Donald Trump signs order to have federal workers back to office

Among the executive orders President Donald Trump signed after taking office, which are aimed to overhaul the federal government, one directed federal workers to return to their offices five days a week, reversing remote work policies adopted during the COVID-19 pandemic.

He also revived an executive order, Schedule F, which would allow the Trump administration to strip job protections from many career federal employees, making it easier to fire and replace them.

To complement these mandates, Trump announced a hiring freeze and created the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which aims to shrink the federal workforce and eliminate some agencies. In a Wall Street Journal op-ed, Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy wrote that mandating an RTO policy for federal employees would result in several voluntary terminations, which would be welcome.

According to government data, 1.1 million people are eligible for remote work, and about 228,000 of them have fully remote roles.

He claims these steps will improve accountability and streamline government, but critics argue they will disrupt essential services, reduce morale, and drive out skilled workers.

Federal unions, like the National Treasury Employee Union, have filed lawsuits to block Schedule F, calling it harmful to public service.

RTO trends in corporate America
Major corporations like Amazon, JPMorgan and AT&T are also adopting return-to-office (RTO) policies, citing improved collaboration and mentorship.

Amazon began its RTO on January 2 despite logistical delays. JPMorgan plans to implement its approach in March, emphasizing the importance of in-person brainstorming.

Over 25% of US workers are in remote roles, per a Stanford survey tracking work-from-home. And Pew Research found that about three-quarters of American adults are working remotely some of the time.

Yelp’s fully remote policy reduced turnover by 13% since 2021 and boosted 2024 revenues.