Sen. Ernst demands federal employees return to work in person
- Some lawmakers are calling on government employees to go back to the office
- Building occupancy at 17 federal agencies was at 25% or less in the spring
- President Biden is also pushing federal employees to return to the office
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(NewsNation) — As employees at major companies continue to head back into the office, some lawmakers on Capitol Hill are calling on federal workers to do the same.
Senator Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, didn’t mince words Wednesday when she blasted government employees who haven’t returned to their posts in person.
“How many of them moved away during COVID and are still getting paid for living in Washington DC?” Ernst told reporters. “You federal employees that are out there, we’re coming after you.”
Ernst is requesting an investigation of every major department and agency to “determine the impact of telework on the delivery and response times of services,” according to a press release from her office.
She wants that investigation to look at how much money could be saved by consolidating office space and whether salaries have been adjusted for those who have relocated.
Back in March 2022, a VA employee in Atlanta posted a picture that went viral after it showed him working from a bubble bath. The photo prompted concerns people are taking advantage of lax work-from-home policies.
A report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) in July determined building occupancy at 17 federal agencies was at 25% or less as recently as this spring.
The report found building space was being underutilized even before the pandemic but the waste problem got even worse with remote work during COVID. The analysis didn’t provide recommendations for how to solve the problem.
The GAO estimated it takes roughly $2 billion a year to operate and maintain federal office buildings, regardless of the buildings’ utilization. An additional $5 billion annually is spent to lease the buildings.
In August, President Joe Biden called for his Cabinet to “aggressively execute” plans for federal employees to work more in their offices this fall, according to an email obtained by Axios.
Earlier this year, the GOP-led House voted to pass the SHOW UP Act, requiring each executive agency to reinstate the telework policies that were in place before the pandemic in 2019. It hasn’t passed the Senate.