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As the Biden regime prepares to exit, it has orchestrated a move as a cunning attempt to undermine the incoming Trump administration’s agenda to streamline government operations.
In a last-minute deal, the Biden regime has locked in telework protections for 42,000 Social Security Administration (SSA) employees until 2029.
The agreement, reached with the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), ensures remote work privileges for these federal workers for the next five years, despite the Trump administration’s explicit plans to slash such arrangements, according to Bloomberg.
The agreement, brokered between the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) and the Social Security Administration, was authorized by outgoing SSA Commissioner Martin O’Malley and codifies existing telework policies, limiting management’s ability to impose stricter in-office requirements.
Rich Couture, president of the AFGE chapter, defended the decision, noting that it “will secure not just telework for SSA employees, but also staffing levels through prevention of higher attrition, which in turn will secure the agency’s ability to serve the public.”
The Trump transition team did not provide a direct comment on the union contracts.
“Under President Trump’s leadership, the Government Efficiency effort led by Vivek and Elon will target waste and fraud throughout our massive federal bureaucracy,” spokesperson Brian Hughes said.
“They will work together slashing excess regulations, cutting wasteful expenditures, and restructuring Federal Agencies.”
Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, tapped by Trump to head the newly created Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), have made it clear that dismantling bloated federal work policies is a top priority.
Both men penned a blistering op-ed in The Wall Street Journal last week, suggesting that mandatory in-office attendance could naturally trim the federal workforce.
The op-ed reads:
President Trump has asked the two of us to lead a newly formed Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, to cut the federal government down to size. The entrenched and ever-growing bureaucracy represents an existential threat to our republic, and politicians have abetted it for too long.
That’s why we’re doing things differently. We are entrepreneurs, not politicians. We will serve as outside volunteers, not federal officials or employees. Unlike government commissions or advisory committees, we won’t just write reports or cut ribbons. We’ll cut costs.
We are assisting the Trump transition team to identify and hire a lean team of small-government crusaders, including some of the sharpest technical and legal minds in America. This team will work in the new administration closely with the White House Office of Management and Budget.
The two of us will advise DOGE at every step to pursue three major kinds of reform: regulatory rescissions, administrative reductions and cost savings. We will focus particularly on driving change through executive action based on existing legislation rather than by passing new laws.
Our North Star for reform will be the U.S. Constitution, with a focus on two critical Supreme Court rulings issued during President Biden’s tenure.
[…]
Mr. Trump can implement any number of “rules governing the competitive service” that would curtail administrative overgrowth, from large-scale firings to relocation of federal agencies out of the Washington area. Requiring federal employees to come to the office five days a week would result in a wave of voluntary terminations that we welcome: If federal employees don’t want to show up, American taxpayers shouldn’t pay them for the Covid-era privilege of staying home.
Bill Ackman, CEO of Pershing Square and rumored to be part of DOGE, criticized the last-minute deal, stating, “Biden is attempting to make permanent the Deep State before he leaves office by burdening the government with untenable contracts so that Donald Trump and DOGE cannot succeed. This needs to stop now.”
!! https://t.co/guc4kZbL2I
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 3, 2024
Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA) didn’t mince words, calling the move a blatant ploy to entrench federal employees in cushy telework setups.
“On its way out the door, the Biden administration is locking in telework for 42,000 SSA bureaucrats until AFTER President Trump leaves office! Unacceptable!” Ernst wrote on X.
“I’ll be working with Elon Musk, Vivek Ramaswamy, and DOGE to fix this ASAP and get bureaucrats back to work,” she added.
On its way out the door, the Biden admin is locking in telework for 42,000 @SocialSecurity bureaucrats until AFTER President Trump leaves office!
Unacceptable! ⁰
I’ll be working with @elonmusk, @VivekGRamaswamy, and @DOGE to fix this ASAP and get bureaucrats back to work.
— Joni Ernst (@SenJoniErnst) December 3, 2024
The post Biden’s Parting Gift to Bureaucrats: Biden Regime Grants Protections and Secures Permanent Telework for 42,000 Social Security Bureaucrats Until AFTER President Trump Leaves Office appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.