Agencies may pay “special act” awards at any time of the year to recognize a “special act or service in the public interest related to official employment or a suggestion, invention, or superior accomplishment. Image: William Sawalich/Shutterstock.com
By: FEDweek StaffNew OPM guidance to agencies on awards (see related story) covers a range of scenarios, from individual to group awards, from cash to other forms of recognition, and from senior to non-senior positions.
A memo on chcoc.gov—which says it “supersedes all previously-issued awards guidance”—sets standards including that:
* For career employees, including SES and senior professional (SP) employees, agencies should designate at least 60 percent of available money for performance-based awards for those rated at Level 4 or Level 5. Fewer employees will receive those ratings under earlier guidance, meaning that awards to those who do receive them will be greater, it said. Those rated at Level 3 (fully successful) remain eligible but those rated at Level 1 and 2 are not.
* Agencies may pay within-grade increases, also called quality step increases, only to those rated at the top level of their rating system and no more frequently than once every 52 weeks.
* For career SES and SP employees, agencies may increase their basic pay if their “individual performance and/or contribution to agency performance warrants such an increase.” Presidential Rank Awards for SES and SP employees—bonuses worth up to 35 percent of salary—which have been suspended for this year, will return in 2026.
* Agencies may pay “special act” awards at any time of the year to recognize a “special act or service in the public interest related to official employment or a suggestion, invention, or superior accomplishment. Agencies are highly encouraged to reward employees who identify fraud, waste, or abuse within government contracts or processes and, more generally, who identify actionable opportunities for the government to increase its operational efficiency.”
* Instead of a ratings-based cash award, agencies may consider offering non SES/SP employees a time-off award, which “may be more incentivizing for certain employees than a monetary bonus.” Political appointees are eligible for time-off awards even though they are not eligible for monetary awards.
* Group incentive programs can cover groups as large as an entire agency or as small as a work unit or team; they must include “clear goals (which may be quantitative or qualitative); a specified performance period (including defined timeframes); understandable payout formulas; and clear communication to employees regarding the program.” Further guidance is to come on “gainsharing and goalsharing” programs in which employees as a group receive part of the savings from productivity gains or reduced spending.
* Agencies are encouraged to use non-monetary recognition programs such as a “Secretary’s Award” or “Director’s Award” for “individual and team accomplishments identified by the agency’s senior leader.”
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