President Donald Trump on Monday signed an executive order directing federal employees to return to office five days a week, Reuters reported.
In a statement posted Monday on the White House’s website, the president ordered the heads of all departments and agencies within the government’s executive branch to “take all necessary steps to terminate remote work arrangements and require employees to return to work in-person at their respective duty stations on a full-time basis, provided that the department and agency heads shall make exemptions they deem necessary.”
Reinstating Schedule F
Trump also signed another EO reviving Schedule F, a 2020 mandate for civil servants.
The order directs the director of the Office of Personnel Management to amend the Civil Service Regulations to rescind all changes made by the April 2024 final rule, which upholds civil service protections and merit systems principles.
According to the report, the two orders are being combined with the formation of an advisory body called the Department of Government Efficiency and a hiring freeze.
Union officials and experts say the recent actions will drive qualified government employees out of their jobs.
“Restricting the use of hybrid work arrangements will make it harder for federal agencies to compete for top talent,” the American Federation of Government Employees told the news agency in an email.
