clear-headedness as we evaluate life choices!
I think you'd really enjoy a thorough read of the link I provided.
Here's the CDC site tracking the most relevant data along with discussion of it's implications.
Laissez bon temps rouler!
honest.abe
(9,238 posts)MayReasonRule
(4,015 posts)Here's to a Biden victory and a Democratic sweep!
Fish weren't biting... we'll head out tomorrow A.M. fishing for rainbow trout, channel catfish, bass and crappie.
Eat well, sleep well, stay well, have a better one!
honest.abe
(9,238 posts)Better luck tomorrow! But what’s that line.. a day fishing and you don’t catch anything is better than a day not fishing. Something like that. 
MayReasonRule
(4,015 posts)40 of ‘‘em married!
We often tell folks we’re on our first date…
‘cause we still are.
Here’s to loving whom your with!
Marthe48
(22,742 posts)Unless offices and buildings have be fortified during covid :/
ismnotwasm
(42,663 posts)What we do with all the office space?
BlueIn_W_Pa
(842 posts)office space values are dropping (hurting banks and investors), the mayor is blaming companies for not requiring back to work full time, citing declining tax revenues and economic damage.
BS, is my response. For worker's balance of life, traffic, time wasted in traffic, environmental damage, CO2, parking and gas costs.... the list goes on.
Do what Pittsburgh is working on - converting office space to affordable housing.
madville
(7,842 posts)Cities that depend on people physically visiting and working in them. It’s affects many small and large businesses, everything like restaurants, automotive repair, tire shops, drug stores, parking garages, convenience stores, gas stations, dry cleaners, clothing stores, shoe stores, hair salons, dental and doctor offices, optometrists, etc, etc.
Then when businesses fold or relocate that means jobs disappear and that snowballs to further affect local businesses.
Cities also lose millions in revenue from parking and local sales taxes. When revenues decline cities can’t meet many obligations like paying their debts, funding their retirement pensions and health benefits, maintaining parks and utilities, etc.
BlueIn_W_Pa
(842 posts)Force people to go to the office because the investors, banks, tax collectors and big money aren't going to get what the workers have to shell out in unnecessary expenses every day?
Basically, I need to hire day care, pay for gas, spend another 2 hrs in commute time each day that you're not paid for, $36/day in parking while blowing 6 tones of CO2 into the environment every year to keep an office seat warm with a job you can do at home?
To keep commercial real estate values up, pay taxes to the city I don't live in?
For what?!
Another aspect... Convert office space to residential
Residents, work commuters and tourists spending money on goods and services keeps our economy churning, especially the micro-economies of large cities that have a dependence on commercial office space and the spending of those workers.
This is our President helping those cities’ local economies. It’s a lot larger than some folks wanting to get paid to click a mouse 8 hours a day in their pajamas at home.
Hestia
(3,818 posts)for residential - plumbing being the largest problem/cost. Also, the space between floors aren't built for residential use, LOTS of of retro-fitting, which is why it is cheaper to demolish and rebuild rather than rehab.
BlueIn_W_Pa
(842 posts)than say a 3 story office building. They are converting quite a few towers in Pittsburgh to mixed use with residential.
Linda Ed
(517 posts)So I can understand why it's important to be iin the office...Being a grandma, I saw the effects of the remote school and kids using their tablets and getting confused...I watched and listened and helped them understand some of the things but not all...statistics said children got behind that year and it was sad...
Nice for some to stay at home to work am sure,,no driving to work,can stay in pajamas but am sure it does have an affect in the system and things more than likely will get done much better than not having peer contact in an office...
Deminpenn
(17,301 posts)When you are isolated at home, you lose the ability to interact with, ask questions and learn from colleagues, not to mention the ability to socialize. And who is supposed to train new employees if everyone is working from home? I got really good at my job because I was able to get up, talk to people who had expertise in other areas of the supply system and learn how that affected my job.
I get that some people want to work from home because like the post up thread said, they've discovered that they can spend all day in pajamas, watch movies, walk the dog, play with the kids and work a couple hours a day. It's a good deal, 8 hours pay for a few hours work. Except sooner or later a business or the state/local/federal government is going to figure out maybe they don't need you and whatever work you're doing from home can be automated.
The bottom line is people cannot continue to be isolated from each other. It's bad for them and bad for the country. That's the reason to return to the office.
RobinA
(10,473 posts)who works from work because I can't do my job from home, I will be happy when the people I have to interact with from other agencies come back to work. Working from home may work well for some people, but not for the people who need them to do their jobs reliably. I have much extra work accommodating the home workers and in turn the turnaround on work product is slower and pretty half-assed. I'm sure this isn't the case with everyone, but in my experience working from home has contributed to some major deterioration in the quality of work that gets done and even the crappy work is taking longer. I kinda wonder how this supposed productivity increase is actually measured.