Trump has promised to slash the federal budget. His ordering employees back to the office might cost him
President Donald Trump signed an executive order Monday mandating all federal employees return to the office as part of his plans to slash federal spending - but it might not be that simple.
Trump issued the order Monday night, ordering all “departments and agencies in the executive brach…take all necessary steps to terminate remote work arrangement and require employees to return to work in-person at their respective duty stations on a full time basis.” Exemptions will be made if deemed necessary, such as for disability, the order adds.
Trump’s penny-pinching mandate will be supported by the newly created Department of Government Efficiency, led by the world’s richest man Elon Musk. It could, however, end up having the opposite impact on federal spending, CNN reports.
The first increased cost will be finding offices or desks for all the fully remote employees who never worked in person to begin with, government workplace expert Mika Cross told CNN.
“The directive mandates that all executive branch departments and agencies end remote work arrangements and require employees to return to their respective duty stations,” Cross said. “However, by definition, [fully remote workers’] official worksite is their home office location. So they do not have offices to return to.”
Further, many federal workers live outside of Washington, D.C. and some receive lower salaries due to a lower cost of living in their location, CNN reports. Given Washington D.C. is the eighth-most expensive U.S. city, according to Forbes, their salaries may have to be adjusted to account for a higher cost of living.
One given role in D.C. pays almost $19,000 more than the some role in Kentucky or Maine, Cross said. Another cited role pays $26,000 more.
Agencies will also have to pay travel costs as workers return, CNN reports. If a worker who was fully remote now has to commute, they’re entitled to transit subsidies. Further, if their office is 50 miles or more from their home, they could also get temporary duty pay, lodging expenses and per diem expenses covered, according to CNN.
Another possibility, CNN reports, is that some federal workers may quit over the mandate. That could mean agencies would have to replace them (once Trump’s 90-day federal hiring freeze is lifted) and potentially incur costs throughout the hiring process.
Meanwhile, Musk is gearing up to lead DOGE as the agency begins operations following Trump’s executive order. The multi-billionaire previously promised to cut $2 trillion from the federal government’s $6.8 trillion budget — but has since admitted this goal was unrealistic.
“I think we’ll try for $2 trillion. I think that’s the best-case outcome,” Musk said earlier this month. “But I do think that you kind of have to have some overage. I think if we try for $2 trillion, we’ve got a good shot at getting $1 [million].”
The Independent has contacted the White House for comment.
