Leaders Pitch Telework

The CRS report noted that planning for continuity of operations has emerged as a major selling point for telecommuting, even apart from any immediate crises. Both OPM and some key members of Congress have used the continuity consideration in urging agencies to more fully adopt such arrangements, which can involve work from home, from a telecommuting center, or some combination. OPM director Linda Springer also recently stressed the importance of telework and other forms of alternative work arrangements to younger people whom the government will be trying to recruit to replace retiring baby boom generation employees in the upcoming years. The House Government Reform Committee also held another hearing on the issue, in which GAO criticized the state of planning for using telework in emergency situations. Despite years of prodding by Congress, OPM and GSA, the percentage of federal employees who telecommute on even a part-time basis remains low.