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By: FEDweek StaffA group of unions representing DoD civilian employees has asked Congress to pressure the department to extend an authority, due to expire September 30, of allowing employees to telework even if they have children or other dependents needing care in their homes.
Under a Pentagon memo issued in March, DoD’s waiver of the general restriction on such an arrangement is to expire September 30 and has not been renewed since then, members of the Federal Workers Alliance wrote to Capitol Hill leaders on defense and federal employment issues. Further, many DoD components are continuing to push forward with “reentry” policies that cut back on previously allowed telework, the letter says.
“As you can imagine, this is causing much angst and disruption among our members who are employed by the DoD. Many of these workers are single parents, or are caring for sick relatives, and have been doing while also performing their jobs all throughout the pandemic,” it says.
“Reverting now to a telework policy that runs counter of a “family friendly” model employer would be disrespectful to these workers, needlessly disrupt their work and family lives, be counterproductive to productivity, and hamper DOD recruitment and retention as the policy would be out of step with telework flexibilities in the private sector,” it says.
The letter asks the leaders to press DoD to continue to follow a general exception that OPM has allowed since early in the pandemic and to press OPM to make that exception a permanent policy. “DoD employees have proven it worked during the pandemic and we have every reason to believe it will work well after the pandemic,” it says.
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