I have been teleworking for more than ten years. I am a full-time teleworker. My work performance is assessed based upon the bottom line, eg., my work is completed either timely or tardy, my work is quality or faulty, my work is on target or out of sync. Of course, there are degree-level variations for these assessments. I don't have an assigned work station at a traditional office. But, I can use a shared touchdown workspace or just plug in my laptop when I have a need to be at the traditional office. I mostly work at my suburban home; however, I have also worked at three different GSA-sponsored Telework Centers. These Centers have provided me with all the amenities of working at a traditional office, including onsite technical support. These Centers provide a valuable alternative to working at a traditional office or at home. Telework has allowed me to increase my productivity and greatly improve my work/life balance. I am fortunate to work for progressive management in a supportive environment.

I have been teleworking for about 20 years - mostly 1 day a week. All government agencies - DFAS, DOJ, FDIC, and DHS. Because I work in HR, and am proficient in technology, I have never had any issues. It has always been a great experience, although I have learned to reserve the heavy research, analytical, creative work for my telework days because I am so productive. I hope to increase the number of days to 2 now that my agency is implementing MS Office Communicator.

Nine reasons why America has benefited from the use of telework, based on my own experience 1. My savings from telework are approximately $2000 per year. The number is based only on the bridge tolls, the Garden State Parkway tolls, and the gas going back and forth to work. If the telework was applicable to the entire American labor force it would equate to 200 billion dollars per year. That amount alone could be a great boost to the American economy and at the time it needs it the most. 2. My gas savings came to $1040 per year or equal to approximately 420 gallons of gas per year. If we could spread this across the working population that would equate to 21.00 Billion Gallons per year. The gas savings alone would be a great boost to our national savings of natural resources. A great multiplying force to get away from the foreign oil dependency. 3. Staying away from the roads eliminates the possibility for accidents, a great help to the insurance companies for not paying million of dollars in liability expenses. 4. Telework reduces the traffic flow in highways, therefore increases capacity of the highways and eliminates the immediate demand for governments to pay millions of dollars in expanding the high ways at the time when budgets do not exist. 5. Telework increases people’s longevity for not driving two hours a day (200 hours per year). 6. Telework increases productivity for the extra 2 hours/day (200 hours per year). 7. Telework increases productivity for not being overtired at work and being refreshed during working hours. 8. For the extra wellness, Telework makes us feel more obligated to our job, our office, our agency, our country. As a result one will never overlook his/her responsibility to carry out his/her duty. 9. Telework helps us to become more creative, since healthier brains always reside in healthier bodies.

I have been teleworking for five years, three days a week as a Reasonable Accommodation for my disability. Without telework I would have had to retire on disability, so telework has been a -literally- job-saving experience for me. An advantage to telework as a reasonable accommodation is that I don't have to re-apply every time a new supervisor is assigned, and I receive IT equipment to work AWL, including a AAA token so I can access software that I use in the office.

I have found Telework to be one of the best programs ever offered in my 30+ years of Federal Government experience. I had been able to Telework 1 day per week and did so for 3 years. I was able to accomplish 3 days of work in one telework day because of the lack of interruptions and the absolute quiet. Where our problems are is that our management does not support Telework. Yes, they offer it (no more than one day per week) but there are many managers that do not hide their comments about their employees 'Tele-scamming'. They have repeatedly attempted to institute unlawful policies (every one of them was stopped by our Union) that were put into place to threaten the Teleworking employee with being constantly monitored. Our management also finds any way possible to cancel an employees telework (one actual policy is that no one can telework during our testing periods - whether you and/or your branch is testing or not). Our Technical Support Branch also made no bones about their disdain for Teleworkers because they themselves are not permitted to Telework - ever. If you have a problem and call in for support (as has happened to me on several occasions) you are automitcally told that you must take leave or come in to the office - even though a support solution was available and obtained after much prodding. If you are sick, injured or recovering for an extended period of time, management refuses to allow no more than 4 hours per day of Telework - if they grant any at all. So, my personal experience with Telework was very positive and would have been perfect if there were a way to force our management to fully buy into the program and trust that their highly-paid employees are actually performing their duties.

As an employee with CMS for over 34 years, we were excited about the possibility to work at home. However, CMS management doesn't embrace telework as well as other government agencies. As other agencies comment on telwork, they are able to work two days a week. CMS is limited to one day a week. However, there is a perception that upper management doesn't embrace the idea and almost discourage employees from doing so. After reading your website with almost all positive comments, CMS employees would like to see the same flexibility carried out in all government agencies without having to be concerned that upper management prefers you to not participate in telework. Because we are looking for ways to go "green" we would like to see the government agencies leading this initiative. I wish it were the same for all government agencies. Consider yourself lucky if you work for one.

Telework is a huge morale, and thus, motivation, enhancer. When you are motivated, your production goes up and the "customer satisfaction" goes up. Keep up the good work in implementing this workplace / efficiency tool!

I have fortunately been a teleworker for the past 10 years- 2 days per week on a compressed 4/10 schedule, and it has saved my life. I could not work full time without it, as I suffer from back problems, and my daily commute is 4 hours roundtrip! I believe EPA is a leader among the federal family for promoting telework, and that makes me proud to be at such a forward thinking agency. Perhaps it is the level of professionalism, since most of us are attorneys, enginners or scientists; coupled with our mission, which is to reduce pollution, and telework surely does that. Finally, when the San Francisco earthquake happened, R9 (San Francisco) went into telework mode, and they realized how productive the Region could remain in a crisis. Considering the threats we deal with in this age, telework must be promoted throughout the federal agencies so the executive branch does not go into the deep freeze in the event of a catastrophic event. EPA has an emergency plan in place, with our home info readily at hand to contact us in the event of an emergency, as we would all be expected to continue working from home. My experiences, and those of my colleagues who also telecommute, is complete satisfaction and success. It boosts morale, and also promotes quality of life, including physical and mental health as well as family time (my family surely enjoys dinner at 6:30 the evenings I am home working, rather than 8:30 when I have to commute into the office. Initially my supervisor was checking in very frequently when I worked at home (and I with the supervisor), until the supervisor asked me to stop, because they knew I was working as evidenced by my output. Indeed, the supervisor even notices that I and my fellow teleworkers are indeed even more accountable at home- after all, how many office workers disappear for long stretches of time? Vs teleworkers, who are answering the phone and readily on hand when working at home. While telework is not for all, it should be an available option for all- even if an agency starts with a core group of employees to test the waters (I was among a first round of trial workers and we established the trust to expand the program). I for one feel truested and confident, and the respect I have earned makes me work even harder in gratutude for my blessed life.

I work harder, longer hours and I am more productive when I Telework 2 days per week. I would like have 3 days of telework. Telework is very beneficial to me and my organization.

My small organization's management would not institute a formal telework policy until we got a new SES Executive Director who had come from an organization where it was used successfully. Forced to create a telework plan, the management made it so odious that very few folks attempted to apply. Only one day per pay period, day may not be a Monday or Friday or directly preceding or following a holiday; may not be the same week as a scheduled day off... Interestingly, once the policy went into effect, it became the supervisors who began abusing it, working without signed agreements, not requesting telework in advance,not actually working in a home office or telework center, they say they are teleworking because their blackberry is on, and they are running personal errands. Like every other employee-friendly policy in this organization, management has made it difficult for regular workers to use and applies separate rules to themselves.

I found teleworking adhoc was very beneficial on days when there was a lot of work to be completed. I was able to accomplish normally what I can do in two days in one, due to little interuptions as well as able to focus. The only concern I have with Telework now is I've changed Internet providers and our agency will not allow the drivers to be loaded on my Gov Laptop to run the Internet USB card. So that has caused delays of teleworking, but other then that it is a great avenue to gain effective and productive work.

I have been working at CMS for over 5 years. I think teleworking is a wonderful opportunity. For employees, such as I, with almost a daily two commute, it is allow me to focus on the job at hand and also to save my travel time and gas. I would appreciate the opportinity/flexibility to work additional days at home. Some DHHS agencies are permitted to work more than 1 day at home. All agencies should be afforded the same opportinity.

I'm beginning my third year as a full-time telecommuter for the National Archives and Records Administration. Previous to this assignment, I held an SES position with NARA. When my personal situation made continuing my weekly 600 mile one-way commute impractical, I was prepared to retire. My supervisor made a counter proposal to retirement -- to change my duty station to my home location [provided I would agree to voluntarily resign from the SES position and accept a GS-15 senior advisor assignment and that I provide an office set up at my expense] under a NARA policy that provided for this option. I travel for work ca. 20-25 weeks a year, with a majority of that travel to our Washington locations. I don't see a downside to telecommuting from my experience and it certainly is one option for those close to retirement to contribute.

A. I currently telework (full time) as an employee of the Department of Veterans Affairs. I also teleworked (part time) as a Department of the Army employee. B. Presently, I telework 5 days a week. I've been a full time teleworker for a little less than a year. When I first started my telework program almost 2 years ago I teleworked 3 days a week. C. VERY POSITIVE! The vast majority of the clients I service are spread throughout the United States, therefore, a traditional office is not necessary to perform my job. I have less distractions at home from coworkers, which has boosted my productivity. I now work a full 10 day two week schedule rather than a compressed work schedule, which allows clients to reach me Monday through Friday. Since my department needed more Government personnel, my free office allowed my department the flexibility to hire another employee to counter an increased workload as a result of stimulus funding. This allowed my department to be proactive instead of reactive. Furthermore, since my traditional commute was 74 miles, I burn considerably less fuel going to and from work. The time I save on my commute allows me to spend more time with my family, which is a huge morale booster. I can now drop off my children to school and/or pick them up. Although my utility bills are marginally higher, the offsets of lower commuting costs and Gov't space savings equal a substantial overall reduction of energy used in the performance of my duties.

I've been teleworking for six years part time for a local non-VA hospital. The facility I am employed by has procedures in place to monitor productivity and accuracy and neither has ever been an issue. I am more productive working from home because there are less distractions and interruptions.

I teleworked at a telecenter about 6 years ago. I thought the concept was sound but at the time the technology wasn't as good as today as far as connectivity was concerned. Telecenters are a great way to achieve the best of both worlds as far as working offsite and being able to work in an office environment.

I have participated in teleworking in my current Federal government position for four years and, prior to that, with a State agency (for nearly six years). My participation in the Federal sector has been limited to approximately once every two to three months while it was more frequent when employed by the State (approximately two to three times per month). Unfortunately, I attribute this to the negative views of telework held by many supervisory/management level staff in the Federal sector and this deters me and others from requesting telework more frequently. I find myself much more productive when in a telework situation with less distractions from such things as other employees and constant telephone calls. Saving time and expense on the commute is also a benefit and I am able to apply that time to actual work rather than sitting on a mass transit train.

I have been doing telework for about three weeks now due to a family medical hardship. I have found that I can do any work from home that I can do in the office through vpn. This allows me to continue to be productive and effective even though I am not in the office. It actually allows for more productivity because there are no interruptions and distractions as experienced in a cubicle work environment. Having the flexibility to begin work earlier, work later, or even on the weekends is a BIG plus!! Some of the cons to doing telework are: 1. No physical presence with my GIS Team, 2. No physical presence with my supervisor, 2. No immediate access to my supervisor, and 3. No social interaction with the office staff. These are important, but the professional and personal pro's outweigh the negatives. I would recommend that anyone doing telework look for every opportunity to keep a close connection to their supervisor and to the office at large. A few recommendations would be: 1. Participate in meetings by phone when unable to be physically present, 2. Keep the supervisor apprised of telework through frequent e-mail and/or phone communications, 3. Send weekly reports of productivity and accomplishments to supervisor.

The limited times that I have teleworked have been very productive. The advantages of a quiet work environment are significant because I normally work in an office of cubicles where conversations abound and voices disrupt every attempt to concentrate while reading or writing. The lack of disruptions from phones, email, and co-workers who wish to discuss non-work issues, greatly improves my production and facilitates efficiency. Management in my division supports telework. We are required to be accountable in writing for our time working away from the office. I am grateful for the opportunity to telework even if it is only occasionally. The government must offer incentives such as alternate work schedules and telework if it hopes to compete with private industry for skilled and well-educated employees.

Years ago, I was allowed to telecommute on an ad hoc basis, such as when the weather was bad. When my husband got another job out of state, my supervisor wanted to keep me, so she agreed to let me telecommute. I telecommuted full time for two years from my home, although I worked for the office in another state. It worked very well - my customers were happy, I found myself to be very productive, and I was very satisfied with the arrangement. There were no major problems that couldn't be resolved. I would consider it a successful effort. Now I'm at another office at DOE, where the culture is quite different. Management here is violently opposed to the employees telecommuting, except under extraordinary circumstances, such as when an employee has health issues that justify a teleworking arrangement for a limited period of time. I would like to telecommute on at least a part-time basis, but my current supervisor would never support it.

I have had the opportunity to telework few times now. The experience has been very good and I do not believe there was any degradation of the production or the quality of my work other then the given limitations of access due to security. I work with computers so my access is a little more controled then most. I require not only computer access but telephone access at the same time. In my opinion telework should be utilized more often as it saves both the employer and the employee time and money. It also contributes to saving energy and cutting polution to the environment. The only real drawback I can think of is that as more people utilize telework, bandwidth across the internet is going to become more congested.

Have teleworked from home, a 32-mile drive, one way, since 4/2003 successfully, first as a pilot pgm. participant now as an applicant. I have been given Superior perf. appraisals as well as awards. I work at home 5 days per 2-wk pay period, max allowed at FSA. Once pgm. in place no addtnl. funds input so with recent snow storm VPN couldn't handle the load, no way are we ready for a widespread pandemic. Inconsistent telework policy here depends on your supervisor. Telework increased my productivity, decreased socializing, decreased tech support (help desk first asks if you're working remotely, then says it's an issue with your Internet provider usually), not many new telework applicants approved due to lack of equipment. No addtnl funds set aside for telework support. Most empls. want to telework, but mgrs. seem reluctant, could be job security, could be lack of trust. FSA has Internet-based telework appl. process which is good. Overall FSA has made much progress with Telework since 2003 pilot.

I have been a federal employee for only 5 years. Before that time, I was an academic and was "teleworking" in some sense for most of my 15 year career at universities, although it was not a formal teleworking arrangement. Throughout that time I was productive, conscientious and accountable employee. My only experience with federal teleworking is with my current agency, DFAS. It has been my experience that teleworking at my agency is sometimes predicated by limited availability of technology (I do not have a DFAS laptop right now, for example), but is far more often dependent upon the whim, sophistication and management style of one's supervisor. Until my current (new) position, I was employed in Accounting Operations, where I quickly learned that telecommuting was employed only as a means of extending my workday and weekends for the convenience of my employer -- there was no give-and-take in this arrangement whatsoever, in that I was only allowed to telecommute during financial reporting periods, and only on certain weekends when the mission required it. Clearly, there was no recognition of the secondary benefits to DFAS if teleworking was allowed for the benefit of the employee as well as the employer: increased worker satisfaction, balancing work and personal life and the accompanying stress reduction, reducing commutes, and therefore stress as well as traffic congestion within and around a federal site, freeing up (inadequate) parking space for other employees, providing a quiet, uninterrupted space for employees to work on special projects, etc. I am hopeful that my current supervisors will allow me to telework, especially since he is located in Arlington and I am in Indianapolis. Neither in this position nor in previous positions was I ever accessing secure information, personnel information or anything else that could be construed as a security risk (although I have a security clearance). By the way, my current commute is 65+ miles each way, 5 days per week. According to the Indianapolis Commuter Services website, the approximate annual financial cost of this commute (gas, oil, repairs and maintenace, insurance, depreciation, etc.) is $15,000+. This does not, of course, count the costs to the environment, the Indiana highway and roads, etc.

I have been successfully teleworking for 18 months. My husband was being transferred and rather than me quitting my job-share position, I put together a plan to telework from my new home, 700 miles from my office. I believe the key to convincing management is to fully research what it is you are proposing, put together a complete presentation for management; address the pros and cons; show them how it will work; show them your proposed telework agreement, etc. Make sure you include what we call a sample "task completion form". It is a form I fill out at the end of each work week showing my hours and how I spent my time. If I can't document how productive I was, the program will not continue. Management who are hesitant to implement telework should rely on this -- the program is not a right, if the employee does not perform, the benefit goes away, it's as simple as that. I travel back to the traditional office about every 4 months or so (at my own expense) mainly to have my computer tweaked a little. Not every job is conducive to "full-time teleworking", but I can't imagine that most jobs couldn't implement some telework into them and I fully believe that productivity would increase, at least by those who are serious about keeping the benefit.

I have been teleworking for the past two year. I have been working for the Federal Government for almost six years. In my current Agency telework opportunities are available for all, providing their work assignments lend itself to work that can be accomplished outside the office and you are a responsible employee. In my previous assignments with the Government telework was available on a very limited basis and it seemed to only be open to a select few. During this time I marveled at those who were fortunate to meet criteria, and was extremely disappointed that I was not, and I thought I should have been granted the opportunity. I am totally pro telework and feel it is going to be the wave of the current as well as future workforce. I really would like to be able to be in a position where I can manage my work time in such a way that I only come to the office when there are things to do in the office, or by coming to the general vicinity of the office, which can not be accomplished by staying at home or by utilizing some form of telecommute.

I have been teleworking 2 days per week for a year and did 1 day a week for a year before that. I am a "virtual" employee in that my "office mates" are stationed at different locations throughout the U.S. My direct report is in another state. Her boss is in yet another state, etc... So being virtual means it really doesn't matter where I work. There may be times when I need to access secure networks or facilities. That means I still need some location suitable to those requirements. Beyond that, I do not know of any reason why telework would not be a viable option pretty much all the time. It vastly improves my quality of like. As others here have commented, I actually spend more time on work matters than I would if I didn't telework because work is so accessible. Not having to commute 2 days per week saves me hours every week, so a couple extra hours on the laptop are no problem. There is an increased safety factor when people telework and stay out of rush hour traffic. It saves fuel. It saves time. It saves wear and tear on government facilities and resources to sustain those facilities. I think going forward Federal telework planning folks need to figure out emerging best practices with respect to the secure network and facilities issue. I think the GSA telework facilities are the right idea, but I'm not sure there are enough and the connectivity may not meet Defense network security rules. So that is something that could be built out over time if telework proves cost effective to Uncle Sam on a larger scale.

I teleworked 1 day per week for 2 years & have just recently increased to 2 days per week (Mon & Fri). Since meetings sometimes get scheduled on Mondays & Fridays, and I sometimes need to use SIPRNET, about 20% of the time I don't actually telework when I am scheduled. Upsides: (1) I am able to focus on issues for lengthy periods of time, due to no walk-in interruptions. This is VERY nice, particularly when there is a 368 page document to review! (2) It is chicken soup for my soul to sleep in a few extra minutes, not to have to shave, dress in proper business attire, and do the commute. Working in comfortable jammies & slippers beats a necktie choking off blood to my brain, hands down. (3) Someone is home for deliveries (4) Teleworking makes work continuity truly seamless when a catastrophe occurs, like the recent dumping 2 feet of snow on DC that trapped many of us in our homes. Downsides: (1) It may take a LONG time to convince one's spouse that you really really are working and can't fix the shed roof, or wash, fold & put away the laundry. Of course, there are compromises, like it might be okay to put the wet laundry in the dryer and turn the dryer on. This is an ongoing struggle. (2) By blending the work and home environment, it is very easy to stay at work past your normal quitting time, and to return to work during off days ("just for a second to check e-mail", which invariably turns into hours). It is important (and difficult) to control this compulsion and to achieve a harmonious balance between family, personal growth and interests, and getting the workplace mission done.

My employer has recently tested telework proceedures with a group of my coworkers. The results were quite favorable and I believe we will see more permanent telework positions offered in the future. I live with a university professor who teaches two classes online with great results. At times she will work 15 hour days which she would not be able to do in her office. Telework is a reasonable accomodation for her and works well. She teaches on Campus one night a week. I have not personally had the opportunity to telework.

I work for DCMA and up until use to telework 2 times a week about 5 years ago. I enjoyed being able to concentrate and not having so many interruptions,the money I saved for gas and parking plus the wear and tear I saved on my car. It was a God send two and a half years ago as my mother became teminally ill and the stress of not having to go into the office was a tremendous benefit.

I teleworked at a telecenter about 6 years ago. I thought the concept was sound but at the time the technology wasn't as good as today as far as connectivity was concerned. Telecenters are a great way to achieve the best of both worlds as far as working offsite and being able to work in an office environment.

I work for the VA as a rating specialist. I am essentially a disability claims examiner. I have no direct client contact. I work with Veteran's claims files which contain unclassified but highly sensitive personal information. I require additional electronic access to VA medical records. I recently started work at home four days per week. I go into a VA satellite office near my home to return files, attach reports to those files, and pick up more files. I have been trying to work from home for years. I have been working from home for about two months. I am able to work at home now as a reasonable accomodation for a condition that developed while I was waiting for a regular work-at-home position to become available. My experience has been that my agency did not want to send anyone home to work. They put up a lot of barriers saying essentially that working from home was not secure. I am still not allowed to print anything at home which makes no sense to me because each report I generate is based on the evidence in the file which I bring into my home office. When the report is printed and the prescribed actions are implemented, the report will then become a part of the permanent record in the same claims file. My computer is encrypted and I am hooked up to a secure network. So why the restricition on printing the final report at home? No one has ever been able to explain that to me other than it is a policy. The memo that explains this policy is years old. I bring files home in pastic boxes secured with two combination locks. When transporting files I cannot stop any where (such as the dry cleaners or the grocery store). I have a locking file cabinet in my home office and a keyed lock on my office door. I am not required to have an alarm system for my home but I do happen to have one. I write my reports on a VA PC which is linked to a secure network. When I hit the print key the reports print in the local VA office. I have to go into that office one day a week to corelate my prints with the veteran's claims files so they can be promulgated. I must remain in the office all day for some unstated reason. However, that day remains is a full production day. Again, no reason has ever been given as to why I cannot just do the corelation work and return home to rate more claims. Although the full day in the office is inconvenient, the only serious technical difficulty remaining is the inability to print in my home offic. This rquirement makes my reliant on other employees to pick up my prints and put them in my in basket. If they are kind they paper clip an individual reports together so I don't end up with a single mass of pages which must be separated into the individual reports. I must also take detailed notes on medical records or other references I have sent to the printer so I can ensure all this evidence is available to be included in the claims file when I corelate the files with the final report. Not as easy or reliable as it should be as it requires the kind assistance of others who share the printer. The most troubling obstacle the VA put up was implementing a significantly higher production requirement for employees who work from home. This eliminated a number of employees even asking to work from home. Those like myself who were willing and able to produce at the higher standard were left to languish for a couple of years on a waiting list for work-at-home positions. I eventually became the first rater allowed to work from home in approximately four years and that only came about as a reasonable accommodation to a personal issue that developed while I was waiting. My request for reasonable accommodation to work at home was initally turned down. The eventual granting was delayed as was the implementation of the approved accomodation. So VA barriers to working from home were many. However, the good news is that it was worth all the effort to make it happen. My health has improved. My family life has benefited emensely. Part of my reasonable accomodation was the allowance to produce at the standard rate instead of the inflated rate. However, I am happy to say my productivity has jumped up since getting settled into my home office. The technical challenges were all overcome once it was determined they had to be. I work independently throughout the day contacting support services as needed. Support services has been able to remotely correct the few technical problems I have had. I am in contact with my supervisor via email and I see him the one day a week I am in the VA office. Since I have started working from home, two other raters have been approved for working from home. Others are still waiting. My experience has been exhausting and frustrating. My agency's attitude and effort to increase telework needs to be improved. I hope the VA will get someone into upper agency management that will support this effort and require the VA regional office directors to support employee requests to work from home.

I have not teleworked on a regular basis, but the episodic plan sure did help me this past July through October when I had a spinal injury and surgery. These severely limited my ability to drive, to ride on public transportation, or even to move about or walk short distances. My supervisors offered me the opportunity to perform work from home on an "as able" basis. Some days I was unable to work at all, or only able to put in an hour of work. Other days I was able to put in 8 or more hours. I performed my full range of duties and even attended meetings by telephone, which allowed me to remain current with office issues and activities. I was able to return to work without having to worry about catching up after a long absence. I was able to very successfully perform my duties from a remote location using remote log-on. Not only did this program keep me from going into a non-pay status, it kept me engaged in the work of the office and prevented me from falliing victim to cabin fever. I was able to take the time I needed in order to recuperate fully rather than push myself to return too soon and risk further injury. I do not know what I would have done without a manager who was supportive, flexible and understanding.

Wow, was i glad to get this email. I am getting ready to request telework two days a week. This information should help me with my decision. Thanks for being here, wishfulthinking

The limited times that I have teleworked have been very productive. The advantages of a quiet work environment are significant because I normally work in an office of cubicles where conversations abound and voices disrupt every attempt to concentrate while reading or writing. The lack of disruptions from phones, email, and co-workers who wish to discuss non-work issues, greatly improves my production and facilitates efficiency. Management in my division supports telework. We are required to be accountable in writing for our time working away from the office. I am grateful for the opportunity to telework even if it is only occasionally. The government must offer incentives such as alternate work schedules and telework if it hopes to compete with private industry for skilled and well-educated employees.

I am a long-time federal employee (33 years). Having spent 2/3 of that time working for DoD in a blue-collar workforce, I was not able to telework. Now that I work for Reclamation (DOI) my work options are greater and much more morale boosting. I have only teleworked occasionally at my current position. Only portions of my workload can be performed off site. In the private sector I worked as a bookkeeper from home for two years.

I have worked for USAF for over 20 yrs as a “white collar” employee to an employer with a definite "blue collar" mentality. Telework, compressed work schedules (CWS), and alternate work schedules (flex-time) (AWS) all came out at roughly the same time - sort of. Telework was never even *discussed*. Folks on CWS and AWS nearly had to start punching time clocks for breaks and lunches, whereas folks who stayed on "regular" time were not so harassed. I have had supervisors come in early when I was on AWS to “make sure” I “*really* had work to do that early in the morning”. But “white collar” workers have no unions to file grievances, and administrative grievance procedures are pure charade. After the harassment of AWS, merely shifting my work time to accommodate, first car-pooling with my husband, then taking my child to school, I have never even *attempted* CWS. The Air Force seems to go out of their way to make telework or telework access to the network impossible -- unless you're an O-5 (Lt Col) or higher. I know of only 2 people who have *ever* teleworked for the Air Force, and both of them had to file Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in order to do it. The 2nd person was diagnosed with cancer, and could not come in for several days after chemotherapy. Her supervisor fought for it, because he did not want to lose her, but she still had to file ADA. I don’t know the situation with the 1st person; I do know he was a system administrator, however, a privilege granted few working for the AF. All I know is, with my husband being system administrator for a different local federal agency, I’ve already got everything I could need at home. A more secure computer than the one I have at work, with better firewall, more frequently updated antivirus, better/more frequently updated malware, even a CAC reader (Common Access Card), and better maintained PC that gets scanned and defragged once in a while – which you can’t do when you’re only a “user”. What there isn’t, is a way for Management to come over and pat me on the head and reassure themselves that I’m “present and accounted for”, like any good “blue collar” worker. Who’s actually a “white collar” worker.

I have done telework for a private company as a Medical Coder and for a local practice of 9 physicians for 2.5 years 4-5 days/week. I did enjoy the freedom to set my schedule and still maintain my quota for job performance. It did become much to juggle with working full time VA coding and coming home to work again with a contractor.Working from home you do not benefit of the full effect of on site training and meetings. Especially if you belong to committees. A full size comfortable office space at home is a must(just as you would have at traditional site). It would be great if telework for medical coders in the VA were an option for us. For me, I perfer to commute to work site.

I am a federal civilian employee working for the Army. I telework at least one day per week and have been doing so since 2005. I was one of several in our organization who fought a long battle to get a telework program in place. The organization started with a pilot program and it later became a true program. There are still some supervisors in this organization who do not embrace telework and make it very difficult for their employees to do it. From 2005 until now, there has been only 1 supervisor in our organization who has ever bothered to physically check out a telework center or show any interest in really exploring telework in depth. I think that government managers need to change their way of thinking and embrace telework as a viable perk for recruiting new talent. Today's young people are used to staying connected electronically and expect such perks in the workplace. I telework from the GSA center in Herndon. I would say that my telework experience has been very successful. My job is perfect for teleworking; in fact, I could easily telework full-time if leadership would allow it. The center is only 8 minutes from my home as opposed to an hour commute to my workplace (on a good day). I have never hesitated to come into the office when I was needed and have always been willing to adjust my schedule as work requirements have dictated. There are many reasons I consider my teleworking to be successful: (1) Fewer distractions = more productivity (2) The quieter atmosphere allows me to give my full attention to tasks (3) I take less leave because I am closer to home (4) On days that I am teleworking, I am less tense because I don't have to deal with an hour of traffic (5) I have everything I need at the telework center to provide support to my supervisor, co-workers, and people out in the field. I am now at an age where I'm thinking of retirement, but I would seriously consider continuing to work if teleworking more days a week were an option for me.

I have been teleworking for the past two year. I have been working for the Federal Government for almost six years. In my current Agency telework opportunities are available for all, providing their work assignments lend itself to work that can be accomplished outside the office and you are a responsible employee. In my previous assignments with the Government telework was available on a very limited basis and it seemed to only be open to a select few. During this time I marveled at those who were fortunate to meet criteria, and was extremely disappointed that I was not, and I thought I should have been granted the opportunity. I am totally pro telework and feel it is going to be the wave of the current as well as future workforce. I really would like to be able to be in a position where I can manage my work time in such a way that I only come to the office when there are things to do in the office, or by coming to the general vicinity of the office, which can not be accomplished by staying at home or by utilizing some form of telecommute.

I love my job when I telework! The only periods when I get to telework are for medical reasons to take care of my wife after two surjuries. Despite having actual proof that I can handle all the functions of my job with no complaints about my work, my department head tells me I am not eligible. He is wrong, of course. The problem with telework regulations is there is no appeals process and no dedicated person to drive the program forward at my location. I am going to write a new proposal and I will not take this any more! The quality of life and work output is obvious, but I'm truly amazed that telework is not mandated for the oil we save (and pay terrorists for) and reduction of government overhead.

As an administrative professional, I am delighted to have the opportunity to telework one day per week. My colleague is in the office on these days, and when she takes a CWS day each week, I am in the office. This arrangement is great for morale, as there are personal benefits as well. I can arrange for home deliveries or repairs without using vacation time. I gain 2 personal hours that would have been taken up by commuting. I gain one hour of sleep. I can start working before duty hours and keep working after duty hours. I can schedule medical appointments close to home, using less vacation time. Between increased productivity, saved fuel, less miles traveled, more sleep, and other benefits, teleworking should be expanded, not only to more employees, but more days as well.

I have been working two days telework for almost 4 years. There are by far less distractions. The production I get out is much more. Most people I know that telework will all day the same. But currently the only benefit I see the Gov gets is the side effect of increased production. We are still using the same amount of space and the same energy. This will not change and the Gov will not see further benefits till we advance further.