City releases new telework standards for its employees

Interim City Manager Jesús Garza has issued a telework policy for city employees. 

In a Friday memo, Garza explained that a new standards will, in general, allow for 50 percent telework within a two-week pay period. All executives will continue to work in the office during the work week, as will front-line operational staff like airport employees and public safety employees. On the other hand, employees who work in IT and call centers may be eligible to telework 80 percent to 100 percent of the time. The determinations will be made by department directors, though there is also an independent appeals process.

“The past several years have required resilience, sacrifice, and an ability to respond to the public in a way that was unprecedented, and we have done it without a consistent citywide standard on telework,” wrote Garza. “I know when I announced a Citywide standard, employees were concerned about changing their schedules again. Some felt they were losing what many viewed as a new benefit the City had been able to offer. But at the heart of our organization is our ability to serve the public and be available for those needing City services.”

“After months of discussions, analysis, and thought, I believe this policy accounts for the modern working environment and the ability to effectively telework, balancing our need to be accessible to the public. It further supports a strong belief that being physically together on a regular basis will continue to strengthen our culture by fostering in-person collaboration, team building, and professional development,” he continued. “In establishing this new flexible work arrangement policy, we will far exceed our efforts to meeting the goal of 15 percent of Austinites working from home in 2039 as laid out in the Austin Strategic Mobility Plan.”

The policy comes in response to a resolution sponsored by Council Member Vanessa Fuentes and approved by City Council earlier this month that was itself a response to a controversial potential change to telework allowances put into place during the height of the pandemic. The resolution focused on a series of recommendations from the city’s Planning Commission that asked for an established telework policy that was in line with the city’s climate and transportation goals. 

“Working from home has become an invaluable resource for combatting climate change, reducing traffic, and increasing Austinites’ quality of life,” Fuentes told the Austin Monitor. “I’m grateful the Interim City Manager worked closely with AFSCME leaders to develop a policy aligned with today’s modern workplace and that advances the City of Austin’s commitment to meeting our mode shift goals.”

AFSCME Business Manager Carol Guthrie told the Monitor that the union had been working with the city manager’s office for months to craft the new policy, and there are a number of details not included in the two-page memo. At a minimum, city employees will be able to telework half the time during any pay period. But in addition, she said, well over 1,000 employees will be able to telework full time. There is also an appeal process that Guthrie says “will be key.”

Under the new policy, employees that have been teleworking can appeal to an independent committee and, if they successfully prove that it is appropriate for their position, can have the amount of telework allowed changed. 

Overall, Guthrie said she was pleased that the policy was data-driven, included an appeals process and used the Travis County model that let directors of departments determine the amount of telework that is appropriate. However, she said she is still in the process of reviewing the policy. 

“The devil is in the details,” she said.

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