The Social Security Administration is planning to ask more employees, first on a volunteer basis, to return to the agency’s field offices.
Managers have been coming into the field offices since the beginning days of the pandemic to handle the mail and process “dire-need cases.” Some SSA employees have joined them at the request of their managers, but the American Federation of Government Employees union, which represents workers at the agency’s field offices, didn’t consider those recalls to be large-scale.
Now, the agency will solicit more volunteers to return to their field offices, Sherry Jackson, a vice president with AFGE Council 220, told Federal News Network.
Offices that don’t have enough volunteers will begin recalling employees to work in person on a rotational basis. Employees who have been chosen to return will receive a recall letter from their area managers and two weeks notice before they’re expected in the office, Jackson said. ...
29 comments:
Sad. The health of emnployees will clearly be at risk because the managers will not ensure that the offices comply with COVID19 guidelines established by the CDC. Same goes for hearing offices where so many managers do not care about the well being of staff and only care about keeping their jobs.
I'm certainly curious what sort of metrics will be used to determine how many volunteers is "enough." That said, assuming they really are going to limit this to volunteers and keep the number to the minimum required to perform necessary in-person tasks (which I presume are fairly minimal), this seems like a reasonable approach.
No, it will only be limited to "volunteers" as long as there are enough employees willing to voluntarily do this. The old office where I used to work has been doing this for almost two months now.
In most cases (as they did in my old office), management will ask nicely. However, if there aren't enough volunteers, they will not hesitate to recall some employees involuntarily.
Long term, I suspect that they will be using these employees as guinea pigs to gather data on how many end up sick with Covid-19 and how the disease spreads within the offices. They will then use this data to justify their final return to office strategy.
@9:21 It's sad the folks are treated so poorly at SSA. No wonder the reviews of the agency are so poor.
Have they seen a significant drop off in production since the pandemic?
The e-mail says will only recall people when necessary to handle non-portable work and even then as few as they can and for as little time as they can. They will exempt people with underlying conditions and be flexible with people with dependent care issues
A12:38 There are significant workloads which are not being worked during the pandemic. Claimants and beneficiaries with issues in those categories are being told they have to wait to get decisions until the offices are re-opened. Non-disability matters and paper cases are two examples of this.
The non-disability hearings cases should be worked now, there is no reason why this workload should be delayed until offices are reopened.
The offices should not be reopened until there is a vaccine which will guarantee the safety of the employees and the general public. Nobody should be forced back when that could cost them their life.
If people can head to bars then they can come into work.
Give early out to 60 plus and enforce return to work for younger employees. Terminate if they don't.
Since management members at field offices and hearing offices seem to be in favor of bringing folks back into offices, they should go in first to see if they are safe as far as COVID19 goes. Something tells me that they would have a different attitude under that scenario.
@2:15 PM
I get that you're not happy with this situation. None of us are. But being unnecessarily cruel to SSA staff and needlessly endangering their health won't make your workplace safer, increase your wages, or improve the service provided. It probably won't make you happier, either, unless you're a sadist or psychopath. And what makes you think Americans under 60 years old (or whatever arbitrary age you want to pick) won't spread the virus to older folks? It's not as if the elderly have their own grocery stores, gas stations, pharmacies, and banks to use.
Where I work we have been in office every single day, we provide assistance to the aging and disabled community and have had to come up with creative and safe work arounds. Time for the Feds to step up.
10:26 You think that just because bars may be open, that doesn't mean social security and OHO employees are in them. I work in my law office in a distanced and safe manner; we keep the door locked. Most of my work is on the phone. I can leave here and go to a bar or sit-down restaurant if I choose, but I don't. Everything we can do isn't safe to do. There has been pressure to try and get back to normal, but things aren't normal. I'm not just afraid for my life but for the quality of my life. I know a lawyer in our town who had it and though he didn't die, sometimes he didn't care if he did.
@9:06AM
And I'm sure despite the nearly limitless variation in office sizes and density, facility conditions, ventilation, local infection rates, employee compliance and so on, your one office is nonetheless a model example for how every federal office can be run in a safe manner. It's a shame you're not the one calling all of the shots at SSA given how astoundingly strong logical reasoning skills are. Truly you rank in the very highest echelon of history's philosopher kings.
@9:06 AM. Well stated. There's just no safe way to reopen offices right now. But, if management folks at hearing offices and field offices want to do so, they should go in first just to make sure the offices are safe. I suspect they would change their minds then.
If you can get a hair cut you can open SSA offices.
If you can go to a dentist, have someone directly in your face, you can open
SSA offices.
If you can go to the DMV SSA offices can be open.
If you can go to the polls and vote you can open SSA offices.
@9:40 AM
So because some irresponsible people are going out and doing irresponsible things (and getting sick while doing them!), you believe it's safe and reasonable for SSA to make all its staff return to the offices?
That's not logical reasoning. That's utter nonsense.
I've read numerous news stories about individuals who attempted to launch fireworks from various bodily orifices, and while some have died, others have survived. Thus, per your "reasoning," it would be reasonable to require you to fireworks out one of your orifices next July 4th. So, I look forward reading all about your experience- unless, of course, you now realize how absurd your argument is.
10"06 what I am saying is everything is open. Why not SSA
So when did SSA switch to all in person appointments being held in an environment where people are closer than 6ft apart? When did they not have separation in the interview areas where Plexiglas barriers could easily and cheaply be installed?
So interviews are being conducted so closely together, that standard best practices used in thousands of business across the nation cannot be used? A checker at a grocery store is exposed to many more people in an hour than any CR in a day.
I also love the concept that SSA employees are all just dutifully staying at home without engaging in any risk behavior at all. Of course they are in 100% total lockdown and not even thinking of doing any business in this new world.
C'mon Man
Re other places being open and SSA not:
My DMV was closed for 3 months for in person and is now open only for appts that were made for March April May already.
Restaurants were closed, then open for pickup only and some are now serving 25% of a reduced menu.
Barbershops have been closed on and off, right now they are open.
During this entire time, SSA has been paying people, taking claims, etc, doing the vast majority of work that they did before. No shutdown ever.
@11:47 AM
"what I am saying is everything is open"
Maybe in whatever backwater village you live in. But in the cities along the east and west coast where the vast majority of the U.S. population resides and works, your statement is far from accurate.
@11:57 AM
Well, nothing is risk free. But my only outings have consisted of driving to the grocery store once a month, where my pre-ordered groceries are dropped into the trunk without any in-person interaction. And the same seems to be true for most of my neighbors. So yeah, I guess I'm doing business "in this new world." But I'm sure as hell not out drinking at bars, eating at restaurants, going to the DVM, getting haircuts, going to the bank, etc.
Just because you've decided this is an overblown hoax, doesn't mean the rest of the country is on the same page with you.
7:38 What is closed. As in nobody can come in?
11:47 while STL is a bit of a fly over these days it is not a backwater village.
So next excuses please.
@10:55 AM
"What is closed."
Where I live: schools, colleges, many restaurants and other stores, most state and local government offices, and many private businesses' offices, for starters.
As in nobody can come in?"
I suppose some of the employees would be legally permitted to enter the premises, but most aren't. As for customers, yes- they would be unlawfully trespassing if they were to enter onto the premises of these closed businesses and offices.
Really not sure what you're getting at with this back and forth. To the extent you're claiming that everything has reopened, you're flatly wrong, and those facts aren't going to change no matter how stubbornly you refuse to believe them.
WHere are you?
As it appears that there are many places not so drastically impacted as you are representing. If an area is not heavily impacted it should be open. So what is your location that is such dire situations?
@1:11 PM
I get it You're in St. Louis, and Missouri decided months ago to reopen as if nothing is happening. But not every state has elected to throw open the doors and pretend nothing's happening while 1000+ people become infected each day. Nor should the agency view Missouri's apparent willingness to tolerate uncontrolled community spread (and all the death and disability that result) as a green light to reopen its offices there or anywhere else.
I've wasted enough time on this topic, though. So carry on without me. The last word is all yours.
@ 9:40. I personally have not done any of those things. some people do, maybe they are mostly the ones getting infected?
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