COVID-19: Federal Telework Increased During the Pandemic, but More Reliable Data Are Needed to Support Oversight
Fast Facts
Some federal agencies reported that during the pandemic, telework hours comprised more than 80% of total work time.
Given this increase, agencies want to make decisions about telework policies, office space, and more—which require accurate data. But longstanding telework data issues continue.
We previously made a number of recommendations to the Office of Personnel Management that could help improve the reliability of federal telework data. However, OPM has yet to implement most of them.
Congress should consider requiring OPM to develop a plan, consistent with our recommendations, to improve federal telework data reliability.
Highlights
What GAO Found
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) collects data on federal telework to report annually to Congress, but has made limited progress addressing long-standing data issues. In 2016, GAO made four recommendations to OPM related to improving the reliability of its federal payroll data system, including telework information. OPM agreed with the recommendations and has implemented one related to data standards. However, OPM has not developed a plan to address the remaining three recommendations—consistently monitor error reports, integrate payroll data into a larger suite of databases, and strengthen internal control activities. Developing a plan to address these recommendations would better position OPM to improve its reporting of telework and provide more accurate and useful information to Congress.
Given the issues with OPM's data, GAO collected telework information directly from 24 agencies. These data initially had limitations so GAO followed up with each agency to clarify outliers and collect missing data. The data showed that all 24 agencies increased their use of telework in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Pre-pandemic, in January 2020, 13 agencies reported at least a quarter of their employees teleworked to some degree. By April 2020, all 24 agencies reported at least a quarter of employees teleworked, with nine agencies reporting at least 90 percent of their employees teleworked. Similarly, by April through June 2020, more agencies had employees teleworking full-time. Pre-pandemic, at nearly all 24 agencies, less than a quarter of teleworking employees did so full time. During the pandemic, 14 agencies had at least a quarter of teleworking employees doing so full time.
Agencies described a range of telework-related challenges during the pandemic and tried to address them (see figure).
Agencies are considering future workplace changes that include modifications to requirements to report regularly to an agency worksite. Additionally, agencies are considering reducing facilities and infrastructure.
As agencies contemplate the future of work for millions of federal employees, it is important for OPM to have accurate data on federal telework to support oversight. GAO reiterates the importance of having its recommendations implemented promptly.
Why GAO Did This Study
Federal agencies use telework to help accomplish their missions and maintain operations, especially during emergencies, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. In March 2020, the Office of Management and Budget instructed agencies to maximize the use of telework to allow federal employees to remain safe while working from alternative locations and maintaining mission critical workforce needs.
The CARES Act includes a provision for GAO to report on ongoing COVID-19 monitoring and oversight efforts. In this report, GAO (1) assesses OPM's progress in addressing telework data limitations and describes federal agencies' use of telework during the COVID-19 pandemic, and (2) describes actions agencies have taken to address telework-related challenges identified during the COVID-19 pandemic and considerations for future operating postures.
For this report, GAO collected and analyzed telework data and related documents from 24 major federal agencies from selected time periods before and during the pandemic. GAO also interviewed OPM and selected agencies' officials.
Recommendations
Congress should consider requiring OPM to set a deadline to develop an implementation plan to improve the reliability of information in its federal payroll data system, Enterprise Human Resources Integration, including telework information.
Nine of the 24 agencies provided technical comments, which GAO incorporated as appropriate.
Matter for Congressional Consideration
| Matter | Status | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| Congress should consider requiring OPM to develop an implementation plan to improve the reliability of information in its federal payroll data system, Enterprise Human Resources Integration, including telework information. In doing so, Congress should consider providing OPM a deadline for completing the plan. | A substitute amendment to H.R. 7951, the Telework Metrics and Cost Savings Act of 2022, was adopted by the House Oversight and Reform Committee on June 15, 2022. The amendment, among other things, called for OPM to (1) develop and submit a plan to improve the reliability of data (including telework data) in its Enterprise Human Resources Integration system to the Congress not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of the Act and (2) implement the plan no later than 90 days after the date the plan is submitted to Congress. This legislation was not enacted during the 117th Congress. In March 2024, Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs introduced S. 4043, the Telework Transparency Act of 2024. The bill required OPM to establish data standards and protocols for tracking employee use of telework, as well as internal controls for data quality with respect to the use of telework. It also required agencies to have payroll systems that conform with OPM's standards and requirements. The bill was not enacted during the 118th Congress. However, OPM has taken action to address the priority recommendations to improve EHRI data reliability. In March 2022, OPM officials said they began to implement new control activities, including adding nearly 250 new validation edits for EHRI payroll data and providing supporting documentation for the new validation edits. In February 2023, OPM officials told us they now consistently monitor error reports. Officials explained that it is standard procedure to reach out to data providers in case of missing, flagged, or rejected data, and that such efforts typically result in submission or resubmission of data. In June 2024, OPM provided an updated plan with a schedule for making improvements to EHRI, including implementing the remaining open recommendations. Having a defined schedule for the remaining recommendations should help ensure that OPM takes the actions to improve the reliability and availability of payroll data. As a result of these changes and its developed plans to improve data reliability issues with its EHRI payroll data, OPM will be better able to assess telework usage across agencies and provide a full and accurate picture to Congress to support oversight of federal telework. |