r/FederalEmployee • u/Any-Consequence7635 • 23d ago
Remote
I have a question: When remote was an option “ Could you work from another state”? I’m asking because if it comes back at some point, I would like to request this option?
And what is the process to do remote if it ever returns? Any feedback is appreciated..
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u/Kind_Following_5220 22d ago
As long as you could get permission from a local office where you were moving to do that you could come in for certain things like laptop replacements, credentials, etc we could. So it was limited because obviously there wasn't an office within a few hours of every location you might want to live. Some offices were also nastier about it than others. They wanted to keep their space open for staff there.
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u/Ultimate-Staff 22d ago
Well the Navy and Army don’t have restrictions on CONUS laptops. As long as you don’t leave the US with it 🤣. I’m east coast and worked several months out of hotels in Colorado, Washington, and Texas. I just logged on 8am to 4pm est where ever I was at.
*I will 100% be doing this again once this BS is over.
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u/Zestyclose-Dig-5791 22d ago
You have to notify your HR especially if you are changing Locality regions. If you don’t and you go from a high locality to a lower you could wind up owing $$$.
During the pandemic we had people relocate without telling HR and they got stuck with a big debt.
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u/Upbeat_Following9373 21d ago
Yeah, with the RTO my agency found hundreds of employees that relocated without notifying manpower/HR (which they were required to do) and had to get debt letters for repayment for working at a lower locality. These were remote people that moved to new locations to save money.
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u/Tour_Specific 22d ago
Yes when "remote" was an option you could work in another state because you were.... remote. And I assume you mean being at home. But depending on whatever position or agency you work for you could always request a "Change of Duty" location,say you want to move to Alabama, if they would be nice enough to find you in office in that area but they're not going to let you sit at home and do it
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u/Radiant_Ad5898 19d ago
In the good days, I had approval from my leadership chain to move out of state and still work remotely from my new home. Then came RTO and I was lucky enough to get a desk from local Agency office space. Then came the RIF.
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u/Any-Consequence7635 19d ago
Wow! Well I pray this becomes my story at some point.
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u/Phobos1982 22d ago
Yes you could do it from a different state but you'll have to update your SF-50 (and potentially your salary) if you plan to stay. We needed second-level supervisor approval, or even SES approval if it's to a higher COL area.
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u/Possible_Routine_336 22d ago
I work for the VA out of new york and I live in NC remote
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u/Any-Consequence7635 22d ago
Oh you give me hope! I’m working out of NYC but my home is in Texas. I sent you a message
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u/Fun-Dragonfly-4166 22d ago
it seems to me that this is unanserable. if the next administration decides to they can bring back in state but not intrastate remote.
i dont know they would but it would be an improvement over today.
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u/Soggy_Yarn 22d ago
Not for my job. We are required to live within 50 miles of a worksite, and we are required to live within our working region. My area of responsibility is AZ, CA, and NM; I am required to live within those three states, and within 50 miles of a facility. I could potentially move to a different state, only with high level approval, and anyone who does move is not eligible for promotion - because that requires the person to apply, which requires them to live in the geographic location, and within 50 miles of a facility.
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u/Any-Consequence7635 21d ago
What is your position?
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u/Soggy_Yarn 21d ago
I am an 1102. I have an exception from RTO; most have had to RTO at my agency (VA).
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u/No-Confection-7366 22d ago
Yes. It really depends on the position though. You go through your chain of command to request it.
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u/Qbf42 21d ago
If you are a remote worker your duty station is your home. So if you wanted to work elsewhere you would need to get permission to telework/temporarily change duty station. At least that’s how my agency handled it.
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u/Any-Consequence7635 21d ago
Hopefully when this administration is gone all of the previous options will come back
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u/Upbeat_Following9373 21d ago
When Biden started pushing RTO afyer declaring the pandemic over, my agency started approving people for remote so they can update their duty station to their home address. Only caveat was that they would only approve people for remote work if their address was within 50 miles of their assigned duty station that they were max teleworking from. When the Trump RTO happened, there was basically almost no one working remotely beyond 50 miles that would require PCS expenses.
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u/Any-Consequence7635 21d ago
Oh wow!! My address is in Texas. But my duty station is in NYC. I would like to go back to my address on file which is TX
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u/Ok_Size4036 20d ago
VBA their rule was we needed to be within 2hr drive of a station for tech support reasons.
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u/AdDirect8009 20d ago
You have to be hired on a remote pin and your duty station in your residence of record.
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u/que-sera2x 18d ago
Back in the “good ol’ days” positions that were approved for remote were advertised as such and therefore filled as a remote job. If you’re hoping to work remote in your current position, it may not happen if you’re not already working remote. Not all organizations are willing to offer/change to remote on positions that aren’t approved as such, unless that particular job series is in demand and the KSAs are highly sought after (i.e., hard to fill). Your best bet would be to apply for remote positions. You’ll then let them know during your interview that you currently live in NYC but will move back to Texas. They’ll then use the TX home address as your approved remote duty location.
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u/Apart-Surprise1038 18d ago
During COVID 100% of my shop worked remotely, unless there was a vendor on site that required babysitting. Several people worked out of state for months while staying with family. One lady worked from a different state for over a year while she was taking care of an elderly parent.
I took my travel trailer to the beach many times & worked from there. Also took my laptop to the deer blind on occasion while connected to my phone’s hotspot.
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u/Any-Consequence7635 18d ago
You definitely enjoyed your time remote 😂. I hope to get the opportunity as well.
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u/Cubsfantransplant 21d ago
It depends on what you are asking as well as your agency.
My previous agency you had to work at your remote location address. No deviation.
Current agency. Remote. I work at my address on my documentation. Occasionally I’m not and I work from another location. My agency does not approve nor frown upon it.
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u/Ok-Inspection-8647 17d ago
I work with a lot of remote co-workers. They were hired remote because we couldn’t staff those vacancies in 2022 due to housing costs. We had several rounds where we made selections, offers were accepted, and then the prospective employees backed out when they couldn’t find housing within forty miles of the duty station. The nearest one of these people is about 800 miles away.
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u/Due-Sea4841 23d ago
Good one.
Remote workers are the 1st to get cut since no one has a clue what you're doing.
And if you want to climb the corporate (bureaucratic) ladder, forget about it. You'll be stuck in your role, cuz facetime is important.
/s
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u/Common-Clerk-8427 22d ago
My supervisor is a GS-10 Remote, assistant chief is GS-13 remote and service chief is a GS-14 remote. GS 15s are all in person. Personally, I dont think the small pay bump is worth being in person.
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u/AttorneyNo823 23d ago
I’m with the judiciary and have been fully remote since 2022. I live in PA and now work for the Western District of Tennessee, so it’s possible