OMB Report to Congress on Telework, Real Property Utilization
Since day one, the Biden-Harris Administration has been committed to delivering for the American people. That’s why we have worked closely with Federal agencies to implement increased in-person office presence in line with each agency’s unique circumstances, missions, and customers. As a part of this commitment, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued guidance in 2023 to help agencies make decisions about their in-office workplace postures as they prioritize mission delivery. That guidance called for agencies to “substantially increase meaningful in-person work at Federal offices, particularly at headquarters and equivalents,” while recognizing the diverse operations of Federal agencies across the country.
Today, OMB released a report outlining the telework levels of Federal agencies, agency telework policies, and agency approaches to the management of their real property portfolios.
Approximately 50 percent of federal workers are not eligible for telework at all, including those who work onsite providing healthcare to our veterans, inspecting our food supply, and managing Federal natural resources. However, for Federal employees who are telework-eligible, approximately 60 percent of work performed was at an assigned job site as of May 2024. These figures demonstrate that the Federal workforce is generally in line with the rates of on-site work performed across all sectors in the economy, as demonstrated by independent analysis from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Despite this progress, our work is not complete. Some Federal agencies are continuing to work to fully meet their in-office presence objectives. OMB looks forward to continued collaboration with agencies and Congress in pursuit of this goal and welcomes further engagement on the topics discussed in this report. While we still have work ahead of us, real progress has been made, and we will continue to work with agencies to ensure we are best delivering for the American people.
