 Identify different types of leave  Supervisory authority and discretion with regard to leave  Identify sick leave abuse and effectively manage leave restriction  Medical documentation  Group Dismissals and Closures

 Annual Leave  Sick Leave  Family Care Leave  Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA)  Military Leave  Home Leave  Leave Without Pay (LWOP)  Absence Without Leave (AWOL)  Excused Absences  Administrative Leave

 How is it Earned  Should grant AL when an employee can be spared from his/her duties  Only valid reasons for disapproving request are workload requirements and office coverage  Though employees are not required to provide a reason for AL use, you may ask if it conflicts with work demands

 AL in lieu of SL may be used to cover illnesses and bereavement  Advanced AL ◦ Limited to what the employee would accrue during the remainder of the leave year ◦ Do not have to approve advanced AL

 Must be scheduled in writing before start of the 24th payperiod of the leave year  Forfeiture must result from ◦ Exigency of public business ◦ Absence due to sickness or injury ◦ Administrative error  Employee requests restoration in writing after the end of the leave year  Up to 2 years to use restored leave – no further right to restoration

 How is it earned  Should approve requests for SL when an employee… ◦ Receives medical (physical or mental), dental, or optical examination or treatment ◦ Is sick due to physical or mental illness, injury, pregnancy, or childbirth; ◦ Would jeopardize the health of coworkers due to exposure to communicable disease ◦ May request acceptable medical documentation when appropriate

 May advance up to 240 hours  Request must be in writing  Must provide administratively acceptable medical documentation to support need for advanced leave

 Symptoms… ◦ Frequent short absences, 3 days or less, unsupported by medical evidence ◦ Morning absences, or requests for afternoon leave phoned in at the lunch break ◦ Unplanned absences on Mondays or Fridays, or before/after holidays ◦ Leave used when the workload is heavy or when deadlines must be met ◦ Leave taken as soon as it is earned ◦ Leave taken when AL is denied or restricted

o Supervisor’s expectations regarding leave usage ◦ Specific information about leave balances and/or specific dates when employee has not followed proper procedure or the pattern of leave abuse ◦ The leave procedures that they are required to follow ◦ The period of restriction ◦ Consequences of not following the procedures in the future

 May use up to 104 hours (13 days) for general family care or bereavement per leave year ◦ No balance requirement ◦ General illnesses ◦ Medical appointments ◦ Bereavement purposes (make arrangements for or attend funeral of a family member)

 May use up to 480 hours (12 weeks) accrued sick leave each leave year for family member with serious medical condition  Any of the 104 hours used for general family care/bereavement is subtracted from the 480-hour total allowance  May require medical documentation for the family member

 Family member defined ◦ Spouse, and parents thereof; ◦ Sons and daughters, and spouses thereof; ◦ Parents, and spouses thereof; ◦ Brothers and sisters, and spouses thereof; ◦ Grandparents and grandchildren, and spouses thereof; ◦ Domestic partner and parents thereof, including domestic partners of any individuals listed above ◦ Any individual related by blood or affinity whose close association with the employee is equivalent of a family relationship

 Entitled to 480 hours (12 weeks) of LWOP in a 12- month period for: ◦ Birth of a child of the employee & the care of that child ◦ Placement of a child w/the employee for adoption/foster care ◦ Care of a spouse, son, daughter, or parent of the employee with a serious health condition ◦ Employee’s own serious health condition ‣ Military FMLA Leave o 26 weeks to care for a service member injured or ill due to active duty o 12 weeks to deal with exigencies created by spouse, parent, or child being called to active duty

 Family member defined ◦ Legal spouse ◦ Parents ◦ Son or daughter under 18 years old or 18 and above, if incapable of self-care due to a disability (includes adopted, foster, stepchildren, and legal wards, and any child for whom employee is in loco parentis)

 May substitute accrued AL or SL, as appropriate  Must request in writing  Should request in advance, if possible  Must be supported with medical documentation if leave is for serious health condition of employee or family member  Can be used intermittently ◦ As needed, for serious medical condition ◦ With supervisor’s approval, after childbirth or adoption

 Full-time and part time (prorated)  15 days per fiscal year ◦ Active duty ◦ Active duty training ◦ Inactive duty training  22 days for emergency duty (President)  Unlimited leave – (members National Guard (District of Columbia – specific types of duty)  44 days – duties overseas – certain conditions

 For each 12 months of service abroad, an employee can earn up to 15 days of home leave per year. The earning amount is determined by the type of assignment the employee has accepted to complete  The entitlement is earned when the employee has completed a basic service period of 24 months of continuous service abroad.

 For extended, continuous LWOP ◦ 1 st line supervisor may approve up to 30 days ◦ 2 nd line supervisor may approve over 30 days  Employee must request formally with LWOP Request form  Personnel action required

 LWOP ◦ Approved leave ◦ Discretionary ◦ Some mandatory situations, e.g., FMLA ◦ Extended use can affect various personnel actions, e.g., WGI, SCD  AWOL ◦ Unauthorized absence ◦ Can be changed to approved leave if acceptable reason provided ◦ Not disciplinary in itself, but may the basis for disciplinary action

 A period of authorized absence from official duties without loss of pay and without charge to an employee’s leave account ◦ Blood Donation ◦ Bone Marrow and Organ Donation ◦ Voting and Registration ◦ Court Leave ◦ EAP

 Not a category of leave, but more describes the situation when an employee is temporarily relieved of his/her normal responsibilities by their supervisor, continues to receive regular pay and benefits, and is normally required to remain away from the work-site during regular work hours  Removal –  Disruption – threat to the health/safety of employees

 Supervisors may require medical documentation for absences of more than 3 days SL or anytime abuse is suspected  Supervisors should request medical documentation when employee: ◦ requests leave for serious medical condition of employee or family member ◦ is Leave Share recipient ◦ requests SL or AL in lieu of SL, if on leave restriction  When employee returns to work after illness or injury, supervisor may need medical documentation

 Administratively acceptable medical documentation must include… ◦ Prognosis  Forecast of probable course/outcome of medical condition ◦ Description of any restrictions on ability to work ◦ Duration of those restrictions ‣For leave restriction or short absence, doctor’s note should indicate that employee saw doctor, received treatment, and/or was incapacitated for duty during absence

 Employees have 15 calendar days from the date you request medical documentation to submit it  If on extended absence, request medical documentation to support return to duty at least 15 calendar days before expected return  Tell employees what the documentation must include  Can usually send an employee back again to obtain adequate documentation  Medical documentation must be kept current

 May only be shared on an official need to know basis ◦ Need the information to make a decision or implement a decision  Must be securely stored with restricted access  Do NOT call the doctor yourself

 When is group dismissal/closure appropriate Normal operations are interrupted by events or emergencies beyond the control of the office/employees  Who in the Department of Interior may close an Office? ◦ The Director ◦ Office of HR/DOI ◦ SES manager ◦ A manager who reports directly to an SES manager

 New Year’s Day  Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr  Washington’s Birthday  Memorial Day  Independence Day  Labor Day  Columbus Day  Veteran’s Day  Thanksgiving Day  Christmas Day

 Supervisors have the right to say ‘no’ or ask for more information when an employee asks for leave  Must have a good business case for saying ‘no’  Establish a practice/policy upfront and apply consistently and fairly

 Types of Leave  Symptoms of SL abuse  Medical documentation  Supervisory authority and discretion  Group Dismissals and Closure

 Link to Employee Relations servicing assignments: cts.html