GAO to Agencies: Measure Telework's Effectiveness
FCW.com -
The Government Accountability Office is
again pressing federal agencies to focus on results and clarify rules when
working to expand their telework programs.
�Agencies need to have meaningful measures of what they are trying to achieve
through telework, and they need to be using this information to achieve their
results,� Bernice Steinhardt, GAO�s director of strategic issues, told the
Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee�s Oversight of
Government Management Subcommittee....
...Read More
(fcw.com)
Lawmakers Weigh Proposal to Expand Telework Eligibility
GovExec.com - Legislation that would make most federal employees eligible to telework got a mixed reception at a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs subcommittee hearing Tuesday.
The legislation would allow employees -- with a few exceptions -- to work away from the office unless their agencies show their jobs aren't suitable for the arrangement. Currently, agencies set the rules for eligibility, and policies differ.
In addition, the 2007 Telework Enhancement Act (S. 1000), introduced in March by Sens. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, and Mary Landrieu, D-La., recommends that each agency appoint a full-time telework managing officer....
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(govexec.com)
House to Agencies: Tell Us About Telework
FCW.com - In an effort to identify roadblocks to teleworking, several
House members will send agencies a survey asking about their telework policies.
The survey seeks to determine what can be done to overcome barriers to working
outside the office.
The survey asks for agencies' definition of telework and how they determine
employee eligibility. It also asks how agencies tell employees they are eligible
for it, according to a letter from the House Oversight and Government Reform
Committee....
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(fcw.com)
Telework Fuels Productivity and Cuts Costly Gas Consumption; Smart Strategies for Fighting the High Cost of Gas and Increasing the Bottom Line
Business Wire - Gas prices are not only testing our wallets these days,
they're also testing the way we work. With gas hovering at $2.25 a gallon for
regular in many states, cost-conscious businesses and workers who depend on cars
for long distance travel and commuting, need to develop alternative strategies
for enabling less frequent use of their cars....
...Read More
(businesswire.com)
Congress OKs $5 million penalty for telecommuting shortfalls
GCN.com - If agencies under the Commerce, Justice and
State appropriations bill do not offer every eligible worker the opportunity to
telecommute by mid-to-late January, they will lose $5 million under a provision
passed as part of the fiscal 2005 Omnibus spending bill earlier this week....
...Read More
(gcn.com)
Agency officials say resistance to telework is dropping
GovExec.com - Agency officials told lawmakers Thursday that managerial resistance to telecommuting is gradually diminishing.
Office of Personnel Management Director Kay Coles James and Stephen Perry, head of the General Services Administration, told members of the House Government Reform Committee that the telework goals laid out in a 2001 law backed by Rep. Frank Wolf, R-Va. (P.L. 106-346) are not unrealistic, but will take longer to implement than the bill mandates....
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(govexec.com)
Labor Secretary Chao Announces Availability of $2.5 Million Grant Aimed at Improving Telework Employment Strategies for People with Disabilities
US Newswire - U.S. Labor Secretary
Elaine L. Chao
today announced the availability of a $2.5 million grant through her Office of
Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), which is aimed at increasing employment
opportunities for people with disabilities through telework positions.
"President George W. Bush believes that the ability to telework increases
available employment options for all workers, including individuals with
disabilities, and his New Freedom Initiative directs activities such as telework
and assistive technology be undertaken to promote the employment for people with
disabilities," said Secretary Chao....
...Read More
(usnewswire.com)
