OPM has announced that the head of four federal departments and agencies located next to one another in Northwest Washington D.C. are planning to collaborate on quality of life and other workforce related issues while dubbing their buildings a "work-life" campus.
OPM director John Berry said this campus could showcase ways the federal government can improve wellness and morale while serving as a model to other agencies as to how they might pool resources.
"We will work hand in glove over the next year to review and improve the services and facilities available to the more than 6,000 federal employees that comprise our campus…OPM, DOI, GSA and the Federal Reserve," said Berry.
Possibly hinting at looming budgetary constraints, Berry said the campus experiment could show how to get by with less. "By combining our efforts, we can more adequately and economically address the issues of wellness and employee satisfaction than we could with an agency-by-agency approach," he said.
Acting GSA administrator Paul Prouty mentioned centralized child care, a farmer’s market, a campus garden and common green areas as examples of what such a collaboration might entail.