“RTO” (Return to Office) Orders are Stupid, and Everyone Knows It

Ah, the sweet, sweet smell of car exhaust in the morning……is the new normal for some staff at the Hampton VA Medical Center who have been working remotely or teleworking for the past few years.

After DOGE asked folks to resign, at Hampton VAMC, hardly anyone did. We love our jobs. We are committed to the mission. We work with our friends. Our family members get their medical care at the VA. Some of us are veterans. AFGE Local 2328 told the approximately 1200 Bargaining Unit Employees (BUEs) that we represent at the Hampton VAMC (and associated CBOCs) “hold the line, do not resign” over and over again. And, for the most part, our members listened. We stood in solidarity, committing to “care for him who has borne the battle, and his widow, and his orphan.”

In true temper tantrum style, the administration decided if we wouldn’t quit, they would do everything in their power to make our jobs miserable. They eliminated DEIA supports for staff and veterans. They instructed mental health providers to violate their code of ethics by discriminating against marginalized groups. They sent stupid “what did you do last week” emails that eventually started being bounced back with a “the mailbox you are trying to reach is full“ response.

And they came for telework and remote work. They told staff, who had fully set up home office with all equipment, to come into work on April 14, 2025, even if they didn’t have an office, or a desk, or a computer. The chaos was the point.

Fun fact: many of the workers were HIRED to be remote employees. Their employment contracts say they are remote. But the current administration is not honoring their contracts. The beatings will continue, until resignation numbers improve.

So, we complied with the order. We returned to the office (which in many cases was cubicles that violate patient confidentiality). We fought each other for parking spots-which has been a sore spot for many years for veterans and staff at the Hampton VAMC. We spent 30 minutes trying to get out of the parking lot at 4:30pm today.

The bottom line is, these RTO orders benefit no one. Not the veterans, not the staff, no one. Their intent is to make people miserable, and hope that they quit.

Adding more cars on the road benefits no one. Making people fight for parking spots benefits no one. Squeezing multiple mental health providers in one small office benefits no one. The RTO orders issued by the Trump Administration are stupid, and everyone knows it.