Ranking Member Cassidy, Blackburn Launch Inquiry into Department of Education’s Reported Lax Telework Policies

WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, and Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) requested information from the Department of Education (DeptEd) on its current telework policies.

Despite an end to the COVID-19 public health emergency, reports indicate that DeptEd employees continue to extensively telework. This comes as multiple issues plague the Department, including its failure to properly implement the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) program. These ongoing delays prevent students and families from accessing crucial financial aid information as they choose the college they can afford to attend.

The senators raised serious concerns that DeptEd's relaxed telework policies exacerbate the agency's issues and are preventing DeptEd from fulfilling its responsibilities to students and families as required by law.

"DeptEd's lax telework policies are especially concerning given its apparent inability to fulfill its statutory responsibilities," wrote the senators. "We argue, with good reason, that your agency would be mired in fewer issues if your workforce were fully present in person. As Congress begins the process of working through Fiscal Year 2025 appropriations, we believe it is critical to determine your agency's current telework policies in order to make informed decisions about DeptEd's budget."

Read the full letter here or below.

Dear Secretary Cardona,

As you know, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services ended the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency on May 11, 2023. However, according to recent reports, U.S. Department of Education (DeptEd) employees are still being allowed to work extensively from home, much as they did during the pandemic. We write to confirm these reports and ascertain the status of the current telework policies, as well as your plan for returning DeptEd employees to work.

If accurate, the reports are extremely concerning. According to a recent report from the Federal News Network, you announced in an e-mail to DeptEd staff on March 12, 2024, that beginning on April 22, 2024, non-bargaining unit DeptEd employees will be required to "work on-site at least five days per pay period." Further, according to the same article, this represents an increase from DeptEd's current policy, which requires four days of in-person work per pay period. According to FSA Feds, pay periods at DeptEd are fourteen days each, meaning that your updated policy, which you reportedly stated "reflect[s] a need for 'increased collaboration and innovation,'" appears to require that employees be at work only half the time.

It is unclear whether DeptEd employees are going into the office more frequently than required. However, according to a December 2023 U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) report on the status of telework in the federal government, as of September 2022, 92 percent of all eligible DeptEd employees were teleworking, and 90 percent were doing so three or more days per week.

DeptEd's policies and plans for bargaining unit employees remain unclear. On July 7, 2023, you reportedly informed DeptEd employees that they would be expected to work in person four times per biweekly pay period beginning in the fall. However, the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), which represents 2,400 DeptEd workers, publicly pushed back against your stated policy, arguing that it violated an agreement reached between ED and AFGE in October 2022. The Federal News Network reports that "[s]o far, there have not been any changes for bargaining unit employees at Education" and that a DeptEd spokesperson told reporters that "updates for unionized employees will be determined after the agency has met all of its bargaining obligations."

DeptEd's lax telework policies are especially concerning given its apparent inability to fulfill its statutory responsibilities. The 2024/2025 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) has been fraught with issues. FAFSA is the nation's primary means for providing federal, state, and campus-based financial assistance to low-income college students. Delays to its rollout have real- world consequences for the coming school year and financial well-being of students. They have been harmful to institutions, parents, and students, with applications down significantly from prior years. Rather than take responsibility for not adequately communicating with colleges, DeptEd has attempted to shift blame to schools, which is wholly unacceptable.

DeptEd also exhibited a delayed response to the rise in antisemitism on primary, secondary, and post-secondary school campuses in the wake of the October 7th terrorist attacks in Israel. In a November 2023 HELP Committee roundtable, students stated that DeptEd failed to provide support when they faced harassment on college campuses.¹²

We argue, with good reason, that your agency would be mired in fewer issues if your workforce were fully present in person. As Congress begins the process of working through Fiscal Year 2025 appropriations, we believe it is critical to determine your agency's current telework policies in order to make informed decisions about DeptEd's budget. Accordingly, we request that you respond to the following, on a question-by-question basis, no later than May 22, 2024:

1. Please produce a copy of your reported March 2024 e-mail to staff announcing planned changes to DeptEd's telework policies.

1. Please describe DeptEd's current telework policies as they pertain to all employees, as well as any planned policy changes that are slated to go into effect within the coming year.

1. Has DeptEd conducted any internal studies that have shown how telework has impacted workplace productivity?

1. How does DeptEd ensure that sensitive data are protected while employees are working from home?

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