Did you know that more than half of the federal workforce never worked remotely, even in the most dangerous period of the pandemic?
Health care workers at the Department of Veterans Affairs, Defense Department civilians, law enforcement at the Bureau of Prisons and Border Patrol, TSA officers, FEMA specialists – all showed their tremendous commitment to their agencies’ missions not only throughout the COVID crisis, but through numerous government shutdowns as well. Their co-workers who were able to continue government operations via telework performed no less heroically through these crises.
Yet a new House bill entitled the “Stopping Home Office Work’s Unproductive Problems (SHOW UP) Act” would have the public believe otherwise.
“In spite of the misinformation that forms the basis of a bill like the SHOW UP Act, the truth is that government employees show up for work every day – whether they’re working in an office, hospital, prison, military base, or from their homes,” said AFGE National President Everett Kelley. “Anyone who suggests otherwise is deliberately misleading the American public.”
Telework benefits agencies, workers, and the public they serve. In 2020, for example, telework helped the government save $180 million.
Congress should be writing bills to fix the real problems affecting government services for the American people such as outdated systems and technology, crumbling infrastructure, and understaffing. Each of these is a direct result of a political ideology that prescribes cuts to the federal budget no matter how much damage ensues.
“At a time when agencies across government are struggling to hire and retain a new generation of government employees, Congress should be focused on improving pay, benefits, and career development opportunities. Instead, we see message bills like the SHOW UP Act that denigrate the federal workforce and undermine recruitment and retention,” he added.
The Office of Personnel Management last week took a huge step toward aligning the locality pay maps for employees on the Federal Wage System and General Schedule.
Read More
With the election approaching Marcial Gomez talks about what’s on the line for TSA employees and his concerns about Project 2025.
Read More
Members of AFGE’s DEFCON Steering Group met along with AFGE staff and elected leaders to discuss ways to better serve employees throughout the DoD in the year ahead.
Read More
