From Government Executive:
The Social Security Administration is denying its employees working amid the ongoing government shutdown access to days off and other workplace flexibilities, even as some struggle to afford their commute to work, union officials say.
Guidance from the Office of Personnel Management governing federal employees’ pay and benefits during appropriations lapses, last updated Sept. 28, stipulates that while scheduled leave is cancelled at the start of a government shutdown, agencies should grant excepted employees, who are forced to work without pay until funding is restored, access to episodic telework or be temporarily placed in a furlough status if they need time off. …
But Jessica LaPointe, president of the American Federation of Government Employees Council 220, which represents employees at SSA’s field offices and teleservice centers, said the agency appears to be categorically denying requests for telework or time off, instead placing workers in absent without leave status. Employees placed in AWOL status will be denied backpay for the time they miss and carries the potential for discipline or termination. …
Guidance from the Office of Personnel Management governing federal employees’ pay and benefits during appropriations lapses, last updated Sept. 28, stipulates that while scheduled leave is cancelled at the start of a government shutdown, agencies should grant excepted employees, who are forced to work without pay until funding is restored, access to episodic telework or be temporarily placed in a furlough status if they need time off.
“An excepted employee may be excused from duty for intermittent periods during a shutdown furlough,” OPM wrote. “While excused from performing excepted duties, the employee will be placed in furlough status unless the employee elects to use paid leave . . . However, if an excepted employee needs to be absent from work for brief periods, agencies are encouraged to explore the use of workplace flexibilities such as alternative work schedules and telework to accommodate the employee’s need to be absent. If use of workplace flexibilities is not appropriate for the situation, excepted employees must be furloughed for any brief absence or allowed to request paid leave.”
But Jessica LaPointe, president of the American Federation of Government Employees Council 220, which represents employees at SSA’s field offices and teleservice centers, said the agency appears to be categorically denying requests for telework or time off, instead placing workers in absent without leave status. Employees placed in AWOL status will be denied backpay for the time they miss and carries the potential for discipline or termination.
“This is notice that you have been placed on Absence without Leave (AWOL) for 8 hours . . . when you failed to report for duty,” stated a memorandum that one employee received, obtained by Government Executive. “You have been placed on AWOL because you were not on duty as scheduled and you were not on approved leave to cover the period of your absence. Although AWOL itself is not a disciplinary action, it may be used as the basis for disciplinary action . . . As I have reminded you, it is important that you come to work when scheduled, remain on the job, and perform the essential functions of your job.”
In a statement, an SSA spokesperson contested AFGE’s allegations as “inaccurate.”
“SSA is following long-standing guidelines for how requests for episodic telework, annual leave and sick leave are handled,” they wrote. “There is also a process for employees to follow if they request to be placed on furlough status, which is unchanged. SSA offices remain open and continue to serve the public.”
But that doesn’t track with what is happening across the agency, LaPointe said. The union has seen an increase in denial rates for episodic telework since the shutdown began, and she said management has added new requirements to requests from employees to be placed in a leave or furlough status. …
17 comments:
I feel bad for any loyal career employees forced to regurgitate this Vichy regime's lies, but since when do journalists quote an anonymous "SSA spokesperson"? Demand accountability. Demand the truth.
Horrible action by Management.
We were told last week we could telework until the shutdown ends. That lasted 4 whole days & we were all told to report to the office on Monday.
We were previously granted episodic telework as long as the shutdown goes on due to financial hardship. We were told this last week, and told to request on a week by week basis.
My request for this week was approved on Monday. Then, a few hours later, my manager let me know that the agency was not granting blanket episodic telework for financial hardship, and we were reverting back to previous guidelines for episodic telework, which for us, seems to be not allowing it for any reason whatsoever. It is not applied consistently across departments.
I have a midday Dr appt this week, and I asked for episodic telework for that day to work around my appointment to see if it would now be granted. It was denied. No reason given. I have now asked for furlough leave for all day, as I am not driving into the office and then to my Dr appt, which is closer to my home. So they could have gotten 4-6 hours of work out of me, instead they will get zero.
I can say with authority in firsthand knowledge that Andy S, head of Field Office operations, has stated that he publicly supports telework during the shutdown. However, Frank Bisignano, billionaire, who is out of touch with reality and out of touch with what real people face challenge-wise, financially, on a daily basis, refuses to allow SSA employees to telework and refuses to support any type of telework even during the shutdown. It is a financial hardship for employees, most of whom are GS 5-11s, to continue to report to an office 5 days a week while not getting paid, and not knowing when they will get paid, when we have technology in place to allow for telework (and did telework successfully during COVID).
It further damages any sort of morale that SSA employees had left, which wasn’t much.
This is what happens when you put out of touch billionaires who have no idea what they are doing or what the agency does (which he has openly admitted) in charge of America’s most important agency.
Vought wants people to quit. Period.
Yeah same here I took a day off requesting furlough for a dr appointment I would have only taken 3 hours to attend
We were told top level management (Frank?) expressly denied requests for employees to telework even in non-facing public roles. Eat the costs despite no pay.
It’s a bad situation. I wish my FO employees could telework but it’s difficult since we have a lot of walk in traffic. Once we grant any of it, it can open the floodgates.
Completely on point, this is Vought “When they wake up in the morning, we want them to not want to go to work, because they are increasingly viewed as the villains. We want their funding to be shut down … We want to put them in trauma.” Vought and this administration normalizing evil.
How about helping out your FO employees? Sympathy is meaningless.
What a nasty, ludicrous statement. The manager isn’t getting paid either; are they supposed to give them money? Overrule agency leadership and grant telework? They don’t have the authority to do that. What do you expect them to do?
The Trump admin sought to bring accountability to SSA. It's done the opposite. With the shutdown those who call in sick daily are treated the same as those who show up to work. Entire divisions are allowed to telework while others are forced in every single day. Even in those components, the majority of staff still telework via workplace accommodation. What the admin has done is rewarded those who call in sick or file accommodations, and punish those who show up and work.
"the majority of staff still telework via workplace accommodation"
What purpose do you serve telling such bald faced lies?
Some field office excepted employees are furloughing themselves not to work. Taking advantage of the law that says they will be restored any leave and still get paid.
Yes, rules for thee and not for me. 9th floor lights have been off all week.
Are the FO excepted employees taking furlough because they do not want to work and to “take advantage of the law” or it’s they’re not getting paid to work and there is a cost to travel to and work? How about employees with children in daycare? Many with spouses who are federal employees? Cost to commute to and from work? I could go on and on, so take blinders off and look at what’s happening to our great country. Sad times…
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