Dreaming about all the upsides of the coming telework revolution is something like hoping to see Rome, Paris or the Taj Mahal. Some of us will make it. But a lot of us, maybe most of us, won’t. And if not, it won’t be because of our jobs or because our bosses want us within eyeball range.
Many people think that the high price of gas, threat of global warming, traffic gridlocks and national security concerns, we are on the verge of a teleworking breakthrough. Maybe. But…
Some pragmatic feds believe that these may be the Good Old Days for teleworking. They wonder if fewer, not more, people will be teleworking in the future. It’s worth considering, as these e-mails show:
“Not only is not every job suitable for teleworking, but the possibility of being able to do so becomes ever-more limited with the introduction of the LincPass security system. Unless there is a wholesale retrofitting of everyone’s home computers, or new laptops are issued that allow the secure sign-in process (neither one likely to happen before, say, the next Ice Age) then teleworking may be a dream of the past for most federal employees.” Fed in Arkansas
“Mike, the Army is slowly making all web-based programs that we work with only accessible from a military network, with a Common Access Card. Soon, we will all be completely unable to work from home as our computers at home will NOT be able to access ANY of the programs we all use regularly in our work. How convenient an argument against telecommuting is that?” DC Area Fed
“Your article Backtracking on Teleworking cites OPM as having taken ‘recent actions to suspend or end teleworking for some employees.’ This statement no doubt refers to the some 300 Legal Administration Specialists (LAS) in the Center for Retirement and Insurance Services (CRIS), who routinely were permitted to transport pension applications from retiring federal workers from their place of work to their home or other telecommute site to work on them. The proliferation of high-profile incidents whereby the Personally Identifiable Information (PII) of individuals was inadvertently compromised prompted the temporary suspension of Telework for these personnel while a comprehensive review of policy and procedures was conducted to determine what level of risk to this PII being compromised existed, and what procedures could be implemented to minimize that risk. (Last week), CRIS announced that after having reviewed and modifying its procedures where prudent, that it has resumed authorizing Telework for these personnel. Thought you would like to know.” OPMer
“… I was surprised to see in the June 5 column the report of Defense employee’s having a problem with using their home computers to telework. Of course there would be a problem – security issues – and one of them being that these computers cannot be connected to agency network, and therefore wouldn’t get the constant security updates that are pushed out to network computers. But IRS (and I thought all agencies) provide many employees with laptops – in place of their desktop computers. They can bring their laptop home and also with them when they travel for work. These laptops are configured for VPN, providing encryption and meeting security requirements to connect to the employee’s local area network – thus having access to everything they have access to while at work. ” IRS Insider
Political Endorsements
The National Treasury Employees Union is the latest to endorse a presidential candidate: Sen. Barrack Obama (D-Ill.). He’s won the majority of federal-postal union endorsements.
The real “news” in upcoming endorsements will be made if any unions decided to back Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.).
Nearly Useless Factoid
June is National Accordion Awareness, Adopt-A-Shelter-Cat, Aphasia Awareness, Cancer from the Sun, Candy, Celibacy Awareness, Child Vision Awareness, Childhood Cancer Campaign, Children’s Awareness, Dairy Alternatives, Effective Communications, Entrepreneurs “Do It Yourself” Marketing, Fireworks Safety, Gay and Lesbian Pride, GLBT Book, Iced Tea, Dairy, Perennial Gardening, Turkey Lovers’, Lady Lawyers, Men’s, Pharmacists Declare War on Alcoholism, Potty Training Awareness, Professional Wellness, Rebuild Your Life, Rivers, Rose, Safety, Sports America Kids, Steakhouse, Student Safety, and Vision Research Month. Kinda makes you feel special, huh.
To reach me: mcausey@federalnewsradio.com
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