The Department of Defense (DoD) issued a November 20 memo to component agencies that will allow civilian employees with kids to continue working remotely until at least June 30, 2021, extending the COVID-related telework flexibilities issued by DoD in March.
The memo, written by Matthew Donovan, Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, notes that the service branches and DoD component agencies may continue to extend telework beyond the department’s normal guidelines. The previous deadline for the extension was December 31, 2020.
“During this time, DoD Components may allow civilian employees to telework during an emergency (e.g., continuity of operations event, office closure due to adverse or inclement weather, or pandemic health crisis) with a child or other persons requiring care or supervision present at home,” the memo states.
DoD agencies have seen some moves back to the office, with up to 80 percent of employees in the National Capital Region being allowed to return to the office in June. However, recent virus spikes pushed DoD to roll back and set a goal of at least 60 percent teleworking in November. Additionally, the move lines up with DoD’s previously announced moves of extending its Commercial Virtual Remote capability until June 2021 and improving the capabilities of the Commercial Virtual Remote environment. At the height of the pandemic, the Pentagon rolled out over 900,000 user accounts.