More Federal Workers are Telecommuting

An anonymous reader writes "Boosting the ranks of federal employees who telework is a slow, sometimes painful process, despite numerous incentives and legislative edicts lobbed at U.S. agencies over the years. Take the situation at the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), which last month was ordered by a federal arbitration panel to allow its legal instrument examiners to telework on a pilot basis. ATF was against letting these specialists telework because it says the material they need to remove from agency offices in order to telework posed a security risk. The Federal Service Impasses Panel (FSIP) became involved at the request of the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU), which successfully argued its case for allowing the examiners to telework on a pilot basis."

Misread that title

[schklerg]

Of course feral workers telecommute, they make a mess in the corner!

Over at CTU Los Angeles...

[MacarooMac]

[Erin Driscoll] "Jack, start prepping a team for an assault on the east wing. Edgar- where's Chloe? Find her and tell her to open a new socket in the server room as a new priority."
[Edgar Stiles] "Chloe's.. erm.. working from home today, Miss Driscoll..."

This is definitely an improvement

[intrico]

They are helping the environment by being unproductive at home, rather than going into the office to be unproductive.

Not surprising

[cashman73]

I don't see a problem with federal workers telecommuting,... especially considering that the big boss [wikipedia.org] technically "telecommutes". Of course, if my employer would give me a house [whitehouse.gov], I'd probably work from home, too,... Then again, on the negative side, he's arguably one of the least productive federal workers, so he's probably screwing up the whole telecommuting thing for everyone else!

I already...

[Urger]

I already do Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms at home, often all at once. They could just hire me and boost their numbers accordingly.

Re:This is definitely an improvement

[Nimey]

You must work for the DMV.

Federal Telecommuting Made Easy

[Anonymous Coward]

I can do it, too. Just pick up any phone, anywhere, and say the following words in any particular order: "terrorist Iraq Al Qaeda" and you'll instantly be connected to your neighborhood friendly NSA agent, ready and willing to connect you to your party!

The neighbors are against it...

[ericferris]

From TFA:

ATF was against letting these specialists telework because it says the material they need to remove from agency offices in order to telework posed a security risk.

I can see why. I mean, the poor guys need to bring work home, obviously. In case you do'nt know what the ATF does, it turns out that this is the Official Agency that solves the big problem created by alcohol, firearms and tobacco. I went to their web site and it's kinda technical -- it has to do with seizing stuff and closing down places, I'm not sure I understood all the jargon. But obviously, someone has to consume all that seized wood alcohol and those contraband cigarettes, while testing these confiscated firearms.

Which lets us picture the average ATF telecommuter, in a corner of his living room, working from home for the ATF, drinking seized gutrot moonshine, smoking Chinaese-made fake Marlboros, and shooting a deer silhouette adorned with his ex-wife portrait with confiscated AK-74 imitations.

Of course, it's a security risk!

And you wonder why the neighbors don't want more telecommuting Federal employees?

Re:I telecommute almost every week

[wronskyMan]

I hope by O's/Petty Officers you don't let the pilots and rescue swimmers telecommute - I like them to be there when they are picking me out of the ocean :)

Re:Discourage those staying behind?

[theonetruekeebler]

Call him. Every single time something goes wrong, anywhere, for any member of the team, they call him. If something looks unusual, call him. If something looks perfectly normal, call him and let him know things are "back on track." He wants his shop running 24 hours a day? He's on call 24 hours a day. He doesn't answer the phone? Leave voice mail and stop working until he calls back. You ain't sleepin'? He ain't sleepin'. Either he gets the message or at least you get to torment him until the moment you quit. Now if he's a skilled enough asshole you lose your next merit increase for requiring excessive supervision, you and your whole team. But that can be circumvented in many delightful ways, up to and including quitting en masse. I say en masse but don't do it at the exact same moment. One of you should quit every half hour, starting around midnight, and call him.