NCR employees transition to regularly scheduled days in the office

Chief Randy Moore

National Capital Region employees,

Over the past few years, you have all adapted-to working with fewer people at your regular duty stations, to remote work, hybrid work and, since last year, to more days in the office.

Now that the pandemic emergency has passed, the Biden Administration has directed federal agencies in the National Capital Region to transition employees to regularly scheduled days in the office. I know that it might seem as though we're stepping back to an old way of work, but by having regular days in the office, we will improve our collaborative experience. This updated plan is intended to continue providing equitable work-life balance while striving to improve workplace functionality.

To that end, Secretary Vilsack has indicated that USDA will return next week to its November 2021 telework policy for employees who are not in supervisory positions. That revised policy allowed most telework-eligible employees to telework up to 8 days per pay period. This is not a significant change from our current status, and your supervisor will identify a core day for your team to be in the office each week.

This revised schedule will help us build connections that have frayed while we worked from home. I acknowledge this will be an adjustment for all of us. However, I am confident you will continue to demonstrate the flexibility shown over the past few years.

Also, some of you have never received official tours of the Yates building: We intend to correct that by offering tours throughout the fall. And to welcome you "back" to the office, we plan to host an in-person gathering mid-September.

We will be sharing information about the Yates building through our National Capital Region intranet page. There, you'll find a "how to" guide for reserving conference rooms, as well as information about training related to public safety and safety orientation sessions. Continue to monitor this page for Yates-specific information.

As we make this shift together, please know we will do our best to regularly engage you and hear your feedback as we learn and adjust to our new work schedules. It will take time for each of us to adjust. Let us all commit to flexibility, kindness and support for each other through this transition. Most importantly, let's work together to live our agency core values and appreciate one another.

Thank you for the incredible work and service throughout each new chapter of this challenging few years. I look forward to seeing you all in the office and to walking the halls of a more vibrant Yates building. Thank you for all you do.

Check the updated Intranet web page for NCR employees for more information.

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