[E-trademarks] PTO abandoning remote work?

Tue Jan 21 19:08:22 UTC 2025

Regarding a hiring freeze: I do not know what the USPTO is doing now, but
when I started as a trademark examining attorney in January 2017, I was
rushed through the hiring process along with tons of others (way more than
they usually would hire at once) and started work a few days before the
inauguration. This was done purposefully to get as many people working
there before a hiring freeze went through. I strongly suspect they did
something similar this year as soon as the election results were clear.

*More telework statistics to answer a few people's questions: *

According to the USPTO's 2023 Telework report (there doesn't seem to be a
2024 one yet), 96% of USPTO employees are enrolled in a telework program -
12,894 in all.

   - 11,560 of those work from home 5 days a week; 1,220 teleworkers work
   from home 1-4 days per week.

   - Total trademark teleworkers: 1,118
   - -99.91% of eligible trademark positions are teleworking

   - Total patent teleworkers: 9,977
   - -95.58% of eligible patent positions are teleworking.

https://www.uspto.gov/sites/default/files/documents/TAR_2023.pdf

On Tue, Jan 21, 2025 at 1:13 PM Laura Geyer via E-trademarks <
e-trademarks at oppedahl-lists.com> wrote:

> The important thing is that for many of these Executive Orders, many of
> which are either hilariously unconstitutional or violate any one of a
> number of existing laws that can’t be changed this way, the jury will be
> out for a bit on whether this or that one is enforceable. The remote work
> one is, I understand from friends and relations, being challenged by the
> unions for the moment.
>
>
>
> Speaking as someone who is married to, friends with, related to, and
> surrounded by good and faithful government employees, we’re all watching to
> see which of the straight-up pointlessly abusive/vexatious (and entirely
> unrelated to “efficiency” as we all know, because the “professionals”
> brought on board to make these recommendations or changes like to say the
> inside part out loud) are actually going to stick.
>
>
>
> Will their pensions be, in fact, cut or new requirements be imposed that
> add years to planned retirement?  Will remote work be ended and how
> widespread will that enforcement be? Will it be like last time when mass
> numbers of employees in certain targeted agencies had their places of work
> moved thousands of miles away, again, as was enunciated at the time, to
> force people to retire or quit unless willing to up sticks and relocate to
> the middle of nowhere? I’ve got a card with a running list of the changes
> about to be or promised to be inflicted on federal employees (again, many
> of which are intentionally abusive and have no other goal or purpose) so I
> can keep up with it. It’s insanity.
>
>
>
> But what else could one have expected? When people tell you who they are,
> you gotta believe them.
>
>
>
> *Laura Talley Geyer* | *Of Counsel*
>
>
>
> *ND Galli Law LLC*
>
> 1200 G Street, N.W., Ste 800
>
> Washington, DC 20005
>
> Tel: (202) 599-9019 (direct)
>
> https://ndgallilaw.com/laura-geyer/
>
> https://ndgallilaw.com/
>
>
>
> *From:* E-trademarks <e-trademarks-bounces at oppedahl-lists.com> *On Behalf
> Of *Rick Bigelow via E-trademarks
> *Sent:* Tuesday, January 21, 2025 10:19 AM
> *To:* For trademark practitioners. This is not for laypersons to seek
> legal advice. <e-trademarks at oppedahl-lists.com>
> *Cc:* Rick Bigelow <bigelowpatentlaw at gmail.com>
> *Subject:* Re: [E-trademarks] PTO abandoning remote work?
>
>
>
> *EXTERNAL EMAIL*
>
> I've received emails from examiners on Saturdays and Sundays which tells
> me they were working remotely. If they were in the office, the emails
> probably would not have been sent until Monday.
>
>
>
> I think remote working can be a plus if managed correctly.  My daughter
> was hired as a VP for an international company full time work remotely.
>
>
>
> On Tue, Jan 21, 2025 at 10:15 AM Michael D. Steger via E-trademarks <
> e-trademarks at oppedahl-lists.com> wrote:
>
> I don’t think they have offices for anywhere close to all of the examiners.
>
>
>
> My brother in law is an attorney for another agency, and his section has
> not had offices for a several years, so there is no “office” for them to go
> back to work.
>
>
>
> Mike Steger
>
>
>
> *From:* E-trademarks <e-trademarks-bounces at oppedahl-lists.com> *On Behalf
> Of *Kevin Grierson via E-trademarks
> *Sent:* Tuesday, January 21, 2025 10:09 AM
> *To:* For trademark practitioners. This is not for laypersons to seek
> legal advice. <e-trademarks at oppedahl-lists.com>
> *Cc:* Kevin Grierson <kgrierson at cm.law>
> *Subject:* [E-trademarks] PTO abandoning remote work?
>
>
>
> Saw a post from Professor Dickson yesterday about Trump’s executive order
> ending remote work for federal employees.  Seems to be some wiggle room in
> it, but wow, aren’t there a ton of examiners working remotely?  I can’t
> imagine all of them moving to DC.
>
>
>
>
> https://www.npr.org/2025/01/20/nx-s1-5268852/trump-telework-executive-order-federal-workers
>
>
>
> *Kevin Grierson <https://www.culhanemeadows.com/attorney/kevin-grierson/>*
>
> Partner
>
> <https://www.cm.law/>
>
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>
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>
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> Richard L. Bigelow
> Registered Patent Attorney
>
> Certified Patent Valuation Analyst
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