The US Department of Housing and Urban Development had one of the more liberal telework policies among all the federal agencies so when the department instructed employees of the Multifamily Housing division to return to the office last month, many were unhappy about it, according to the American Federation of Government Employees, the union the represents HUD employees. "They are outraged," Salvatore Viola, regional vice president of AFGE Council 222, told the Federal Times, which reported the news of HUD's directive.

Recognizing this, HUD officials are trying to ease the way back for employees. According to the Federal Times, it plans to provide advance notice for the return as much as possible and will train managers on how to communicate these changes to workers. The department is also encouraging the use of wellness leave each quarter for personal health.

"We are offering a lot more flexibility across the department than we have ever offered before," a HUD spokesperson told the publication. "We're still providing them some flexibility with telework, but asking them to come into the office because of the work that they do.