A bill to enhance the Federal Telework Program:
The Telework Enhancement Act of 2010, S 707, is legislation designed to expand teleworking opportunities for employees in the Federal Governemnt by requiring agencies to:
- Expand opportunities and incorporate programs for eligible employees to telework
- Establish telework policies with the Office of Personnel Management
- Designate telework managing officers. These officers would be overseen by chief human capital officers.
Other components of the bill include provisions for agencies to pay travel expenses for teleworkers who have to come in to the office after a set maximum number of occasional visits.
S 707 Bill History and Status:
- Sponsored by Senator Danial Akaka (D-HI) and co-sponsored by Mary Landrieu (D-LA) and George Voinovich (R-OH)
- Introduced in March 25, 2009 and reported by Committee on May 20, 2009
- Passed Senate, by unanimous consent, on May 24, 2010 -- and goes on to be voted on in the House, then (hopefully) signed by the President
Background and Implications
Despite a Congressional mandate in 2001 requiring all Executive agencies to establish telework policies (Public Law 106-346, § 359) and utilize telework to the extent possible, studies have shown that teleworking adoption within the government is very low. As Office of Personnel Management Director John Berry testified before Congress on March 23, 2010, about 61% of Federal workers are eligible to telework, but only 5% have an agreement to regularly telework.
This may partially be due to management resistance to telework: A 2007 study by Telework Exchange, Federal Managers Association, and TANDBERG found that only 35% of Federal managers believed their agencies supported telework; 54% of managers who didn't telework themselves had favorable views of teleworking.
The Telework Enhancement Act, if signed into law, could go a long way towards increasing teleworking options for government employees and set an example for organizations and companies in other sectors. The bill has a good chance of passing, with demonstrated strong support for telecommuting and other flexible work arrangements in the White House, and President Obama stating the greater need for telework:
“In the end, we believe that all of this isn’t just about providing a better work experience for our employees, it’s about providing better, more efficient service for the American people — even in the face of snowstorms and other crises that keep folks from getting to the office” (source: Federal Computer Week)
The OPM's goal is to increase the number of teleworkers among eligible Federal employees by 50 percent from 2009 to 2011.
