US SEC tells unionized employees to return to office in mid-April, memo shows

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has told employees who are union members they will have to return to the office in mid-April, unless they have certain exemptions, according to a memo seen by Reuters.

The move follows similar efforts at the agency with its non-union staff as well as across the federal workforce in response to a mandate by Republican President Donald Trump that officials terminate remote or hybrid work arrangements.

Citing that directive, guidance from the Office of Personnel Management, SEC Chief Operating Officer Ken Johnson said in a memo to all staff they will be required to work on-site beginning April 14, 2025, the SEC's February 25 memo said.

The SEC and the head of the SEC's union did not respond immediately to requests for comment.

Johnson also said the return-to-work directive would "best position the SEC to fulfill the agency's mission."

A 2023 collective bargaining agreement between the regulator and the National Treasury Employees Union Chapter 239, which represents SEC employees, allows for a hybrid schedule for approved employees. That agreement lasts three years.

(Reporting by Chris Prentice; Editing by Paul Simao)