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President Donald Trump issued an order requiring federal workers to be in the office full time.
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Some workers told BI it would create a major strain on commutes and family life.
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Others said they were willing to return to the office full time and saw value in the mandate.
President Donald Trump has officially ordered federal workers to come into the office full time. It has some employees rethinking their careers, while others see value in the new mandate.
The return-to-office requirement was one of Trump’s first moves upon taking office, and it could reshape the federal workforce. In late November, Elon Musk — the head of Trump’s new Department of Government Efficiency — and the former DOGE co-leader Vivek Ramaswamy framed an RTO mandate as a cost-cutting measure. They argued it would effectively weed out employees who didn’t want to go back.
Now that federal RTO is set to become reality, Business Insider spoke with a collection of federal workers who offered split perspectives on the order. Employees were granted anonymity to allow them to speak freely about their work situations. Their identities have been verified.
Detailed below are some of the main issues highlighted by frustrated federal workers, as well as the reasoning behind those in support of RTO.
More demanding commutes
One employee at the Department of Justice told Business Insider that one reason they took the job was the flexibility offered by telework. Now that they’re facing a five-days-a-week requirement, their time spent commuting each week could increase to 15 hours, up from six.
“You work for the government, it’s supposed to be the best place to work, and suddenly you’re seeing that you’re not getting the same flexibilities that you’ve been living with and adjusting your life for, for the last couple years,” the employee said.
An employee named Tyra, who works in the Health Resources and Services Administration, said the flexibility of remote work had allowed her to work out regularly after her shift. She now faces a 90-minute commute each way into Washington, DC, something that could cut into her training to become a Pilates instructor.
“A lot of people live a little bit further away,” Tyra said. “It’s just a lot to consider and change abruptly.”
Another federal worker said having to work in the office every day would mean “at least 10 stressful hours a week wasted in traffic,” in addition to the time spent making lunch and other elements associated with getting ready for work.
It will cost more money in gas, car wear and tear, parking fees, and business attire,” they told BI.
Family-life complications
A veteran and four-year federal employee is trying to figure out how to restructure their family‘s life within the RTO mandate. They told BI that they had been teleworking since they started their job, which allowed flexibility for childcare. They haven’t received any formal guidance yet from their agency, but they’re starting to look at other career opportunities outside the federal government.
“Everybody’s trying to figure it out, and we’re trying to do it with limited time and on the fly,” the worker said.
A clinical psychologist for a federal entity said they wouldn’t be able to work their job unless it’s remote. As a military spouse, the employee is required to move around often, making it impossible to commute five days a week to a single location far from where they’re stationed.
“It honestly makes me consider just leaving entirely in the first place,” they said. “I can’t be working for anyone where there’s this much uncertainty when I have to support my family and when I have small children.”
Those who support RTO
But not everyone is opposed to the RTO mandate. One federal employee said that while they were required to work in the office only two days a week, they would be willing to expand that.
“You need us to come in five days, we’ll come in five days,” the employee said. “We’re adapting as we go along.”
The employee added that they expected to see some workers retire earlier than planned because of the mandate. While they recognize the challenges it could bring, they’re grateful for the employment and willing to work with it.
“There’s a majority of Americans who probably would kill to have that opportunity, and they probably don’t want to hear somebody complaining about, ‘Well, I got to return to the office,'” the employee said.
Another worker in the Department of Homeland Security, who has already been going to work in person most of the time, told BI being in the office “really enhances collaboration,” adding that “decisions often happen more quickly.” They also said working in the office could create clearer “boundaries between work and home life.
“I think it’s overall a positive change in our work environment,” the employee said.
Depleted morale and ‘brain drain’
A Social Security Administration employee who works from home twice a week said the new RTO mandate would hurt organizational culture by deepening existing worker dissatisfaction.
“Morale is so low right now in this agency,” they said, adding, “We’ll have even more people wanting to leave.”
In addition, one Treasury employee said the RTO order would lead to losing staff, including pushing some people into retirement.
They predicted the possibility of a “brain drain of senior, knowledgeable employees.”
Read the original article on Business Insider
