Guidance: Granting weather and safety leave for purposes of quarantine is no longer necessary and appropriate. Image: Magnetic Mcc/Shutterstock.com
The latest guidance on covid-related leave policies tells agencies to cut back on the use of weather and safety leave, a form of administrative leave that already is much less used than it was early in the pandemic.
The Safer Federal Workforce Task Force noted that earlier it had “advised agencies to grant weather and safety leave during the quarantine period for employees who were unable to telework” when employees were subject to quarantine based on a close-contact exposure. However, “Current CDC guidance no longer recommends quarantine based on COVID-19 exposure or following travel, so granting weather and safety leave for purposes of quarantine is no longer necessary and appropriate,” the guidance says.
Agencies should first consult with the task force if they are considering granting weather and safety leave for reasons other than quarantine, it adds.
“Weather and safety leave should not be used when an employee has suspected or confirmed COVID-19. Employees who have COVID-19 symptoms and are waiting for a test result, or who have tested positive for COVID-19, are required to not enter a federal facility or interact with members of the public in person as part of their official responsibilities, consistent with CDC guidance on isolation and agency isolation protocols. Such employees may request sick leave, use accrued annual leave or other forms of earned paid time off (e.g., compensatory time off or credit hours), access a voluntary leave bank, or use unpaid leave in this situation, as appropriate,” it says.
The use of weather and safety leave—paid excused absence without charge to any other form of leave—was common in 2020-21 for employees affected by full or partial office closings who could not perform their work remotely, usually for security reasons.
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