House Passes Telework Bill

The House on Wednesday passed legislation that would make telework a statutory requirement for every federal agency.

The House voted 290-131 to pass the bill - the 2009 Telework Improvements Act (H.R. 1722) - which would require federal agencies to expand their telework programs, set benchmarks to monitor their progress and would guarantee that eligible employees could work remotely at least 20 percent of the time. The bill also requires agencies to have a written telework policy, appoint a telework managing officer and provide more training for managers and supervisors on handling employees working from outside the office.

The bill also creates a pilot program for trademark attorneys at the Patent and Trademark Office that cuts down on the number of days employees who telework from outside the commuting area are required to come into the office.

The Senate passed similar legislation in May, and minor differences in the two bills will need to be reconciled before the bill is sent to President Obama's desk.

A federal employee survey released earlier this week showed that only 9.7 percent of federal employees telework at least one day per week, and an additional 23 percent would do so if permitted by their agency. The survey also found that some 64 percent of federal workers could work remotely if provided the opportunity.