Federal telework: a model for the private sector: despite a slow start, federal agencies increasingly embrace the business and work-life benefits of toiling outside the office.

In October 2000, Congress passed the Department of Transportation appropriations bill (PL 106-346), which included a provision requiring every federal agency to allow eligible employees to telework to the maximum extent possible without diminished performance. The law required a quarter of the eligible federal workforce to have the ability to telework within six months and 100 percent by fiscal year 2005.

Telework--which the law defines as "any arrangement in which an employee regularly performs officially assigned duties at home or other work sites geographically convenient to the residence of the employee"--has myriad benefits for agencies and employees alike. For employees, benefits include better work-life balance, the ability to focus on time-consuming activities without interruption, and reduced time in commuter traffic.

In government hubs, such as Washington, DC, and Baltimore, the benefits of telework for both employees and the environment should not be underestimated. According to the most recent Texas Transportation Institute Urban Mobility Study, the average commuter in the Washington area spends sixty-nine hours sitting in traffic each year, consuming forty-two gallons of excess fuel, and spending $1,169 in travel delay and excess fuel consumption. In Baltimore, the numbers are better, but hardly encouraging: the average commuter spends fifty hours sitting in traffic each year, consuming thirty-one gallons of excess fuel. The per-person annual cost for this travel delay and excess fuel consumption is $838. Telework pays off by putting dollars back in employees' pockets and time in their days, cutting pollution, and reducing wear and tear on all transportation modes.

For federal agency employers, telework offers improved operational resilience and continuity of operations during minor events, such as snow storms, as well as major ones, such as a hurricane or an anthrax scare. It also allows agencies to reduce their office space requirements, conserving budget dollars that can be applied to activities supporting agency missions. Telework also increases employee satisfaction. According to the fourth CDW Government, Inc. (CDW-G), Telework Report published in March 2007, 89 percent of federal employees who have the option to telework are very satisfied or satisfied with their jobs. Assuming that job satisfaction is a key factor in employee retention, telework is increasingly important as the federal workforce ages and retirements increase, and as defense agencies move workers to new locations in line with the 2005 Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission (BRAC) recommendations.

Defense Information Systems Agency

The Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) is one federal entity …