# *Interagency Telework Issues Working Group*![](media/image1.png) 

# 

# 

# INTERAGENCY

# GOVERNMENTWIDE POLICY REVIEW

# ON

# *TELEWORK*

# AND

# *TELEWORK-RELATED ISSUES*

August 2002

# ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 

The General Services Administration and the Office of Personnel
Management **acknowledge and appreciate** the following individuals and
their agencies for their significant contribution to this important
effort:

###### THE INTERAGENCY WORK GROUP

-   Billy Michael, GSA, Work Group Co-Chair, Work Site Health/Safety
    Committee

-   Mallie Burruss, OPM, Work Group Co-Chair, Training and Support
    Committee

-   Marjorie Adams, Agriculture, Human Resources Committee Lead

-   Karen Billingslea, Health and Human Services, Human Resources
    Committee

-   Beverly Brebnor, Commerce, Training and Support Committee

-   Don Faulkner, Transportation, Technology Committee Co-Lead

-   Brenda Glasgow, Tennessee Valley Authority, Training and Support
    Committee

-   Alisa Green, Health and Human Services, Human Resources Committee

-   Gail Guest, Labor (now at Immigration and Naturalization Service),
    Work Site Health/Safety Committee Lead

-   Marge Higgins, General Services Administration, Training and Support
    Committee Lead, also on Human Resources Committee

-   Susan Huntley, Health and Human Services, Training and Support
    Committee

-   Wendell Joice, General Services Administration, Workgroup General
    Adviser, Tax Committee Lead, Report Editor

-   Joann Jones, Agency for International Development, Human Resources
    Committee

-   Jennifer Leung, Coast Guard, Technology Committee

-   Louise McDonough, Defense, Human Resources Committee

-   Bruce Murray, Energy, Legal/Regulatory Co-Lead, Human Resources
    Committee

-   Theresa Noll, General Services Administration, Technology Committee

-   Alice Owens, Health and Human Services, Human Resources Committee

-   Ron Patterson, Office of Personnel Management, Continuation of
    Operations Committee Lead, also Technology Committee

-   Terry Poyner, State, Technology Committee Co-Lead

-   Peggy Rapp, Commerce, Human Resources Committee

-   Helen Grijalva, Education, Training and Support Committee

-   Laura Wilmot, National Science Foundation, Human Resources Committee

-   Lesly Wilson, General Services Administration, Legal and Regulatory
    Committee Co-Lead

**SPECIAL THANKS** **TO**:

-   Our attorneys, Lesly Wilson (GSA) and Monique Malson (Education) for
    their advice, legal assistance, and editorial review/revision;

-   Stan Kaczmarczyk, (GSA) for editorial review/revision;

-   The numerous agencies that provided technical guidance and material
    for this report.

# TABLE OF CONTENTS

[ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 1](#acknowledgements)

[TABLE OF CONTENTS 3](#table-of-contents)

[EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 5](#executive-summary)

[INTRODUCTION 8](#introduction-1)

[FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 10](#findings-and-recommendations)

[HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT ISSUES
10](#human-resources-management-issues-1)

[OVERVIEW 10](#overview)

[ISSUE: PROGRAM TERMINOLOGY 10](#issue-program-terminology)

[ISSUE: Eligibility CRITERIA FOR TELEWORK
11](#issue-eligibility-criteria-for-telework)

[ISSUE: Tracking Agency Teleworker Numbers
12](#issue-tracking-agency-teleworker-numbers)

[ISSUE: WORK HOURS FLEXIBILITIES 14](#issue-work-hours-flexibilities)

[ISSUE: DUTY STATION DETERMINATIONS
17](#issue-duty-station-determinations)

[Issue: Documenting the telework Agreement
19](#issue-documenting-the-telework-agreement)

[Issue: Closure of Main Office or Early Dismissal
20](#issue-closure-of-main-office-or-early-dismissal)

[ISSUE: DEPENDENT CARE 21](#issue-dependent-care)

[issue: Performance Management 22](#issue-performance-management)

[ISSUE: RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION 24](#issue-recruitment-and-retention)

[LEGAL/REGULATORY ISSUES 27](#legalregulatory-issues-1)

[OVERVIEW 27](#overview-1)

[ISSUE: APPLYING LEGISLATION AND REGULATIONS
27](#issue-applying-legislation-and-regulations)

[CONTINUATION OF OPERATIONS ISSUES
29](#continuation-of-operations-issues-1)

[OVERVIEW 29](#overview-2)

[ISSUE: INTEGRATING TELEWORK INTO COOP PLANS
29](#issue-integrating-telework-into-coop-plans)

[TELEWORK TECHNOLOGY ISSUES 31](#telework-technology-issues-1)

[OVERVIEW 31](#overview-3)

[ISSUE: POLICY/GUIDANCE FOR TELEWORK TECHNOLOGY
31](#issue-policyguidance-for-telework-technology)

[TELEWORK TECHNOLOGY BARRIERS 35](#telework-technology-barriers-1)

[OVERVIEW 35](#overview-4)

[ISSUE: TECHNOLOGY BARRIERS TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF FEDERAL TELEWORK
35](#issue-technology-barriers-to-the-development-of-federal-telework)

[WORKSITE HEALTH AND SAFETY ISSUES
37](#worksite-health-and-safety-issues-1)

[OVERVIEW 37](#overview-5)

[ISSUE: APPLYING WORKSITE HEALTH/SAFETY POLICIES TO TELEWORK
37](#issue-applying-worksite-healthsafety-policies-to-telework)

[INCOME TAX IMPLICATIONS OF TELEWORK
39](#income-tax-implications-of-telework-1)

[OVERVIEW 39](#overview-6)

[ISSUE: TAX DEDUCTIONS AND UNCLEAR GUIDANCE
39](#issue-tax-deductions-and-unclear-guidance)

[TELEWORK TRAINING AND SUPPORT ISSUES
42](#telework-training-and-support-issues-1)

[OVERVIEW 42](#overview-7)

[ISSUE: GUIDANCE AND COORDINATION FOR TELEWORK TRAINING
42](#issue-guidance-and-coordination-for-telework-training)

[APPENDICES 43](#appendices)

[APPENDIX A : HR COMMITTEE DOCUMENTATION
43](#appendix-a-hr-committee-documentation)

[PROGRAM TERMINOLOGY 43](#program-terminology)

[TELEWORK PROGRAM ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA   (As of October 2001)
44](#telework-program-eligibility-criteria-as-of-october-2001)

[TELECOMMUTING TRACKING 45](#telecommuting-tracking)

[WORK SCHEDULE FLEXIBILITIES 47](#work-schedule-flexibilities)

[DOCUMENTING THE TELEWORK AGREEMENT
60](#documenting-the-telework-agreement)

[CLOSURE OF MAIN OFFICE OR EARLY DISMISSAL
61](#closure-of-main-office-or-early-dismissal)

[DEPENDENT CARE 65](#dependent-care)

[PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT 69](#performance-management)

[RECRUITING AND RETENTION 71](#recruiting-and-retention)

[DETERMINING DUTY STATION 72](#determining-duty-station)

[APPENDIX B: LEGAL/REGULATORY DOCUMENTATION
79](#appendix-b-legalregulatory-documentation)

[GOVERNMENTAL OBJECTIVES AND REFERENCES
79](#governmental-objectives-and-references)

[REFERENCES 79](#references)

[LIABILITY ISSUES 83](#liability-issues)

[EXPENSES ASSOCIATED WITH TELEWORK
84](#expenses-associated-with-telework)

[PROTECTION OF RECORDS 86](#protection-of-records)

[REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION 87](#reasonable-accommodation)

[NOTES ON EXISTING AUTHORITIES SUPPORTING TELEWORK
87](#notes-on-existing-authorities-supporting-telework)

[APPENDIX C - CONTINUATION OF OPERATIONS DOCUMENTATION
89](#appendix-c---continuation-of-operations-documentation)

[APPENDIX D -- TECHNOLOGY ISSUES DOCUMENTATION
90](#appendix-d-technology-issues-documentation)

[Section I: Security Issues 90](#section-i-security-issues)

[Section II: Connectivity 91](#section-ii-connectivity)

[Section III: Use of Government Equipment in Personal Residence
94](#section-iii-use-of-government-equipment-in-personal-residence)

[Section IV: Technical and Help Desk Support
97](#section-iv-technical-and-help-desk-support)

[APPENDIX E- WORKSITE HEALTH AND SAFETY DOCUMENTATION
99](#appendix-e--worksite-health-and-safety-documentation)

[Q'S AND A'S (FROM OSHA AND OWCP) 99](#qs-and-as-from-osha-and-owcp)

[FECA BULLETIN NO. 98-09 104](#feca-bulletin-no.-98-09)

[APPENDIX F -- TRAINING DOCUMENTATION
106](#appendix-f-training-documentation)

# EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

####### 

####### INTRODUCTION

As a result of telework expansion in the Federal government, agencies
have directed a large number of policy inquiries to the Office of
Personnel Management (OPM) and the General Services Administration
(GSA), the centers of telework expertise for the Federal government. In
response, OPM and GSA established a governmentwide policy review and
recruited an interagency working group to conduct the review. The review
was established to identify policy actions needed to facilitate agency
use and expansion of telework and focused on the following policy areas:
Human Resources Management, Legal/Regulatory, Continuation of
Operations, Technology, Worksite Health and Safety, Taxes, and General
Training and Support.

This report provides the findings (analyses and recommendations) on the
aforementioned policy areas. The report's appendices provide
supplementary documentation for the reported findings and
recommendations.

Although this project was initiated in response to agency concerns and
inquiries regarding the applicability and suitability of various
governmentwide policies for Federal telework programs, [it is important
to note that the resulting findings and recommendations represent policy
improvements that, while focused on telework, are needed for effective
government functioning in general]{.underline}. The recommendations
contained in this report stem from an extensive and intensive policy
review conducted by an interagency workgroup. These very practical
recommendations provide key policy revisions and/or clarifications that
will improve Government performance, across the board. [Because of the
importance and applicability of these recommendations, a
well-coordinated effort with top-level governmentwide support,
direction, and sponsorship is needed to effect a timely and successful
implementation of the recommended improvements.]{.underline}

####### SUMMARY OF FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

####### 

INTRODUCTORY NOTE:

In the course of conducting this review of governmentwide policy, it
became clear that many of the identified policy issues are related to
inadequate communication and awareness of the respective policies as
opposed to problems with the particular tenets of the policies. As a
result, the work group developed a general recommendation to establish a
governmentwide telework information web site to facilitate awareness,
convenient availability, and communication of telework-related policy
and other information. This recommendation was undertaken and
accomplished by the General Services Administration (GSA) and the Office
Personnel Management (OPM). The resulting website (www.telework.gov),
designed to provide one-stop guidance and information on federal
telework policies, is mentioned as an implementation tool in many of the
following recommendations.

####### HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT ISSUES

-   Program Terminology - OPM should take steps to standardize and
    clarify Federal telework terminology.

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   Eligibility Criteria for Telework -- OPM should establish
    governmentwide telework eligibility policies on which agencies can
    base their respective telework eligibility criteria.

-   Tracking Agency Teleworker Numbers -- OPM should work with Congress,
    GSA, and other partners, as needed, to establish an accurate and
    efficient telework information system.

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   Work Hours Flexibilities -- OPM should revise governmentwide policy
    on work schedules to achieve an optimum balance between maximizing
    the flexibility of work schedules while at the same time ensuring
    employee accessibility and responsiveness to operational needs.

-   Duty Station Determinations -- Applicable policies, guidance, and
    regulations (such as OPM's Guide for Processing Personnel Actions)
    should be revised and reconciled to reflect a standard
    governmentwide definition of duty station that is mutually
    beneficial to teleworkers and agencies.

    -   Documenting the Telework Agreement -- Each agency should
        establish an effective and appropriate policy on the use of
        telework agreements.

    -   Closure of Main Office or Early Dismissal -- OPM should revise
        existing policy and guidance to develop and publicize an
        effective and appropriate closure/dismissal policy regarding
        teleworkers.

    -   Dependent Care -- OPM and GSA should reconcile and revise
        dependent care telework guidance and policy to facilitate more
        effective application of telework in dependent care situations.

    -   Performance Management -- OPM should clarify and revise
        performance management guidance for telework in order to achieve
        more equitable and effective application of performance
        management to telework situations.

    -   Recruitment and Retention -- Federal agencies and organizations
        should make better use of telework as a recruitment and
        retention tool.

####### LEGAL/REGULATORY ISSUES

-   Applying Legislation and Regulations -- OPM should (1) establish a
    mechanism for clarifying telework-related legislation/policy and (2)
    conduct oversight reviews of agency telework eligibility
    determinations and management plans; applicable laws, regulations,
    and policies should be clarified, revised, or established (as
    needed) for more consistent interpretation and effective coverage of
    teleworker-related legal issues such as property damage issues,
    agency provided equipment, and reimbursement for work-related
    expenses.

####### CONTINUATION OF OPERATIONS ISSUES

-   Integrating Telework Into COOP Plans -- Agencies, facilitated by
    revised and expanded guidance from FEMA, should make more effective
    use of telework in their emergency preparedness/response plans.

####### 

####### TELEWORK TECHNOLOGY ISSUES

-   Policy and guidance for application of technology in telework
    arrangements -- Organizations such as GSA, OPM, the National
    Institute for Standards and Technology, and the Chief Information
    Officers Council should, depending on the particular issues,
    independently or collaboratively establish substantially improved
    policy and/or guidance to assist agencies develop and operate their
    telework technology applications.

####### TELEWORK TECHNOLOGY BARRIERS

-   Understanding and resolving potential technology barriers to
    telework -- The Office of Management and Budget should implement the
    recommendations provided by GSA's comprehensive report on technology
    barriers and solutions for Federal telework.

####### WORKSITE HEALTH AND SAFETY ISSUES

-   Applying Worksite Health and Safety Policies to Telework --
    Facilitated by worksite safety and health information provided by
    DOL, OPM and GSA, agencies should ensure that management and staff
    are adequately informed about telework and worksite health and
    safety issues.

####### INCOME TAX IMPLICATIONS OF TELEWORK

-   Tax Deductions and Unclear Guidance -- The Internal Revenue Service
    should clarify and revise tax law and guidance to provide a more
    equitable and supportive tax situation for teleworkers by (1)
    allowing home office/equipment deductions for home-based teleworkers
    or, alternatively, specifying (in Publication 587) that home-based
    teleworkers satisfy existing requirements for such deductions
    and (2) publishing specific tax guidance for teleworkers.

####### TELEWORK TRAINING AND SUPPORT ISSUES

-   Guidance and Coordination for Telework Training -- OPM should
    develop, communicate, and coordinate telework training content and
    guidance.

######## FINAL REPORT

Although this project was initiated in response to agency concerns and
inquiries regarding the applicability and suitability of various
governmentwide policies for Federal telework programs, [it is important
to note that the resulting findings and recommendations represent policy
improvements that, while focused on telework, are needed for effective
government functioning in general]{.underline}. The recommendations
contained in this report stem from an extensive and intensive policy
review conducted by an interagency workgroup. These very practical
recommendations provide key policy revisions and/or clarifications that
will improve the Government's ability to meet today's demands,
effectively and efficiently, across the board as well as for telework
programs. [Because of this general importance and applicability, a
well-coordinated effort with top-level governmentwide support,
direction, and sponsorship is needed to effect a timely and successful
implementation of the recommended improvements.]{.underline}

# INTRODUCTION

During the past decade, Federal agencies have been expanding their use
of telework and consequently, the number of Federal teleworkers has
grown from a few thousand in the early 1990's to over 70,000 as of this
writing. Most agencies now have established telework programs. This
increased utilization has created an increase in the number of policy
issues facing agencies as they implement and/or expand telework
programs. Generally, these policy issues stem from a lack of fit between
the relatively new telework work arrangement and existing policies that
predate the onset of telework in the Federal government. As a result,
agencies have directed a large number of policy inquiries to the Office
of Personnel Management (OPM) and the General Services Administration
(GSA), the centers of telework expertise for the Federal government.

Responding to this increase in telework-related policy inquiries, OPM
and GSA established a governmentwide policy review and recruited an
interagency working group to conduct the review. The review was
established to identify policy actions needed to facilitate agency use
and expansion of telework:

> *As a result of this increasing importance of telework, there has been
> an increase in agency inquiries on telework policy issues. Responding
> to these factors and to the Administration\'s desire to encourage
> greater Federal participation, OPM and GSA are leading an interagency
> initiative to provide policies that will facilitate agency use and
> expansion of telework. In order to develop a new issuance on telework
> policies, we are asking agencies to identify issue areas that could
> benefit from policy clarification and/or revision.*
>
> \[Excerpt from letter sent to agencies, 9/8/2000\]

The "Interagency Telework Issues Working Group" was charged with
reviewing and addressing agency policy inquiries, reviewing associated
policy areas, identifying new policies needed and/or policies that
require clarification or revision, and developing recommendations. The
work group established subcommittees that focused, respectively, on the
following policy areas:

-   **Human Resources Management: "**Telework" definitions/terminology
    and the application of particular human resources issues, such as
    duty station determination or emergency closures, to telework.

-   **Legal/Regulatory:** A wide range of legal questions, including
    Privacy Act and liability issues.

-   **Continuation of Operations Program (COOP):** Strategies for
    utilizing telework for more effective strategies for emergency
    preparedness and response.

-   **Telework Technology:** Agency roles in providing technical
    equipment, technical support and services to support telework.

-   **Worksite Health and Safety:** Agency responsibilities for ensuring
    safe and healthy work environments and practices, wherever the work
    of the Government may be performed.

-   **Taxes:** Income tax issues for home offices (telework) and
    equipment.

-   **General Training and Support:** Strategies for enhancing training
    and support for teleworkers and telework programs.

This report provides the analyses and recommendations from the
respective committees. Supplementary documentation for the committee
reports is provided in the report's appendices.

# FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

INTRODUCTORY NOTE:

In the course of conducting this review of governmentwide policy, it
became clear that many of the identified policy issues are related to
inadequate communication and resulting awareness as opposed to problems
with the particular policies themselves. As a result, the work group
developed a general recommendation to establish a governmentwide
telework information web site to facilitate awareness, convenient
availability, and communication of telework-related policy and other
information. This recommendation was undertaken and accomplished by the
General Services Administration (GSA) and the Office Personnel
Management (OPM). The resulting website (www.telework.gov), designed to
provide one-stop guidance and information on federal telework policies,
is mentioned as an implementation tool in many of the following
recommendations.

## HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT ISSUES

### OVERVIEW

This section contains the reports and recommendations made by the Human
Resources Management (HR) subcommittee of the Interagency Telework
Issues Working Group. This subcommittee was charged with addressing the
HR-related policy and/or guidance issues affecting the implementation
and/or operation of Federal telework programs. Supporting documentation
for this section is provided in Appendix A.

### ISSUE: PROGRAM TERMINOLOGY

In recent years, both GSA and OPM have issued guidance on how agencies
should implement telecommuting, telework, and/or flexiplace work
arrangements. During this time, however, there has been confusion
regarding what, specifically, is meant by the terms telecommuting,
telework, and flexiplace. This confusion has caused problems for agency
policymakers, telework program planners and coordinators, and other
officials involved in the design, implementation, operation, and
expansion of agency telework programs.

#### ANALYSIS 

Telecommuting, telework, and flexiplace are terms that can mean
different things to different people. These terms can connote any
combination or all of the following: work at home, satellite offices,
telework centers, and/or other alternative work sites; work conducted at
alternative work sites located within or outside the commuting area of
the main office (such as in another state or country); and episodic/ad
hoc alternative work site arrangements or ongoing part-time or full-time
alternative work site arrangements. Also, continuing advances in
technology enabling new forms of alternative work arrangements has added
to the array of different terminologies used/needed to identify such
programs. Finally, telework centers of expertise such as GSA, OPM, and
the International Telework Association and Council have each used these
terms differently.

Based on our analysis, compared to the term 'telework', the term
'telecommuting' is a more restrictive term that connotes work performed
at an alternative worksite to reduce the costs, stress, and time it
takes to commute to and from the principle office. Telework, on the
other hand, tends to connote a more general alternative worksite
arrangement that is not bound by commuting issues.  Now that legislation
has been enacted requiring agencies to have a 'telecommuting' policy
that maximizes alternative worksite arrangement opportunities, a more
specific official (governmentwide) definition is needed.  

 

Another area of terminology confusion results from the increasing number
of Federal employees working full time from alternative worksites
located beyond the main office commuting area (such as worksites in
other states or countries). While this type of long distance arrangement
is considered a type of telework and while many experts consider the
distance (of an employee's workstation from the employing organization's
main worksite) an irrelevant factor in identifying telework
arrangements, such arrangements can involve policies, logistics, and
other considerations that are different from those for local commuting
area work arrangements. Because of these potential program differences,
there is no clear consensus among Federal agencies that such
arrangements are telework. 

To facilitate effective establishment, operation, and communication
regarding Federal telework programs, OPM, GSA and Federal agencies need
to come to a general understanding of how these terms will be used.
Also, guidance/policy from OPM and GSA needs to establish whether
situations involving employees working from alternative work sites
located in other states/countries need to be treated differently from
those in which the alternative worksite is located in the same commuting
area as the principal office. 

#### RECOMMENDATIONS 

We recommend that OPM take steps to:

-   Adopt the term \"telework\" as an umbrella term, for all Federal
    alternative worksite arrangements, regardless of the location
    (relative to the local commuting area) of the alternative worksite;

-   Provide specific Federal definitions for terms such as regular
    telework and ad hoc or episodic telework based on the one day/week
    minimum requirement: regular telework - specified in the Conference
    Report accompanying Public Law 106-346 and as stated by OPM in it's
    Congressional testimony posted at

> <http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=107_house_hearings&docid=f:72126.wais> 

-   Define locations that can be considered alternative worksites (such
    as the employee\'s residence, telework centers, other reasonable
    locations, etc.)

(See Appendix A, Program Terminology, for more information)

### ISSUE: Eligibility CRITERIA FOR TELEWORK

Since there is no governmentwide policy on employee eligibility for
telework programs, determination of eligibility criteria is left to
agency discretion. This situation has resulted in inequitable telework
eligibility policies among as well as within individual Federal
agencies. In fact, such criteria may vary from manager to manager within
given organizations. Such variability in eligibility criteria is a
significant barrier to fair and effective expansion of Federal
telework. 

#### ANALYSIS

 

OPM guidance on eligibility criteria is based on general personal
characteristics (organized, conscientious, highly disciplined,
self-starter, etc.) that are usually and uncertainly assessed using
subjective measures. In many cases, therefore, subjective supervisor
assessments inaccurately and/or inappropriately impede telework
participation. Moreover, such subjective determinations of employee
eligibility often are more important than determinations regarding
whether the job tasks are portable or other determinations of job
suitability for telework.  To avoid such subjectivity problems and to
develop successful telework programs, some agencies establish
eligibility criteria that are overly prescriptive and still result in
the inaccurate and inappropriate exclusion of suitable employees.

With the passage of Public Law 106-346, each agency is required to
establish telework policies that will allow eligible employees to
telework to the maximum extent possible. While the law did not define
eligibility criteria, the intent was for agencies to make telework
opportunities available to employees to the maximum extent possible
without diminishing job performance. Under the current circumstances,
agency compliance with the intent of the law is difficult to achieve and
measure.  

To resolve this situation, OPM could establish a policy, in addition to
its existing guidance, providing governmentwide telework eligibility
criteria. Such a policy could be analogous to OPM's current policy
defining a Federal employee\'s eligibility for benefits under the
Federal Employees Health Benefits Program and the Federal Employees Life
Insurance Program. Alternatively, OPM could continue to allow individual
agencies to define their own eligibility criteria provided that OPM
certifies that the criteria are equitable, reasonable, clearly stated,
and supportive of the intent of the aforementioned public law.  

#### RECOMMENDATIONS 

We recommend that OPM

-   Establish a policy that all Federal employees are potentially
    eligible to participate in telework, unless excluded by their agency
    based on objective criteria that are equitable, reasonable, clearly
    stated, and supportive of the intent of Public Law 106-346.

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   Require each individual agency to identify and define, in its
    telework policy, positions excluded from telework arrangements; such
    exclusions should be based strictly on tasks performed in the
    excluded positions.

(See Appendix A: Eligibility CRITERIA FOR TELEWORK for more information)

### ISSUE: Tracking Agency Teleworker Numbers 

Federal agencies have at least two separate governmentwide reporting
requirements associated with their respective telework programs. The
Federal Employees Clean Air Incentives Act (CAI) Report (submitted by
GSA to the President and Congress) requires, among other things, that
Federal agencies report the numbers of teleworkers and associated agency
costs to GSA on a biennial basis. OPM's implementation of Public Law
106-346, Section 359 (October 23, 2000) requires that agencies
periodically report updated information on their telework policies and
numbers of teleworkers to OPM. There are problems in the GSA and OPM
telework reporting requirements that hamper the efficient collection of
accurate information needed to track the progress of Federal telework.

#### ANALYSIS

Regarding the CAI report, the reporting requirement definition for
'telecommuting' is not clear and, therefore, agency reporting varies
according to their respective interpretations of the definition. Some
agencies only report regularly scheduled recurring telecommuting, while
others include ad hoc (otherwise known as episodic or situational)
telecommuting and telecommuting for medical accommodations. This
inconsistent reporting of data makes the report unreliable.

 

Regarding the OPM report, while OPM has taken steps to clarify
telecommuting definitions for its reporting requirements, there is still
agency confusion and difficulty associated with the lack of established
data collection mechanisms. This confusion and difficulty reduces the
accuracy of the data collected by OPM.

Despite the existence of the aforementioned reporting requirements,
there is no corresponding requirement or guidance for Federal agencies
to establish and maintain the necessary records or to establish a
telework tracking system (i.e., numbers of teleworkers, type of
telecommuting arrangement used: telework center, home-based; commute
travel miles and time saved by telecommuters; reduction of single
occupancy vehicle commuting; etc.). Thus, many agencies do not collect
this information in a routine and systematic manner. In addition to
reducing the accuracy and efficiency of the response to the GSA and OPM
requirements, this lack of an effective telework tracking system also
impacts the availability of important information for activities such as
business case and/or environmental impact analyses.

 

Thus,

-   Federal telework reporting/data collection is inconsistent,
    unreliable, inefficient, and duplicative;

-   Federal telework reporting requirements should be consolidated and
    unified;

-   A single agency should be given the responsibility for collecting
    and reporting all Federal telework data;

-   To ensure accuracy and reliability, specific and clear
    governmentwide definitions should be developed for the reporting
    requirements;

-   Finally, policy, guidance, and technical assistance should be
    established to require Federal agencies to establish adequate
    telework tracking systems. Given the variety of agency
    circumstances, the particular type of tracking system should be at
    the agency's discretion, as long as it captures the required
    information within the required timeframes. For example, agencies
    could establish (1) stand-alone tracking mechanisms devoted solely
    to telework, (2) mechanisms that piggyback on existing data systems,
    such as the time and attendance system, or (3) multi-agency systems,
    such as is the case with centrally managed, multi-agency payroll
    systems. 

#### RECOMMENDATIONS

We recommend that

-   OPM, in conjunction with Congressional stakeholders, establish
    policy and guidance clarifying definitions and other relevant
    specifications for tracking Federal telework;

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   A single agency be responsible for collecting and reporting Federal
    telework information and that this agency carry out this
    responsibility according to timeframes and other specifications
    established by OPM and Congressional stakeholders.

-   GSA, OPM, and other agencies working with Federal telework data
    collaborate to (1) determine all elements of Federal telework data
    that need to be collected and (2) consolidate them into a single
    reporting requirement so that agencies can establish appropriate and
    efficient tracking mechanisms to provide consistent and accurate
    telework information. We recommend, at a minimum, the data elements
    listed in Table 1: [Telework Data Elements Recommended for Inclusion
    in Consolidated Reporting]{.underline} (Appendix A: Tracking Agency
    Teleworker Numbers).

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   OPM require all Federal agencies to establish, in a timely manner, a
    system for collecting the information required by the aforementioned
    consolidated reporting requirement and that OPM provide the
    necessary specifications, guidance, and technical assistance for
    such a system.

 (See Appendix A, Tracking AGENCY TELEWORKER NUMBERS, for more
information)

### ISSUE: WORK HOURS FLEXIBILITIES 

Flexibility of work hours is a key program component of effective
telework programs. Teleworking provides the opportunity for employees to
tailor their work days and hours to those periods when they are most
productive, unrestrained by the time and stress involved with commuting
and other preparation for the traditional workplace. Teleworkers have
the potential for working anytime throughout the day (or night) subject
to operational requirements and family/personal commitments. By taking
advantage of this flexibility, teleworking can benefit both employees
and employers. The issue, however, is that teleworkers need, but often
don't have, this flexibility to optimize their alternate worksite work
schedules.

#### ANALYSIS 

There are operational questions associated with the use of alternate
work schedules by teleworkers. For example:

-   Is it sufficient that staff are made aware that a given teleworker
    will not be available (on duty) during certain traditional duty
    hours and that the teleworker is putting in the required number of
    hours at other times during the day? Would this violate personnel
    policies?

-   Is there any prohibition to combining telework with other
    flexibilities? For example, can a teleworker also work a flexible or
    compressed work schedule? Some agency policies don't allow this;
    others don't make it clear.

-   Under what circumstances are teleworkers able to work overtime? 

Contrary to offerings in other sectors, Federal teleworker flexibilities
do not include the ability to utilize work schedules based on 24 hours
/7 days a week. An exception is the U.S. Food and Drug Administration\'s
\"any 80\" work schedule which defines the tour of duty as Monday 12:01
am to Saturday 11:59 pm (see Appendix A: Work Hours Flexibilities). A
state government example is the Office of Technology for the State of
Minnesota, which allows telecommuters to develop their telework
schedules around dependent care duties. An employee can telecommute in
the evening when another person is available to provide care. An
employee who has a sick child at home on a scheduled telecommuting day
may use sick leave for that portion of the day when caring for the
child.   

In general, a government-wide policy is needed to allow teleworkers,
where feasible, to be excluded from standard hours of duty regulations
and to utilize work schedules mutually agreed upon by themselves and
their management. Also, there needs to be a governmentwide policy
clarifying the rules for combining telework with other flexibilities
e.g., flexible and compressed work schedules. In considering such new
work schedule policies, it is important to note the:  

-   Legislative mandate (pursuant to Section 359 of Public Law No.
    106-346) for agencies to increase participation in teleworking;

-   Administrative ease with which new work schedules can be introduced
    and maintained;

-   Scope of existing legislation and regulations to accommodate new
    work schedule policies;

-   Need for equitable treatment of all employees, including those who
    do and those who do not telework; and

-   Traditional Federal government culture, which has not embraced
    telework in any significant way.

#### RECOMMENDATIONS  

We recommend that OPM establish:

##### [Hours of Work  ]{.underline}

-   Governmentwide policy on work schedules to achieve an optimum
    balance between maximizing the flexibility of work schedules while
    at the same time ensuring employee accessibility and responsiveness
    to operational needs as required. This policy should provide that:

    1.  Agencies establish maximally flexible work schedule options that
        allow teleworkers to optimize the effectiveness of their
        arrangements. Agencies should choose from the wide range of work
        schedules available within existing legislative parameters
        including:

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   Work schedules that provide for differences between a teleworker's
    alternative worksite and main worksite schedules (as described under
    Option A in Appendix A, Work Hours Flexibilities, OPTIONS).

-   \"Any 80 (Monday through Friday)\" work schedules (as described
    under Option B in Appendix A, Work Hours Flexibilities, OPTIONS).

-   \"Any 80 (Monday through Saturday)\" work schedules (as described
    under Option C in Appendix A, Work Hours Flexibilities, OPTIONS).

    1.  Impediments to agency adoption of work \"Anytime-Anywhere\"
        systems (as described under Option D in Appendix A, Work Hours
        Flexibilities, OPTIONS) are removed. This action will require an
        amendments to:

        -   5 U.S.C. 6122(a)(1) to remove the legal requirement for core
            hours;

        -   5 CFR 610.111(d) to remove the entitlement to Sunday pay for
            employees whose tour of duty includes Sunday hours; and

        -   5 U.S.C. 6101 to amend the definition of standard and
            non-standard work schedules to accommodate the increased
            flexibility. 

    2.  OPM expand work schedule alternatives to include 24 hours/7 days
        a week operations. A 24/7 operation will be of benefit to the
        entire workforce (telework and non-telework). This additional
        flexibility will allow employees to optimize their schedules in
        order to balance their work and family responsibilities.

##### [Telework Days]{.underline}

-   Governmentwide policy stating that there are no limits on the number
    of telecommuting days vs. \"in-office\" days per week
    for teleworkers, and that agencies should develop flexible
    procedures that allow supervisors and teleworkers to determine the
    best balance for individual situations. 

##### [Teleworking with Alternative Work Schedules ]{.underline}

-   Governmentwide policy stating that teleworkers are eligible to work
    AWS and/or any other work schedule flexibility available to their
    organization, without restriction, based on their job requirements
    and personal circumstances (as described under OPTIONS and
    Alternative Work Schedules in Appendix A, Work Hours
    Flexibilities). 

##### [Overtime  ]{.underline}

-   Governmentwide policy clarifying the application of overtime for
    teleworkers \[as outlined in OPM responses to questions 4 and 7,
    Associated Q's and A's, Appendix A, Work Hours Flexibilities\]

### ISSUE: DUTY STATION DETERMINATIONS 

\"Official Duty Station\" is defined/described inconsistently in Federal
policy and guidance (see Appendix A, Duty Station Determinations, Duty
Station Definitions).  This inconsistency, along with the fact that, for
telework purposes, Federal policy and guidance do not adequately address
the issue of duty station, creates implementation and operation problems
for teleworkers, managers, and program administrators.

   

#### ANALYSIS 

**Policy Inconsistency**. The OPM "Guide for Processing Personnel
Actions" ("Guide") \[revised December 1997\] is considered by OPM as the
best reference for understanding duty station and the location of an
employee\'s work site. In determining duty station for most employees,
the "Guide" focuses on the place where the employee \"works, or at which
the employee\'s activities are based, as determined by the employing
agency\"; i.e., \"the location of the employee\'s desk or place where
the employee normally performs his or her duties\....\". OPM's official
telecommuting guidance (found in "Balancing Work and Family Demands
Through Telecommuting"), however, focuses duty station determination on
the location of the teleworker's main office. Thus, the "Guide", but not
the telecommuting guidance, would prescribe a change in duty station if
the employee\'s work site is \"normally\" located away from the duty
station of the main office. 

Such inconsistency is important since official duty station location
significantly impacts pay rates, travel expenses and allowances, and
Reduction in Force (RIF) determinations. For example, there are numerous
telework arrangements in which employees work at alternative work
locations outside the commuting area of the main office, such as in
other states or countries. Frequently, these arrangements require that
the employee travel periodically to the main office; in such cases, the
location of the official duty station, typically, will decide whether
the employee or the agency pays for the required travel.

 

**Policy Adequacy**. Federal policy indicates that most commute-related
travel time is not counted as hours of work. Regarding teleworkers whose
homes are designated as authorized worksites, however, there are
occasions when such travel should be counted as hours of work.

For more information (including OPM responses to duty station
questions), see Appendix A, dUTY sTATION dETERMINATIONS. 

#### RECOMMENDATIONS 

-   All relevant policies and regulations should reference or utilize
    the definition for official duty station that is in the "Guide for
    Processing Personnel Actions." The "Guide", however, should be
    changed to delete the first sentence in paragraph 3 B - \"The
    location of an employee\'s work site is the location of the
    employee\'s desk or the place where the employee normally performs
    his or her duties.\" Instead, the definitions and resultant
    determinations for \"local commute\", \"remote commute,\" and
    \"remote work\" in the **Proposed Definitions and Applications**
    document in Appendix A, Duty Stations should be adopted and
    incorporated.

-   Because of the travel, reduction-in-force, and, particularly,
    locality pay impacts of duty station determinations, agencies should
    establish procedures that inform affected employees and their
    supervisors/managers of the impacts of a change in duty station
    before arrangements are finalized. Also, agencies should specify, in
    the employee\'s telework agreement, whether or not the employee\'s
    new duty station constitutes a separate competitive area for
    reduction-in-force determinations.

-   Applicable sections of the "Department of State Standardized
    Regulation" (DSSR) should be revised to authorize agencies to limit
    the total amount of allowances for full-time employees that request
    (and are approved) to telework from an overseas location. The DSSR
    should authorize limiting the amount of such allowances to an amount
    (plus base pay) that is comparable to the locality pay for the
    locality in which the employee\'s organization is located. The
    revised regulation should include mechanisms to ensure (1) fair,
    consistent, equitable implementation and (2) application only to
    employee-initiated requests as opposed to agency initiated
    reassignments.

-   Section 302.1.3 of the Federal Travel Regulation (FTR) should be
    revised to include \"remote commute\" telework situations under
    subparagraph (2) Discretionary Coverage. This will allow agencies
    to (1) approve employee requests to relocate outside their normal
    commuting area, (2) change the duty station determination, as
    needed, to reflect the relocation, and (3) avoid being obligated to
    pay all travel expenses associated with commutes to the main office.

-   The applicable parts of the FTR and 5 CFR should be revised to (1)
    delete mileage specifications for the mileage radius of the duty
    station and (2) specify that the mileage is unlimited. This will not
    change the provision for compensating employees for official travel
    beyond their normal commute to the main office or alternative work
    site.

-   5 CFR 550.112(j)(2) and 551.422(b) should be revised to reflect that
    when alternative work sites are designated work locations, travel
    time for travel between the main and alternative work sites during
    approved work schedules should be counted normally as hours of work.

### Issue: Documenting the telework Agreement

### 

Currently, there is no governmentwide requirement for a written telework
agreement between the teleworker and the organization. OPM guidance,
however, specifies that an employee who works a telecommuting schedule
(other than for short periods) should sign an agreement with the agency.
The purpose of the agreement is to identify and communicate the terms of
the telework arrangement so that there is an understanding, by both
parties, of their respective responsibilities. The lack of a requirement
or standard regarding the use of written telework agreements, however,
sends a message that differs from the message conveyed in the
aforementioned guidance. This inconsistency complicates agency
determinations regarding use of telework agreements.

#### ANALYSIS 

In most agencies, a formal agreement, if used, is prepared only for
regularly scheduled, long-term telework arrangements. Since there is no
requirement for a written agreement to document the terms of a telework
arrangement, there is inconsistency in its use across as well as within
agencies. This can cause difficulties for the development of
governmentwide policies and programs designed to facilitate, strengthen,
and/or safeguard Federal telework programs. Typically, in programs that
lack such agreements, valuable planning/evaluation/operational
information on the degree of participation, types of programs in use
(such as short term telecommuting for episodic or medical reasons), etc.
is neither captured nor available. Also, the lack of written agreements
can cause other problems, such as equity issues, inappropriate
expectations, and other program problems. On the other hand, there are
successful programs in which formal telework agreements are not used
because they are considered to be a useless bureaucratic burden that
hampers the development/operation of telework programs and diminish the
'flexible workplace' aspect of telework. Thus, organizational
circumstances may determine the ultimate utility of formal telework
agreements.

An additional issue associated with this inconsistency between policy
and guidance is that there is no requirement in the "OPM Guide to
Personnel Record Keeping\" to store or retain a written telework
agreement in the employee\'s Official Personnel Folder. OPM guidance,
however, suggests that the supervisor and the employee each keep a copy
of the agreement for reference.  

#### RECOMMENDATIONS 

We recommend that

 

-   Each agency (1) carefully weigh the program value of written
    telework agreements between the agency and the teleworker, (2)
    determine when a written agreement is required to document the terms
    and conditions of a telework arrangement, and (3) identify the terms
    or conditions that must be incorporated in such agreements;

-   Each agency establish retention and storage requirements to document
    its telework agreements with employees, noting Privacy Act
    considerations if the agreements are kept in a system of records;

-   Each agency determine how often and in what manner a telework
    arrangement is reviewed and re-certified, if appropriate, by the
    supervisor and the employee.

> (See Appendix A**,** Documenting the telework Agreement**,** for more
> information) 

### Issue: Closure of Main Office or Early Dismissal

Governmentwide policy for utilization of telework during agency closures
for weather and other emergencies is unclear and inconsistent.

 

#### ANALYSIS 

Following are some examples of office closure and telework questions
that require policy clarification:

Is the teleworker expected to be on duty status when the agency is
closed?

What does this mean for teleworkers who have dependents who are affected
by the same closure conditions (such as a closed school or daycare
center) since current guidelines state that telework is not a substitute
for dependent care?

Is the teleworker excused from duty, even if the emergency does not
affect their ability to work? What are the implications for using
telework as a means of continuing government operations during
emergencies? 

Regarding inconsistency, OPM\'s Telecommuting Policies and Procedures,
as outlined on the OPM web site, provides the following guidance on
emergency dismissal or closure:  

> *Group Dismissal. A telecommuting employee may sometimes be affected
> by an emergency and may be excused from work. For example, on a \"snow
> closing day\", the agency may excuse a telecommuting employee if he or
> she cannot perform work because the regular office is closed and/or
> the alternative worksite is affected by the emergency. The agency
> should grant the telecommuting employee excused absence as
> appropriate. When an emergency affects only the alternative worksite
> for a major portion of the workday, the agency can require the
> telecommuting employee to report to the regular office, approve annual
> leave or leave-without-pay, or authorize an excused absence.*  

However, elsewhere on OPM\'s web site, more recent guidance on emergency
dismissal or closure procedures states:

 

           *Federal agencies are \"CLOSED\": Employees not designated as
\"emergency employees\"*

*           (including telecommuting employees at an alternative work
site) are excused from duty*

*           without loss of pay or charge to leave. \"Emergency
employees\" are expected to report for*

*           work on time.* 

#### RECOMMENDATIONS

We recommend that OPM take action as needed to revise/reconcile current
policies and guidance on telework and agency closure situations as
follows:

-   To achieve clarity/consistency as well as the flexibility to work
    effectively with the diverse array of telework situations and
    programs. This information should be promulgated on the OPM/GSA
    telework web site and otherwise clearly communicated to all federal
    agencies. Where possible, illustrative scenarios and Q & A\'s should
    be used to facilitate understanding and application.

-   To provide that, where feasible, teleworkers should continue working
    during emergency shutdowns, regardless of whether or not the
    emergency occurs on scheduled telework days. This enables the
    organization to maintain some level of function during an emergency
    shutdown. Feasibility determination should take into account the
    teleworker's personal circumstances.

-   To specify and clarify that teleworkers are not entitled to
    additional compensation (pay and/or time off) for teleworking during
    an emergency shutdown.

-   To provide that any employee, teleworker or not, who is \"shut
    down\" at the alternative work site and unable to come into work,
    will be granted administrative leave. For instance, if a blizzard
    has taken out the electricity (and therefore the connectivity) of a
    teleworker who must be connected in order to perform job functions,
    and the weather also prevents the teleworker (or non-teleworkers)
    from traveling to the primary work site, then both teleworkers and
    non-teleworkers should be excused using the same principle used when
    the main work site is shut down.

-   To provide that teleworkers who cannot continue to work from their
    alternative work site due to an emergency, but can travel to and
    conduct work at the main work site should do so, as long as the
    shutdown happens early enough in the day. If a shutdown happens
    close to the end of the day (and this would depend on the length of
    the commute), they should be granted administrative leave for the
    remainder of the day.

-   Agency telework agreements should specify agreed-upon dependent care
    options related to telework and emergency shutdowns as well as the
    agency closure provisions recommended above.

(See Appendix A, Closure of Main Office or Early Dismissal for more
information)

### ISSUE: DEPENDENT CARE

### 

Current governmentwide guidance on telework and dependent care (1) is
inconsistent and inequitable and (2) lacks the flexibility and benefit
of top state/local government and/or private sector telework programs.

#### ANALYSIS 

Inconsistency: OPM and GSA guidance give different messages regarding
the issue of telework and dependent care; this inconsistency in guidance
causes problems for agency telework program planners, coordinators, and
managers, not to mention teleworkers. OPM's guidelines state that,
\"although telecommuting will give some employees more time for their
family responsibilities, they may not use duty time for providing
dependent care for any purpose other than official duties.\" GSA's
guidelines, on the other hand, state that while telecommuting is not a
permanent substitution for dependent care, one of the benefits of
telecommuting is to accommodate employees with short or long term health
problems or family responsibilities, such as problems associated with
elderly adult care and latch-key children. 

Inequity: Because OPM and GSA guidance stress that telecommuting cannot
be a substitute for child and/or elderly adult care, telecommuters are
not afforded the same temporary dependent care accommodations their
colleagues receive at the main work site. Such main worksite
accommodations include, for example:

-   Agency permission to bring a child to spend the workday at the
    office and/or

-   Family support rooms or comparable accommodations that allow
    employees to bring their children and/or elderly adults to work with
    them at the main office site for short term temporary reasons \[such
    as 1) a sick child can not attend school, 2) school closure due to
    weather conditions or one day school conferences, 3) elderly adults
    needing temporary assistance, etc.\].

There should be no difference between the permissibility of such
accommodations at the main work site and those at a teleworker's
alternative work site. The same work issues apply to all employees
regardless of their work location.  

Flexibility: See 24/7 discussion under "Work Hours Flexibility".

#### 

#### RECOMMENDATIONS

We recommend that:

### 

OPM and GSA reconcile and modify existing telework guidance to include
that while teleworking is not normally a direct substitute for dependent
care, there are situations in which telework can (1) substitute for
short-term temporary dependent care or facilitate on-going dependent
care and (2) maintain job performance and productivity levels. For
example, in some situations such as the unplanned unavailability of a
day care provider, the teleworker may engage in productive work for that
portion of the work day when their attention is not directed to family
care needs, thus, reducing the amount of leave (and, thereby, time away
from the job) required to meet the needs of the situation. These are
win-win situations for both management and the employee because neither
productive work time nor leave time is being unnecessarily sacrificed. 

### 

> (See Appendix A, Dependent Care for more information and policy
> samples) 

### issue: Performance Management 

Existing policy and guidance are not adequate to:  

-   Ensure that employees who are assigned to similar positions are
    being evaluated using the same performance standards regardless of
    where the work is performed;

-   Ensure that performance or morale of those employees in the office
    setting are not adversely impacted by those teleworking;

-   Establish the same telework eligibility criteria for pass/fail and
    multi-level performance rating programs;

-   Prevent supervisors from being too restrictive in approving
    employees for telework programs; specifically, preventing
    supervisors from limiting telework eligibility to employees with
    performance ratings that are above 'satisfactory' (multi-level
    program).

#### ANALYSIS  

Under current guidance from OPM, the performance standards for
teleworkers should (1) be results-oriented, (2) describe the quantity
and quality of expected work products, (3) describe the method of
evaluation, and (4) utilize the same measures for teleworkers as
utilized for non-teleworkers. In GSA\'s operating guidance for
telecommuting centers, it is suggested that agencies establish methods
for evaluating work performed at the alternative worksite and these
methods should include progress reporting and/or other procedures to
facilitate employee-supervisor communication.

Critical elements and performance standards for teleworkers should
mirror traditional standards, and only make adjustments for unique
circumstances. Performance should be evaluated according to existing
quantity and quality expectations, expectations monitored through
periodic progress reports, and/or other appropriate measures, such as
timely completion of quality products.  

Despite the availability of substantial guidance on performance
management, there are indications that in some cases (1) teleworkers are
not being evaluated with the same performance standards as are
non-teleworkers, (2) teleworkers are allowing their in-office
responsibilities to fall on the shoulders of non-teleworkers, (3) there
are structural and rating scale differences between typical telework
eligibility criteria for pass/fail programs and those for multi-level
performance rating programs \[Based on relative frequency of rating and
ease of achievement, "pass" ratings are, relatively speaking, easier to
achieve and more frequent than are ratings of "fully successful or
higher". Thus, eligibility based on "pass" ratings is inherently easier
to achieve and more likely than eligibility based on "fully successful
or higher" ratings\], and (4) supervisors overly restrict access to
telework and hinder program development by requiring that telework
candidates have performance ratings that exceed "fully successful".

#### RECOMMENDATIONS 

We recommend that:

 

-   OPM emphasize in its telework and other guidance (especially to
    managers) that there should be no difference in traditional as
    opposed to telework performance management. The same performance
    management elements should be used in both environments (i.e.,
    planning the work, setting expectations, monitoring performance and
    recognizing employees). Teleworkers should not be subject to higher
    or otherwise different performance expectations or requirements
    solely because they are teleworkers.

-   OPM take actions to ensure that Federal managers (all levels) are
    trained and expected to manage effectively regardless of employee
    work locations. Since telework may be new to many managers, there
    should be additional training emphasis on managing teleworkers (i.e.
    communication via telephone and e-mail rather than visually,
    arranging meetings that allow the teleworker to be connected via
    telephone, etc.).

-   OPM modify the current guidance to (1) establish that agencies have
    the discretion to determine minimum eligibility requirements for
    telework and (2) eliminate eligibility requirements based on a fully
    successful (or equivalent) or higher rating.

-   Agencies establish an ongoing campaign to promote telework
    utilization, emphasizing the fact that telework, per se, does not
    adversely impact job performance.

> (See Appendix A, PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT, for more information)

### ISSUE: RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION

Senator George V. Voinovich in his report entitled \"Report To The
President: The Crisis In Human Capital,\" discusses the impact of
expected increases in retirements on the federal workforce. The report
states that by the year 2004, 32 percent of the federal workforce will
be eligible for regular retirement, and an additional 21 percent will be
eligible for early retirement. That means that by 2004, more than
900,000 employees - over 50 percent of the Federal workforce - will be
eligible to retire. Estimates are that at least 660,000 employees will
have retired by 2010, taking with them valuable and perhaps
irreplaceable institutional knowledge and threatening to leave the
government with an inexperienced and ineffective workforce. Any manager
faced with such a potential loss should recognize the immediate need for
action.  

Paul Light, author of the book \"The New Public Service", points out
that many young adults consider the government an employer of last
resort. This negative image is further exacerbated by the common
perception that the federal government cannot compete with the private
sector in terms of compensation and benefits.

Existing Federal recruitment and retention activity is not:

-   Improving the image of government employment to make it competitive
    with other employers;

-   Ensuring that disabled employees, in eligible positions, are given
    every opportunity to telework and that opportunities are widely
    publicized;

-   Ensuring that managers are making optimal use of telework as a
    recruitment and retention tool;

-   Measuring the impact of the availability of telework programs on the
    effectiveness of recruitment and retention efforts;

-   Ensuring that agencies address eligibility criteria for telework in
    vacancy announcements;

-   Identifying a reasonable time period, if any, that a new hire should
    spend in an organization before becoming eligible to telework;

-   Ensuring that agencies address equity/\"digital divide\" issues
    (level of supervision needed, portability of assignments,
    availability of equipment, etc.)  in determining which jobs are
    eligible for telework.

#### ANALYSIS 

According to guidance, legislation, and executive orders, telework (1)
has been established as an important management tool for Federal
agencies, (2) must be expanded significantly to cover the entire
telework-eligible Federal workforce, and (3) must be used to assist in
employing 100,000 adults with disabilities.

Research has shown that telework is a potent tool for recruiting and
retention: Prospective and current employees are likely to view the
availability of telework and associated flexibilities as attractive
recruitment and retention tools.  

#### RECOMMENDATIONS  

-   The Human Resources Management Council should examine, adopt, and
    promote measures that effectively use telework as a recruitment and
    retention tool for Federal employment.

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   Human Resources Directors should send memoranda to managers
    emphasizing that the use of telework as a recruitment and retention
    tool is expected and they will be held accountable for results.

-   OPM should develop a separate \"telework site\" on its USAJobs site
    for posting vacancies that are identified as telework positions by
    agencies; vacancy announcements must include telework eligibility
    criteria.

-   Federal interest in telework for recruitment/retention and Federal
    job vacancies that include telework options should be
    posted/promoted on websites or other media that advertise telework
    jobs, in job fairs, and via associations/other organizations, such
    as the International Telework Association or the International
    Personnel Management Association.

-   Federal agencies should work with OPM to develop telework
    recruitment and retention codes for use in OPM's central personnel
    data file. Such codes will facilitate the identification and
    reporting of telework positions.

-   OPM and GSA should develop a \"best practices\" section on their
    telework.gov website to spotlight private or public sector
    organizations that have made good use of telework for recruitment
    and retention.

-   OPM should conduct annual surveys of how agencies are using telework
    for recruitment and retention purposes and use the results to track
    performance.

-   Agencies should assess the effectiveness of telework as a
    recruitment and retention tool during new employee orientation and
    during exit interviews.

-   Agencies should ensure that the special needs of disabled employees
    are addressed when determining information technology enhancements
    needed for telework positions. Specifically, agencies should include
    disabled employees on design teams when making arrangements for
    disabled employees to work at home. Agencies also should use
    telework as a means of compliance with the Americans with
    Disabilities Act in order to retain valued employees, reduce
    employee turnover and recruitment costs, and, control the rising
    cost of disability benefits.

-   Agencies should address equity issues, such as the \"digital
    divide\", by utilizing telecenters and associated technology to
    bring exposure, training, and job opportunities to targeted
    communities.

See Appendix A, RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION, for more information.

>  

## LEGAL/REGULATORY ISSUES

### OVERVIEW

This section contains the report and recommendations made by the
Legal/Regulatory subcommittee of the Interagency Telework Issues Working
Group. This subcommittee was charged with addressing legal/regulatory
issues affecting the implementation and/or operation of Federal telework
programs. Supporting documentation (source documents, legislation,
Executive Orders, and relevant case laws that support telework in the
Federal Government) for this section is provided in Appendix B.

### ISSUE: APPLYING LEGISLATION AND REGULATIONS

Agency telework programs are being hampered by confusion over aspects of
existing legislation and regulations that relate to telework as well as
the need for additional legislation for effective telework program
operation.

#### ANALYSIS 

The relative newness of telework combined with the relative age of many
of the applicable laws, regulations, and policies governing the Federal
workplace is probably the primary reason for the confusion and general
lack of fit between telework and related laws, regulations, and
policies.

Also, there has been inadequate governmentwide clarification and
interpretation of policies and legislation governing telework programs.
For example, agencies have been both inconsistent and uncertain in their
interpretation and application of telework-related legislation (such as
the legislation requiring annual agency expenditures of \$50,000 for
telework center user fees and the more recent legislation involving
telework eligibility policies and criteria). Agencies may be reluctant
to provide adequate support and resources needed for successful telework
programs without specific and clear legislative authority.

#### RECOMMENDATIONS

-   **Clarification/Interpretation** - OPM should establish a mechanism
    to work with Federal agencies and Congress to establish clear
    governmentwide interpretations of applicable legislation and
    policies bearing on the operation of telework programs.

-   **Accountability** - OPM should review agency telework eligibility
    determinations and management plans as part of its oversight review
    program and periodically report its findings to the appropriate
    oversight body.

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   **Property Damage Claims** -- Policy and/or legislation should be
    established to clarify the types of telework-related claims that an
    agency may consider for exclusion under the Military Personnel and
    Civilian Employees Claims Act.

-   **Guidance and Process** - To minimize teleworker losses caused by
    unforeseen telework-related damages to their residences, agencies
    should ensure that telework agreements provide adequate program
    support and guidance. For example, agencies should (1) recommend
    that teleworkers obtain adequate insurance to cover any potential
    telework-related damage to their personal property, (2) review the
    agency teleworker safety self-certification process for
    effectiveness and adequacy, and (3) consider utilizing the safety
    certification process if it is not part of their telework program.

-   **Loss of Agency-Provided Equipment** - Agency policies and
    agreements should reflect that an employee is not responsible for
    the replacement of agency-provided equipment that has been stolen
    from the employee\'s residence, vehicle, or other personal
    possession under circumstances which do not involve employee
    negligence (regarding the equipment) or misconduct.

###### 

-   **Utility and Other Expenses** --

    -   Legislation should be initiated that authorizes (not requires)
        agencies to pay for employee telework expenses. Such legislation
        should be sufficiently flexible to cover the changes in program
        expenses due to the changing nature of telework programs (due,
        for example, to the technological and/or legislative
        developments).

    ```{=html}
    <!-- -->
    ```
    -   Agencies should establish policies that address the conditions,
        if any, under which teleworkers may be reimbursed for expenses
        that are not pre-approved by the agency; e.g., after-hours
        maintenance costs for Government-provided equipment essential to
        completing pre-approved, critical work assignments.

## CONTINUATION OF OPERATIONS ISSUES

### OVERVIEW

This section contains the report and recommendations made by the
Continuation of Operations (COOP) subcommittee of the Interagency
Telework Issues Working Group. This subcommittee was charged with
addressing COOP policy and/or guidance issues affecting the
implementation and/or operation of Federal telework programs. Supporting
documentation for this section is provided in Appendix C.

### ISSUE: INTEGRATING TELEWORK INTO COOP PLANS 

Despite Federal policy and guidance on agency integration of telework
into agency COOP plans, a number of agencies are not identifying
critical work needs that can be accomplished through teleworking and are
not planning for how teleworking can be effectively utilized in
emergency circumstances. COOP guidance in all agencies should
specifically address this.

Additionally, it does not appear that agencies are aware sufficiently of
the need for conducting drills, pilots, assessments etc., to ensure that
COOP telework activities are effective, appropriately designed, and
understood/usable by employees. It does no good to wait until a disaster
to learn how to deploy COOP responses.

#### ANALYSIS

It is the policy of the United States government to have in place a
comprehensive and effective program to ensure continuity of essential
Federal functions under all circumstances. As a baseline of preparedness
for the full range of potential emergencies, all Federal agencies should
have in place a viable COOP capability which ensures the performance of
their essential functions during any emergency or situation that may
disrupt normal operations. The Federal Emergency Management Agency
serves as the Executive Agent for Federal Executive Branch COOP and is
responsible for (1) formulating policy and guidance for agencies to use
in developing viable, executable COOP plans, (2) facilitating
interagency COOP coordination as appropriate, and (3) overseeing and
assessing the status of COOP capability across the Federal Executive
Branch. Each agency is responsible for appointing a senior Federal
government executive as an Emergency Coordinator to serve as program
manager and agency point of contact for coordinating agency COOP
activities.

Federal policy requires that all agencies designate alternate operating
facilities as part of their COOP plans and prepare their personnel for
the possibility of unannounced relocation of essential functions and/or
COOP contingency staffs to these facilities (FPC 65, July 6, 1999). This
means that agencies need to integrate telework into their COOP plans and
be prepared to use telework as a means of responding to emergencies. For
example, one of the tenets of FEMA guidance on COOP states:

\"Maximum use should be made of existing field infrastructures and other
options, such as telecommuting locations, work-at-home, virtual offices,
joint or shared facilities.\" - FPC 67, April 30, 2001

To fulfill their COOP telework responsibilities, three elements (need
for off-site facilities, connectivity, and access to records and
systems) can provide agencies with a starting point and a model for
developing emergency telework policies:

-   Alternative Facilities - All agencies shall designate alternate
    operating facilities as part of their COOP plans, and prepare their
    personnel for the possibility of unannounced relocation of essential
    functions and/or COOP contingency staffs to these facilities. - FPC
    65, July 6, 1999

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   Interoperable Communications - The success of agency operations at
    an alternate facility is absolutely dependent upon the availability
    and redundancy of critical communications systems to support
    connectivity to internal organizations, other agencies, critical
    customers, and the public. These services may include, but are not
    limited to: secure and/or non-secure voice, fax, and data
    connectivity; Internet access; and e-mail. - FPC 65, July 6, 1999

-   Vital Records and Databases - The protection and ready availability
    of electronic and hardcopy documents, references, records, and
    information systems needed to support essential functions under the
    full spectrum of emergencies is another critical element of a
    successful COOP plan. Agency personnel must have access to and be
    able to use these records and systems in conducting their essential
    functions. - FPC 65, July 6, 1999

#### RECOMMENDATIONS

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) should ensure the
following:

-   Agencies should incorporate telework options into their COOP plans
    and assure that managers and employees are aware of this option in
    the event of an emergency.

-   COOP guidance and activity in all agencies should focus on
    identification of critical work that can be accomplished, under
    emergency circumstances, via telework.

-   FEMA should establish and widely publicize guidelines on conducting
    drills, pilots, assessments etc., to ensure that (a) COOP telework
    activities are effective, (b) appropriately designed, and (c)
    understood/usable by employees.

-   Agencies should utilize their COOP authorities and experiences to
    familiarize the entire workforce with the advantages and
    effectiveness of teleworking.

## TELEWORK TECHNOLOGY ISSUES

### OVERVIEW

This section contains the report and recommendations made by the
Technology subcommittee of the Interagency Telework Issues Working
Group. This subcommittee was charged with addressing technology issues
for telework programs and agency roles in providing equipment, technical
support, and technology services. Supporting documentation for this
section is provided in Appendix E.

### ISSUE: POLICY/GUIDANCE FOR TELEWORK TECHNOLOGY 

Judging from agency inquiries, agency officials, especially telework
program officials, have numerous unanswered and/or unresolved
questions/concerns about technology applications, policies/regulations,
and planning information needed for telework programs.

#### ANALYSIS

Among the main telework technology issues examined for this report are
those surrounding information security, connectivity, use of government
equipment in personal residences, and help desk support. In each case,
officials wanted to know where to find relevant and definitive
implementation, application, policy/regulatory, and planning guidance
and expertise. For example:

-   Remote access is a key component of telework programs and agency
    officials are concerned about the vulnerability of their internal
    systems when there is remote access to these systems.

-   The requirement to connect to the Internet and to main office
    electronic files is important in order to successfully telework.
    "Low-tech\" solutions, such as the use of floppy disks to copy files
    in the office and take them to the alternative work site, may be
    sufficient in some cases (such as for unclassified, non-sensitive
    information). For most cases, however, such low-tech solutions are
    inadequate and connectivity/remote access solutions, especially the
    speed of the connection, are paramount in order to maintain
    productivity in a telework arrangement. Digital Subscriber Line
    (DSL), cable modems, and analog dial-up lines are three methods to
    access the Internet and internal government systems. Consequently,
    agencies and their teleworkers need information on service
    availability, cost comparisons, installation, and maintenance of
    high-speed connections.

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   Many agencies provide, plan to provide, or are considering providing
    government equipment (computers, printers, modems, desks, and
    chairs) for use in teleworker residences. Their concerns focus
    mainly on associated policies, authorities, and operating protocols.

-   Technical support for remote users, especially for teleworkers, is a
    relatively new and/or unresolved requirement and activity for many
    organizations. Some of the associated concerns focus on the
    availability and consistency of help desk/technical support
    applications for teleworkers. This issue involves support for use of
    government equipment (i.e., computers, printers, modems and related
    software) and/or personally owned equipment to perform official
    duties while teleworking.

NOTE: GSA has recently completed and published a comprehensive report on
technology issues and telework: Technology Barriers....www.telew\*\*\*\*
The findings and recommendations of the Technology Barriers report has
are directly related to and consistent with the findings and
recommendations discussed in this section. See section
entitled,"Technology Barriers to Telework."

#### RECOMMENDATIONS 

**We recommend that**

GENERAL

-   GSA, OPM, NIST, and the CIO Council establish a collaborative
    mechanism (henceforth referred to as the Collaborative) to support
    and/or carry out the following:

1.  Propose, develop, and support the establishment of a Federal
    technology policy organization. Such an organization would develop,
    implement, maintain policies and associated guidance on technology
    policy issues such as:

> \- The use of and payment for work-related business/residential phone
> lines at Federal teleworker alternate worksites.
>
> \- Payment of work-related utility, ISP, broadband, etc. expenses at
> Federal teleworker alternate worksites.
>
> \- The use of Federal surplus/excess equipment for teleworkers.
>
> \- Personal use of government (personal use policies).
>
> \- Responsibility (moving and expenses) for relocation and setup of
> government equipment being used by the teleworker when the relocation
> of a teleworker's alternate worksite is due to a personal relocation
> as opposed to an official government-sponsored relocation.
>
> \- Authorizing employees to use their own money to pay user costs
> (lease fees, etc) for use of non-residential alternate workstations
> (such as telework center workstations).

2.  Led by NIST, the Collaborative should actively and effectively (1)
    increase and improve integration of technology information and
    expertise into both governmentwide and individual agency telework
    program planning and operation, (2) ensure that technology advances
    are shared by all agencies through the Collaborative, and (3)
    provide other technology information (e.g., the CIO Council brochure
    on best practices) to all agencies.

3.  Led by GSA and OPM, the collaborative should establish and support a
    formal interagency workgroup comprised of key telecommuting
    stakeholders such as agency telework program coordinators and
    representatives from the CIO, budget, and procurement offices. The
    mission of this interagency workgroup is to provide a mechanism for
    agencies to collaborate on strategies to increase telework
    participation by elimination of technological barriers through
    policy and/or legislative changes and to keep abreast of the latest
    innovations in technology that can support congressionally mandated
    telecommuting goals.

4.  Working with the Collaborative, OPM and GSA request that agencies
    establish cross-programmatic groups (comprised of personnel and
    technology specialists) to study and address their computer
    equipment needs, technology infrastructure changes, resolutions to
    technology barriers, and other technology initiatives needed to
    support their telework programs.

5.  The Collaborative explore the feasibility of sponsoring a conference
    in collaboration with Federal agencies that would focus on:

> \- Best practice telework IT policies/solutions, including help desk
> support.
>
> \- Other issues, from IT managers' perspective, relevant to telework
> technical support.
>
> \- How to address budgetary concerns regarding purchase or upgrade of
> equipment to improve efficiency for those that work at home or other
> remote locations.
>
> \- Methods for examining practical ways to fix problems with hardware
> or software that cannot be solved on-line or by phone.
>
> \- The viability of emerging technology to improve connectivity,
> speed, and security capability.

-   Each agency's Chief Information Officer (CIO) seek to effectively
    influence decisions that facilitate agency achievement of
    congressionally mandated telecommuting goals. To this end, agency
    CIOs shall designate an individual(s) within their organization to
    address security, helpdesk/maintenance, budget, new technology,
    telecommunications issues, to act as a liaison with internal agency
    telecommuting coordinators, and participate on the agency's
    aforementioned cross-programmatic group.

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   Agencies dedicate financial resources to computer equipment
    specifically targeted for employees who are telecommuting.

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   The OPM/GSA website,
    [http://www.telework.gov](http://www.telework.gov/), should be used
    to disseminate/publicize information stemming from the
    recommendations in this section.

SECURITY

-   The Collaborative take a proactive role in ensuring that all Federal
    agencies are adequately aware of all pertinent aspects and
    information sources for information security.

CONNECTIVITY

-   Each agency establish a central point of contact within each of its
    regions to coordinate telecommunications needs for teleworkers with
    the General Services Administration (GSA). GSA regional contracts
    are possible sources for telecommunications services.
    (<http://www.gsa.gov/maa>)

USE OF GOVERNMENT EQUIPMENT IN ALTERNATE WORKSITES

-   OPM and GSA, in conjunction with the Collaborative, establish and
    communicate government wide policies and/or associated guidance
    relating to the use of government equipment at an alternate work
    site; for example, such policies and guidance should include (1)
    clarification and coverage of personal use of government equipment
    located in alternative worksites; (2) agency options for
    establishing equitable and effective policies and procedures
    regarding the provision of government technology; (3)
    clarification/options for employee use of personally owned
    technology to conduct official duties at alternative worksites;
    and (4) recommended practices, agencies using them, and agency
    points of contact for additional information.

TECHNICAL AND HELP DESK SUPPORT

-   GSA establish a policy requiring that telework arrangements are
    covered in agency information technology (IT) help desk/ technical
    support policies and practices.

-   Agency telecommuting policies reference (provide web links, e.g.)
    relevant sources of help desk policy and information.

## TELEWORK TECHNOLOGY BARRIERS

### OVERVIEW

This section contains covers the report and recommendations made by GSA
in its study of technology barriers and solutions to Federal home-based
telework. The governmentwide study, requested by Congress (H.R. 4871,
House Report 106-756), was conducted, under GSA contract, by Booz-Allen
Hamilton.

### ISSUE: TECHNOLOGY BARRIERS TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF FEDERAL TELEWORK

A commonly expressed but, to some extent, unsubstantiated concern for
many agencies was that potential technology barriers precluded or
severely limited their ability to implement and/or expand telework
programs.

#### ANALYSIS

Prior to the GSA study, the beliefs and opinions underlying the
assessment that technology barriers impeded, significantly, the growth
of Federal telework were based, at least to some extent, on anecdotal
and/or hearsay information. A systematic and comprehensive study was
needed clarify the issue and Congress requested that GSA conduct such a
study.

GSA's study included assessments from various groups within the Federal
Government (agency Chief Information Officers, Telework Coordinators,
teleworkers and teleworker managers). The following Federal Agencies
participated in the study: Departments of Commerce, Health and Human
Services, Interior, Justice, Treasury, Veterans Affairs, the Federal
Trade Commission, the General Services Administration, the National
Aeronautics and Space Administration, and the National Imagery and
Mapping Agency. Their participation and cooperation provided valuable
insights into how various Federal Agencies approach the concept and
implementation of home-based telework.

The final report states that: "The overarching finding from this
analysis is that there are technology problems associated with Federal
telework implementation, but that, today, no single information
technology barrier is preventing or impeding telework implementation."
The study includes an assessment of technologies, interviews and surveys
of a large number of Federal employees, case studies and lessons
learned. The need for senior management leadership, information
technology planning for telework, broadband residential services,
security, and training are also discussed.

As requested by Congress, this study serves to " . . . identify and
develop a plan to resolve technology barrier issues that impede the
creation of home workstations for federal employees." The full report is
available on <http://www.gsa.gov/telework>.

#### RECOMMENDATION

We recommend that the Office of Management and Budget, through its CIO
and management leadership functions, implement and assess the progress
and impact of the recommendations from the Technology Barriers and
Solutions to Federal Home-based Telework study.

## WORKSITE HEALTH AND SAFETY ISSUES

### OVERVIEW

This section contains the report and recommendations made by the
Worksite Health and Safety subcommittee of the Interagency Telework
Issues Working Group. This subcommittee was charged with addressing
worksite health and safety policy and/or guidance issues affecting the
implementation and/or operation of Federal telework programs. Supporting
documentation for this section is provided in Appendix E.

### ISSUE: APPLYING WORKSITE HEALTH/SAFETY POLICIES TO TELEWORK 

There are two Federal entities in the U.S. Department of Labor that have
policy oversight and information relevant to health and safety
conditions of Federal worksites: the Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (OHSA) and the Office of Workers' Compensation Programs
(OWCP). Judging by agency inquiry, many Federal officials are confused
about the specifics of OSHA and OWCP policies regarding telework. In
particular, since agencies are responsible for health and safety
conditions in traditional worksites, agencies express confusion about
the degree to which this responsibility extends to the home worksite.
This, of course, causes difficulty for establishing agency telework
programs and policies.

**ANALYSIS**

Given that OSHA and OWCP have different functions and perspectives that
converge on health and safety conditions of the worksite, that telework
has now ushered in a new type of Federal worksite, and that there has
been controversy regarding OSHA policies, it is not surprising that
there is some confusion. Moreover, documented clarification of these
issues is neither widely provided nor publicized.

From a program standpoint, most agencies address alternative worksite
health and safety conditions in their telework agreements and
self-certification safety checklists. In accordance with typical agency
telework policy, these documents are completed and signed by the
employee and reviewed with the supervisor prior to the implementation of
the telework arrangement.

Note: The Department of Labor has determined that self-certification
checklists, while valuable as safety awareness tools, do not have legal
standing in terms of certification of the conditions of the alternative
worksite.

While it is clear that agencies need to be more fully informed on the
specifics, roles, and coverage of the OSHA and OWCP alternative worksite
health and safety policies, we have determined that much of the needed
information is already in place and requires only clarification and
broader publication. To that end, we asked OSHA and OWCP to provide
answers to some of the more frequent inquiries we have received. The
resulting questions and answers are provided in Appendix E. Also, for
additional information see FECA BULLETIN NO. 98-09 in Appendix E as well
as related information under Legal/Regulatory Issues.

**RECOMMENDATIONS**

Regarding Federal alternative worksites (for telework), we recommend
that:

-   OPM and GSA use their Interagency Telework Web Site (telework.gov)
    to provide, publicize, and update health and safety information in
    the form of Frequently Asked Questions (starting with those provided
    in Appendix E).

-   Agency safety and health policies/programs specifically address
    telework situations, include guidance to both managers and
    teleworkers on how to maintain a safe work environment, and ensure
    that managers and teleworkers are adequately informed on these
    issues.

## INCOME TAX IMPLICATIONS OF TELEWORK

### OVERVIEW

This section contains the report and recommendations made by the Tax
Implications of Telework subcommittee of the Interagency Telework Issues
Working Group. This subcommittee was charged with addressing Federal
income tax policies and guidance affecting the implementation and/or
operation of Federal telework programs as well as individual
teleworkers.

### ISSUE: TAX DEDUCTIONS AND UNCLEAR GUIDANCE 

Except for unusual circumstances, home office/equipment income tax
deductions are not allowed for salaried home-based teleworkers and the
relevant tax code parameters and guidance are unclear. The lack of basic
income tax deductions for home-based telework arrangements represents a
lost incentive for expanding telework and an inappropriate tax inequity
between teleworkers and home-based business operators.

#### ANALYSIS

For many years, potential telework-related Federal income tax write-offs
have been the subject of frequent inquiry in the telework community. A
very lucrative telework incentive hangs in the balance. Definitive,
clear, and fair interpretations regarding this issue have been hampered
by the complexity, lack of clarity, and/or lack of progressiveness
regarding telework in the Federal tax code.

Additionally, from an income tax standpoint, home-based teleworking is
analogous to home-based business in that the home-based teleworker
legitimately expends income-reducing resources to conduct
income-producing work. The lack of teleworker tax deductions comparable
to those available to home-based businesses, therefore, is basically
unfair to home-based teleworkers.

This analysis focuses on identifying and recommending clarifications
and/or changes to rules on deductions for home offices and equipment for
teleworkers. Following are some sample specifics:

-   What, specifically, does the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) require
    from a Federal teleworker to justify writing off a home office
    and/or personally owned equipment? Are there any circumstances in
    which a Federal teleworker write-off is authorized?

-   Does the use of alternative officing (hotelling) in which the
    employee no longer has a permanent workstation at the main worksite
    alter the tax ramifications of telework?

IRS documents state that to qualify for a home office deduction, the
employee must use the home office regularly for trade or business. That
is, the home office must be used for business on a continuing basis
rather than "occasional" or "incidental" use. Additionally, the home
office must be the employee's principal place of business; or place
where the employee meets or deals with patients, clients, or customers
in the normal course of the employee's trade or business; or a
structure, unattached to the employee's house, that the employee uses in
connection with trade or business. The following additional requirements
exemplify those that require clarification and/or revision:

-   The area designated as the home office may not be used, even
    partially, for personal use.

\[While there are obvious reasons for this requirement, this version
should be revised to be more flexible so that it conforms to the current
proliferation of home offices, so that it is easier to certify, and so
that it does not penalize home-based teleworkers who do not have home
space to devote exclusively to business use**.**\]

-   The business use of the home office must be for the convenience of
    the employer. Whether the business use of the home is for employer
    convenience depends on all the facts and circumstances. However,
    business use is not considered to be for employer convenience merely
    because it is appropriate and helpful.

\[The phrase 'convenience of the employer' needs to be clarified in
terms that are easier to understand, more specific, and easier to
certify. Also, this requirement should be revised to be more flexible to
fit, for example, the numerous situations in which telework arrangements
are established as a benefit for both the employee and the
employer**.\]**

In most cases, Federal home-based teleworkers are using their home
facilities in support of their agency's missions. Federal policy and
guidance has established that telework is a benefit to the government as
well as to the employee. Therefore, Federal telework is similar to
home-based business from the standpoint of facility use. There is no
reason why Federal teleworkers should be treated differently from
home-based business owners that have access to home office income tax
deductions.

For more information see IRS Publication 587, Business Use of Your Home
available on the IRS [http://www.irs.gov](http://www.irs.gov/)

#### 

#### RECOMMENDATIONS

We recommend that the Internal Revenue Service:

-   Revise tax laws to allow home office/equipment deductions for
    home-based teleworkers OR alternatively, specify (in
    Publication 587) that home-based teleworkers satisfy existing
    requirements for such deductions.

-   Develop and publish specific tax guidance for teleworkers.
    Currently, more than 20 million Americans telework and the number is
    increasing. Just as there is tax guidance for small businesses,
    investment income, etc., there should be guidance specific to
    teleworking.

## TELEWORK TRAINING AND SUPPORT ISSUES

### OVERVIEW

This section contains the report and recommendations made by the General
Training and Support subcommittee of the Interagency Telework Issues
Working Group. This subcommittee was charged with addressing training
and program support policies and guidance affecting the implementation
and/or operation of Federal telework programs. Supporting documentation
for this section is provided in Appendix F.

### ISSUE: GUIDANCE AND COORDINATION FOR TELEWORK TRAINING

OPM and GSA guidance, as well as many agency policies on telework,
address the issue of training in the general terms of \"training is
required/recommended\". While there is an overall understanding that
training is important to the success of telework arrangements, and a
variety of opportunities for training are available, to date there has
been little centralized guidance regarding the content or format of such
training. Agencies voiced a variety of concerns with this lack of
guidance and coordination in the area of training for Telework. This
lack of guidance and coordination leaves agencies with much flexibility,
but little to rely on in terms of a framework on which to build
successful telework training and programs.

#### ANALYSIS

An effective telework program needs a framework within which training
should be developed and implemented, to include key components necessary
for success. Appropriate telework training consists of two key
components. One addresses policy issues and includes general
information, policy updates, and \"orientation\" to telework (The
telecommuting briefing kit on OPM\'s website provides a good framework
for \"orientation\" to telework and can be adapted to meet specific
agency requirements.) The second component focuses on telework program
activities and should include topics such as information technology
applications, performance management, time management, etc. The target
audience for telework training includes teleworkers, supervisors,
telework program planners and coordinators, and others as organizational
circumstances dictate.

While orientation in organization-specific issues related to telework is
important at the outset of a program, it becomes less so as telework is
assimilated into the organization's culture (informal learning about
telework from co-workers becomes more common).

Finally, in organizations where leaders/top managers see it as
important, telework is more likely to become a part of the organization
rather than an \"add-on\" and this may be true for the orientation
component of telework training as well.

#### 

#### Recommendation

-   OPM should develop web-based telework training and associated
    guidance, available through telework.gov, which includes topics such
    as those listed in Appendix F.

# APPENDICES

## APPENDIX A : HR COMMITTEE DOCUMENTATION

**SUPPORTIVE DOCUMENTATION FOR THE HUMAN RESOURCES COMMITTEE ANALYSIS**
 

###  PROGRAM TERMINOLOGY 

(As of October 2001) 

#### **GSA\'s Guidance**:

\"Flexible workplace,\" work-at-home, telecommuting, teleworking all
refer to a work situation or an employer/employee relationship where the
location of the work site is shifted away from the traditional office.
GSA views flexiplace as a general umbrella term that includes both
work-at-home and telework (telecommuting) centers.

Flexiplace arrangements may include the following: 

-   Work-at-home. Working in a space/area in the employee\'s residence
    specifically set aside as an office.

-   Telework center. Working from an office (telecenter) near the
    employee\'s home. Teleworkers work at telecenters primarily because
    it is close to their home, not necessarily because they belong to
    the same work unit or organization. 

Types of flexiplace arrangements:  

-   Periodic or intermittent arrangements. Infrequent periods of time
    when projects/assignments have short turnaround times and/or require
    intense concentration. 

-   Short-term work-at-home arrangements. Occasional or short periods
    usually scheduled for 6 months or less. 

-   Long-term work-at-home arrangements. Regularly scheduled
    arrangement, designed to last over 6 months, typically those
    scheduled for 1 year, which may be extended based on an annual basis
    by mutual agreement between employee and supervisor. 

-   Telecommuting Centers. GSA offers telework (telecommuting)
    arrangements at established satellite work centers.  

#### **International Telework Association (ITAC) Guidance**

ITAC makes a distinction about the terms \"telecommuting\" and
\"teleworking.\" While they are often used interchangeably, there are
subtle but important differences between them. Telecommuting employs
telecommunications to avoid the drudgery and risks of commuting to the
traditional office. The work-at-home variety of telework is the dominant
form of technology-enabled remote work but it is a more restrictive
definition.  

Telework is a much broader term that means using telecommunications to
work wherever you need to in order to satisfy client needs; whether it
be from a home office, telework center, satellite office (which could be
in an entirely different commuting area), a client\'s office, an airport
lounge, or a hotel room. 

#### **OPM Guidance**

OPM in its Telecommuting Briefing Kit defines telecommuting as working
away from the principal (or traditional) office. People think
telecommuting implies that one must have some form of electronic
(computer and/or telephone) connectivity to work away from the office,
but that is not a required condition and is not what the term means. 

People are sometimes confused about the difference between Flexiplace
and Telecommuting and think the terms have different meanings. Some
think that Telecommuting implies some sort of electronic connectivity
and that Flexiplace means working at home without a computer, but there
is really no difference.

Flexiplace was the name of the Federal work-at-home pilot project
conducted by OPM between 1990 and 1993; however, today OPM uses the
industry term Telecommuting to describe a situation where an employee
perfoms work at an alternative worksite. Some Federal agencies call
their telecommuting programs Flexiplace. 

A recent OPM \"Telework Fact Sheet\" uses the term telework to mean
allowing an employee to work at home or another approved location away
from the regular office. Depending on individual agency policy and
supervisory approval, telework can include the following: 

-   Regularly established schedules for an employee to work one or more
    days a week at home or another approved location. 

-   Individual situations in which an employee works at home to complete
    a specific task or to meet a short-term need. For example, an
    employee may be able to complete a project more quickly away from
    the day-to-day demands of the office; an employee incapacitated by
    illness or injury may be able to perform some work at home; or an
    employee may be able to continue working even though the office is
    closed because of a natural disaster. 

-   Regular assignments of an employee to work a part of each week at a
    telework center that is geographically more convenient than the
    employee\'s regular office. 

###  TELEWORK PROGRAM ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA   (As of October 2001) 

Currently, agencies can define their own eligibility criteria. The OPM
guidance is not policy. OPM simply states that employees who are good
candidates for telework have the following characteristics: organized,
highly disciplined, conscientious, self-starter, requires minimal
supervision, and at least a fully satisfactory or equivalent performance
rating.

Agencies have defined these characteristics in many ways. The Department
of Energy\'s (DOE) Flexiplace Program defines an eligible employee as
one who has a good understanding of the operation of his or her
organization and responsibilities, e.g., worked in the organization at
least 6 months and the current position at least 3 months. DOE also
states that employees who should not be considered for telecommuting
arrangements are: new employees, those who require close supervision,
those who are dependent on interaction with co-workers and may suffer
from the feeling of being isolated, or those who are dependent on
resources that cannot be accessed from a remote site. DOE employees who
need to care for a family member at home are not eliminated from
consideration unless the needs of the family member will be too
distracting or preclude the employee from being productive during the
hours required to be available for work. 

The Department of Commerce\'s Central Administrative Support Center of
the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration requires its
eligible employees to possess additional characteristics:

Good time management and organization skills, demonstrates solid verbal
and written communication skills, finds satisfaction in completing tasks
on his/her own, and solves many of his/her own problems.  

References Used: 

      www.opm.gov/wrkfam/telecomm.policies.htm

      http://policyworks.gov/org/main/mp/library/policydocs/manual5.htm

      www.ma.doe.gov/pol/doeflex.html

      CASC Policy for Telecommuting Program

###   TELECOMMUTING TRACKING 

#### **Federal Employees Clean Air Incentives Act Fiscal Year Report** 

Currently, Federal agencies are required to report the number of
employees in the agency who are participating in telework/flexible
arrangements and the cost to the agency via the Federal Employees Clean
Air Incentives Act Fiscal Year Report that is submitted by the General
Services Administration (GSA) to the President and Congress on a
bi-annual basis. GSA has been designated the Federal agency for
collecting and submitting the data. This report provides a history of
agency participation and data on a variety of clean air activity topics
such as Transit Subsidy activity, Bicycle Accommodations, and
Non-Monetary Incentives such as Alternative Work Schedules, Flexitime,
Telework, Executive Parking, Shuttle Service, etc. The focus is on
requirements associated with past and current legislation passed to
assist in improving traffic congestion, air pollution and quality of
worklife. 

#### **Some Existing Tracking Examples **

Although there is no requirement for Federal agencies to track
telecommuting participants, some Federal agencies such as the Department
of Energy and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation are tracking
their teleworkers (regular and recurring, ad hoc (episodic or
situational), and medical accommodation arrangements) through their Time
and Attendance System. Other agencies have developed internal databases
to track telecommuters (regular/recurring and ad hoc situations). 

[Table 1: Telework Data Elements Recommended for Inclusion in
Consolidated Reporting]{.underline}

+-----------------+---------+------+------+-------------+-----------+
| **Description** | **Empl  | **   | **Nu | **En        | **Unique  |
|                 | oyees** | Cost | mber | vironmental | Program   |
|                 |         | to   | of** | or Other**  | F         |
|                 | **P     | agen |      |             | eatures** |
|                 | articip | cy** | *    | *           |           |
|                 | ating** |      | *Ite | *Benefits** | **(       |
|                 |         |      | ms** |             | Narrative |
|                 |         |      |      | *           | Co        |
|                 |         |      |      | *(Narrative | mments**) |
|                 |         |      |      | Comments)** |           |
+-----------------+---------+------+------+-------------+-----------+
| **Telework      |         |      |      |             |           |
| Incentive**     |         |      |      |             |           |
+-----------------+---------+------+------+-------------+-----------+
| \- Regular and  |         |      |      |             |           |
| Reoccurring     |         |      |      |             |           |
+-----------------+---------+------+------+-------------+-----------+
| \- Medical      |         |      |      |             |           |
| Accommodations  |         |      |      |             |           |
+-----------------+---------+------+------+-------------+-----------+
| \- Disabled     |         |      |      |             |           |
| Accommodations  |         |      |      |             |           |
+-----------------+---------+------+------+-------------+-----------+
| \- Episodic/Ad  |         |      |      |             |           |
| hoc             |         |      |      |             |           |
+-----------------+---------+------+------+-------------+-----------+
| \- Travel Miles |         |      |      |             |           |
| Saved           |         |      |      |             |           |
+-----------------+---------+------+------+-------------+-----------+
| \- Travel Time  |         |      |      |             |           |
| Saved           |         |      |      |             |           |
+-----------------+---------+------+------+-------------+-----------+
| \- Telework     |         |      |      |             |           |
| Centers         |         |      |      |             |           |
+-----------------+---------+------+------+-------------+-----------+
| \- Reduction of |         |      |      |             |           |
| single          |         |      |      |             |           |
| occupancy       |         |      |      |             |           |
| vehicles on the |         |      |      |             |           |
| highway         |         |      |      |             |           |
+-----------------+---------+------+------+-------------+-----------+
| **Total         |         |      |      |             |           |
| Telework        |         |      |      |             |           |
| Incentive**     |         |      |      |             |           |
+-----------------+---------+------+------+-------------+-----------+

### WORK SCHEDULE FLEXIBILITIES 

The following discussion examines existing work schedule arrangements in
the Federal Government and how some organizations have sought to
overcome barriers to maximizing utilization of work schedule
flexibilities. Teleworkers have the potential for working anytime
throughout the day (or night) subject to operational requirements and
family/personal commitments. By taking advantage of this flexibility,
teleworking can benefit both employees and employers. The issue,
however, is that teleworkers need, but often don't have, this
flexibility to optimize their alternate worksite work schedules.

The discussion incorporates formal advice from the Office of Personnel
Management (OPM) on key issues and includes advice from the Food and
Drug Administration with respect to current work schedule
flexibilities. 

#### **Federal Work Schedule Arrangements**

##### Standard and \"Non-Standard\" Hours of Work  

A standard work schedule for full-time employees is 8 hours per day and
5 days per week in an administrative workweek (Monday through Friday),
for a total of 40 hours per week. A \"non-standard\" work schedule
includes any schedule in which full-time employees work other than the
standard schedule during an administrative workweek. Non-standard
schedules include "first 40-hour" tours of duty, work schedules for
employees receiving annual premium pay for regularly scheduled standby
duty or administratively uncontrollable overtime, work schedules for
employees receiving availability pay, and any schedule in which
employees work more than 8 hours per day or 40 hours per week (5 U.S.C.
6101). 

An employee\'s basic work requirement is the number of hours, excluding
overtime hours, an employee is required to work or to account for by
charging leave, credit hours, excused absence, holiday hours,
compensatory time off, or time off as an award. An employee\'s tour of
duty comprises the hours during which employees must work to fulfill the
basic work requirement. 

##### Alternative Work Schedules  

An agency may implement for its employees an alternative work schedule
(AWS) instead of traditional fixed work schedules, as prescribed in the
OPM Handbook on Alternative Work Schedules (December 1996) (refer also
to 5 U.S.C. 6122-6126). Within rules established by the agency, AWS can
enable employees to have work schedules that help employees balance work
and family or personal responsibilities. AWS can also assist
organizations and workgroups in meeting various business needs - for
example, by allowing a group to establish extended office coverage
and/or customer service hours. 

There are two categories of AWS: flexible work schedules (FWS) and
compressed work schedules (CWS). Under 5 U.S.C. 6122, a FWS consists of
workdays with (1) core hours and (2) flexible hours. Core hours are the
designated period of the day when all employees must be at work.
Flexible hours are the part of the workday when employees may (within
limits or \"bands\") choose their time of arrival and departure. There
are various types of FWS arrangements that provide different degrees of
flexibility. These include flexitour, gliding, variable day, variable
week, and maxiflex schedules. The authority for maxiflex work schedules
is 5 U.S.C. 6121, 6130-6132 and this represents the most flexible AWS
work schedule. 

Under 5 U.S.C. 6121(5), a compressed work schedule means that an
employee\'s basic work requirement for each pay period is scheduled (by
the agency) for less than 10 workdays (refer to the definition and
requirements for regularly scheduled work in 5 CFR 610.102 and 5 CFR
610.111(d)). CWS are fixed work schedules, but they enable full-time
employees to complete the basic 80-hour biweekly work requirement in
less than 10 workdays.  

OPM guidance on maxiflex work schedules is that this type of schedule
gives employees a lot of discretion in determining when work will be
performed. OPM states that the minimum requirements for a maxiflex work
schedule are: 

-   A full-time employee must work 80 hours in a biweekly pay period (to
    earn basic pay);

-   Agencies must establish some core hours and employees must work
    during core hours;

-   Agencies must establish time bands for working flexible hours
    (theoretically, could allow completion of flexible hours of work
    around the clock);

-   Employees must account for all basic work hours (core hours and
    flexible hours totaling 80 hours per pay period) by working, taking
    leave, or using accrued credit hours, compensatory time off, or time
    off as an award;

-   Overtime work is work that is ordered in excess of 8 hours in a day
    or 40 hours in a week. Flexible hours or credit hours worked
    voluntarily do not create an entitlement to overtime compensation;

-   Any limitations on arrival or departure times are established by the
    agency (and reflect, at a minimum core hours that must be worked).  

There is no authority to establish hybrid work schedules that borrow
selectively from the authority for flexible work schedules and the
authority for compressed work schedules. (See Comptroller General report
B-179810, December 4, 1979, and 50 FLRA No. 28, February 23, 1995).
However, it should be noted that some forms of flexible work schedules
(e.g., maxiflex) allow work to be compressed in fewer than 10 workdays
in a biweekly pay period. 

##### Overtime

Overtime pay provided under title 5, United States Code, is pay for
hours of work officially ordered or approved in excess of 8 hours in a
day, or 40 hours in an administrative workweek. FLSA exempt employees,
as defined in 5 U.S.C. 5541(2), who work full-time, part-time, or
intermittent tours of duty are eligible for title 5 overtime pay.
 Overtime hours, for the purposes of FWS refers to all hours in excess
of 8 hours in a day or 40 hours in a week that are officially ordered in
advance, but does not include credit hours for the purposes of flexible
work schedules. With respect to CWS, overtime hours refers to any hours
in excess of those specified hours for full-time employees that
constitute the compressed work schedule. For part-time employees,
overtime hours are hours in excess of the compressed work schedule for a
day (but must be more than 8 hours) or, for a week (but must be more
than 40 hours). 

##### Night Pay

The premium pay rules for night pay are prescribed in 5 CFR 550.121 and
122 for General Schedule employees and 5 CFR 532.505 for prevailing rate
employees. In general, premium pay for night work is not paid to a
General Schedule (GS) employee solely because the employee elects to
work credit hours or elects a time of arrival or departure, at a time
when night pay is authorized. However, agencies must pay night pay to GS
employees for those hours that must be worked between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m.
to complete an 8-hour tour of duty. Agencies must also pay night pay for
all designated core hours worked between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. and for any
regularly scheduled overtime work between those hours. The suspension of
premium pay and scheduling provisions of title 5, United States Code,
and the overtime pay provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938,
as amended (FLSA), as specified in 5 U.S.C. 6123 and 6128, apply only to
organizational units participating in an AWS program. All other
provisions of title 5 and the FLSA remain in effect for nonparticipating
organizations (OPM Handbook on Alternative Work Schedules, section
6(d)). 

#### **Examples of Program Solutions to Work Hour Flexibility Barriers**

Following are some examples of agency programs that have addressed and
overcome barriers to working hour flexibilities for teleworkers (this
discussion also applies to non-teleworkers):

##### Food and Drug Administration (FDA) - \"Any 80\"  

The FDA (with a workforce of about 10,000 employees) operates a maxiflex
schedule, defined as a flexible work schedule containing core hours on
less than 10 days in the biweekly pay period and a basic work
requirement of 80 hours for the pay period. Employees may vary the
number of hours worked on a given workday or the number of hours each
week within limits set by their Office/Center plan. One option for FDA
employees under the maxiflex schedule is the \"Any 80\" work schedule
whereby:

-   The basic work requirement must be completed between Monday 12:00
    a.m. - Saturday 11:59 p.m;

-   There is no entitlement to night pay, because the employee\'s tour
    of duty includes 8 or more hours available for work during daytime
    hours (i.e., between 6:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m.), even though he/she
    voluntarily elects to work during hours for which night pay is
    normally required (i.e., between 6:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m.).

-   If management prescribes core hours after 6:00 p.m., employees are
    entitled to night pay for those hours. In addition, night pay must
    be paid for those hours that must be worked between 6 p.m. and 6
    a.m. to complete an 8-hour daily tour of duty; the regulations on
    entitlement to "Sunday differential" pay do not permit work on
    Sunday without premium pay, so Sunday is not available for regularly
    scheduled work and so does not count toward the basic work
    requirement (employees can earn credit hours (see Note 2), overtime
    etc. on Sunday). Eligible employees can work their prescribed 80
    hours per period at any time of the day or night, as long as hours
    are \"regularly scheduled\" and approved by the supervisor, within
    the basic work requirement. The work schedule can be varied from
    week to week, although most employees maintain a fairly constant
    schedule. Core hours for all FDA employees are: Wednesday 10:00
    a.m. - 12:00 noon (There are specifications that permit FDA
    organizations to vary these core hours). FDA\'s official work hours
    are 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, and adequate
    staff coverage must be provided during these times.  

(Note: While FDA\'s flexible bands are 7 days a week for the purpose of
earning credit hours, the earning of flexible hours is limited to Monday
through Saturday to fulfill the employee\'s basic work requirement.)  

FDA's "Any 80" schedule has been operating successfully for about two
years and is utilized currently by about 25 percent of the FDA
workforce, including many teleworkers. In one FDA organization, 100
percent of the employees (all levels, occupations and series) use the
"Any 80" schedule. FDA advises that the "Any 80" schedule has proven to
be an invaluable quality of life initiative for employees to balance
their work and family obligations, and is an excellent retention and
attraction tool. 

##### Department of Energy (DOE) Flexiplace Program  

DOE Flexiplace participants may work any locally approved work schedule.
Supervisors schedule work hours in accordance with the individual
employee\'s work requirements regardless of work location. The
supervisor and participant agree on the days and times that the employee
will work in the main office and at the alternative workplace. The
schedule can parallel those in the main office or be specific to the
alternative workplace: 

For example, a participant who works from 7.00am to 3:30pm at the main
office, may be assigned the same schedule when working at the
alternative workplace; alternatively, the participant may be permitted
to work from 9:30am to 6:00 pm, or some other schedule, at the
alternative workplace.  

As long as the schedules are consistent with local policies and
applicable labor contracts, the variety of such schedule combinations is
unlimited and is geared to the employee\'s personal and job
requirements. The process of establishing work schedules permits
periodic adjustments to achieve an optimal schedule suiting employee and
organizational requirements. 

##### Department of Labor (DOL) Flexiplace Program 

DOL Flexiplace work schedules can parallel those in the office or be
specific to the flexible work arrangement. The process of establishing
work schedules allows periodic work schedule adjustments, when
appropriate, to achieve optimal scheduling to suit employee and
organizational requirements. 

#### **Research Findings Related to Work Hours Flexibilities** 

Two studies, conducted by the International Telework Association as part
of its Telework America Research Series, reported findings related to
teleworkers and work hour flexibilities. These studies, conducted in
2000 and in 1999, reported that:

-   Teleworkers average 11 hours per week working at home; only 3 of
    those work hours are during normal business hours. (From the 1999
    study)  

#### **Combining Telework with Alternative Work Schedules  **

A number of agencies, such as GSA and the Department of Transportation,
permit teleworkers to combine telework arrangements with alternative
work schedules, consistent with existing OPM Government-wide policy.  

-   Telecommuters can follow an alternative work schedule. Telecommuting
    work schedules should be sufficiently flexible to permit periodic
    work schedule adjustments. Initial telecommuting schedules may
    require trial and error adjustments to determine the optimal
    schedule to meet the needs of the employee and the organization.

 (OPM Website http://www1.opm.gov/wrkfam/telecomm/telecomm.htm)

#####     Overtime

The aforementioned 1999 Telework America Survey found that: 

-   42% of teleworkers average 50-75 hours of work per week but only 10%
    reported receiving overtime pay

A provision in the Department of Transportation Telecommuting Handbook
on overtime for teleworkers is typical of that found in other Federal
agency telework policies: 

Overtime (time worked at official duties in excess of the scheduled tour
of duty) must be ordered and approved by the supervisor, in advance. The
supervisor must provide clear direction and control of work rules and
activities. (Clause IX) 

The Food and Drug Administration\'s maxiflex program prescribes that:  

> Overtime hours are all hours of work in excess of 8 hours in a day (or
> 40 hours in a week) that are officially ordered and approved in
> advance by management. The requirement that overtime hours be
> officially ordered and approved in advance also applies to nonexempt
> employees under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). 

Management may order an employee who is covered by the maxiflex program
to work hours that are in excess of the number of hours the employee
\"planned\" to work on a specific day. Employees will receive overtime
only for those hours of work officially ordered in advance that exceed 8
hours in a day or 40 hours in a week. 

      Note: If an employee elects to work more than 8 hours a day or 40
hours in a week to meet his/her basic work requirement, he/she will not
earn overtime for those hours. All hours an employee elects to work that
are in excess of the basic work requirement will be recorded as credit
hours. 

Section 12d(2) of OPM\'s Handbook on Alternative Work Schedules provides
the following: 

> Management may order an employee who is covered by an FWS program to
> work hours that exceed the number of hours the employee planned to
> work on a specific day. If the excess hours are not more than 8 hours
> a day (or 40 hours in a week) at the time they are performed, the
> agency, at its discretion, may permit the employee to -  
>
>         (i) take time off from work on a subsequent workday for a
> period of time equal to the number of extra hours of work ordered;
>
>         (ii) complete his or her basic work requirement as scheduled
> and count the extra hours of work ordered as credit hours; or

       (iii) complete his or her basic work requirement as scheduled if
the agency policy permits.  This will result in an employee entitlement
to be compensated at the rate of basic pay for any hours of work equal
to or less than 8 hours in a day or 40 hours in a week. An employee also
would be entitled to overtime pay for hours of work ordered in excess of
8 hours in a day or 40 hours in a week.  

#### **Possible New Approaches** 

 

This Section outlines possible new approaches that could be adopted by
agencies in maximizing the flexibility of their telework programs and
work schedule arrangements. It draws on the views of contemporary
teleworking advocates and attempts to reconcile these with the
legislative, cultural and practical constraints often facing telework
programs in the Federal Government. 

Jack Nilles, in his book \"Managing Telework - Strategies for Managing
the Virtual Workforce\", addresses \"scheduling work periods\" as
follows:

 

    \"Most home teleworkers work on schedules that are either evolved to
fit their individual preferences and household constraints or are
determined by the nature of the job. Programmers, for example, tend to
work late at night during hours when response times are fastest on
mainframe computers. Most people work by the clock, but not necessarily
by the same time periods as for on-site work. Several teleworkers list
the main virtue of teleworking as its metabolism equalizer nature. It
allows them to work during their most energetic periods - that are not
consistent with normal office hours.\" 

    \"A common change is schedule chunking: from the traditional
nine-hour continuous day (with lunch in the middle), to two or more
chunks of two to four hours, only some of which are during conventional
office hours. As another variation, some teleworkers change to a more
flexible twenty-four hour day, seven-day week of interspersed work and
leisure. If interaction with on-site peers is required as part of the
tasks performed at home, those work hours need to be synchronized. Where
use of electronic- or voice-mail satisfies the work communications
needs, the time periods worked at home need not overlap on-site work
hours.\" (page 194) 

      (Nilles, Jack M., Managing Telework: Strategies for Managing the
Virtual Workforce, published by John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 1998, ISBN
0-471-296316-4. Jack Nilles is known internationally as the \"father of
telecommuting.\" He founded his own company, JALA, which consults with
major corporations and governments world-wide on telecommuting projects
and prospects).

In justifying the need for more flexible hours for teleworkers, Nilles
explains that: 

>   Many teleworkers also work on compressed schedules such as 9-80 (8
> nine-hour-plus-lunch days and 1 eight-hour-plus-lunch day in two
> weeks) or 4-10 (4 ten-hour-plus-lunch days per week) however, managers
> are even more reluctant to accept teleworking for compressed-week
> employees, arguing that they are already spending diminished time in
> the office. Our data indicate that the benefits of teleworking are
> relatively insensitive to these different schedule options; they work
> for all of them. (page 194) 
>
>   (Nilles, Jack M., Managing Telework: Strategies for Managing the
> Virtual Workforce, published by John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 1998)  

Dr. Wendell Joice, a leading Government advocate for teleworking, states
that:  

\"the need to limit telework to business hours and/or a range covering a
few hours on either end of the typical business day has diminished. Some
telework organizations are trying \'work anytime\' arrangements. Such
arrangements can involve work time shifting that can cover an eight-hour
day, one or more days a week. Limited versions of work anytime have been
around for a while and known as flexitime, maxi-flex, or alternative
work schedules. Thus, some organizations are moving telework from a
flexible workplace arrangement to a totally flexible work
arrangement.\" 

    \"One of the benefits of teleworking is the flexibility of work
hours. Teleworkers may choose to start early and take an afternoon break
or start later and work later into the evening. Hours worked should be
clearly defined in a written agreement between employee and supervisor.
Most employers set core hours when the teleworker must be accessible for
teleconferences and phone calls.\"  

It is apparent that work schedule flexibility is fundamental to the
effectiveness of teleworking arrangements and that some agencies,
notably the FDA with its \"Any 80\" policy, have recognized this and are
making significant inroads towards freeing up working hours arrangements
for all employees. 

Consistent with OPM advice, employees who work alternative work
schedules, such as flexible work schedules and compressed work
schedules, may also telework. Supervisors may approve any work schedule
according to the individual\'s work requirements regardless of work
location. In determining work schedules for teleworkers is important to
achieve the right balance between maximizing the flexibility of
teleworking work schedules while at the same time ensuring the
teleworker is accessible and responsive to the needs of the main
office. Given the clarity of government-wide policy in this area,
agencies are able to, and should be encouraged to, allow employees to
both telework and work an alternative work schedule. Agencies may
determine that teleworkers, like all employees, are eligible to work
AWS, without restriction, based on the employee\'s job requirements and
personal circumstances.  

Experience has shown that most long-term arrangements should provide for
a minimum work time in the traditional worksite, e.g., 2 to 3 days per
week. Most teleworkers spend part of the workweek in the regular
worksite to improve communication, minimize isolation, and use
facilities not available offsite.  Agencies are encouraged to develop
flexible procedures that allow supervisors and teleworkers to determine
the best balance for individual situations. 

Employees participating in short-term arrangements (e.g., recuperating
from surgery, maternity reasons, etc.) typically do not have in-office
days; they work a full or part-time schedule from their home.
Similarly, long-term teleworkers may be allowed to work their full
schedules at the alternative worksite, particularly when the employee is
physically unable to commute. 

The major obstacle to increasing the flexibility of telework schedules
is that which already faces telework arrangements: managerial
resistance. It is likely that existing managerial resistance would be
exacerbated by proposals to allow teleworkers to work during
unconventional hours. To address this resistance, however, the
traditional argument remains: the success of the teleworking arrangement
should be measured by results, that is, the quantity, quality and
timeliness of the work output of the teleworker. The details of the
days/hours configuration worked by the teleworker is secondary to the
teleworker's resulting output, as long as the teleworker is available
and responsive as required. Regardless of the working hours arrangements
agreed, supervisors must schedule an employee\'s actual work
requirements. All such arrangements provide a structure for scheduling
work and accounting for time and leave. Completely unstructured
arrangements, where employees simply work at will, may violate legal
requirements and public policy. 

Finally, it would be both useful and feasible to reduce the existing
demarcation between fixed, compressed work schedules and flexible work
schedules, by allowing flexibility in start and finish times by
employees on compressed work schedules. It is recommended that this be
the subject of separate research.  

##### Options 

Possible options for increasing hours of work flexibility for Federal
employees include: 

Option A: The teleworker works a different work schedule at the
alternate worksite than at the main worksite (but still within the
parameters of approved work schedules for the organization). For
example, an employee who works from 7:00 am to 3:30 pm at the main
office, may be assigned a different schedule when working at the
alternative worksite, such as working from 9:30 am to 6:00 pm. The
manager and the teleworker have the discretion to agree on:

-   Teleworker availability during established \"core hours\",

-   Flexible arrangements without any specification of core hours (e.g.,
    in situations involving long term project work that would not
    normally require daily contact with the organization);

-   Minimum numbers of days/hours spent at the alternate worksite vs the
    main worksite.  

Option B: \"Any 80 (Monday through Saturday)\" 

The teleworker is permitted to work an Any 80 schedule between Monday
12.01am and Saturday 11.59pm, as mutually agreed by supervisor and
employee. The variety of work schedule arrangements would be unlimited
and should be geared to the employee\'s job requirements and personal
circumstances, as well as to maximizing operational efficiency.
Employees should have the flexibility to work the hours that are most
conducive to productivity, in the context of the needs of the
organization. In developing work schedules under this option, the
following would apply: 

-   Maximum flexibility in any specification of \"core hours\", number
    of days teleworking and minimum daily hours in the main worksite, as
    described under Option A;

-   No specification of daily bandwidth - supervisors may allow
    employees maximum flexibility in work schedules to allow work to be
    done during optimum productivity periods for example, an employee
    may work most effectively from 5:00am until 2:00pm, or from 6:00pm
    until 3:00am; there is no entitlement to night pay, because the
    employee\'s tour of duty includes 8 or more hours available for work
    during daytime hours.

 

The process of establishing work schedules under this Option should be
sufficiently flexible to permit periodic adjustments, if any, to
optimize the schedule for employee and organizational requirements. It
is worth noting that GSA telecenters are open 24 hours a day and that
agencies would get maximum value for their dollar by making more use of
telecenters throughout the full 24 hour daily period for which they are
charged. Agencies are charged for the use of the workstation for the
24-hour period, not per person at the workstation. Therefore, the cost
is the same whether the agency uses the center for 8 hours or 24 hours
in a full 24-hour period, and regardless of how many people use the
workstation during the period. 

Option C: \"Any 80 (Monday Through Friday)\"  

This option is the same as Option B except that the work schedules for
teleworkers are only approved for work anytime Monday through Friday,
and excludes work on weekends or Public Holidays. This option is similar
to that already possible under a FWS, whereby FWS employees do not get
night premium for hours they \"elect to work\" during the night period,
but which they don\'t really have to work to fulfill their daily work
requirement. 

Option D: \"Anytime-Anywhere\"  

Under this option, the employee is permitted to work any schedule
anytime (Monday through Sunday), as mutually agreed by supervisor and
employee, from any place approved by the supervisor.  Implementation of
this option in the Federal government would require the legal
requirement for core hours to be changed or eliminated. (See 5 U.S.C.
6122(a)(1)). In addition, employees would be entitled to Sunday pay
under existing regulations and, while there are no statutory or
regulatory constraints to the concept of working \"anywhere\",
determining entitlement to locality-based comparability payments and
whether the employee\'s duty station has changed are important
considerations for employees working away from their designated official
duty stations for a significant period of time. 

Option E: Confine the \"Any 80\" Schedule to teleworkers who are
disabled or teleworking due to health problems. Under this Option, the
\"Any 80" Schedule is only approved for teleworkers who are disabled or
suffering ill health. 

**In determining the viability of these options, the following questions
were submitted to OPM, which provided responses as follows: **

#### **ASSOCIATED Q'S AND A'S (FROM OPM) **

**1. If we proposed that teleworkers could work \"anytime/anywhere\",
what legal obstacles would you envisage?  **

  Answer: In order for flexible work schedules to accommodate a \"work
anytime\" concept, the   legal requirement for core hours would have to
be changed or eliminated. Core hours are   designated hours and days
during which an employee on such flexible work schedule must be  
present for work. (See 5 U.S.C. 6122(a)(1).) We note that agencies need
not require more than   one or two core hours under a maxiflex work
scheduling policy. For example, the \"any-80\" work   schedule under the
AWS plan for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration requires 2 core
hours   on Wednesday and does not permit employees to work flexible
hours on Sunday. 

There are no statutory or regulatory constraints to the concept of
working \"anywhere.\" However, for employees working away from their
designated official duty stations for a significant period of time,
determining entitlement to locality-based comparability payments and
whether the employee\'s duty station has changed are important
considerations. 

Note that a \"first-40\" tour of duty authorized by 5 U.S.C. 5542(a)
does not provide increased work scheduling flexibility for employees,
but rather increases a manager\'s ability to schedule work to meet work
needs. Employees under \"first-40\" work schedules generally object to
them because they often cannot predict when work will be required.

 

**2. Is there any legislation or regulations that prohibit employees
from working outside \"standard  hours\" - however they are defined?  **

  Answer: Under 5 U.S.C. 6101 and 5 CFR 610.111 and 610.121, agency
heads (or their   designated representatives) are required to establish
work schedules in advance for full-time   employees. The legislative
history of the law establishing alternative work schedules indicates  
that the work scheduling requirements in 5 U.S.C. 6101 apply only to the
extent that they are compatible with the authority to establish flexible
and compressed work schedules. The Office of Personnel Management shows
great deference to an agency\'s determination that its operations would
be seriously handicapped or that its costs would be substantially
increased if employees are scheduled to work only on Monday through
Friday. In addition, 5 U.S.C. 6101 states that the basic 40-hour
workweek must be scheduled on Monday through Friday \"when possible.\"
The requirements in 5 U.S.C. 6101 should not be viewed as an impediment
to establishing alternative work schedules to accomplish agency work
requirements. Employees who work under flexible work schedules may work
outside \"standard hours\" (e.g. Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to
5:00 p.m.) voluntarily without an entitlement to overtime pay. Agencies
may also permit employees under flexible work schedules to earn credit
hours voluntarily. 

**3. Is it possible for employees to work outside the \"standard hours\"
without being entitled to night pay differential? **

  Answer: Yes. This can be done under the flexible work schedule program
if flexible time bands  (hours when employees may work flexible hours)
are broad enough. If an employee\'s tour of duty includes 8 or more
hours available for work during daytime hours (i.e., between 6:00 a.m.
and 6:00 p.m.), he or she is not entitled to night pay for voluntarily
working during hours for which night pay is normally required (i.e.,
between 6:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m.). However, agencies must pay night pay
for those hours that must be worked between 6:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. to
complete an 8-hour daily tour of duty. If an agency requires employees
to work at night, including core hours, employees are entitled to night
pay.  

**4. Is it possible for employees to work weekends and/or public
holidays without being entitled to premium pay? **

  Answer: Employees are not entitled to overtime pay or compensatory
time off for voluntarily working flexible hours or for earning credit
hours. See the definitions of overtime hours in 5 U.S.C. 6121(6) and
(7). For credit hours, see 5 U.S.C. 6123(b) and 6126.   Flexible hours
are considered to be regularly scheduled work for premium pay purposes.
See 5 CFR 610.111(d). If an agency\'s flexible time bands include hours
on Sunday and FWS employees work flexible hours on Sunday, the employees
are entitled to Sunday premium pay for up to 8 hours of a tour of duty
that begins or ends on Sunday.   A full-time FWS employee is entitled to
holiday premium pay for non-overtime work, including working flexible
hours, on a holiday. Agencies can prohibit FWS employees from working
flexible hours during their 8-hour holiday tour of duty. No night pay
may be paid when credit hours are earned, since employees must
voluntarily work credit hours and earning credit hours is not considered
to be regularly scheduled work. Likewise, employees may not earn Sunday
premium pay or holiday premium pay for earning credit hours. This is
because credit hours are not considered to be regularly scheduled hours
and are not part of the employee\'s basic work requirement. (Note that
holiday hours and hours for which Sunday premium pay may be paid are
part of an employee\'s basic work requirement.) 

**5. Would it make any difference if we confined \"anytime/anywhere\" to
Mon-Fri or Mon-Sat?** 

  Answer: An agency can avoid a requirement to pay Sunday premium pay if
it does not permit the employee to work flexible hours on Sunday and
does not schedule core hours on Sunday. 

**6. Could such a policy also be extended to employees who do not
telework?**  

  Answer: The work scheduling and premium pay requirements discussed
above apply equally to employees who telework and those who do not.  

#### 

**7. Would overtime entitlements be affected by a work
\"anytime/anywhere\" policy, or can the existing arrangements continue
to apply (i.e. as directed and pre-approved (acknowledging the special
circumstances for non-exempt employees under FLSA)?**

 

Answer: See the answer above to question 4. Also, the flexible work
scheduling authority affords statutory protection against an entitlement
to overtime pay for \"suffered or permitted\" overtime work under the
Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, as amended (FLSA). This is because
overtime hours for employees under flexible work schedules must be
\"officially ordered in advance.\" (See 5 U.S.C.
6121(6)). Government-wide policy on telework and overtime should be
clarified as follows:  

a\) Employers should follow the same overtime guidelines for both
teleworkers and traditional employees.

b\) Employees, regardless of where they work, are not entitled to
overtime pay or compensatory time off for voluntarily working flexible
hours or for earning credit hours. (refer to the  definitions of
overtime hours in 5 U.S.C. 6121(6) and (7) and for credit hours, see 5
U.S.C. 6123(b) and 6126).

c\) Supervisors should ensure that employees, whether teleworking or
working in the main office, only work overtime with prior approval and
are paid only for overtime officially ordered and approved.

d\) For teleworkers who work a flexible work schedule, the flexible work
scheduling authority affords statutory protection against an entitlement
to overtime pay for \"suffered or permitted\" overtime work under the
FLSA, as amended. This is because overtime hours for employees under
flexible work schedules must be \"officially ordered in advance.\" (See
5 U.S.C. 6121(6)).

 

e\) Nonexempt employees who telework under a standard work schedule may
earn

overtime pay even though the overtime work was voluntary and not
officially ordered or approved. Agencies must pay not only for
officially ordered and approved overtime, but also for any overtime a
supervisor \"suffers\" or \"permits\" his subordinates to work. For
employees who perform work in the home, supervisors have less control
over suffered or permitted overtime.  (\"Suffered and permitted \"
overtime is any overtime work performed for the benefit of the
agency, whether ordered or not, provided the supervisor know or had
reason to believe that the work was being performed and had a chance to
stop it. Agencies should be careful about potential liability for
\"suffered or permitted\" overtime under FLSA; such overtime can strain
personnel budgets and employee relations. (See Title 5, USC, DFR
551.401, 411, and 421.))  

f\) Clearly established tours of duty and clear expectations concerning
work to be performed can minimize the possibility of employees working
unauthorized overtime hours; scheduling work to avoid unnecessary
overtime is a long standing public policy.  

### DOCUMENTING THE TELEWORK AGREEMENT

 

Nearly all Federal agencies have telework agreement templates, even
though organizations within the agency may not use such agreements.
There are numerous examples of effective work agreements and associated
policies. Following are brief overviews of two such examples, one from
the Department of Energy and one from the Department of Defense. These
examples are not provided as generic templates for all Federal agency
circumstances; instead they simply provide a view of the potential
contents of telework agreement content and policy. Other examples may be
obtained from the 'telework.gov' website or by contacting agency
telework program coordinators.

The Department of Energy\'s Flexiplace Program states that ideally an
agreement should be completed for all telework arrangements. Since this
may be impractical because of the urgency of a project or the
employee\'s personal situation, DOE requires that an agreement be
completed for both medical and non-medical work situations that, at a
minimum, are expected to last more than a few days. DOE also provides a
one-page \"quickie\" agreement that contains the essentials for
short-fuse situations when there isn\'t enough time to fully coordinate
a complete agreement. If there is a significant change in the
participant\'s assignment, then a new agreement should be prepared. If
there is any other change to the agreement, then an amendment or
addendum should be prepared and signed. DOE\'s telework agreements may
be for any period of time, but the plan states that these agreements
should be reviewed and re-certified at least semi-annually. Under DOE\'s
plan, the original telework agreement is filed in the employee\'s
Official Personnel Folder.  

The DoD telework policy requires an employee and appropriate official(s)
in his or her Component to complete a telework agreement that outlines
the terms and conditions of the telework arrangement before the employee
commences regular/recurring telework.  Although the DoD telework guide
provides a sample telework agreement, Components are not required to
adopt that particular format for their own use, so long as the agreement
includes those things required by the policy guidance. As developed, DoD
policy envisioned that copies of completed telework agreements would be
kept only by each employee and his or her supervisor. The DoD telework
policy does not mandate telework agreements be kept in a system of
records (such as official personnel files (OPFs)), and any decision to
maintain such a system is left to the discretion of the Components. 
Adopting the latter approach, however, may necessitate that the records
be filed in a Privacy Act System of Records, requiring the insertion of
a Privacy Act Statement in all telework agreements maintained in that
system. For such situations, a model Privacy Act statement has been
developed in consultation with the OSD Privacy Act Coordinator,
Directives and Records Division, WHS (Communications and Directives). 
The model statement is recommended for insertion into any telework
agreements used by Components that will be filed in a Privacy Act System
of Records, such as OPFs.  The model statement is as follows: 

*"Authority:  P.L. No. 106-346, Section 359; Under Secretary of Defense
(Personnel and Readiness) October 22, 2001 memo, \"Department of Defense
(DoD) Telework Policy and Guide."* 

*Purpose(s):  This Telework Agreement documents the agreed terms and
conditions of the telework arrangement between a manager and an employee
when the employee has been deemed eligible to participate in a telework
arrangement and has elected to enter that arrangement.  When this
agreement is completed, the supervisor or manager and the employee will
be provided a copy for their respective records.*

*Routine Use(s):  None*

*Disclosure, and effect on the individual of non-disclosure:  Voluntary;
however, if requested information is not provided, the individual may
not be eligible for participation in the Telework Program*."

> References Used: 

www.opm.gov/wrkfam/telecomm.policies.htm

> http://policyworks.gov/org/main/mp/library/policydocs/mworkplce.htm
>
> www.ma.doe.gov/pol/doeflex.html
>
> OPM Guide to Personnel Recordkeeping\
>  

### CLOSURE OF MAIN OFFICE OR EARLY DISMISSAL 

**[Associated Q'S AND A'S - Several questions were submitted to and
answered by OPM regarding the emergency dismissal
policies]{.underline}**:

 

1\. Does the recent advice on OPM\'s website reflect formal
Government-wide policy on this issue?

 

-   A: The guidance is applicable only to Federal agencies and employees
    in the Washington, DC metropolitan area, but we recommend that other
    major metropolitan areas adopt similar policies.  

2\. Are agencies required to adopt the new guidance, or can they set
their own policy? If they set their own policy, are there legal and/or
regulatory issues they must keep in mind?

 

-   A: OPM intends the guidance to apply to employees in all executive
    agencies located inside the Washington Capital Beltway. Although the
    guidance is not regulatory or statutory in nature, OPM requests that
    all agencies making a different decision notify our Office of
    Communications at (202) 606-1800, FAX (202) 606-2264, or email
    news@opm.gov .

      

3\. Does the new guidance hold true if an agency closes but the federal
government as a whole does not? Or is each agency intended to set its
own policy as relates to its own closure?

 

-   A: If an individual agency decides to close, that agency must
    determine its own policy on excusing employees from work. Each
    department or agency has discretion to excuse employees from their
    duties without loss of pay or charge to leave. OPM advises that the
    granting of excused absence should be limited to those situations in
    which the employee\'s absence, in the department\'s or agency\'s
    determination, is not specifically prohibited by law and satisfies
    one or more of the following criteria: (1) the absence is directly
    related to the department or agency\'s mission; (2) the absence is
    officially sponsored or sanctioned by the head of the department or
    agency; (3) the absence will clearly enhance the professional
    development or skills of the employee in his or her current
    position; or (4) the absence is brief and is determined to be in the
    interest of the agency. 

4\. If teleworkers were able to continue working when federal agencies
were closed, what are the compensation issues? Would this simply be the
\"price\" of being able to telework (agreed-upon in advance), or would
some kind of compensatory time and/or pay be necessary?

 

-   A: There are no unique compensation issues if employees are not
    excused from their normal work requirements. Teleworkers who are not
    excused from work during their regular work hours and workdays are
    paid their regular pay for working during that time. Employees
    (including teleworkers) who work their regular work hours are not
    entitled to additional compensation, compensatory time off, or
    credit hours because their main office is closed. Similarly,
    employees (including teleworkers) who have an AWS day off
    (nonworkday) on a day an agency closes are not entitled to a
    \"replacement day off\" nor to any additional compensation. 

5\. If an individual is teleworking from home and the home site is
\"closed\" (power out, person needs connectivity to function) and they
can\'t come in to the main office (blizzard) but the federal government
is not shut down, must the teleworker take leave?

 

-   A: In the situation described, the individual agency has the
    authority to establish its own policy. Several options may be
    considered. Since circumstances may differ in each instance, the
    agency may wish to consider each such incident on a case-by-case
    basis. Depending on the particular circumstances, the agency may
    require the teleworker to report for work at the main office, grant
    the teleworker excused absence, or offer the teleworker the option
    to take leave or use compensatory time off or credit hours. Each
    agency has the discretion to determine whether or not to grant
    excused absence to an employee or group of employees. Also, see our
    response to question 3, above.

In general, most agencies (as assessed by checking web sites) appear to
base their respective policies on OPM\'s more recent emergency dismissal
or closure guidance. If these, more recent, emergency procedures take
precedence over the telework guidance, a major telework advantage will
be lost. The ability of a teleworker to continue to work during an
emergency closure is one of the \"selling points\" for the adoption of
telework. Thus, agency operations will not have to come to a total stop
during shutdown emergencies. Individuals who are already in telework
arrangements can continue to function, and others who may not normally
be teleworkers can utilize telework to continue operations during
extended emergency situations.

In addition, this newer guidance states other information, which
ultimately has an impact on recommendations for change: 

> *Workdays on which a Federal activity is closed are nonworkdays for
> leave purposes.Employees who are on approved leave before the closure
> must be granted excused absence. This does not apply to employees on
> LWOP, military leave, suspension, or in a nonpay status. Employees on
> alternative work schedules (AWS) are not entitled to another AWS day
> off \"in lieu of\" the workday on which the agency is closed*.  

#### **Options**

1\) Ask OPM to revert from the new emergency dismissal guidance to the
guidance given on the telework web site, which allowed teleworkers to
continue to work if possible during an emergency closure. Leave all
other policies and procedures intact. In the revised guidance include
the information provided by OPM in its response to question 4 (above)
regarding compensation issues.  

      

Benefits:  

-   Enables the individual/workgroup/agency (whichever are applicable)
    to maintain some level of function during an emergency shutdown

-   Empowers managers and employees to make decisions based on the
    individual circumstances

 Drawbacks:  

-   Does not address the inequity in the policy between those on AWS or
    telework days, who are given no compensation/time off, and
    individuals who are on leave who are not charged that leave

-   Leaves the decision of whether or not a teleworker must continue to
    work during a shutdown to managers/employees and, therefore, may
    result in complaints about inequity and unfair treatment.

-   Emergency weather closures often mean that schools are also shut
    down in the region. For teleworkers with children, a requirement to
    work during shutdown may mean that they have to take leave time,
    posing another potential inequity.

2\) Promulgate the new OPM guidance that dismisses teleworkers for
emergency shutdown, making sure that this guidance is provided uniformly
(i.e., on the telework web site and in telework documents in addition to
the emergency closure information) 

       Benefits:

 

-   Avoids all appearance of inequity in compensation for emergency
    closure (except for individuals on their AWS day)

-   Removes responsibility from managers who may not wish to deal with
    the potential \"fallout\" of the judgment call they have to make as
    to whether their telecommuter(s) must continue to work

-   Benefits teleworkers with school-aged children or other dependents,
    who may also be at home due to a weather closure; such teleworkers
    will not be required to take leave or telework during the emergency.

        Drawbacks:  

-   Cuts off the benefit of the workgroup/agency being able to continue
    some functions during emergency shutdown, which may impact the
    business case for telework and slow its implementation in federal
    agencies

-   Hampers those who want to use telework as a managerial tool to cope
    with shutdowns

3\) Make several changes to the guidance; which may also necessitate
changes to relevant policies and/or regulations: 

-   Establish policy that teleworkers who are able to continue
    teleworking during emergency shutdowns should do so (as in Option 1
    above). Managers would have to decide on a case-by-case basis
    whether individuals with school-aged children would be able to
    continue working if the children are released from school. In cases
    where the teleworker could not reasonably continue working they
    should be excused.

-   Change the policy regarding leave so that it is uniform with the new
    policy on telework and the already-established policy on AWS - i.e.,
    those who are already on leave are charged that leave, even if there
    is a shutdown. Only if you change this policy can you reasonably
    expect 1) those on AWS to not expect a compensatory day, and 2)
    those on telework to continue working despite the shutdown.

Benefits: 

-   Makes all of the policy uniform in its expectations, therefore
    easier to understand and interpret.

-   Enables individuals/workgroups/agencies to continue some level of
    function despite an emergency shutdown, therefore creating more of
    an incentive for managers to allow telework as a flexibility.

Drawbacks: 

-   Requires change to regulatory language and policy, rather than
    simple guidance changes.

-   The change regarding leave may create negative feedback.

-   Required managers to decide which teleworkers may NOT need to
    continue working (i.e., those with school-aged children or other
    dependents affected by the emergency may be excused).

### DEPENDENT CARE 

-   Most Federal agencies have workplace dependent care policies and
    there are numerous examples of such policies associated with
    effective programs. The following discussion focuses on selected
    examples of such policies and is intended to provide information on
    potential content of such policies and is not intended as a generic
    template for all Federal agency circumstances. Other examples may be
    obtained from OPM's governmentwide dependent care activity.

-   

The Department of Interior provides on-site accommodations for employees
who have child or elderly adult care issues related to sick children and
unable to attend day care and/or school or an elderly adult who cannot
attend a day care or have an appointment. These accommodations include
providing an established Family Support Room with a bed, refrigerator,
TV and VCR, toys, etc. for the child and/or elder to use as well as a
computer, printer, fax, and desk for the employee. The impacted employee
continues to work a normal work schedule and takes care of the child or
elder. This is not an ongoing substitute for child and/or elderly adult
care, but an alternative for those specific times when child or elderly
adult care arrangements are needed at the last minute. 

Some Federal agencies allow an employee to bring a child on-site to the
main office when school is closed for a day due to weather or school
conferences. In these situations, the child normally remains in the work
location of the employee and the employee continues to work a normal
work schedule and take care of the child. In addition, in these
instances, the child is often allowed to use the government equipment
for entertainment. 

#### **Dependent Care/Telework Policy Sample From the Department of Energy (DOE):**

######### DOE-Flex Bulletin 

*The information contained in this Bulletin is intended for DOE-Flex
Advisors and Coordinators in responding to questions. The information
supplements the guidance in the **Handbook on DOE-Flex** and will be
incorporated in the handbook in the near future, at which time this
Bulletin will expire and be removed from the **DOE-Flex** web site.*

**No.** 1 May 2000

Subject: Maternity and Paternity

**1. What is the appropriate type of flexiplace arrangement for an
employee who has an absence for maternity or paternity reasons?**

A pregnancy is regarded as a serious health condition; however,
normally, most of the time that an employee is pregnant she does not
require confinement. When an employee has medical documentation that
states that the employee should not commute to work, be confined at
home, or is hospitalized during the pre- and post-delivery periods, then
the employee should be approved for a medical flexiplace arrangement for
those periods in which the employee is able to work, if so requested and
the tasks to be performed are appropriate for a flexiplace arrangement.

However, the issue of the type of arrangement is not as clear during the
following situations.

> a\. [A pre-delivery period,]{.underline} usually during the first
> quarter of the pregnancy, when an employee is not feeling well enough
> to work a full day at the office, but able to work for short periods
> during the day, or when she is able to work intermittently for a few
> days at a time does not necessarily require medical documentation to
> confirm the employee\'s health condition or limitations. Normally, an
> employee is going to request sick leave (or other appropriate leave)
> for those periods when she is not well enough to work. However, this
> is a good opportunity to permit the employee to work at home if she
> feels up to it.
>
> The proper type of arrangement may be either medical or situational,
> depending on the situation and local practices. If an organization\'s
> practice is to place employees on a medical arrangement (which is
> preferred) when they have a doctor or dentist appointment during part
> of the day and then work at home for the remainder of the work day,
> then an employee who is sick part of the day should be reported as
> being on a medical arrangement for that part of the day in which she
> is able to work. When an employee is able to work a few days at a time
> and is approved to work those days at home, then the employee should
> be on a situational arrangement, since situational arrangements are
> for periods of limited duration, usually one day to a few days.
> Because these situations are often unplanned a day or more in advance,
> but can be anticipated, it behooves the employee to discuss her
> situation with her supervisor and try to have work identified in
> advance and appropriate resources available at home to be able to be
> approved as a flexiplace arrangement on short notice.
>
> b\. [The post-delivery period for the mother who has fully
> recovered]{.underline} when the mother is no longer eligible for a
> medical arrangement, and a father who desires to spend time with the
> infant, may be approved for a flexiplace arrangement when the employee
> wants to work part-time or full-time at home during the remaining
> period of an authorized maternity/ paternity absence. This situation
> can be a win-win opportunity for the organization and employee because
> it allows the mother to return to work earlier than perhaps would
> otherwise occur and allows the father to continue to be productive
> (the considerations for this situation are discussed in detail in the
> answer to the next question).
>
> However, it becomes a problem for organizations that have limited a
> regular flexiplace arrangement to less than a full-time situation,
> e.g., for one to three days during a pay period, or do not permit
> regular arrangements. If the employee works intermittently for a
> short-term period, such as a week or so, then it would be appropriate
> to report the employee as situational. But when an employee wants to
> work for an extended period, e.g., a few weeks, even part-time, then
> the employee should be reported as being on a regular arrangement.
> Thus, such organizations should change their polices to permit
> exceptions for periods of maternity/paternity absence when their
> flexiplace policies do not provide for extended periods of time.

**2. Can an employee be on a flexiplace arrangement to bond or care for
a newborn or adopted child?**

The Department recognizes that some employees can be productive while
caring for infants following the birth or adoption of a newborn, as
evidenced by the success of the \"Babies-in-the-Workplace\" program at
the Oakland Operations Office and the success that some agencies have
had with their bringing sick children to the office in designated work
space. The \"Babies-in-the-Workplace\" program allows infants who are
not disruptive to be in the parent\'s office area up to age 6 months
when they usually become restless and more demanding of the parent\'s
time and attention.

Those two programs are in sharp contrast to the Department\'s guidance
in the Handbook on DOE-Flex, which was based on the existing
Government-wide guidance at the time: that a flexiplace arrangement \"is
not a substitute for child or other dependent care arrangements\....\"
The DOE-Flex guidance is to be revised because of the recognition that
it is possible to work at home under certain circumstances, including
when someone else is available in the home, such as a spouse,
grandmother, or nanny, to provide full-time care; during days in which
the employee takes leave for a well-baby check-up; or during short-term
medical situations in lieu of bringing a sick child to the office.

Based on the \"Babies-in-the-Workplace\" Program and the revised
guidance, supervisors may approve regular arrangements at home on a
case-by-case basis. This situation is obviously fraught with potential
problems because of the potential distraction that an infant can have on
an employee who is trying to work. Thus, it is essential that
supervisors have open and frank discussions with employees who are
requesting regular arrangements in order to learn what the home
situation is and how an employee expects to handle it, as well as
monitors those situations that have been approved. If supervisors are
not comfortable with such arrangements or it is apparent that an
employee is either abusing the privilege or is not performing
satisfactorily, they may disapprove or terminate the arrangement.
However, supervisors are encouraged to try pilot efforts with trusting,
reliable employees who have been excellent performers before ruling them
out. It may be that modifications in the employee\'s work schedule, if
feasible, can resolve the situation when someone else can provide care
for the child outside of normal work hours. Thus, the Department
encourages supervisors and employees to try to work out mutually
agreeable win-win situations.

**3. What is the appropriate type of resources for an employee while on
a maternity or paternity absence?**

For organizations that do not provide resources or for organizations
that provide the same resources for medical and non-medical absences,
this is not an issue. However, for organizations that provide more
extensive resources for medical arrangements, including type of
equipment, an additional phone line, phone card, and/or support
assistance, than situational or regular arrangements, then the following
guidance is offered.

> a\. When an organization can afford to allow the additional resources
> to be utilized following a medical release, then it is recommended
> that they provide an exception to their operating policy or practice
> for maternity situations, but not paternity situations, since the
> father will not be on a medical arrangement.
>
> b\. When an organization has limited resources available, then it
> should communicate to those employees who will be on a maternity
> absence in advance that it cannot afford the luxury of continuing the
> additional resources once the employee has been released. This
> information should be provided in the employee\'s flexiplace agreement
> or as an attachment to it.

#### **Dependent Care Options Examined By the HRM Committee:**

-   Recognize that telework may be an appropriate short-term temporary
    substitute for child and/or elderly adult care in certain
    situations. Some examples of these situations are: 1) a permanent
    day care provider is unavailable on short notice, whether it be
    child and/or elderly adult care; 2) a child is sick and can not
    attend school; 3) an elderly adult is sick and can not attend a day
    care; 4) a child\'s school is closed for the day due to weather or
    other emergencies, etc.; 5) an elderly adult needs to be taken to a
    doctor\'s appointment. In these situations there is a dual benefit
    for both the manager and the employee. The teleworker may continue
    to work with minimal interruption. Also, the teleworker may be able
    to minimize any required leave taking required to meet the
    situation. This would be a win-win situation for both management and
    the employee because neither productive work time nor leave time are
    being unnecessarily sacrificed**.** 

-   Authorize more extensive flexible work schedules (i.e. 24/7) that
    allow teleworkers to arrange their work schedule around child and/or
    elderly adult care issues. The 24/7 flexibility recommendations are
    discussed in more detail in the section on Work Hours Flexibilities.
    With a more extensive flexible work schedule available a teleworker
    can make arrangements to ensure their child and/or elderly adult
    care issues are met without interfering with their work. These
    extended work schedules would allow parents with school age children
    to be available when children return home from school. This new
    approach can eliminate some of the latch key children situations and
    provide parental supervision to unsupervised youth. In addition, it
    will allow employees with elderly adults to be present if care is
    needed. In most cases, the elderly adults may only require minimal
    assistance and/or care.

-   Allow teleworkers to have child and/or elderly adult care provided
    in their homes by other caregivers at the same time they are working
    in the home office. It would be the responsibility of the
    telecommuter to ensure the dependent care does not interfere with
    work. This would allow parents to spend break and lunch time with a
    child or elder. This arrangement is already afforded to those
    employees who work at the main site and have a childcare center on
    site or elderly adult care in the vicinity.

-   Allow telework as an optional alternative to on-site Family Support
    Rooms and/or allowing dependents to be on-site at the main office
    for temporary situations. This option will allow some employees to
    be more productive and less distracted because the dependent is at
    home and likely to be comfortable. In additional important benefit
    is that the employee is relieved from adding more discomfort to an
    ill dependent by taking the dependent out of the home environment,
    causing the dependent to endure a commute to the workplace, and
    exposing the dependent (as well as onsite workers) to more germs.
    Also, it is likely that the dependent can benefit from entertaining
    activities in the home environment.

References  

www.opm.gov/wrkfam/telecomm/basic.htm

http://policyworks.gov/org/main/mp/library/policydocs/manula6.htm

[www.ot.state.mn.us/ot_files/handbook/telpolic.html](http://www.ot.state.mn.us/ot_files/handbook/telpolic.html)   
 

### PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT 

In several HHS operating divisions (FDA, HRSA), guidelines state that
employees must have a fully successful rating or higher. The performance
standards for employees participating in this program must be consistent
with those used for employees who perform the same or similar tasks at
the official duty station.  

Telework program guidelines at the Ames Research Center state that the
critical elements and performance standards must have clearly defined
performance requirements that are measurable and results oriented.
Explicit and objective \"norms\" for work output should be based on
experience with those required and sustained in the office and monitored
through scheduled progress reports.  

For Fairfax County Government, employees are held to the same or similar
standards as employees working at the work site.

 

In Department of Justice\'s Telecommuting Program Fact Sheet, some
helpful tips were provided in identifying employees, managers, and
positions to ensure a successful telework arrangement. Some of these
tips are outlined below as they relate to performance management: 

   

    Employee  

-   The employee has demonstrated self-motivation, independence, and
    dependability in accomplishing work assignments; overall performance
    evaluations are fully successful or higher; clearly defined
    performance standards; history of reliable and responsible
    performance of duties; and does not require close supervision or
    constant, face-to-face interaction with co-workers to complete
    assignments.

 

       Manager  

-   The manager should be comfortable with evaluating work performance
    in a manner compatible with telecommuting conditions such as
    measuring performance by results without daily, direct observation;
    an effective communicator to define clearly tasks and expectations;
    and supportive of the concept and willing to work through minor
    problems and obstacles.

 

       Position  

-   Specific work activities are portable and can be performed as
    effectively outside the office; performance can be judged either
    through quality and timeliness of assignment or quantity of tasks
    completed or a combination of these factors; and face-to-face
    contact with other employees and clients can be managed through
    telephone or e-mail.

References  

           http://www.opm.gov/wrkfam/telecomm/policies.htm

          
http://policyworks.gov/org/main/mp/library/policydocs/manual5.htm

           http://hydra.gsa.gov/pbs/owi/manual6.htm

           http://www.usdoj.gov/jmd/ps/telecommuting-prg.htm

           <http://www.mwcog/org/commuter/telresctr.html> 

### RECRUITING AND RETENTION 

-   Under existing OPM guidance, telecommuting is a management option
    rather than an employee benefit and does not change the terms and
    conditions of appointment.

-   Executive Order 13078 dated March 13, 1998 establishing the
    Presidential Task Force on Employment of Adults with Disabilities
    requires, among other things, that 100,000 adults with disabilities
    be hired in the federal government.

-   Section 359 of Public Law No. 106-346, October 23, 2000 requires
    each executive agency to establish a policy under which eligible
    employees may participate in telecommuting. OPM is required to apply
    the requirements of this Law to 25 percent of the Federal workforce,
    and to an additional 25 percent of the workforce each year
    thereafter.

-   The International Telework Association & Council (ITAC) reported in
    \"Telework America (TWA) 2000\" that: (1) 13 percent of teleworkers
    surveyed would consider the ability to telework an important
    influence when making a decision to accept another job. (2) 10
    percent of non-teleworkers surveyed considered that the ability to
    telework from home in a potential new job would have a moderate to
    decisive influence on their decision to make the move. (3) Many, if
    not most, experienced teleworkers are determined to continue
    teleworking; therefore, the ability to telework is important not
    only as a criterion for staying in their current job but also as a
    prerequisite for a new job.

-   In an article entitled, \"Employee Retention-Telework is a powerful
    way to keep and attract workers,\" AT&T cites an ITAC study pointing
    out that: (1) 53 percent of teleworkers say that the possibility
    of working at home some of the time is \"important\" in choosing an
    employer. (2) By contrast, 14 percent of teleworkers report that
    working at home is not at all important in considering a job. (3)
    Teleworking rates high on the list of desired employer traits. (4)
    Employers reap benefits from telework.

-   Citing another ITAC survey, employers can: (1) save 63 percent of
    costs associated with absenteeism by allowing telework. (2) By
    retaining employees through telework companies can save over
    \$14,600 per teleworker, the average cost of recruiting an employee.

-   The 2000 AT&T Employee Telework survey (consisting of interviews
    with 1,238 managers) reveals that: (1) 67 percent of teleworkers who
    reported receiving a competing job offer reported that giving up an
    \"AT&T telework environment\" was a factor in their decision to turn
    down the offer. (2) 66 percent of all AT&T managers report that
    telework is an advantage in keeping and attracting good employees.

References 

www.opm.gov/wrkfam/telecomm/policies.htm

http://policyworks.gov/org/main/mp/library/policydocs/manual5.htm

http://hydra.gsa.gov/pbs/owi/manual6.htm GovExec.com  

        

### DETERMINING DUTY STATION 

#### **Duty Station Definitions **

##### Office of Personnel Management

The relevant OPM references are the Guide for Processing Personnel
Actions, Chapter 23 Change in Duty Station; 5 CFR Part 351, REDUCTION IN
FORCE; §550.112(j); §551.422(b) and (d); §531.602; and the Personnel
Policies and Procedures available on the Family-Friendly Workplace
telecommuting web page at

[www.opm.gov/wrkfam/telecomm/policies.htm](http://www.opm.gov/wrkfam/telecomm/policies.htm). 

5 CFR §531.602 contains a definition of \"official duty station\" and is
the only reference that addresses a temporary change of station
situation, i.e., 6-30 month assignment in which travel allowances are
authorized, as opposed to a TDY assignment of up to 6 months in which
per diem is paid. The Personnel Policies and Procedures document
\"recommend(s) that agencies designate the telecommuter\'s main office
as the official duty station for such purposes as special salary rates,
locality pay adjustments, and travel\...\", and goes on to state that
\"agencies may make their own determinations.\" This guidance was taken
verbatim from GSA\'s original guidance on telecommuting at

http://policyworks.gov/org/main/mp/library/policydocs/manual5.htm under
the section \"DUTY STATION  AND PAY ISSUES.\"  

5 CFR §550.112(j)(2) also addresses \"official duty station\". It, and
§551.422(b), state that travel from home to work and vice versa, within
the official duty station, is never hours of work. §551.422(b) states
that \"(a)n employee who travels from home before the regular workday
begins and returns home at the end of the workday is engaged in normal
\'home to work\' travel; such travel is not hours of work.\" These
regulations were issued prior to the concept of
telecommuting/teleworking at home in which the home becomes an
authorized or designated work site. 

Depending on the FLSA exemption status of an employee\'s position, time
spent traveling is considered compensable hours of work as described in
both 5 CFR 551.422(a) and 5 CFR 550.112(g). Federal employees in FLSA
non-exempt positions fall under the provisions of Section 551.422(a),
which states that time spent traveling is considered hours of work if an
employee is required to:

\(1\) travel during regular working hours

\(2\) drive a vehicle or perform other work while traveling

\(3\) travel as a passenger on a one-day assignment away from the
official duty station

\(4\) travel as a passenger on an overnight assignment away from the
official duty station

during hours on non-workdays that correspond to the employee\'s regular
working hours

Both FLSA non-exempt and exempt employees covered by Title V of the
United States Code fall under the provisions of Section 550.112(g). This
section provides that time in a travel status away from the official
duty station is hours of work if the travel:

\(1\) is within an employee\'s regularly scheduled administrative
workweek

\(2\) involves the performance of work while traveling

\(3\) is incident to travel that involves the performance of work while
traveling

\(4\) is carried out under arduous and unusual conditions

\(5\) results from an event that could not be scheduled or controlled
administratively

The phrase \"could not be scheduled or controlled administratively\"
refers to the ability of an executive agency as defined in 5 U.S.C.§
105, to control the event that necessitates an

employee\'s travel. The control is assumed to be the agency\'s whether
the agency has sole

control or the control is achieved through a group of agencies acting in
concert, such as a

training program or conference sponsored by a group of agencies, or
sponsored by one in the interest of all, or through several agencies
participating in an activity of mutual concern. When an institution
outside the government conducts a training course, unless it is for the
sole benefit of the government, it is an event that cannot be scheduled
or controlled administratively. See Comptroller General Decision,
B-193127, May 31, 1979; Perry L. Golden and Wayne Woods, 66 Comp. Gen.
620 (1987); Morris Norris, 69 Comp. Gen. 17 (1989).

5 CFR Part 351 defines \"local commuting area\" under §351.203 as \"the
geographical area that usually constitutes one area for employment
purposes.\" §351.402(b) defines competitive areas for RIF actions \"in
terms of the agency\'s organizational unit(s) and geographical
location\.... A competitive area may consist of all or part of an
agency.\" This reference does not address a situation in which an
employee is elecommuting/teleworking on a full-time basis from outside
the commuting area of the organization to which assigned. 

##### General Services Administration 

GSA\'s Federal Travel Regulations (FTR) at 41 CFR §300-3.1 defines
\"official station\" as \"the location of the employee\'s \... permanent
work assignment\" and describes the geographical limits of the official
station for an employee as \"(1) (t)he corporate limits of the city or
town where stationed or if not in an incorporated city or town; (2)
(t)he reservation, station, or other established area (including
established subdivisions of large reservations) having definite
boundaries where the employee is stationed.\" 

GSA\'s internal Order on Time and Leave Administration, Chapter 12,
HOURS OF DUTY, addresses Flexible Workplace Arrangements (Flexiplace
Program) at paragraph 9. Paragraph o under the section Other management
considerations addresses the official duty station by referencing the
definition in the FTR and states, \"(r)egardless of where the employee
spends the majority of work hours, the conventional Federal office, for
purposes of flexible workplace arrangements, remains the official duty
station.\" 

Section 302-1.3 of the FTR, which is available at

<http://policyworks.gov/org/main/mt/homepage/mtt/ftr/newftr/302-1_3.html>

states that, for a permanent change of duty station, payment of travel
and transportation expenses are not mandatory provided the transfer \"is
not primarily for the convenience or benefit of the employee or at
his/her request\" and, for a temporary change of station, payment of
such expenses is discretionary. However, the FTR does not address a
telework situation in which the employee requests to relocate away from
the assigned office and  whether travel expenses are mandatory or
discretionary. 

##### Department of State 

The Department of State Standardized Regulations (DSSR) establishes
allowances for the cost of living (based on factors that exceed that of
the Washington, DC area), quarters, education, hardship area
differentials, and danger pay for all Federal employees while stationed
overseas. Agencies are not permitted to restrict allowances authorized
for full-time employees; however, section 031.5 prohibits part-time
employees from receiving any allowances, except danger pay. 

####  A**ssociated Q's and A's (From OPM)  **

The following questions and scenarios (in bold print) were sent to the
OPM compensation staff for consideration. In its response, OPM provided
general guidance and responded to each scenario. The OPM responses are
in italics. 

**When an employee\'s home (or telecenter or satellite office) is an
authorized or designated work site, when is an employee\'s
travel/commute between that location and the employee\'s main office
location considered work or nonwork hours? Does the employee\'s work
schedule change? **

        

   *General Guidance* 

*Commuting from home to work and vice versa is not hours of work. When
an employee travels directly from home to a temporary duty location
outside the limits of the employee\'s official duty station, the time
the employee would have spent in normal home-to-work travel is deducted
from hours of work. (See 5 CFR 550.112(j)(2) and 5 CFR 551.422(b).)* 
*Travel during the employee\'s regularly scheduled basic tour of duty is
hours of work. Employees should be required to obtain approval for
travel from their supervisors. It is not appropriate to schedule
overtime hours to cover travel time. (See 5 CFR 550.112(g)(1), 5 CFR
551.422 (a)(1), and 5 U.S.C. 6101(b)(2).)* 

*Supervisors generally may not change an employee\'s regularly scheduled
basic tour of duty after the workweek begins. (See 5 U.S.C. 6101(a)(3).)
However, supervisors may cancel regularly scheduled overtime work or may
order irregular or occasional overtime work. For employees under
flexible work schedules, supervisors may require, during a workweek,
that some (planned) flexible hours of work be performed at another time
not in excess of 8 hours in a day or 40 hours in a week. (See OPM\'s
Handbook on Alternative Work Schedules, section 12d.* 

**Consider the following scenarios related to the above question: **

**a. When an employee has a preplanned event, e.g., a meeting, scheduled
in the main office on the employee\'s telecommuting day and remains at
the main office for that employee\'s normal work schedule.**  

-   *This scenario implies that the agency has a compelling reason to
    require the employee to work at the main office for at least part of
    the day. When that occurs, the agency may want to cancel the
    employee\'s authority to telecommute on the day of the meeting in
    the main office or reschedule his or her telecommuting day. If a
    telecommuter is required to travel to the main office during his or
    her regularly scheduled basic tour of duty on that day, the agency
    must credit the travel time as hours of work. In order to maximize
    productivity and avoid situations where a telecommuter has a greater
    pay benefit than employees who do not telecommute, agencies should
    avoid requiring a telecommuter to travel to the main office during
    his or her regularly scheduled basic tour of duty.*  

**b. When an employee is directed to come in (called back) to the office
for an unplanned event, e.g., to work on an urgent assignment for which
the employee doesn\'t have the resources available at home to complete.
 **

-   *If a telecommuter is directed to travel to the main office during
    his or her regularly scheduled basic tour of duty, the
    telecommuter\'s travel hours must be credited as hours of work. If
    the telecommuter is directed to travel back to the main office
    before or after his or her regularly scheduled basic tour of duty
    for irregular or occasional overtime work, the employee is entitled
    to at least 2 hours of overtime pay under the \"call back\" rules.
    (See 5 CFR 550.112(h) and 551.401(e).)* 

**c. When an employee forgets to take home the correct resources needed
to work all day, so comes in long enough to get them and return home.
 **

-   *A telecommuter must receive approval from his or her supervisor for
    any trips to the main office on his or her telecommuting day. If the
    trip is approved and occurs during the telecommuter\'s regularly
    scheduled basic tour of duty, the employee\'s travel time is hours
    of work. For this reason, the supervisor must evaluate whether such
    a trip is necessary before granting approval. The supervisor may
    want to require the employee to work at the main office for the
    remainder of the workday. If a telecommuter repeatedly fails to plan
    properly and does not have the necessary resources to work at home,
    the agency should reevaluate the employee\'s continued participation
    in the telecommuting program.*

** d. When an employee needs or desires to arrive or leave during the
normal work schedule and is approved to complete the day at the
alternate work site/home.  **

-   *As stated above, if an employee is permitted to travel to and from
    his or her telecommuting work site during his or her regularly
    scheduled basic tour of duty, the travel hours are hours of work.*

 **e. When the employee\'s alternate work site/home is outside the 50
mile commute radius or takes more than an hour for the normal commute*.*
 **

-   *As stated above, normal commuting from home to work, and vice
    versa, is not hours of work. This applies no matter how long the
    employee\'s normal commute is.*

#### **Proposed Definitions and Applications**

###### Definitions

1\. **Local commute** - This is the normal commute that an employee
would have to the assigned (traditional main) office (regardless of a
telecommuting arrangement). It includes:

> a\. commutes both within and outside the geographical locality pay
> area, including commutes of more than 50 miles, e.g., Fredricksburg,
> VA and Harpers Ferry, WV, to the assigned office;
>
> b\. commutes to satellite offices and telecenters that are inside and
> outside the locality pay area;
>
> c\. training, conferences, meetings, etc.; and
>
> d\. TDY assignments up to 6 months (short-term).

[Types of work arrangements]{.underline}: All apply, i.e., regular,
medical, and episodic/ad hoc

[Duty station]{.underline}: Determined by the location of the assigned
office

[Locality pay]{.underline}: Same

> [Hours of work]{.underline}: The commute to and from home to the
> assigned office is non-work hours, unless the home is designated as
> the alternative work site and a commute is authorized during
> designated work hours for those days in which the home is designated
> as the alternative work site

[Travel expenses]{.underline}: Authorized to and from the alternative
worksite during working hours; per diem while on TDY

[Frequency of commute]{.underline}: Not applicable; i.e., it doesn\'t
matter how many days per week or pay period

[Changes needed]{.underline}: None

2\. **Remote commute** - This is an unusual commute to the assigned
office from distances that usually involve drives of a few to several
hours and/or travel by air to the assigned office. Normally, the
employee\'s home will be designated as an alternative work site on a
regular, even full-time basis. This also includes commutes from other
locations, such as vacation homes or family members\' homes.

[Types of work arrangements]{.underline}: All apply, but normally either
regular or medical

[Duty Station]{.underline}: Negotiable

[Locality pay]{.underline}: Depends on duty station determination

[Hours of work]{.underline}: Same as local commute

[Travel expenses]{.underline}: Negotiable; depends on duty station
determination

[Frequency of commute]{.underline}: Regular, within a pay period; the
number of days is not significant

> [Changes needed]{.underline}: Chapter 23 of the Guide for Personnel
> Processing would need to be modified slightly to allow agencies to
> determine the most appropriate duty station

3\. **Remote work** - This includes:

> a\. work normally performed away from the assigned office, such as
> home-based railroad inspectors and credit union examiners, and work
> performed from a remote location on a permanent basis;
>
> b\. extended TDY assignments, i.e., more than 6 months (recommend that
> this be eliminated to avoid the existing confusion with the next
> paragraph);
>
> c\. a temporary change in duty station, i.e., 6 - 30 months, e.g., for
> developmental assignments, extended medical situations, and extended,
> limited duration projects; and
>
> d\. work performed at a foreign or non-foreign overseas location at
> the employee\'s request, e.g., so that an employee can accompany a
> spouse on an overseas tour.

###### Applications 

When an employee is hired as a remote worker, pay is based on the
location where the employee will normally work, even if the employee
utilizes a local satellite office or telecenter.

These situations will involve a change in locality pay action when the
employee moves from one duty station to another. When a change will
result in a loss of basic pay, agencies should be authorized to use
retention allowances for temporary assignments to incentivize employees
needed for the assignment (consistent with the proposed new rule on use
of retention allowances \"during a temporary but critical work
situation\") to match their locality pay at their current duty station,
rather than pay the higher rate plus per diem. This doesn't mean that a
retention allowance can be justified in all temporary situations, but
rather only those deemed "critical."

For overseas locations, agencies should be authorized to negotiate the
amount of the allowances, e.g., up to an amount NTE the locality pay
that the employee would otherwise receive had the employee stayed at
his/her current duty station.

[Types of arrangements]{.underline}: Regular and medical

[Duty station]{.underline}: Where the work is normally performed

[Locality pay]{.underline}: Determined by duty station

[Hours of work]{.underline}: Same as local commute

[Travel expenses]{.underline}: As authorized for official travel;
however, foreign and non-foreign area allowances may be restricted when
the employee requests to work overseas

[Frequency of commute]{.underline}: Infrequent/periodic/occasional

[Changes needed]{.underline}:

1\) FTR regarding the maximum duration of TDY - 6 months;

2\) 5 CFR and DSSR regarding limiting foreign and non-foreign area
allowances under these situations; and

3\) 5 CFR regarding when a retention allowance may be used (which is
currently undergoing change).

## APPENDIX B: LEGAL/REGULATORY DOCUMENTATION

### GOVERNMENTAL OBJECTIVES AND REFERENCES

To understand the legal framework and issues, it is important to
understand some of the Government objectives for which telework is a
significant solution. They are:

1\. Protection and enhancement of environmental quality, in particular
clean air, as a result of reduced vehicle emissions;

2\. Reduction in the number of single occupied vehicles in order to
reduce traffic congestion and vehicle emissions;

3\. Enhancements in employee work/life programs; i.e., those that
contribute to assisting employees balance their work and personal needs
and to reducing work-related stresses.

4\. Improvement in the efficiency and effectiveness of Government
operations through expanded use of flexible work arrangements and use of
information technology (IT);

5\. Energy conservation; i.e., fuel savings; and

6\. The ability to recruit and retain highly skilled employees,
particularly disabled employees.

> The focus of these objectives makes Telework a mission-related
> solution for several agencies: EPA, DOT, OPM, GSA, OMB, and DOE.

### REFERENCES

The following are references that support the corresponding objective
and briefly explain how they pertain to telework. The agency(s)
responsible for implementing the respective reference as it relates to
telecommuting is in parenthesis.

[A. PROTECTION AND ENHANCEMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY; I.E., CLEAN
AIR, AS A RESULT OF REDUCED VEHICLE EMISSIONS -- RELEVANT
DOCUMENTS]{.underline}

1.  **Federal Employees Clean Air Incentives Act** (PL 103-172, December
    2, 1993; 5 U.S.C. §7905) (GSA\*) - This act was established to
    improve air quality and to reduce traffic congestion by providing
    for the establishment of programs to encourage commuting by means
    other than single-occupancy vehicles. It also established a
    reporting requirement to the President and Congress at least every 2
    years that includes non-monetary incentive programs, such as
    telecommuting (not specified per se in the legislation).

2.  GSA was designated as the lead agency by the President following the
    enactment of this legislation, but not by Executive Order.

3.  **Climate Change Action Plan**
    (<http://www.gcrio.org/USCCAP/toc.html>) (DOT and EPA) This
    Presidential initiative directed that DOT, in conjunction with EPA,
    implement a Federal telecommuting pilot project with the goal of
    getting one or two percent of Federal employees to work at home at
    least one day a week and, in conjunction with other agencies,
    promote part-time, home-based telecommuting to reduce traffic
    congestion and promote energy conservation.

4.  **\"Energy, Emissions, and Social Consequences of Telecommuting\"**
    (PO-0026) (DOE) - This transportation-related research report
    addressed the benefits of telecommuting in support of the energy
    conservation and the clean air objectives.

5.  **§359 of PL 106-346** (DOT and OPM) - This provision requires each
    agency to establish a policy under which eligible employees may
    participate in telecommuting. It also establishes the number of
    employees that are to be covered each year for the next 4 years by
    this provision. The related conference report defines telecommuting
    as \"any arrangement in which an employee regularly performs
    officially assigned duties at home or other work sites
    geographically convenient to the resident of the employee\" and
    defines eligible employees as \"any satisfactorily performing
    employee of the agency whose job may typically be performed at least
    one day per week.\"

[B. REDUCTION IN THE NUMBER OF SINGLE OCCUPIED VEHICLES IN ORDER TO
REDUCE TRAFFIC CONGESTION AND VEHICLE EMISSIONS -- RELEVANT
DOCUMENTS]{.underline}

1.  **Federal Employees Clean Air Incentives Act** (GSA) - see A1 above.

2.  **\"Transportation Implications of Telecommuting\"** (DOT)
    (<http://ntl.bts.gov/DOCS/telecommute.html>) - This 1993 report
    addressed the impact that telecommuting has on reducing traffic
    congestion and vehicle emissions. (From - **\"The Evolution of
    Telework in the Federal Government\"** by Dr. Wendell Joice, GSA,
    February 2000)

[C. ENHANCED EMPLOYEE WORK/LIFE PROGRAMS; I.E., THOSE THAT CONTRIBUTE TO
ASSISTING EMPLOYEES BALANCE THEIR WORK AND PERSONAL NEEDS AND TO
REDUCING WORK-RELATED STRESSES---RELEVANT DOCUMENTS]{.underline}

1.  **Presidential Memorandum for Heads of Executive Departments and
    Agencies**, dated July 11, 1994, subject: Expanding Family-Friendly
    Work Arrangements in the Executive Branch (OPM) - This document
    directed agencies to encourage and support the expansion of flexible
    family-friendly work arrangements, including telecommuting and
    satellite work locations.

2.  **Presidential Memorandum for Heads of Executive Departments and
    Agencies**, dated June 21, 1996, subject: (Implementing Federal
    Family Friendly Work Arrangements) (OPM) - This directed all
    agencies to \"expand their ability to provide their employees \...
    opportunities to telecommute, when possible\....\"

3.  **Information Technology Management Reform Act of 1996 (also known
    as the Clinger/Cohen Act)**
    (<http://wwwoirm.nih.gov/policy/itmra.html>) (OMB and GSA) - This
    directed OMB to \"promote and be responsible for improving the
    acquisition, use, and disposal of information technology by the
    Federal Government to improve the productivity, efficiency, and
    effectiveness of Federal programs \...\" as part of the budget
    process. It also provides the authority for each executive agency
    \"to acquire information technology as authorized by law\" and
    established Chief Information Officer (CIO) positions at each
    agency. This law serves as one of the bases for budget proposals for
    telecommuting resources.

4.  **Executive Order 13011**
    (<http://www.itpolicy.gsa.gov/mks/regs-leg/exo13011.htm>) (OMB and
    GSA) - This established the policy that Executive agencies will
    \"implement an investment review process that drives budget
    formulation and execution for information systems\...;\" \"improve
    the management and use of information technology within and among
    agencies by developing information technology procedures and
    standards and by identifying and sharing experiences, ideas, and
    promising practices\" (e.g., telecommuting); and established the CIO
    Council to \"share experiences, ideas, and promising
    practices\....\"

5.  **1993 Treasury, Postal Service and General Government
    Appropriations Act** (PL 102-393) (GSA) - This authorized GSA to
    acquire, lease, construct, and equip the first telecenters.

6.  **1996 Treasury, Postal Service and General Government
    Appropriations Act** (PL 104-52) (GSA) - This authorized GSA to
    accept and retain income from agencies (and non-Federal sources) for
    the use of the telecenters.

7.  **1997 Treasury, Postal Service and General Government
    Appropriations Act** (PL 104-208) (GSA) - This directed GSA to
    charge user fees at commercial rates for the use of the telecenters;
    agencies were initially not charged the full commercial rate.

8.  **1999 Omnibus Bill** (PL 105-277, §411)
    (<http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=105_cong_public_laws&docid=f:publ277.105> -
    This directed GSA to charge agencies 50% of the commercial charges
    for fiscal years 1999 and 2000, but beginning in FY 2001 agencies
    are to be charged based on 100 percent of the annual operating
    costs.

9.  "Sec. 411. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the
    requirement under section 407 of Public Law 104-208 (110 Stat.
    3009-337-38), that the Administrator of General Services charge user
    fees for flexiplace telecommuting centers that approximate
    commercial charges for comparable space and services but in no
    instance less than the amount necessary to pay the cost of
    establishing and operating such centers, shall not apply to the user
    fees charged for the period beginning October 1, 1996, and ending
    September 30, 1998, for the telecommuting centers established as
    part of a pilot telecommuting demonstration program in the
    Washington, D.C. metropolitan area by Public Laws 102-393, 103-123,
    103-329, 104-52, and 104-208: Provided, That for these centers in
    the pilot demonstration program for the period beginning October 1,
    1998, and ending September 30, 2000, the Administrator shall charge
    fees for Federal agency use of a telecenter based on 50 percent of
    the Administrator\'s annual costs of operating the center, including
    the reasonable cost of replacement for furniture, fixtures, and
    equipment: Provided further, That effective October 1, 2000, the
    Administrator shall charge fees for Federal agency use of the
    demonstration telecommuting centers based on 100 percent of the
    annual operating costs, including the reasonable cost of replacement
    for furniture, fixtures, and equipment: Provided further, That, to
    the extent such user charges do not cover the Administrator\'s costs
    in operating these centers, appropriations to the General Services
    Administration are authorized to reimburse the Federal Buildings
    Fund for any loss of revenue."

10. §630 of the Conference Report (House Report
    105-760)(<ftp://ftp.loc.gov/pub/thomas/cp105/hr760.txt>), Flexible
    Work Telecommuting Programs, for this bill specified that each
    agency will make available at least \$50,000 for FY 1999 and each
    year thereafter for \"flexible work telecommuting programs.\" The
    definition of \"flexible work telecommuting programs\" limited the
    application of this provision to work performed at telecenters,
    rather than any alternative workplace.

11. **Federal Information Technology Accessibility Initiative** (29
    U.S.C. §794d) (<http://www.section508.gov/>) (EEOC, Architectural &
    Transportation Barriers Compliance Board (Access Board), GSA) - In
    1998, Congress amended the Rehabilitation Act to require Federal
    agencies to make their electronic and information technology
    accessible to people with disabilities. §508 was enacted to
    eliminate barriers in information technology, to make available new
    opportunities for people with disabilities, and to encourage
    development of technologies that will help achieve these goals.

[D. ENERGY CONSERVATION; I.E., FUEL SAVINGS]{.underline}

1.  **Climate Change Action Plan** (DOT and EPA) - see A3 above.

2.  **\"Energy, Emissions, and Social Consequences of Telecommuting\"**
    (PO-0026) (DOE) - see A4 above.

[E. THE ABILITY TO RECRUIT AND RETAIN HIGHLY SKILLED EMPLOYEES,
PARTICULARLY DISABLED EMPLOYEES]{.underline}

1.  **Presidential Memoranda** (OPM) - see C above.

2.  **Presidential Memorandum for Heads of Executive Departments and
    Agencies**, dated July 26, 2000, subject: Employing People with
    Significant Disabilities to Fill Federal Agency Jobs that can be
    performed at Alternate Work Sites, Including the Home
    (<http://www.opm.gov/disability/memos/clinton1.htm>) (OPM) - This
    establishes the policy that the Government will utilize the skills
    of qualified people with significant disabilities by recruiting them
    for appropriate off-site, home-based employment opportunities.

3.  **Federal Information Technology Accessibility Initiative** (29
    U.S.C. §794d) (GSA) - see C11 above.

### LIABILITY ISSUES

There are legal issues surrounding flexible work arrangements that have
been addressed in a variety of ways, mostly by the Occupational Safety
and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Office of Workers Compensation
(OWCP). Some are listed below. See also Workplace Health and Safety
Issues.

#### **Injury to Persons**

**Home Inspections - OSHA Directive CPL2-0.125** - Home-Based Worksites
(<http://www.osha-slc.gov/OshDoc/Directive_data/CPL_2-0_125.html>) (DOL)

OSHA Definition for "Home-Based Worksite": The areas of an employee\'s
personal residence where the employee performs work of the employer.

OSHA Definition for "Home Office": Office work activities in a
home-based worksite (e.g., filing, keyboarding, computer research,
reading, writing). Such activities may include the use of office
equipment (e.g., telephone, facsimile machine, computer, scanner, copy
machine, desk, file cabinet).

> OSHA Directive CPL2-0.125 states:

-   OSHA will not conduct inspections of employees\' home offices.

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   OSHA will not hold employers liable for employees\' home offices,
    and does not expect employers to inspect the home offices of their
    employees.

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   OSHA will only conduct inspections of other home-based worksites,
    such as home manufacturing operations, when OSHA receives a
    complaint or referral.

-   Employers are responsible in home worksites for hazards caused by
    materials, equipment, or work processes which the employer provides
    or requires to be used in an employee\'s home.

The Office of Workers\' Compensation Programs (**OWCP**) is responsible
for determining whether an injury is covered by the Federal Employee
Compensation Act (FECA). Employees who are directly engaged in
performing the duties of their jobs are covered by the FECA, regardless
of whether the work is performed on the agency\'s premises or at an
alternative worksite. (see **FECA Bulletin No. 98-09 Performance of
Duty - Alternative Worksites** at
<http://www.va.gov/vasafety/OSHPgmDocs/DASHOConferenceCalls/DASHO-Call-2000-Attach2.htm>).

This point is illustrated by two actual cases:

a\. An employee (who already used a wheelchair) was injured when he
reached to answer the telephone while working at home. Coverage was
found because he was required to answer the telephone as part of his
official duties.

b\. An employee was injured while walking downstairs at home to check
her furnace, which was malfunctioning. Maintenance of the furnace was
not a requirement of her official duties. Once she left her immediate
work area, she removed herself from coverage under the FECA.

Determinations of coverage under FECA are very fact specific and will
require the assistance of the agency Office of General Counsel.

#### **Damage to Personal Property** 

1\) **Military Personnel and Civilian Employees Claims Act** (31 U.S.C.
3721) (DOJ) - This Act, which is the only recourse for Government
employees to seek recovery from the Government for damages to personal
property, authorizes heads of agencies to settle substantiated claims
from their employees which are under \$40,000, under certain
circumstances.

2\) **Federal Torts Claims Act** (28 U.S.C. 1346) (DOJ) - This Act
allows civil actions by individuals for injury or loss of property
caused by the negligent or wrongful act or omission of any Government
employee acting within the scope of their employment. Under this Act,
the Government could face a lawsuit for actions that occur in the
employee\'s home - to another family member or guest - while the
employee is teleworking or, more likely, from an auto accident while the
employee is commuting between authorized work sites. The telework
program operates under existing law. Thus, if an employee was acting in
an official capacity and within the scope of employment when the
wrongful act or omission occurred, the fact that the employee was at an
alternate location would not prevent the lawsuit against the Government.
These cases are very fact based, as would be true if an injury happened
in a Government building.

### EXPENSES ASSOCIATED WITH TELEWORK

#### **Related Expenses**

**Antideficiency Act** (31 U.S.C.1341 (a)(1)) (OMB)) - This Act
specifies that \"an officer or employee of the United States Government
may not (1) make or authorize an expenditure or obligation exceeding an
amount available in an appropriation or fund for the expenditure or
obligation or (2) involve the government in a contract or obligation for
the payment of money before an appropriation is made unless authorized
by law.\"

Since agencies have some latitude in the use of program funds for
telecommuting purposes and there are laws that pertain to most
expenditures associated with telecommuting, it is unlikely that an
employee would incur an expenditure that an agency could not authorize
if deemed appropriate. The same rules that would apply at the Government
worksite would pertain to any expenditures related to, and because of,
the employee teleworking.

**62 Comp. Gen. 419 [(1983)]{.underline}** - The Comptroller General has
issued many decisions and guidance on employee claims made by Federal
employees for use of their personal funds to procure goods or services
for official use. Generally, the rule is that an employee may not be
reimbursed for these items. However, in certain circumstances repayment
is allowable. The leading decision in this area is **62 Comp.Gen. 419
[(1983)]{.underline}**, which sets forth criteria for allowing
reimbursements to an employee. In those cases where there is a real need
to act without delay to protect a legitimate Government interest, the
employee may be reimbursed. The key is whether the employee could have
used the normal procurement process to obtain the goods or services. If
s/he could, s/he would most likely not be reimbursed. It is conceivable
that, as employees perform work at home or at a telecenter during hours
when their supervisors and/or help desk support is not available, they
may be faced with having to incur expenses not previously authorized in
order to complete their work. To be reimbursed, however, the employee
will have to show that the purchase was made in an emergency situation.
The employee takes the risk that s/he will be reimbursed for the
purchase.

#### 

#### Utility Costs 

#### 

#### The Comptroller General issued a decision, **68 Comp. Gen. 502 (1989),** which denied reimbursement for utility costs under Work-at-Home Programs at the IRS. The Comptroller General is \"not persuaded that the government would primarily receive the benefit of the incremental cost of utilities, such as heating, air conditioning, lighting, and the operation of government-furnished data processing equipment occasioned by the employee using his residence as his work place. It is difficult to apportion such utilities between those for which the employee is clearly responsible and any added increment attributed to having the work place in the residence.\" The Comptroller General's decision is no longer binding on agencies but each agency would have to make a determination for that agency that the expenditure for utility costs was justified and reasonable as part of the agency's program. 

#### 

#### Telephone Lines 

(**PL 104-52; 31 U.S.C. §1348**)(GSA and OPM) - Beginning in FY 1996 and
each year thereafter, agencies \"may use funds appropriated by this or
any other Act to install telephone lines, and necessary equipment, and
to pay monthly charges, in any private residence or private apartment of
an employee who has been authorized to work at home in accordance with
guidelines issued by the Office of Personnel Management: Provided, That
the head of the \"agency\" certifies that adequate safeguards against
private misuse exist, and that the service is necessary for direct
support of the agency\'s mission

####  Other Related Telework Expenses 

There is no existing reference for such expenses as installation
(upgrading) of electric service, the cost of providing Internet service,
etc., **68 Comp. Gen. 502 [(1989)]{.underline}** states that, \"(a)s a
general rule, appropriations for \"necessary expenses\" of any agency
may be used for purposes not specifically set forth in the
appropriations act, if the expenses in question are for the direct
support of the agency\'s mission. See 27 Comp. Gen. 679 (1948) and 54
Comp. Gen. 1075-1076 (1975)\....An agency may not use appropriated funds
to pay for items of personal expense unless there is specific statutory
authority. 63 Comp. Gen. 296 (1984). We have allowed exceptions to this
rule only where there is clear and convincing evidence that the
expenditure that would ordinarily be a personal expense primarily
benefits the government.\"

### PROTECTION OF RECORDS

**Privacy Act** (5 U.S.C. §552(a))
(<http://www.usdoj.gov/foia/privstat.htm>) (OMB) The Privacy Act
restricts disclosure of personally identifiable records maintained by
agencies and requires agencies to provide adequate protection of records
about individuals, including employees. It applies to records available
in any form and at any designated workplace. This Act attempts to
balance the Government\'s need to maintain information about individuals
with the rights of individuals to be protected against unwarranted
invasions of their personal privacy stemming from Federal agencies\'
collection, maintenance, use, and disclosure of personal information
about them. If an employee is teleworking, there is a potential for the
employee to have records that would come under the authority of the
Privacy Act and would have to be protected.

**Electronic Communications Privacy Act** (ECPA) (18 U.S.C. 2510 et
seq.) (see <http://www.digitalcentury.com/encyclo/update/ecpa.html> for
a discussion of the major provisions of the Act) (DOJ) - This Act was
adopted to address the legal privacy issues that were evolving with the
growing use of computers and other new innovations in electronic
communications and surveillance. ECPA extended privacy protection to
electronic mail and computer transmissions. It also was intended to
prohibit providers of the electronic communication services from
disclosing the content of communications that has been stored
electronically without the lawful consent of the person who originated
the communication. Under ECPA an employer cannot monitor employee
telephone calls or electronic mail when employees have a reasonable
expectation of privacy. However, the Act does allow employer
eavesdropping if employees are notified in advance or if the employer
has reason to believe its interests are in jeopardy.

**Computer Security Act** (PL 100-235; 15 U.S.C. 271-278h) (GSA and
NIST) - This Act established minimum acceptable security practices for
Federal computer systems. These rules would apply regardless of where
the employee is using a computer that contains Government information,
and who owns the particular computer.

**Government Information Security Reform Act** (PL 106-398, FY 2001
Defense Authorization Act, Title X, subtitle G) (OMB, NIST, OPM, GSA) -
This Act addresses the security of both classified and unclassified
computer systems to ensure proper management and security for the
information resources supporting Federal operations and assets. (See
M-01-08, a Memo from the Director of the Chief Information Officers
Council for guidance on implementation of the Act.)

### REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION 

There have been several relevant cases filed under the **Americans with
Disabilities Act** (ADA), which is the statute which makes the
provisions of the **Rehabilitation Act** (29 U.S.C. 791 et seq)
(<http://www.eeoc.gov/laws/rehab.html>) applicable to the Federal
government that provides coverage for Federal employees. The decisions
have been mixed.

The **EEOC Enforcement Guidance** (see question 33 and the related
footnotes at <http://www.eeoc.gov/docs/accommodation.html#contents6>)
concerning work at home states that \"(a)n employer must modify its
policy concerning where work is performed if such a change is needed as
a reasonable accommodation. but only if this accommodation would be
effective and would not cause an undue hardship. Whether this
accommodation is effective will depend on whether the essential
functions of the position can be performed at home.\" The question
whether an accommodation would cause an "undue hardship" must be
determined on a case- by-case basis and should be reviewed by the Office
of General Counsel, personnel specialists and Handicapped Accessibility
officials.

### NOTES ON EXISTING AUTHORITIES SUPPORTING TELEWORK 

**Reporting Requirements** - The Federal Employees Clean Air Incentives
Act report, which covers most programs covered by this report, may be
prepared more frequently than every 2 years, as is currently done, to
satisfy the needs of other programs. The content of the report is
discretionary and can be expanded and definitions changed, if need be,
to address all related program concerns and reporting requirements.

**Home Inspections** -- Although OSHA will not inspect an employee's
home to assure compliance with OSH standards, there is no law or
regulation which would preclude an agency from conducting a home
inspection to determine whether the employee has adequate equipment to
perform the job etc.

**Access** - Agencies can request additional funding and design their
communications systems in whatever manner they desire, providing they
meet the standards set forth in the above mentioned Acts, to permit
teleworkers increased access to internal electronic mail and office
files.

**Resources and Expenses** - Agencies can determine the amount and
source of resources that may be provided teleworkers, how those
determinations can be made based on reasonableness, and under what
circumstances an employee may incur expenses. Agencies can establish
policies that identify what related telework expenses are considered
appropriate and under what conditions.

**Recruitment and Retention of Employees** - Agencies can establish
policies which define eligibility beyond that contained in the §359
conference report language and determine when a new employee becomes
eligible to telework based on the employee\'s knowledge of his/her
organization, organizational relationships, and work requirements.

## APPENDIX C - CONTINUATION OF OPERATIONS DOCUMENTATION

AGENCY EXAMPLE: One agency subcomponent has opted to outfit their
managers and senior staff with computers, access software, cell phones,
and pagers to accommodate a necessity to work off site (at home) in
order to continue essential operations during an emergency. This
experience has demonstrated the utility of teleworking to agency
managers in that subcomponent.

Possible New Approaches: Ideas for how the system can be changed
(whether through legislative or policy changes) to overcome existing
difficulties.

Agency COOP policy development processes and related emergency
experiences provide a perfect platform for the development of telework
programs. According to FPC 67, dated April 30, 2001 (FEMA), some of the
options recommended are:

-   \"(2) Virtual Offices.

    a.  Work at Home. Several agencies have programs to allow employees
        to work from home. This arrangement could be utilized for some
        employees to fulfill their mission-essential functions;

    b.  Telecommuting Facilities. Several areas of the country have
        federally funded telecommuting facilities. These facilities
        could accommodate some personnel on a prearranged reimbursable
        basis so that they can fulfill their mission-essential
        functions; and

    c.  Mobile Office Concept. This concept envisions using such assets
        as a specially equipped vehicle that can serve as an office, or
        laptop computers that communicate via cellular or satellite
        technology.\" - FPC 67, April 30, 2001

## APPENDIX D -- TECHNOLOGY ISSUES DOCUMENTATION

##### *SPECIFIC QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS - RESOURCE INFORMATION*

### Section I: Security Issues

1\. Which Federal regulations or guidance address security of electronic
information?

-   The Computer Security Act of 1987,

-   OMB Circular A-130 Appendix III, Security of Federal Automated
    Information Resources,

-   OMB Guidance on Implementing the Government Information Security
    Reform Act address issues of security throughout the government, and

-   Department of Justice has written Legal Considerations in Designing
    and Implementing Electronic Processes, A Guide for Federal Agencies,
    November 2000. See http://www.cybercrime.gov/eprocess.htm

The Chief Information Officers Council also offers a list of laws,
regulations, and procedures that can be found on its website,
<http://www.cio.gov/>. Additionally, under OMB Circular A-130,
individual agencies have established security requirements, policies,
and have designated security officers for technology.

2\. What resources are available to solve the problem of inconsistencies
within agencies and/or departments with respect to allowing employees to
connect to local area networks from alternate worksites?

This is an issue that must be resolved by each agency in its own policy.
Agencies should draw on available resources and share information with
one another through organizations such as the Chief Information Officers
Council and through the National Institute of Standards and Technology
(<http://www.nist.gov/>), to achieve consistency. The General Services
Administration provides contracts for agencies to order various types of
telecommunications services throughout the country
(<http://www.gsa.gov/MAA>). Electronic ordering is now available.

3\. Is there a government-wide protocol for access to non-classified
information, especially as it relates to networks that have significant
security controls/firewalls that act as barriers to regular
telecommuting? How does an agency safeguard its internal computer
network from hackers and/or viruses when they permit employees to access
the network from home or travel?

There is no government-wide protocol for access to non-classified
information while teleworking. The National Institute of Standards and
Technology (NIST) in the Department of Commerce has statutory
responsibility for developing standards and guidelines to protect
sensitive federal systems. In addition, NIST develops guidelines on
technical (public key infrastructure, PBX security) and security
management (security planning, use of tested products) topics. An
example of additional materials among the bulletins and publications
produced by NIST is a bulletin entitled \"Security Issues for
Telecommuting,\" January 1997. Agencies currently have considerable
flexibility in deciding what system of protection they will use to avoid
viruses and hacking. The CIO Council offers a brochure, \"Federal Best
Security Practices,\" that can found on its website at
[http://BSP.cio.gov/](http://bsp.cio.gov/). Equipment provided and
configured by an agency for its telecommuters seems to be the best
deterrent.

**4.** What would be the strategy for developing such a protocol?

NIST has completed a draft Special Publication, \"Self-Assessment Guide
for Information Technology Systems,\" which utilizes a questionnaire
containing specific control objectives against which a system or group
of interconnected systems can be tested and measured.

See <http://csrc.nist.gov/publications/drafts.html>. Additionally, NIST
Information Technology Laboratory (ITL) is developing and standardizing
new technologies for privacy and authentication services on the
Internet.

### Section II: Connectivity

**1.** What types of mechanisms are currently available to permit remote
access by agency employees to internal government systems?

Employees often need access to records, regulations, handbooks, manuals,
and files normally maintained at the office site. Agencies that maintain
this information in digital form can transmit it back and forth over
telephone lines. If the information is available only in hardcopy form,
facsimile machines can transmit and receive it. PCs will also receive
faxes, but the associated software programs are less reliable than
stand-alone fax machines.

According to the recent Technology Barriers and Solutions to Federal
Home-Based Telework study, it was found that 75% of home-based
teleworkers utilize dial-up connections to connect to their agency
networks, while 19% use some form of high-speed connection.

Agencies may provide employees access to internal government systems
(Local Area Networks (LANs)) through:

-   A direct method (via telephone line directly to the agency\'s server
    using remote access software such as Citrix, or equivalent);

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   Indirectly (via telephone line to the employee\'s desktop computer
    using Citrix or other software such as LapLink or pcAnywhere, or
    equivalent);

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   Utilizing VPN (Virtual Private Network) which utilizes the Internet
    and cordons off part of a public network to create a private LAN
    (provides a secure tunnel from the desktop to the agency server
    through the Internet); or

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   Placing the agency mainframe on the Internet (for email only - not
    secure and no access to files or applications).

-   Initially, a standard dial-up modem that connects teleworkers to
    their central office using PCAnywhere, Remote Access Software (RAS),
    CITRIX, or equivalent type software may be sufficient. Internet
    access via satellite is another option where the technology is still
    being developed. The research, determination of service
    availability, cost comparisons, cost, installation, and maintenance
    of a high-speed connection may ultimately lie with the individual
    agency working together with prospective teleworkers. The General
    Services Administration has a number of contracts available to
    Federal agencies to solve the connectivity problems that an agency
    may face. Their website at <http://www.gsa.gov/MAA> contains
    additional information on what services are available.

**2.** What factors can inhibit attempts to increase connectivity
capacity**?**

General Concerns:

-   **Costs** - the costs associated with allowing employees to
    telecommute are perceived barriers - costs associated with securing
    telephone lines, hardware and software to permit access;

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   **Security Concerns** - the security of data and information flowing
    through telephone lines; and

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   **Availability** - existing agency bandwidths cannot accommodate
    additional remote access connections.

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   **Indirect access** to the agency server via the alternate worksite
    computer using software such as LapLink or pcAnywhere - Security
    issues at the alternate location and at the main worksite
    workstation (computer must be left on while the teleworker is
    connecting from the alternate worksite)

**What are potential solutions?**

-   **Virtual Private Network (VPN)** - Best security and least
    expensive of the options

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   **Placing the agency mainframe on the Internet** - For email only -
    not secure and no access to files or applications

**3.** What is the difference between a reg**u**lar residential phone
line and a digital subscriber line (DSL)?

**Digital Subscriber Line (DSL)** service delivers high-speed data over
standard phone lines. DSL ranks second to cable modems as the most
popular residential high-speed Internet service. A DSL line operates as
much as dozens of times faster than a dial-up connection. Downloading
data over a DSL connection is anywhere from eight to 100 times faster
than downloading with dial-up modems, depending on the level of DSL
service a user selects.

DSL (Digital Subscriber Line) technology supplies the necessary
bandwidth for numerous applications, including high-speed access to the
Internet, dedicated Internet connectivity, and videoconferencing. This
digital broadband line directly connects your premises to the Internet,
via the existing copper telephone lines.

**It is important to note that DSL technology is a distance-sensitive
service.** DSL\'s signals transmit at very high speeds, but they
attenuate over longer distances. This means a user location located
within 12,000 feet (2.25 miles) of the service provider's office
(central office) can receive DSL speed at 1.5 Mbps, while a business at
36,000 feet (6.8 miles) from the same service provider's office can only
receive speeds at 144 Kbps. It is important to realize that many
residences are not within the distance parameters to receive DSL.

There are many varieties of DSL technology. This service requires
specialized equipment at service provider's location and a DSL modem at
the subscriber\'s location. One type of DSL service is called Symmetric
Digital Subscriber Line (SDSL); SDSL provides the same speeds and high
quality performance (bandwidth) for uploading (upstream) and downloading
(downstream) information. SDSL provides transmission speeds within a
range of up to 1.5 Mbps at a maximum range of 12,000 to 18,000 feet from
a central office, over a single-pair copper wire. This option is ideal
for teleworkers that have an equal need to download and upload data over
the Internet. DSL technologies allow the user to have both voice and
data applications on a single line.

Other varieties of digital subscriber lines include:

ADSL (Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line) - This technology provides a
service in which the downstream speed is substantially higher than the
upstream speed. Primarily used in residential applications; many
providers do not guarantee its bandwidth (speed and performance) levels.

RADSL (Rate Adaptive Digital Subscriber Line) -This technology
automatically adjusts the data transmission speed (upstream or
downstream) to the quality of telephone line connection (such as level
of line noise).

IDSL (ISDN Digital Subscriber Line) - This technology provides a
symmetrical service as does SDSL; ISDL, however, has the advantage of
being able to operate at longer distances from a central office than
does SDSL , but at slower speeds.

VDSL (Very-High-Rate Digital Subscriber Line) -This is a high-speed
technology, but has a very limited range.

**4. How is the service installed?**

Generally, the DSL service provider interfaces with the local telephone
company to order a new line. Often, coordination is required among a
number of parties, including the teleworker, the agency CIO staff, the
Local Area Network (LAN) Administrator, the DSL service provider, the
long distance telecommunications vendor, and other vendors, as needed.
Once the line has been installed, the DSL provider arranges for the
inside wiring within the home office location, installs the DSL modem,
conducts tests to ensure a successful installation, and assigns/provides
configuration information to the user and to the appropriate agency IT
Staff. Additionally, agency IT staff or technical support contractors
may perform the final configuration to complete the installation (make
it user-ready).

It should be noted that, as of this writing, a number of subscribers
have experienced delays and other installation problems. There has been
an unexpectedly fast growth in DSL popularity and DSL providers have
been overwhelmed with requests for the service, which, they insist, is a
central cause of the problems some subscribers are experiencing. \"We
just didn\'t expect that everyone . . . would want DSL,\" a spokesperson
from Earthlink-Sprint said.
([http://www.wired.com](http://www.wired.com/); DSL: Darn Stupid Line by
Michelle Finley, January 21, 2000)

5\. What should an agency consider when installing a phone line in a
private residence to enable an employee to telecommute?

Considerations for an agency-provided residential phone line include:
the nature of the requirement for a phone line, the initial cost,
monthly costs, maintenance, repair, and service cancellation issues
(e.g., employee retires or moves to another agency.) If the only
practical remote access solution is a dialup/phone line connection, then
a second phone line becomes essential to performing work activity; use
of the employee's personal residential phone line to connect to the
agency server would inappropriately inconvenience and/or create personal
communication risks for the employee. Even if the agency issues a cell
phone to the employee for work-related voice communications, the
employee's single personal residence phone line will be tied up by
remote access data needs \[unless, of course, the employee has no
work-related data transmission needs\]. Generally, use of the
agency-provided phone line should be managed in a manner similar to that
of any other equipment provided to the employee by the agency. Agency
authority for providing residential phone lines and related
telecommunications equipment is established in 31 USC 1348, Sec.620 (PL
104-52), which states that an agency may pay for the installation of a
phone line in \"any private residence or private apartment of an
employee who has been authorized to work at home\....\"

### Section III: Use of Government Equipment in Personal Residence

1\. What is the law or regulation that gives agencies the authority to
provide surplus/excess equipment to teleworkers?

There is no law or regulation that specifically authorizes an agency to
provide surplus/excess equipment to teleworkers. Each agency has the
flexibility to determine the type of equipment that will be provided to
its employees to allow them to accomplish their mission. This would
include the ability to provide excess or surplus property to the
employees in addition to providing new equipment. Agencies can provide
surplus/excess equipment to teleworkers following the same internal
procedures for distributing equipment for other government purposes.

2\. What types of government-wide policies and/or guidance are currently
available that relate to using government equipment in an alternate work
location?

General government wide policies relating to the use of government
equipment at an alternate work site are non-existent. A number of
agencies have addressed the use of government equipment in their
individual telecommuting policies or have issued supplemental guidance
for telecommuters in form of computer equipment handbooks.

3\. Does an agency have the authority to pay for private Internet
services for an employee who telecommutes? If not, what other options
are available to employees who routinely use the Internet as part of
their official government duties?

Generally agencies have the authority to pay for private Internet
services. There are no statutory prohibitions for payment of an Internet
service provider, DSL service, and/or cable modem services, as long
these expenditures are necessary to perform the work. Comptroller
General Decisions B-2260665 and B-225159 authorize payment in situations
where the service is necessary to carry out an authorized function and
adequate safeguards against misuse are utilized.

4\. In some agencies computer systems are monitored to help identify and
deter misuse. How can this be accomplished when the computer is located
in the employee\'s residence? What right does the employee have to
privacy in this type of situation?

Generally, employees should not have an expectation of privacy when
using government equipment for official government business. Thus, the
same agency policies currently in use for monitoring the use of
government issued equipment at the agency workplace location should
apply to equipment issued for use at a personal residence for work
purposes. Agencies can develop more specific policies for government
issued equipment for use in a residence, if it is deemed necessary.

5\. To what extent may employees use agency-supplied equipment located
in their private residence to conduct personal activities?

Use of agency-supplied equipment located in private residences to
conduct personal activities should be based on the individual agency\'s
policies. Individual agency policies on \"personal use\" may or may not
extend to private residences.

Below are excerpts from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) policy
regarding "limited personal use" in the OPM workplace location, to show
an example of personal use policy.

(Reference: http://www.opm.gov/extra/itusepolicy.htm)

> *You may use Government office equipment only for authorized purposes.
> Limited personal use is authorized as follows:*

-   *Limited personal use is only authorized if it involves minimal
    additional expense to the Government.*

-   *You are authorized to make limited personal use of Government
    office equipment during non-work time.*

-   *This use must not reduce your productivity or interfere with your
    official duties or the official duties of others.*

-   *You must be authorized to use equipment for official Government
    business before it is available to you for limited personal use.
    Furthermore, OPM is not required to supply you with equipment if it
    is not required for you to perform official Government business.*

-   *Managers and supervisors may further restrict personal use based on
    the needs of the office or problems with inappropriate use in the
    office. In such cases affecting bargaining unit employees, the union
    will be notified.*

> *What are some examples of inappropriate personal uses?*
>
> *You must not use Government office equipment for activities that are
> inappropriate. If you have questions about appropriate use, consult
> with your supervisor or the Office of the Chief Information Officer.
> If you receive an email message that harasses or threatens you, report
> it as soon as possible to your supervisor for technical or managerial
> follow up.*
>
> *Examples of inappropriate activities include:*

-   *Using large files. Your activities might reduce the effectiveness
    of an OPM system if you use large files. For example, sending or
    receiving greeting cards, video, sound, interactive games or other
    large file attachments may hinder the performance of an entire
    network. You should not subscribe to Internet services that
    automatically download information, such as sports scores, stock
    prices or other continuous data streams, such as music or videos.*

-   *Loading personal software onto your computer or making
    configuration changes. For example, computer games, personal tax
    programs and personal schedulers may not be loaded on OPM
    computers.*

-   *Engaging in email practices that involve ongoing message receipt
    and transmission, referred to as \"instant messaging.\"*

-   *Making long distance telephone calls. There are three exceptions:*

    -   *in an emergency,*

    -   *brief calls within the local commuting area to locations that
        can only be reached during working hours (e.g., car repair shop,
        doctor), and*

    -   *brief calls home within the local commuting area (e.g., to
        arrange transportation, check on a sick child).*

-   *Using Government equipment as a staging ground or platform to gain
    unauthorized access to other systems.*

-   *Creating, copying or transmitting chain letters or other mass
    mailings, regardless of the subject matter.*

-   *Creating, copying or transmitting any material or communication
    that is illegal or offensive to fellow employees or to the public,
    such as hate speech, material that ridicules others based on race,
    creed, religion, color, sex, disability, national origin or sexual
    orientation.*

-   *Viewing, downloading, storing, transmitting or copying materials
    that are sexually explicit or sexually oriented, related to
    gambling, illegal weapons, terrorist activities or any other
    prohibited activities.*

-   *Using Government office equipment for commercial purposes or in
    support of other \"for profit\" activities such as outside
    employment or businesses (e.g., selling real estate, preparing tax
    returns for a fee).*

-   *Engaging in any outside fund raising activity, endorsing any
    product or service, participating in lobbying or prohibited partisan
    political activity (e.g., expressing opinions about candidates,
    distributing campaign literature).*

-   *Acquiring, reproducing, transmitting, distributing or using any
    controlled information including computer software and data,
    protected by copyright, trademark, privacy laws, other proprietary
    data or material with other intellectual property rights beyond fair
    use, or export-controlled software or data.*

\[End of excerpts from OPM website regarding "limited personal use" of
government owned equipment.\]

6\. To what extent could a protocol be established to address the issue
of inconsistent provision of government equipment to employees for use
in telework arrangements? What, if any, prohibitions exist against
allowing employees to use their personal equipment (i.e., phone lines,
computers, printers, fax machine, etc.) in conducting official
government business?

It is not practical to issue a government wide protocol to address the
inconsistent implementation of use of government equipment in Federal
telework arrangements, since computer security, equipment, etc.
requirements may be unique across organizations in different agencies as
well as across those within any given agency. Prohibitions against using
personal equipment to conduct official government business do not exist.

7\. If an employee chooses to use his/her personal equipment to conduct
government business, does the agency incur any financial or security
liability for condoning this practice?

Agencies do not incur a financial or security liability if the employee
chooses to use his/her own personal equipment to conduct government
business, provided their policies clearly identify the employee\'s
obligation for repairing and maintaining personal equipment. Should an
agency permit the use of the personally owned equipment, the employee
must agree to allow the agency to configure that equipment with the
proper hardware and software including security, communications and
applications.

### Section IV: Technical and Help Desk Support

Must agencies provide Help Desk/technical support for teleworkers
working at alternative work locations? Is lack of help desk support a
barrier to teleworking?

Agencies are responsible for government equipment regardless of
location. They are not responsible, however, for non-government
equipment even though they may authorize help desks to (1) fix a problem
with the employee's personally owned equipment or (2) assist the
employee fix the problem.

> According to the recent Technology Barriers and Solutions to Federal
> Home-Based Telework study, it was found that typically, home-based
> teleworkers utilize the same technical support resources as
> office-based employees. It was recognized that teleworkers have
> different IT support needs than office-based workers, but the
> differences are not yet fully understood. Most organizations reported
> that maintenance is offered for government-provided equipment used in
> the home, but typically the equipment must be brought into the office
> for servicing (although a few organizations provide at homes service.)
> Maintenance is rarely offered for teleworker-provided equipment.
> Although not rated as a top barrier to telework overall, teleworker
> problems with technical support can present barriers to telework
> because it can seriously affect their performance. Desktop management
> products exist to allow IT staff and help desk to monitor employees'
> computer over the network, but these have not been widely deployed due
> to funding issues and other constraints.

## APPENDIX E- WORKSITE HEALTH AND SAFETY DOCUMENTATION

### Q'S AND A'S (FROM OSHA AND OWCP)

**Does the telework program self-certification checklist have legal
standing?**

According to the US Department of Labor: No. The checklist is useful as
a health and safety awareness tool and may have program-related utility
but it cannot be used as a legal certification of the worksite.

**What is the difference between the OSHA and OWCP perspective regarding
the teleworksite**?

When making their respective determinations, OWCP focuses on the 'act of
working' and OSHA focuses on 'workplace conditions'.

**What law, rule or regulation covers Federal workplace safety and
health issues, and who is accountable?**

**Section 19 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act**
([www.osha-slc.gov/OshAct_data/OSHACT.htm#19](http://www.osha-slc.gov/OshAct_data/OSHACT.htm#19))
sets forth the obligations for Federal agencies with regard to safe and
healthful working conditions for Federal employees. Under this section,
it is the responsibility of the head of each Federal agency to establish
and maintain an effective and comprehensive occupational safety and
health program consistent with the standards promulgated under section 6
of the Act.

**Executive Order 12196**,
([www.usbr.gov/safety/eo.htm](http://www.usbr.gov/safety/eo.htm))
provides that the Secretary of Labor issue basic program elements in
accordance with which the heads of agencies shall operate their safety
and health programs. Basically, the program elements focus on the
provision of places and conditions of employment that are free from
recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or
serious physical harm.

**29 CFR Part 1960**,
([www.osha-slc.gov/OshStd_data/1960.html](http://www.osha-slc.gov/OshStd_data/1960.html))
provides the basic program elements, issued by the Secretary of Labor
(as called for in Executive Order 12196 above) for Federal Employee
Occupational Safety and Health Programs and related matters. Although
agency heads are required to operate in accordance with the basic
program elements, these elements contain numerous provisions that permit
agency heads the flexibility necessary to implement their programs in a
manner consistent with their respective missions, sizes, and
organizations. Under Part 1960, each Federal agency establishes and
implements their own safety and health program to address how to
maintain a safe and healthy work environment at alternate work sites.

**At what point does an alternate work site become subject to Federal
safety and health policies?**

The alternate worksite becomes subject to Federal safety and health
policies once the arrangement is agreed to by the employee and the
supervisor. \[Thus, heads of agencies that have implemented telework
programs are required to include alternate worksites in their safety
programs. \]

It is important to note that only the actual work site (i.e., area used
as the office) is subject to these policies and not, for instance, the
entire house, apartment, etc.

**Have OSHA and OWCP staff reviewed the Office of Personnel
Management\'s current guidance including the Sample Agreement and Sample
Self-Certification Safety Checklist? Are there specific questions on the
safety checklist that would be an automatic \"flag\" to the supervisor
to disallow this arrangement or require some appropriate action on the
part of the employee?**

[OSHA Response]{.underline}

The Sample Self-Certification Safety Checklist was originally developed
with input from OSHA staff. The Sample Agreement is not within the scope
of OSHA\'s responsibilities. There are no automatic \"flags\" to
indicate to a supervisor to disallow a particular arrangement; however,
the supervisor should review the checklist with the employee, and
document any discussions in which the information contained in the
checklist was clarified. In addition, supervisors should focus on the
actual area where work will be performed rather than the entire home, or
a stairway, for instance, that may not necessarily be used to get to the
work area.

[OWCP Response]{.underline}

The Self-certification Safety Checklist has no bearing on Federal
Employees' Compensation Act (FECA) matters. The Sample Agreement is
important to FECA because it outlines where, when, and under what
conditions an employee is authorized by his/her supervisor to work.

**Is the current guidance and safety checklist accurate and sufficient
to protect employees working at alternate work sites? Is there any
supplementary advice or information relative to the various
possibilities associated with non-home-based telework (for example, when
working in a hotel room or while traveling on public transportation or
in a privately-owned or Government-owned vehicle)?**

[OSHA Response]{.underline}

For most Federal employees working at alternate work sites, the safety
checklist is adequate; however, some positions may require additional
safeguards, and agencies should modify the checklist as needed to
address those unique situations.

Federal employees who work in the facilities of private employers are
covered by their own agencies\' occupational safety and health program.
Although an agency may not have the authority to require private
entities to correct deficiencies, the agency head must assure safe and
healthful working conditions for his/her employees. This shall be
accomplished by administrative controls, personal protective equipment,
or withdrawal of Federal employees from the private sector facility to
assure that employees are protected.

In addition, the Department of Labor periodically issues guidance to
federal agencies regarding various off-site work issues such as wearing
seat belts in taxi cabs or government owned vehicles, staying in hotels
with fire sprinkler systems, etc.

[OWCP Response]{.underline}

The current *Sample Agreement* appears sufficient for FECA purposes. At
this time, OWCP does not have any supplementary advice or information
relative to the other possibilities of remote work environments to
offer. OWCP's handling of compensation matters is guided by decisions
issued by the Employees' Compensation Appeals Board. Among the most
compelling factors in deciding FECA claims is *allowed practice*, i.e.,
what an employee was authorized to do by his/her supervisor.

**Is there a need to establish government-wide policy and guidance
regarding when self-certification of the work site is adequate or when
it is necessary to do more (i.e., home inspections)?**

[OSHA Response]{.underline}

The head of each agency is required to develop, implement, and evaluate
an occupational safety and health program which provides employees a
place of employment free from recognized hazards that cause or are
likely to cause death or serious illness. This includes alternate work
sites. Agency telework policies should outline under what conditions a
home inspection might be necessary due to the type of work being
performed there, or based upon a credible complaint that the work site
may not be healthful, and how the inspection would be carried out. This
should be done in consultation with the Designated Agency Safety and
Health Official.

[OWCP Response]{.underline}

There are liability perimeters that employers and remote workers may
want to be aware of. **[OWCP Program Procedures, Claims (FECA Part
2)]{.underline}** outlines the guiding principles used in determining
benefit eligibility resulting from injuries incurred while working
"off-premises."

<http://www.nfoweb.com/cgi-bin/om_isapi.dll?clientID=122154&infobase=dol-14&softpage=ref_MainView>

Also, **[FECA Bulletin No. 98-09]{.underline}** provides guidance
specifically applicable to working at home.

<http://www.nfoweb.com/cgi-bin/om_isapi.dll?clientID=122179&infobase=dol-31&softpage=ref_MainView>

Key components of these guidelines include the following:

-   There is no statement (such as a *Self-certification* *Safety
    Checklist*) that can be signed by an employee to negate FECA
    coverage while working off-site.

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   Only injuries incurred while directly engaged in the performance of
    official duties, and excluding all "personal comfort" activities,
    such as restroom and coffee breaks, are potentially eligible for
    FECA benefits.

-   Injuries resulting from environmental exposure while working at home
    are not eligible for FECA benefits. (By extension of relevant rules
    described above, a chronic illness that developed due to
    environmental exposure at home would not be covered under the FECA.
    The environment in an employee\'s home is not under the employer\'s
    control, and the \"premises rule\" that applies when an employee is
    on property owned or maintained by the employer is not relevant. The
    employee would be exposed to the home environment whether working
    for the government or not. Therefore, he or she would not be exposed
    to any risk inherent to employment while working at home.)

-   Employers may allow employees who are recuperating from illnesses to
    perform work at home. If an employee's illness is due to a
    work-related injury, the work performed at home may be considered
    "light-duty," and the effect on benefits would be no different than
    returning to a light-duty job on the employer's premises. (Other
    particulars relevant to one's ability or inability to work at home
    while on light duty and the effect on benefits are explained in FECA
    Bulletin No. 98-09.)

**Does OSHA offer guidance (either in a publication or web site) that
provides basic information and guidance to supervisors/managers of
teleworkers about safety and health issues in a home or other alternate
work site?**

No, the responsibility for the safety of Federal employees rests with
each individual agency head. Therefore, supervisors should review and/or
request guidance from their Designated Agency Safety and Health
Official.

###### What guidance or assistance does OSHA offer?

OSHA offers compliance and technical assistance to agencies that have
questions; however, OSHA would not conduct a home evaluation or
inspection. A list of OSHA Area or Regional Office addresses and
telephone numbers can be found at [www.osha.gov](http://www.osha.gov/).

**Does OWCP believe that the Sample Agreement offers any level of
protection/ defense for the Government in challenging or defending
itself in FECA matters? If not, is there some other mechanism that OWCP
would suggest?**

The Sample Agreement is useful in determining if an *allowed practice*
precipitated the injury. OWCP would not suggest any other mechanism at
this time.

**Does FECA require agencies to take any particular action to ensure a
safe work environment at a remote location, such as conducting a home
safety inspection?**

No, this is not relevant to FECA.

###### What is the role of state law in the safety and health issues of federal workers? 

Federal employees are not covered by state occupational safety and
health laws. Federal law has full jurisdiction over Federal employees
wherever they work, even when working outside of the United States.

**Do employees need to complete a safety checklist when their alternate
work site is a telecenter or other government \"leased\" space, as in a
hotelling situation?**

No, documents used by GSA or other Federal agencies to lease space that
will be occupied by employees contain standard language that addresses
safety and health issues.

**Is there any means for assessing the numbers and/or types of FECA
claims stemming from remote (and perhaps limited to home) work injuries?
If not, would you be willing to establish one?**

There is no means for assessing the numbers and/or types of FECA claims
stemming from remote work injuries because OWCP does not currently track
claims according to where injuries occur, but rather by the nature of
the injuries. OWCP does think that it may be useful though, to begin
also collecting information about where injuries occur and is
considering modifying its operating procedures and data system to obtain
such information.

### FECA BULLETIN NO. 98-09

Issue Date: June 5, 1998

\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_

Expiration Date: June 6, 1999

\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_

Subject: Performance of Duty\--Alternative Worksites

Background: For some time now, federal agencies have experimented with
programs which allow employees to work from locations other than the
federal agency\'s premises. Such locations include \"satellite\" offices
in outlying areas as well as individual employees\' homes. The
performance of duty issues with respect to \"satellite\" offices are
straightforward, since these sites are in fact regular offices, though
employees from a variety of agencies may work there. However, for
employees working at home, performance of duty issues are less clear.

While OWCP has received very few claims from employees in such programs
(sometimes called \"telecommuting\" or \"flexiplace\"), we anticipate
more in the future due to the growth of such programs, and we need to
ensure that such claims are handled uniformly in all district offices.

Purpose: To provide guidance for determining whether employees injured
while working at alternative worksites meet the \"performance of duty\"
criterion for coverage under the FECA

Applicability: Claims Examiners, Senior Claims Examiners, Supervisors,
Rehabilitation Specialists, Staff Nurses, and Technical Assistants

Actions:

1\. Employees who are directly engaged in performing the duties of their
jobs are covered by the FECA, regardless of whether the work is
performed on the agency\'s premises or at an alternative worksite. There
is no statement (such as a \"safety checklist\") that can be signed by
the employee to negate this coverage. As always, any affirmative defense
of \"willful misconduct\" must be substantiated by evidence that the
employee disobeyed an order that was routinely enforced.

2\. However, when an employee is on property under his or her own
control, activities which are not immediately directed toward the actual
performance of regular duties do not arise out of employment. An
employee who works at a desk at home removes himself or herself from the
performance of regular duties as soon as he or she walks away from that
desk to use the bathroom, get a cup of coffee, or seek fresh air. The
\"Personal Comfort Doctrine\" does not apply, and coverage cannot be
extended for injuries which result from such activities. This point is
illustrated by two actual cases:

a\. An employee (who already used a wheelchair) was injured when he
reached to answer the telephone while working at home. Coverage was
found because he was required to answer the telephone as part of his
official duties.

b\. An employee was injured while walking downstairs at home to check
her furnace, which was malfunctioning. Maintenance of the furnace was
not a requirement of her official duties. Once she left her immediate
work area, she removed herself from coverage under the FECA.

3\. By extension of the rule described in item 2, a chronic illness that
developed due to environmental exposure at home would not be covered
under the FECA. The environment in an employee\'s home is not under the
employer\'s control, and the \"premises rule\" that applies when an
employee is on property owned or maintained by the employer is not
relevant. The employee would be exposed to the home environment whether
working for the government or not. Therefore, he or she would not be
exposed to any risk inherent to employment while working at home.

4\. Apart from alternative worksite programs, an employer may allow an
employee who is recuperating from an illness to perform work at home. If
the illness has resulted from a work-related injury, the work performed
at home may be a light-duty job. The effect on workers\' compensation
benefits of returning to work at home is no different from that of
returning to any other light-duty job. The employee is entitled to
compensation for any loss of wage-earning capacity resulting from a
compensable injury.

5\. If an employee cannot continue to work at home because of
injury-related residuals, he or she is entitled to compensation. This
situation is no different from that of an employee who attempts to
return to light duty on the employer\'s premises.

6\. If an employee cannot continue to work at home because the home
environment is not conducive to performance of his or her duties, the
situation represents a withdrawal of light duty, since an employer
cannot usually dictate an employee\'s home environment or require an
employee to use personal resources to perform official duties.

7\. If the employer can no longer provide the employee with work at
home, the situation represents a withdrawal of light duty.

Disposition: Retain until the indicated expiration date.

THOMAS M. MARKEY

Director for Federal Employees\' Compensation

## APPENDIX F -- TRAINING DOCUMENTATION

A SAMPLE OF RECOMMENDED TOPICS FOR THE OPM WEB-BASED TRAINING

##### **General \"orientation\" to telework, to be used as a standalone package or modified to meet the particular needs of individual agencies/users. This should encompass policy and implementation issues.** 

-   Training resources addressing skills and behaviors, to be used on a
    standalone basis, incorporated in existing supervisory or employee
    training, and/or modified as appropriate to meet the particular
    needs of individual agencies/users. This component should include:

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   Supervisory skills

    -   general \"how to supervise teleworkers\"

    -   communication

    -   planning

    -   handling problems

    -   managing virtual teams

    -   performance management / managing by results

-   General skills for teleworkers and non-teleworking co-workers

    -   communication

    -   planning

    -   handling problems

    -   being part of a virtual team

    -   \"getting connected\" - IT issues

    -   time management

-   \"Checklists\" on topics such as \--

    -   Getting Ready to Telework

    -   Telework: What Can You Do? What Can\'t You Do?

    -   Is telework right for me?

    -   IT considerations to be developed in coordination with the CIO
        Council and addressing IT requirements, connectivity, security,
        and maintenance/help desk issues. This checklist could be used
        as a guideline for agency CIO\'s in providing IT support.

    -   Retrieval of federal equipment and supplies at the end of a
        telework arrangement.