Exploring Perceived Fairness in Performance Evaluation Among Telecommuting Employees in Public Agencies

Since COVID-19, the public workplace has shifted toward a hybrid and telecommute culture. Maintaining equitable and fair performance evaluations for employees across different working modalities is among the top concerns of leaders in public organizations. Using data from the Employee Viewpoint Survey 2023, this paper compares the experiences of telecommuting and non-telecommuting federal employees regarding fair performance evaluations. The findings reveal that younger employees and telecommuting employees tend to perceive lower fairness in performance evaluations. However, leadership support helps reduce employees’ experiences of unfair performance evaluations. This study suggests that communication support from supervisors is essential to upholding an inclusive and fair workplace as public organizations shift to virtual and hybrid work cultures. © 2025 SPAEF