Policy and Assurance

Ruby Onsongo (left), EERE Summer 2023 Intern, talks with mentor Michael Whittaker about their research project at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab), 08/07/2023.

Workforce Development & Education Intern and Mentor Summer 2019, July 22, 2019. Michael Nash - Intern, Sherwin Mendoza - Mentor. Facilities, Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internship (SULI). Supported in part by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, Office of Workforce Development for Teachers and Scientists (WDTS). 07/22/2019 Berkeley, California

At Berkeley Lab, our scientific mission requires a stable, fair, and standards-driven environment. Human Resources acts as the steward of workplace policies and the UC-DOE Prime Contract, ensuring strict alignment with Department of Energy (DOE) mandates, relevant UC policies, and federal and state employment laws as they pertain to our workforce.

Why it matters

For Employees: This active stewardship provides clear transparency regarding your workplace expectations, benefits, and protections, ensuring a fair and consistent experience.

For Supervisors: It provides policy assurance and guidance needed to apply policies equitably across teams, maintaining operational continuity for team science.

HR Policy

Berkeley Lab Human Resources policies are located in the Requirements and Policies Manual (RPM).

Governance, Assurance & The UC-DOE Contract

Berkeley Lab operates under a unique “Tri-Party Relationship” between the Department of Energy (DOE), the University of California (UC) as the management contractor, and the Laboratory itself. Operating under this Government-Owned, Contractor-Operated (GOCO) model, the Lab relies on a Contractor Assurance System (CAS) to systematically verify to the DOE that mission objectives are being met safely, efficiently, and effectively.

While CAS spans the entire Laboratory, Berkeley Lab HR acts as the steward for the contract requirements, UC systemwide policies, and assurance frameworks that impact our people. We translate complex federal oversight mandates and university regulations into practical workplace guidelines, ensuring our workforce structures remain fully compliant with our collective obligations while mitigating institutional risk.

UC-DOE Prime Contract (UCOP Site) – Link to the complete contract (often called “Contract 31”) governing the management and operation of the Lab.
Appendix A – Advance Understanding on Human Resources – Direct link to the specific contract sections outlining the rights, obligations, and compliance frameworks governing the Lab’s workforce.