World Series Earthquake Encouraged Government Telecommuting

On October 17, 1989, at 5:04 p.m., a major earthquake jolted and churned the San Francisco Bay area of California. The 15-second maelstrom killed 67 people, injured 3,757 and left some 8,000 to 12,000 homeless. The cost in property damage reached six billion dollars. Buildings collapsed, cars overturned, viaducts crumbled. The devastating event became know as the “World Series Quake”, as the tremors hit during the opening of game three of the 1989 World Series. Coincidently, the series was between the Oakland Athletics and San Francisco Giants, both Bay Area teams. A nation of prime time viewers witnessed a surreal, shocking scene as television crews rocked and swayed attempting to keep the cameras rolling in San Francisco’s Candlestick Park.

In the aftermath; out of the chaos, bedlam and pandemonium, the federal government proposed innovative solutions to problems left in the quakes’ wake, thereby setting in motion policies which today are spreading like wildfire to address a different set of problems. This became the US government’s first official venture in large scale telecommuting.

The quake heavily damaged the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 9 office and displaced nearly 800 workers. In response to the dilemma, the EPA established a command post for 80 workers and assigned 700 to work at home positions.

The experiment worked well, so well in fact that after exhaustive study, the federal government enacted alternative workplace strategies across the board. “Flexi place” became a standard. A policy whereby workers rotate their schedules between days working at home and coming into the office. Additional studies revealed grumblings by some who cited “unfairness” and a myriad of other complaints. Most deemed it a success. Thereafter, government planning and policies regarding telecommuting began to expand.

Since 2000 the Federal Government is requires by law to implement “work at home policies”. § 359 of Public Law 106-346 states, “each executive agency shall establish a policy under which eligible employees of the agency may participate in telecommuting to the maximum extent possible without diminished employee performance.”

This past June 3, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Telework Improvements Act of 2008, a bill that requires agencies to implement telework (telecommuting) allowing eligible employees to telecommute at least 20% of their working hours every two weeks. Another provision of this bill mandates that all agencies appoint a senior level telework manager who would then incorporate teleworking into their respective plans of operation. In addition, the head of the Government Accountability Office would be required to submit to the US Congress an annual report evaluating the progress on their telecommuting programs.

Posted:Friday, August 29, 2008