WASHINGTON — All federal employees have been ordered to go to work in-person, according to an executive order by President Donald Trump on his first day back in office on Monday.
“Heads of all departments and agencies in the executive branch of the Government shall, as soon as practicable, take all necessary steps to terminate remote work arrangements and require employees to return to work in-person,” the executive order reads.
The executive order is one of nearly 50 that Trump signed on his day as the 47th president.
Ten-percent of federal employees were fully remote, according to an August 2024 report from the federal Office of Management and Budget, with 54% – about 2.28 million federal workers required to show up in-person. Although about 46% of federal government employees were considered “telework eligible,” meaning they could work remotely unless they chose to go into the office.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the work-from-home rate within the United States had quadrupled since before the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2019, about 7% of workers had been working from home. By 2023, 28% of American workers were working from home.
The American Federation of Government Employees, the largest federal employee union called the move by Trump, “backward,” noting that Congress had required federal agencies to expand to telework by law, 10 years before the COVID-19 pandemic in 2010.
“Providing eligible employees with the opportunity to work hybrid schedules is a key tool for recruiting and retaining workers in both the public and private sectors,” AFGE said in a statement. “Restricting the use of hybrid work arrangements will make it harder for federal agencies to compete for top talent.”
Nation’s largest federal employee union, AFGE, responds to Trump’s order — which calls for an end to remote work pic.twitter.com/hzNHQ39trH
— Lorenzo Hall (@LorenzoHall) January 21, 2025
Other executive orders from Monday included a “hiring freeze” of federal employees. Although the order made exceptions made for the military, immigration enforcement, national security or public safety.
“As part of this freeze, no federal civilian position that is vacant at noon on Jan. 20, 2025, may be filled, and no new position may be created except as otherwise provided,” the executive order reads.
The order also promises “to reduce the size of the Federal Government’s workforce through efficiency improvements and attrition.”
Trump signed both executive orders in front of a crowd at Capital One arena on Monday afternoon after an indoor inaugural parade.