Department of Justice Attorney General's Memorandum on Worklife Initiatives
December 22, 1997
MEMORANDUM FOR ALL DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE EMPLOYEES
FROM:
SUBJECT:
The Attorney General [signed Janet Reno]
Worklife Initiatives
As many of you are aware, I strongly support efforts to
assist employees in the difficult task of balancing the demands
of their careers with the demands of their personal lives, an
important part of which includes raising and caring for families.
The President has issued two executive memoranda since the
beginning of his Administration concerning the importance of
family-friendly programs in the federal service. He states, "It
is clear to me that whenever the Federal Government establishes a
goal of providing civilian employees and military personnel with
an environment supportive to families, the result is greater cost
efficiency, increased worker commitment and productivity, better
customer service, and improved family life." The President,
therefore, directed federal agencies to establish and expand
family-friendly programs which provide flexibility and dependent
care support to our workforce.
Our agency has a well-defined, comprehensive program for
accomplishing that goal. The program is called the Department of
Justice Worklife Program (Worklife Program). Since 1991, this
exceptional program has been in place and available to Department
of Justice (DOJ) managers as a tool for better, more effective
management of our most valued asset--you, our employees. In many
Department components, the Worklife Program has been successfully
implemented and is achieving positive results. Those results
include a productive, motivated, and dedicated staff.
I want to make sure the Worklife Program and its benefits
are accessible to all employees. Thus, the DOJ will take a
proactive posture in expanding access to existing worklife
policies to our employees, nationwide, unless clearly in conflict
with mission fulfillment or regulatory requirements. Each year
the Heads of Department Components provide a report which details
flexible work option usage within their organizations and
highlights any special programs they offer. I will continue to
examine this information closely and encourage broader
implementation of these valuable programs.
The DOJ Worklife Program provides for
flexible and
compressed
work schedules, telecommuting, part-time employment, job sharing, credit hours, dependent care, leave for family and
parental responsibilities,and leave sharing. The Department recently distributed its Flexible Work Option Request form to each component Personnel Office. Please use this form if you are
interested in requesting a flexible work arrangement. The form
assists you in making a request for flexibility that addresses
how work requirements can be satisfied or enhanced through the
use of a flexible work option and helps your manager to make an
informed decision. Your manager will review your request and
provide a written explanation if the request is modified or
denied. This helps to ensure a fair and reasonable process.
I encourage you to request information from your component
concerning flexibility and/or dependent care support. Attached
to this memorandum is a listing of all Component Worklife
Coordinators. If you need additional information, please contact
the Department's Worklife Program Manager, Kathryn Wolf, on (202) 616-3618 [Note: This number has since been changed to: (202) 353-9278].
