Senators Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Bring Federal Employees Back to the Office
Senators Roger Wicker (R-MS), Martin Heinrich, (D-NM), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), and Mark Kelly (D-AZ), introduced the Return Employees to Understaffed Worksites to Reopen Now (RETURN) Act (S.3672/H. R. 6703) last week. Under the new legislation, federal agencies would be required to revert all of their telework policies to what they had in place on December 31, 2019 and overwrite any union contract provision that differs from what was in effect at that time.
In addition to codifying and expanding the Biden Administration's executive order requiring agencies to submit workers' return plans, the RETURN Act recognizes the need to prepare for future disruptions to federal services, according to Senator Wicker. Under the executive order, the General Services Administration (GSA), Office of Management and Budget (OMB), and Office of Personnel Management (OPM) directed Federal agencies to develop detailed plans before July 19, 2021. Following the spread of new Coronavirus variants, many agencies had to revise their return plans.
“The problem with this bill is it sets a dangerous precedent that Congress can introduce workarounds to carve out union contracts and restrict collective bargaining. This bill undermines the White House’s efforts over the last year to create an empowered and safer federal workforce,” commented Randy Erwin, National President of the National Federation of Federal Employees (NFEE).
Bipartisan support for this legislation is attributed, in part, to the concern that the extended absences of many federal workers have negatively impacted the general responsiveness and accessibility of the federal government. The lawmakers’ statements emphasized the backlogs of cases at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) which are partly the result of a pause in in-person examinations.
“Federal agencies provide critical services that can serve as a lifeline for many New Mexicans, especially our seniors and veterans. Almost every industry has had to make changes because of the pandemic to ensure their services remain intact – a federal agency is no exception,” said Senator Heinrich, “Providing services online and creating flexibility for remote work are important to modernizing our government, but cannot take the place of providing essential services in person.
In response to the lawmakers' opinion that it is time for Federal employees to return to work, President Biden declared he would extend the national emergency regarding the COVID-19 pandemic beyond March 1, 2022, the day after Senators introduced their legislation.
