Teleworker: Norma Costa,
Emergency Management Assistant in the
Response & Recovery Division
Agency: Federal Emergency
Management Agency (FEMA),
U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Norma Costa joined FEMA three and
a half years ago. She commutes into
Boston from Chelmsford, Massachusetts.
Norma regularly teleworks several times
a month, and also during inclement
weather. She also travels to nuclear
power plants and other FEMA sites.
Because she can work outside of her
office, she does not miss a beat or a
keystroke. To be eligible for teleworking,
she took a four-week training course
offered by her agency. At FEMA,
employees are encouraged to telework.
Q. When you are not teleworking, how
long is your commute?
A. I work in the downtown Boston office
of FEMA. I start my day at 4:30 a.m. I
leave at 5:00 a.m. to get the 5:35 a.m.
train to work. I am in the office at 6:30
a.m. and work until 4:00 p.m. each day.
I get home around 5:45 p.m.
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Q. How does teleworking affect your
travel schedule?
A. Telework is good for travel time.
A couple times per year, I serve as a
radiological emergency preparedness
(REP) evaluator for nuclear power plant
drills. These drills start somewhere in New
England generally late in the afternoon
on a Monday. Teleworking lets me work
at home in the morning before I leave;
that way I do not have to go in and out
of the office and get stuck in city traffic.
Q. How do you keep up with managers
and colleagues at FEMA?
A. I use e-mail and mobile phones to
keep in touch, and of course, a laptop
computer. For meetings, we all use
teleconference calls.
Q. In your opinion, what are the benefits
of teleworking?
A. You get a lot done. Telework improves
morale and increases productivity. When
it is snowing outside, I opt to telework.
That way, when the government gets
out early, I do not lose any time driving
home. Teleworking has been a very
positive experience for me, and for
FEMA in return. I can get more
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done in a quiet environment and have plenty of room
to spread out materials. It is a great
"feel-good" perk too. There is nothing
like avoiding the commute in a bad
snowstorm. Instead, you work in the
warm comfort of your home, or you can
glance out the window to look at beautiful
trees and flowers in the nice weather. By
teleworking, I am a happy and productive
worker - a win/win situation for me and
my employer.
Q. Do you feel that your remote
computer network is secure?
A. Yes. FEMA is very strict and I feel very
confident in secure access to the network.
Q. How do your managers handle the
performance of teleworkers?
A. We have performance reviews and
quarterly work plans. Managers set goals
for employees to meet. It is very effective.
Q. Can you recall an instance when
having the option to telework proved
invaluable?
A. Last year, I commuted into Boston
around the time of the Super Bowl. Patriot
fans were out in force. The train was
absolutely packed with fans and workers
trying to get home that evening. I tried
to leave around 2:00 p.m. and it took me
forever to get home. During this year’s
Super Bowl, I teleworked. Since I had
the flexibility to work from home, I
didn’t have to worry about the extra long
commute home or having to leave work
early.
Q. How did you turn your home into
an office?
A. I turned my den into a combination
den/office for teleworking. It already
had all the basics I would need -
telephone, bookcases, printer, scanner,
fax, and a computer, complete with
broadband for easy access. An added
plus is the comfortable couch for reading
materials.
Are you interested in telling your story?
Please send your teleworking story to
info@teleworkexchange.com.
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