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The telework program at the National Science Foundation is winning support from managers, and participation among employees is on the rise, according to a report released last week by the Telework Exchange.

"We haven't taken a hard-sell approach; it's like, 'Try it, you'll like it,'" said Sue Whitney, labor relations officer and telework coordinator at the agency. "We let people ease into it, and I think letting people start out as a situational or ad hoc teleworker lets them get comfortable with the technology."

The Telework Exchange surveyed 1,200 NSF employees, and found that 51 percent of them work remotely, 32 percent on a regular basis. Fifty-five percent telework one to five times a month; 19 percent, six to 10 days; 15 percent, 11 to 15 days; and 11 percent, more than 15 days.

All NSF employees are eligible to telework, though the program is voluntary, Whitney said. The director and deputy director also have telework programs on file as part of the agency's continuity of operations plan and to set a model for employees.

Not only is telework spreading among rank-and file employees, but managers are working remotely in large numbers as well, the survey found. Sixty-seven percent of managers who oversee teleworkers work remotely, and 84 percent of managers overall view telework positively for its flexibility.

Perhaps most significant, 87 percent of managers who oversee teleworkers said productivity remained the same or improved when employees worked remotely. Sixty-six percent of managers said it was not difficult for them to evaluate teleworkers' performance.

Whitney said providing managers with information and the option to telework helped win their respect for the program early on. "When we instituted the policy, I went out and did a lot of briefings, and I still do briefings at staff meetings," she said. "I think one of the biggest pluses is that our policy is very open and we opened it up to managers right from the start."

Whitney also noted that the American Federation of Government Employees local that represents NSF workers supported the rollout of the telework program, and that collaboration built trust between the union and the agency.

"Telework was one of the first areas we tackled when I became the labor relations officer, and I think it did establish that we could be successful, and trust each other, and work together," she said. "The union encourages [telework] at their monthly meetings or their one-on-one meetings with employees. We can talk to managers or employees who have concerns."

Whitney said that while NSF is small and most of its employees are familiar and comfortable with the technology that makes telework possible, other agencies can still learn from its experiences in rolling out its program.

"We haven't mandated it, we haven't said everyone has to do 10 percent of their workers," she said. "But it's spreading across the agency because it works, and it improves productivity and it improves people's lives.

COMMENTS

• Personally I like tele-work, however its not for everyone and some will abuse it, I'll be watching to see if they are asking for additional headcount for 08 dan ketter Posted March 24, 2008 11:13 PM
• "Flexiplace" has long been included in our negotiated Collective Bargaining Agreement here at DOE Headquarters but several managers have resisted or outright banned Telework arrangements for their employees. NTEU has won numerous grievances over these refusals and recently obtained a favorable Arbitration Ruling that has widespread effect on the acceptability of Flexiplace at DOE. NTEU has recommended that most if not all employees be allowed to participate in "Situational Flexiplace" arrangements whereby they could work offsite when horrific weather occurs at their homes up to 2 hours from the job site but doesn't shut down the government. Even more importantly, we have urged the Department to approve Situational Flexiplace during our upcoming "Continuity of Operations (COOP) exercises. If and when employees are told en masse to work from home for whatever reason (e.g. pandemic flu), only those already "in the system" will have the ability to log into the DOE email system and actually work from home. Those not set up in advance will be told to take leave or if without sufficient leave will be placed on LWOP. That in itself is reason enough for managers to approve Flexiplce Agreeents now. To date this recommendation to management has not been acted upon. The National Science Foundation should be applauded for being in the forefront. On the other hand, wouldn't you think the Department of Energy would be embracing Telework if for nothing else to cut down on the number of cars on the roads? Barry Clark Posted March 24, 2008 2:50 PM
• It should also be noted that managers continue to be a hindrance to obtaining telework clearance at NSF AND that NSF does NOT support flexible schedule (e.g., compressed work week) options. Union Member #2 Posted March 19, 2008 3:34 PM