COVID-19 Leave Option Guidance

Paid Administrative Leave (Updated 1/4/21)

 Berkeley Lab’s existing Administrative Leave for Emergencies policy provides that:

When authorized by the Deputy Director for Operations or designee, leave with pay may be allowed in the following circumstances:

Public Emergencies: Leave with pay may be allowed during public emergencies that effectively prevent an employee from attendance at work or continuance of work in a normal and orderly manner. A public emergency includes fire, explosion, power failure, flood, earthquake, snowstorm, protest, demonstration, riot, sabotage, pandemic illness, and other comparable occurrences. When an employee is absent because of personal reasons resulting from a public emergency, the employee should charge this absence to accrued vacation or leave without pay.

Accordingly, Administrative Leave has been authorized by Berkeley Lab’s Deputy Director for Operations effective March 17, 2020 through such time this leave assistance is no longer needed, in light of the COVID-19 pandemic as support to Berkeley Lab employees impacted by COVID-19 related circumstances. Application of paid Administrative Leave for this purpose will be in accordance with guidance and direction from Laboratory Management, in consultation with the Department of Energy (DOE) and the University of California (UC). The current authorization of paid Administrative Leave will be revisited by Laboratory Management as circumstances warrant.

IMPORTANT UPDATES (1/4/21):

• Employees Prevented from Working Onsite and Unable to Telework:  Authorization from DOE for this scenario was extended through March 31, 2021.  Divisions are strongly encouraged to keep employees productively working either onsite or teleworking to the extent possible. If these efforts are unsuccessful, paid Administrative Leave can be used in this scenario for the health, safety, and welfare of our workforce. Continued use of Administrative Leave for this specific purpose will be evaluated.
• Administrative Leave for Childcare:  The allotment of 128 hours (16 days) of paid leave for childcare is in accordance with a UC President Executive Order. This allotment of time was previously scheduled to end on December 31, 2020, but has been extended by the UC President through June 30, 2021.  Employees who have not yet reached the initial allotment now have additional time to access this leave benefit. 
• The leave benefits associated with the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) – such as Emergency Paid Sick Leave (EPSL) and Emergency Family Medical Leave (EMFL) – have been removed from this page as this law expired on December 31, 2020 and was not extended by Congress into 2021.  Employees who had been utilizing FFCRA leave for childcare purposes may utilize up to 128 hours of paid administrative leave per the UC Executive Order through June 30, 2021.  If this allotment has been exhausted, or FFCRA was being used for other purposes, employees may consider using other leave options such as their own personal accrued leave balances, applying for Emergency Leave Donation, or investigate unemployment benefits offered by the CA Employment Development Department (EDD).

The primary consideration is to provide a path to work for all employees to the extent possible and to mitigate the impact for those who cannot work due to COVID-19 related circumstances. This means that supervisors are expected to enable on-site or remote work and be as flexible as possible to support keeping employees as productively working as operationally feasible.  This includes seeking opportunities for all employees to contribute to the Lab’s operations and mission. Likewise, employees are expected to engage in conversations with their supervisor and be flexible when trying to balance work with personal responsibilities. If on-site or remote work is not possible, Administrative Leave may be appropriate as determined by the division consistent with the guidelines and parameters set forth below. Administrative Leave will only be granted for COVID-19 related circumstances after a showing that the employee cannot work, intermittently or otherwise, on-site or via telecommute. Employees must exercise good faith in making their request for use of Administrative Leave.

Following are the guidelines and parameters for paid Administrative Leave eligibility and implementation:

• The period authorized by the Deputy Lab Director for Operations for paid Administrative Leave is March 17, 2020 through such time this leave assistance is no longer needed. Authorization per eligible employee is based on their regular effort time up to an average of 40 hours per week.
• (Updated 1/4/21): Paid Administrative Leave for employees unable to work or telework because of the need to care for their child whose school/place of care is closed or child care provider is unavailable due to COVID-19 are authorized for up to 16 days (or 128 hours) through June 30, 2021. When this limit is reached, employees may consider using other leave options such as their own personal accrued leave balances, applying for Emergency Leave Donation, or investigate unemployment benefits offered by the CA Employment Development Department (EDD).  The 16 day limit does not apply for the other listed eligible scenarios below. 
• Division Directors shall identify and approve which employees have been approved for paid Administrative Leave. Employees must use the applicable “Admin Leave” codes on their LETS time for supervisors to approve in LETS for accurate tracking of Administrative Leave usage.
• Employees who are gradually resuming on-site work during the resumption of onsite work transition period may continue to use paid Administrative Leave intermittently only for the portion of time they are not authorized for on-site presence and are unable to telework. Paid Administrative Leave is not authorized for any portion of time the employee is authorized to perform on-site work.
• Exempt salaried employees may code Administrative Leave in half or full day increments; Non-exempt hourly employees should code Administrative Leave in hourly increments.
• Administrative Leave may be used intermittently as needed, in consultation with the supervisor, provided that such use shall not adversely affect the delivery of essential services. This means that employees, in coordination with their supervisor, may work a partial day as regular work time and a partial day on paid Administrative Leave.
• Paid Administrative Leave is calculated on the compensation that would have been paid at the time that the leave is taken.
• Administrative Leave for employees who work less than full-time shall be prorated according to the percent of the appointment.
• Administrative Leave cannot be donated to another employee.
• All employee types (both represented and non-represented) may be eligible for the one-time allotment of the paid Administrative Leave. Non-employees (such as Affiliates and Contract Workers) do not qualify for paid Administrative Leave.
• Administrative Leave taken by employees in Limited and Rehired Retiree appointments will count towards the 900-hour limited for those appointment types.
• Paid Administrative Leave for COVID-19 related circumstances can be applied effective March 17, 2020 for all current staff, and is available for any new appointees hired effective on or after March 17, 2020.
• Employees who separate from employment while the authority for paid Administrative Leave is in effect, will lose eligibility for Paid Administrative Leave.
• Paid Administrative Leave (similar to sick and vacation paid leave) is treated the same as regular pay for UCRP or Savings Choice purposes. All retirement benefits (including UCRP service credit, HAPC; and employee and employer contributions to the DC Plan) are earned the same as if they were regular salary.
• It is not permitted for employees to receive Unemployment Insurance benefits from the CA Employment Development Department (EDD) while also receiving paid Administrative Leave.
• Paid Administrative Leave may only be used for purposes outlined in the table below.
• Paid Administrative Leave is not authorized for elder care responsibilities. Employees in this situation may use their accrued leave balances or elect to take leave without pay for this purpose.

 COVID-19 Leave Options Guide

Work arrangement considerations and paid leave options in accordance with Berkeley Lab policy and special provisions due to COVID-19 related circumstances: