U.S. DEPARTMENT OF
AGRICULTURE
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20250
DEPARTMENTAL REGULATION |
Number: 4040-451-03 |
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SUBJECT: Criteria for Time-off Awards |
DATE: August 26, 2002 |
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OPI: |
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SECTION
1
PURPOSE 1
2
SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS/CANCELLATIONS 1
3
ELIGIBILITY 1
4
CONSIDERATION 2
5
AWARD AMOUNT 2
6
EXAMPLES OF ELIGIBLE CONTRIBUTIONS 3
7
USE OF TIME-OFF 3
8
PROCESSING 4
9
RESTRICTIONS 4
10 ADVANTAGES OF GRANTING
TIME-OFF 5
11 DISADVANTAGES
OF GRANTING TIME-OFF 5
12 PROGRAM
MONITORING 5
13 REPORTS 5
1 PURPOSE
The purpose of this policy is to provide guidelines for the use of
Time-off Awards. The provisions of
Section 201 of the Federal Employees Pay Comparability Act of 1990, authorize
agencies to grant employees Time-off in recognition of superior accomplishments
that contribute to the quality, efficiency or economy of Government operations. This authority is regulated by Title 5
United States Code 4502(e) and Title 5 Code of
Federal Regulations 451.104(a).
The Time-off Award is an excused absence granted to a Federal employee
without charge to leave or loss of pay.
2 SPECIAL
INSTRUCTIONS/CANCELLATIONS
This regulation replaces Personnel
Letter Number 451-12, Time-off as an Incentive Awards, dated June 30, 1992,
which is cancelled.
3 ELIGIBILITY
a All USDA employees
who meet the definition of “employee” in 5 U.S.C. 2105, are eligible for Time-off with the exception
of:
(1) Presidential
Appointees;
(2) Career and
non-career Senior Executive Service (SES) employees;
(3) Employees in SES
equivalent positions, (e.g., Senior Level, Professional and Scientific, Senior
Foreign Service, etc.);
(4) Employees who do
not have a regular, established tour of duty (intermittent);
b Volunteers and
contractors are not eligible for Time-off Awards.
4 CONSIDERATIONS
Scheduling of Time-off is subject to supervisory approval. Before utilizing the Time-off Award,
managers should consider the full resource implications of the award,
including:
a Salary of the
employee; and
b Impact on workload
and customer service.
5 AWARD AMOUNT
a A manager or
supervisor may grant up to 10 hours of Time-off without a higher level of
review or approval. If the award
exceeds 10 hours, it must be reviewed and approved by an agency official at a
higher level than the recommending official.
In addition, a written justification must be attached to the AD-287-2
(dated 7/94), Recommendation & Approval of Awards for Time-off Awards
exceeding 10 hours.
b Full-time
employees may not be granted more than 40 hours for a single achievement. Full-time employees may be granted up to 80
hours of Time-off during a leave year.
c Part-time
employees or those with an uncommon tour of duty may be granted Time-off up to
the average number of work hours in the employee’s biweekly scheduled tour of duty during a leave year. The limit for any single contribution for
part-time employees or employees with an uncommon tour of duty is one half the
maximum that may be granted during the leave year.
(For example: If an
employee’s scheduled tour of duty
is 64 hours biweekly, the employee may be granted up to 64 hours of Time-off
during the leave year, and cannot exceed 32 hours for a single achievement).
d The amount of
Time-off granted must be proportionate to the value of the contribution being
recognized. Refer to the AD-1097 Guide
for Employee Recognition when determining the amount of Time-off to grant
an employee. The guide is available on
the Office of Human Resources Management website at http://www.usda.gov/da/employ/recognition_program.htm or through your servicing personnel office.
e Time-off Awards
may be granted along with other forms of awards, as long as the total value of
the awards given reflects the value of the contribution being recognized. For example, an employee might receive both
a one-day Time-off Award and a $50 cash award as an incentive award for a
single contribution, as long as the combination of the awards is suitable
recognition for the value of the employee’s contribution in accordance with the Guide for Employee
Recognition.
6 EXAMPLES OF
ELIGIBLE CONTRIBUTIONS
Time-off Awards are intended to recognize the following types of
accomplishments or contributions:
a Making a high
quality contribution involving a difficult or important project assignment.
b Displaying
initiative and skill in completing an assignment or project before the
deadline.
c Using initiative
and creativity in making improvement in projects, activities, programs or
services.
d Ensuring the
mission of the work unit is accomplished during a difficult period by
successfully completing additional work or a project assignment while maintaining
the employee’s own workload.
7 USE OF TIME-OFF
a Time-off Awards
must be scheduled and used within 26 pay periods from the effective date of
processing. After the 26th
pay period, any unused Time-off will be automatically forfeited and may not be
restored or otherwise substituted.
b A Time-off Award
may only be taken after it has been entered in the payroll/personnel system and
is available in the National Finance Center database.
c If an employee is
incapacitated while using his or her Time-off Award, that period may be
recorded as sick leave, and the Time-off rescheduled for another time, within
the 26 pay period limitation.
d Any unused
Time-off will be forfeited once an employee separates or transfers to another
USDA or Federal agency. If forfeited,
no other award or compensation may be substituted. Please see 8c for instructions to delete forfeited Time-off.
8 PROCESSING
a The Time-off Award
must be recommended and approved on Form AD-287-2, “Recommendation & Approval of Awards.” See 5a,
page 2 for additional approval information.
b When recognizing a
group you may either:
(1) Prepare an
individual AD-287-2 for each member of the group; or
(2) Prepare one
AD-287-2 with a list indicating the required information for each group member.
c The processing
clerk will enter information on Time-off awards or forfeited Time-off (see 7d)
into the National Finance Center database.
Detailed instructions on processing the actions and record keeping are
presented in Personnel/Payroll Processing note issuances.
d Once processed, a
copy of the AD-287-2 should be forwarded immediately to the
time keeper who will document the Time-off Award on the Time and
Attendance report (recorded via prefix/transaction code 61/66) and then attach
a copy of the Form 287-2 to the Certified Time and Attendance report as
supporting documentation.
9 RESTRICTIONS
a Under no
circumstance does Time-off convert to cash (5 CFR 451.104(f)) nor transfer from
one USDA or Federal agency.
b Recommending
officials may not grant Time-off Awards to employees from other USDA agencies.
c The Department
does not support or encourage managers to grant Time-off to an entire division,
region, or other large geographic area and allow all employees the same day
off. This gives the appearance of
granting an official holiday (official holidays are created by law). Agencies are encouraged to use sound
judgment when issuing all awards. The
misuse of the awards authority could seriously compromise the integrity of the
program. All awards should be granted
with careful consideration of excellence in service.
10 ADVANTAGES OF
GRANTING TIME-OFF
a Equity. Identical Time-off Awards granted to members
of a team with various grade levels may be perceived as more equitable than
cash awards that are based on a percentage of pay.
b Value. Employees with low annual/sick leave
balances may especially value Time-off Awards.
c Timeliness. Time-off Awards should be closely linked to
the time of the accomplishment.
11 DISADVANTAGES OF
GRANTING TIME-OFF
a Excess Leave. Employees who have “use or lose” annual leave might not value a Time-off Award.
b Hidden Costs. Because the form of the award is Time-off,
not cash, managers may not see the hidden costs associated with the award.
c Loss of
Productivity. Productivity could be
compromised because staff is away from the office using their Time-off Awards.
12 PROGRAM MONITORING
Agencies are responsible for monitoring and assessing the usage of
Time-off Awards. This documented information will be reported to the Office of
Personnel Management as part of their Annual Incentive Awards Report.
13 REPORTS
Each mission area/agency will provide information and reports to
the Office of Human Resources Management concerning the operation of its program(s)
as requested.
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