Biden administration secures remote work for certain federal union workers until 2029

A Biden administration appointee has reached a contract agreement with the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), a union representing more than 40,000 Social Security Administration workers, that would allow federal workers to work from home until 2029. This comes amid a series of organized efforts from Biden's White House to impede President-elect Donald Trump's efforts to reform the federal workforce through his newly implemented Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

Bloomberg reported that the deal was brokered by President Biden's recently departed Social Security Administration Commissioner Martin O'Malley. The updated contract protects telework until 2029. The agency will maintain its current hybrid work-from-home policies that require employees to be present in the office ranging between two to five days per week.

"This deal will secure not just telework for SSA employees, but will secure staffing levels through prevention of higher attrition, which in turn will secure the ability of the Agency to serve the public," Richard Couture, President of AFGE, wrote in a message sent to union members.

Unions have advocated for the extension of current collective bargaining agreements with federal employees in anticipation of the inauguration of Donald Trump next month. The current White House team is being encouraged by certain union leaders to issue an executive order that advocates for these actions.

AFGE is the largest federal worker union, and organized labor represents over one million federal government employees. The existing timeframes of legally binding union contracts, which prescribe terms on working conditions, can be amended or extended.

Trump has appointed billionaire Elon Musk and tech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy to serve as the heads of a new task force, the "Department of Government Efficiency," which is designed to reduce government spending and optimize operations. Musk and Ramaswamy have declared their intention to eradicate work-from-home policies and reduce the federal workforce.

"Requiring federal employees to come to the office five days a week would result in a wave of voluntary terminations that we welcome," the pair wrote in a Wall Street Journal op-ed published in November.

Although contract terms do not supersede federal law, they can limit the discretion of agencies in managing their staff. Attorneys at the Department of Justice have been collaborating with the National Treasury Employees Union to achieve union recognition prior to Biden's departure from office.