Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments

MedicalSpecializer t1_j8npq79 wrote

A huge number of federal employees, like myself, can’t afford to live in DC or the inner suburbs without making untenable sacrifices. I live in Baltimore and commute because of that, but the expectation is that after a year, I telework or go hybrid, so I put up with it. I imagine that making people go back into the office with the commutes that they have will massively impact on employee retention and overall quality of life, especially considering federal employees’ relatively low pay. I’m glad the unions are fighting this, and hopefully most of us can stay remote/hybrid forever.

70

throwaways06041987 t1_j8o6fmf wrote

Will be interesting to see if there's another push like in the Trump administration to move agencies out of DC since the pandemic and the union has proved a lot of federal work can be done elsewhere.

12

MedicalSpecializer t1_j8o73sm wrote

I’d spend the next thirty years happily working for my agency if they’d move some of us (or let me move) to Chicago, incredibly good rent prices in a cool city plus that relatively high locality adjustment is an absolute dream.

18

fvb955cd t1_j8oa3o3 wrote

Republicans: Best we can do is mandatory in the office in rural southern Illinois.

43

Surefinewhatever1111 t1_j8oap3v wrote

Illinois still has Dem senators, gotta move it to Alabama. I'm sure it's purely coincidence lots of FBI functions have been forcibly moved to a place most Black feds left for a reason. Ditto the USDA moves etc.

9

GEV46 t1_j8p9x1r wrote

I'd be happy going full remote in Southern Illinois.

4

MedicalSpecializer t1_j8oaf32 wrote

Some of the wines that come out of way southern Illinois are actually really, really good and vineyards are genuinely gorgeous. I also really love Carbondale, that’s a great small town. A criminally underrated part of the country, and another place I wouldn’t mind living 😅

−3

EastoftheCap t1_j8obrpr wrote

The next Republican president will absolutely do this if work from home is still going on.

9

Evening_Chemist_2367 t1_j8q69te wrote

The pandemic proved that most federal work can be done remotely, so no reason to move them out of DC, maybe just downsize the physical HQ office space.

3

NewUser22031 t1_j8pg50a wrote

That would be a smart move. Housing is expensive and limited here so why not spread out.

2

MarkinDC24 t1_j8nzn75 wrote

>up with it. I imagine that making people go back into the office with the commutes that they have will massively impact on employee retention and overall quality of life, especially considering federal employees’ relatively low pay. I’m glad the unions are fighting this, and hopefully most of us can stay remote/hybrid forever.

A full year of a long commute sounds horrible. Please, please, please think liberally about reasonable accommodations ("RA"). Let's just say, a little birdie told me: some folks have argued successfully they need a RA for telework because they can not wear a mask due to their asthma. Telework can be granted for medical reasons (i.e., asthma...etc.), since most agencies have a policy in place that folks need to wear a mask if they think they have been exposed to COVID-19. Heck, you might even have Anthropophobia. Just saying.

11

MedicalSpecializer t1_j8o00ai wrote

well now that you mention, my IBS is pretty debilitating sometimes…

13

MarkinDC24 t1_j8qq44x wrote

Your IBS sounds like it might negatively impact major life activities such as work. The episodic nature of your disability sure sounds like it could impact your commute too. Sounds REASONABLE to ask for an ACCOMMODATION of workplace flexibility to manage your illness. Lol. 💅🏾

8

AsbestosIn0bstetrics t1_j8nycdw wrote

The pandemic really changed people, because before 2020, most people commuted to/from their jobs and never demanded the right to work at home.

−20

Nuntiak t1_j8o8687 wrote

People didn’t change. It’s not like people enjoyed their commute before the pandemic. We came in because it was the only option.

Now? We’ve seen that the technology and infrastructure is able to make it work. Everyone is seeing that they can do the exact same work, at equal or better efficiency, from the comfort of their home, without having to sit for an hour in their car, bus, train, whatever.

It means more time for sleeping, or to spend time with family, or for fitness, or hobbies. It means saving money on lunches (or time spent packing one, and healthier lunch too).

And now they’re being told to give that up and come back to the office, for vague indeterminate reasons like “we miss you” or “you have to be here for team building”.

There are three categories of people who seem to be pushing to kill telework:

  • Senior management who can afford to live close to their office and who have a dedicated parking space

  • extroverts who have no social life outside the office and rely on their coworkers to be their social life support

  • Real estate/business owners who rely on commuters/office workers to make income.

I have no sympathy for any of the above.

32

ManiacalShen t1_j8p6ks7 wrote

>It means more time for sleeping, or to spend time with family, or for fitness, or hobbies. It means saving money on lunches (or time spent packing one, and healthier lunch too).

On that note, it would be nice if those of us who do have to work in person were allowed to work fewer hours. Not only do we still have to commute every day, but a bunch of lunch spots have gone out of business, and envy for WFH friends is through the roof.

2

OneFunkyPlatypus t1_j8ozvun wrote

And the new hires who are faced with a laptop screen, limited artificial interactions with seniors and mentors, no sympathy for them either?

−4

Nuntiak t1_j8p4c34 wrote

We onboarded multiple people during the pandemic. They did just fine. One of them was a top performer and actually left when management started forcing return to office.

9

Surefinewhatever1111 t1_j8pjyc1 wrote

You think you're getting "authentic" interactions with federal supervisors in the office? How many years have you been a fed? Zero?

2

Surefinewhatever1111 t1_j8o6awx wrote

>never demanded the right to work at home.

You're not familiar with the several and many Telework acts passed by the federal government over the years? One of the most important factors for the ease with which a lot of agencies were able to go fully remote was years and years of regularly scheduled telework.

22

MedicalSpecializer t1_j8nzpss wrote

We have reliably known, for at least a decade, that significant commuting is a net negative on individual and public health. With the cost of living in the DC being as extreme as it is, many people are forced into supercommuting practices, which has significant negative health consequences in the long-term. It’s fantastic that so many people can opt out of commuting, it’s an amazing development for individual and public health.

I would be completely fine in going to the office like I do now after my year probation is up if I could get an equivalent unit for the same price in a similar neighborhood in DC (absolutely no shot) or my pay was doubled so I could afford DC.

19

puttinonthefoil t1_j8o9s2q wrote

It didn’t change people, it provided proof for the long held belief: “I could do this job just as easily at home.”

And for most email jobs, it is true, and the last 3 years bore this out. Now there’s concrete proof it’s true, so the argument is stronger.

12

Agirlisarya01 t1_j8oeh23 wrote

No, the pandemic changed employers. Before the pandemic, they swore up and down that remote work wasn’t feasible. Employees have been proving them wrong since Day 1 of the lockdowns. Since it can be done, and we have been delivering results, there is no reason that we can’t keep doing it.

6