The Social Security Administration (SSA) will end alternative work schedules beginning Nov. 16, requiring workers to transition to a standard five-day workweek, the Federal News Network reports.
The change will eliminate schedules that allow employees to complete their required hours in fewer than five workdays
, including four 10-hour days and the 5/4/9 schedule, in which employees work nine-hour days for nine days and receive the 10th day off.Florence Felix-Lawson, SSA’s chief human capital officer, informed employees of the decision in an Oct. 5 email. Employees currently using alternative schedules can continue doing so through Nov. 13.
Felix-Lawson said the agency believes a consistent five-day schedule will improve staffing and ensure employees are available to serve the public throughout the workweek.
“The American people depend on SSA to deliver on its mission every day, and that mission depends on a workforce that is present and available throughout the week,” Felix-Lawson wrote.
The American Federation of Government Employees, which represents about 35,000 SSA workers, is challenging the decision. Rich Couture, a spokesperson for AFGE’s general committee for SSA, told Federal News Network that the union filed a national grievance over the change.
AFGE argues that alternative work schedules have been part of negotiated labor agreements for decades, including its 2019 national agreement with SSA. The union also disputes the agency’s claim that the schedules have affected its ability to serve the public, noting that only a small portion of the workforce uses them.
The
dispute comes as SSA continues to grapple with staffing and service challenges. AFGE has called for Congress to provide an additional $3 billion in funding and proposed hiring 20,000 employees to address workforce shortages and service delays.It also follows a separate dispute over telework. Earlier this year, an arbitrator found that SSA violated its collective bargaining agreement when it ended telework for certain union employees beginning in March 2025. SSA appealed the decision to the Federal Labor Relations Authority.
Under federal guidelines, alternative work schedules can allow employees to complete their required biweekly hours in fewer than 10 workdays. For bargaining unit employees, those arrangements can be subject to negotiated agreements between federal agencies and unions.
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