Letter to Margaret Weichert, Director at Office of Personnel Management - Beyer, Connolly, Wexton Urge OPM To Expand Telework Flexibility During Upcoming Metro Shutdown

Letter

Dear Acting Director Weichert,

We write ahead of the summer Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) Platform Improvement Project, during which six WMATA stations will be closed in Northern Virginia. The closure of these six Blue and Yellow line stations will affect thousands of federal employees, who will have a challenging commute to work in Northern Virginia, Washington, D.C., and Maryland for the entire summer, lasting from May 25 through September 8.

In the past, the Office of Personnel Management has issued guidance for agencies to provide expanded telework policies during situations like these. During the Metro SafeTrack project of 2016, OPM required agencies to review and update their policies related to workplace flexibilities and telework, and again during Metro construction last year OPM encouraged agencies to provide more telework options -- which has greatly eased the traffic gridlock in the region and the commuting-related distress of a large portion of the federal workforce.

The station closures will begin in just five days, but OPM has not yet issued guidance on expanded telework options for federal employees. In keeping with past agency practice ahead of major Metro construction projects, we urge you to expand telework options for federal employees for the entirety of the Platform Improvement Project.

Thank you for your timely attention to this matter.

Sincerely,

Source