H.R. 357 — Back to Work Act

This section modifies telework policies for federal civilian employees under 5 U.S.C. ch. 65 by requiring agency telework agreements to (1) limit telework to no more than 40% of work days per pay period, (2) undergo annual review and approval by the agency head, and (3) provide for agency monitoring of teleworking employees via remote technical means and other methods. The section further authorizes agency heads to reduce the 40% limit based on employee role or circumstances (e.g., access to classified information, new appointees, or managers) or to waive it for spouses of military members or federal law enforcement officers, positions requiring specialized expertise or frequent travel or that are hard to fill, or exigent circumstances such as inclement weather; it also bars teleworking employees from pay adjustments under 5 U.S.C. §5303 and limits their locality pay to the Rest of U.S. rate under §§5304 or 5304a. Additionally, the section requires each executive agency head to submit annual reports to designated congressional committees on telework productivity metrics, enforcement barriers, negative effects (e.g., costs, security risks, or productivity declines), and Inspector General responses, with the Government Accountability Office (GAO) providing accompanying evaluations of each report's accuracy and thoroughness. The amendments take effect 180 days after enactment.