Treasury secretary blames labor unions for blocking return-to-work at IRS

The IRS is struggling to get its employees back to work in person at least 50% of the time, and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the agency’s labor union is the chief hurdle.

In striking testimony to Congress, Ms. Yellen suggested that the department may have to renegotiate contracts to get those employees back to their desks more often.

“Some of the employees are covered by collective bargaining agreements. They are members of a union, and to enforce those rules requires an agreement with the union,” she told the Senate Appropriations Committee last week.

Ms. Yellen disputed data suggesting that the Treasury Department headquarters building could be downsized. She said she thinks her space is “fully utilized.”

Pressure is mounting on the Biden administration to either fulfill its promise to return federal employees to work after the COVID-19 public health emergency or sell off the vacant office space.

A March report by the Public Buildings Reform Board found that the Treasury was using just 22% of its space in its historic headquarters next to the White House.

The reform board found that the Agriculture Department filled just 6% of its space and the Department of Housing and Urban Development was using 11%.

Sen. Susan M. Collins, Maine Republican, asked Ms. Yellen about the trouble with getting IRS employees into the office.

Ms. Collins said the latest data shows the IRS funneled about half of its taxpayer inquiries this year to automated responses instead of live customer service representatives.

The senator then pointed out that the IRS requires employees to be in the office for half their workdays.

“Why only half?” she wondered.

She cited data from the IRS inspector general showing that in the final months of 2023, employees worked in person just 37% of the time, teleworked 22% of the time and did “hybrid” work 40% of the time.

Ms. Yellen blamed the union contracts. Ms. Collins suggested that “those contracts need to be renegotiated with the taxpayers’ interests in mind.”

“Agreed,” Ms. Yellen said.

Ms. Yellen’s department did not respond to multiple inquiries by The Washington Times for this report.

The National Treasury Employees Union represents IRS workers. NTEU National President Doreen Greenwald said the union has had a telework agreement with the IRS for decades.

“Every time our contract comes up for renewal, both parties reevaluate the program’s effectiveness and make adjustments accordingly,” she said.

She said the union has been working with the IRS to find ways to reduce space, such as sharing offices, which she said saves taxpayers money on real estate.

“Whether at the IRS or other federal agencies, the government should focus its resources on employees and how best to achieve the missions of federal agencies, not on simply filling buildings and offices to meet some subjective percentage,” Ms. Greenwald said.

IRS Commissioner Daniel Werfel testified to Congress last month that the agency’s walk-in centers are always fully staffed for in-person appointments and regularly open more locations.

“There is no remote work in any of our walk-in centers around the country,” he said.

Mr. Werfel has said the IRS is vying with major financial companies for employees and telework is an important factor if the federal government wants to be competitive.

Ms. Yellen said the Treasury is working to consolidate offices where possible. She pointed to the decision earlier this year to move the Bureau of the Fiscal Service out of the Liberty Loan Federal Building and give it space in the U.S. Mint’s headquarters.

The Liberty Loan building opened in 1919 to temporarily house the bureaucratic expansion after World War I.