Federal offices nationwide will telework, unless their agency says otherwise, until further notice.
The new guidance from the Office of Management and Budget tells federal agencies that they need to have a plan by Thursday afternoon for how they will maximize telework across the nation.
“The government must immediately adjust operations and services to minimize face-to-face interactions, especially at those offices or sites where people may be gathering in close proximity or where highly vulernable populations obtain services,” the memo reads.
The Office of Management and Budget memo says agency plans and operations shall accomplish the following:
- Reduce and re-prioritize non-mission-critical services to free up capacity for critical services;
- Identify and resolve supply challenges that may be limiting factors or bottlenecks;
- Identify a variety of transportation limitations that could impact service delivery;
- Whenever possible and appropriate, leverage existing materials and content relating to authoritative information on COVID-19, share status of Federal actions on https://www.usa.gov/coronavirus, and provide communications in line with the National Response Framework;
- Maximize telework across the nation for the Federal workforce (including mandatory telework, if necessary), while maintaining mission-critical workforce needs;
- Assess professional services and labor contracts to extend telework flexibilities to contract workers wherever feasible;
- Consider streamlining regulations and approval processes for critical services, including issuing general waivers policies and delegating decision-making where appropriate;
- Ensure agency policies and procedures restrict individuals infected with, or at higher risk for serious illness from, COVID-19 from accessing Federal facilities, in accordance with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines, as well as the Privacy Act of 1974, and other legal requirements. These agency policies must specifically include considerations not only for Federal employees, but also for contractors and visitors while balancing the needs to perform mission critical functions. Agencies shall review CDC, as well as U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) guidance below, as well as other appropriate resources, when developing and implementing new or modified policies and processes.
