From:
^Commissioner Broadcast <Commissioner.Broadcast@ssa.gov>
Sent: Tuesday, January 30, 2024 2:31 PM
Subject: Increasing Our Onsite Presence
A
Message to All SSA Employees
Subject:
Increasing Our Onsite Presence
Every
morning for the last 32 days, I’ve been going to work at headquarters or
catching pre-dawn flights to Social Security Regions across our country.
I
do this to hear from — and learn from — as many of you as possible, as soon as
possible, about what’s really going on.
And
while the best ideas for improving our operations always come from those on the
frontlines, some decisions must ultimately fall to the Commissioner.
So,
let’s acknowledge this truth:
The
Covid pandemic and shutdown changed the nature of work. There is no private
sector company or public agency in the world which has since found the perfect
balance between onsite presence and telework.
But
because I understand any new adjustments to our telework policies will affect
you personally, I wanted to give you as much advance notice as possible so you
can make adjustments in your own balance between work and life.
After
much listening and deep consideration of currently available evidence, I have
decided that the following policies will be effective across the Social
Security Administration beginning April 7, 2024.
Here’s
WHAT’S NOT changing:
- Field
Offices will remain open to the public five days a week.
-
Employees
in field offices, teleservice centers, and program service centers (including
the Office of Central Operations) will continue their current balance of onsite
presence and telework.
-
Employees
in hearing offices, hearing centers, and case assistance centers will continue
their current balance of onsite presence and telework. ALJ hearings will
continue to be held five days a week by teleconference, videoconference, or
in-person, at the option of claimants and their representatives.
-
Employees
in the Office of Appellate Operations and the Office of Quality Review will
continue their current balance of onsite days and telework.
-
Employees
with nonportable workloads and those ineligible for telework will continue
their onsite presence.
Here’s
WHAT IS changing:
- In
our headquarters and regional offices, we will be moving to “core collaboration
days.” We do this in order to better serve the American people, to better
support our new trainees, and to better support and train our frontline workers
in their mission.
Therefore:
- I
will be present onsite at the Baltimore Headquarters (or in regional or area
offices) five days a week.
-
The
Commissioner’s Office will be onsite four days a week with one day of telework
optional.
-
Because
servant leaders make themselves present and accountable to the people they
lead, Deputy Commissioners, employees in headquarters components, regional
offices, and area director offices will increase their onsite presence to three
days per week with two days of telework optional.
-
Employees
in the Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) will increase their
onsite presence to two days per week — with greater presence for top level
executives at the discretion of the CIO.
Our
return to a greater onsite presence not only gives us more opportunity for
collaboration, engagement, and innovation, but it also brings us into alignment
with other federal agencies across government, who have been increasing their
own onsite presence.
Conclusion:
In
the coming days, you will receive more information from your managers about
logistics like signing up for a transit subsidy, updating your parking badge,
making your desk arrangements, and more. Facilities will also be working
to expand cafeteria and onsite food options on core collaboration days.
As
we improve the quality of our data to measure our effectiveness across the
complex components of the Agency, we will continue to adjust in order to reach
the best possible balance within individual units. These decisions will honor
both the letter and the spirit of our Union agreements. And these decisions
will be based on the mission of SSA using the best available evidence, not
fear.
Our
mission is the security of the men, women, and children of our Nation.
Thank
you for your dedication, and I look forward to seeing you in-person if I
haven’t already.
Yours
in solidarity,
Martin
O’Malley
Commissioner
