Overview
Employees and job applicants seek flexible work arrangements that provide some opportunity to telework from home or other off site locations within the United States1. Depending on the nature of the work, such arrangements may present opportunities to effectively achieve business results while also enabling employees to balance their work demands and personal needs.
These flexible work guidelines described here are intended to provide flexibility when possible, but decisions about work mode assignments will be driven by the ability to effectively meet business needs. It is important to note that not all positions and job duties will be eligible for flexible work arrangements; moreover, agreements for flexible work may be modified or revoked in accordance with the Lab’s needs and those of area and/or division leadership. The application and monitoring of individual flexible work options will be determined and managed at the Area and division level based on current and evolving business needs.
1Working from outside of the US is only permitted by special exception from the Lab Director.
Flexible Work Arrangements ARE:
- Flexible: they include variations in the locations where work is done and collaboration methods
- Based on overall mission and business goals
- Planned, intentional, and clearly communicated
- Subject to change based on business need
Flexible Work Arrangements ARE NOT:
- Alternative work schedules (such as compressed work weeks, 4/10s, 9/80s, etc.)
- A right, reward, or a substitute for dependent care
- A secret arrangement or special deal
- For every employee, team, or job
Several factors must be considered before entering into a flexible work arrangement, including:
- the business and/or mission needs of the area/ division/department/team, coworkers, and other stakeholders.
- Area and division on-site presence and space utilization expectations
- the nature of the work to be performed.
- any specific funding sources that may stipulate location of research work performed.
- productivity, organizational cohesion, and culture.
- effective Lab stewardship.
- the needs and well-being of the employee.
- federal and state laws.
- DOE Contract 31 requirements.
- visa and immigration regulations.
- union contracts.
- health and safety consequences, including the suitability of a remote work space.
- impacts for budget, compensation, taxation, benefits, and cost allowability issues.
- job expectations and meeting performance goals and deliverables.
Ultimately, decisions about whether any individual will be granted a flexible work arrangement will be determined by the individual business needs of the division or area determined by division leadership and by our commitment to effectively meet the mission of the Lab.
As many of our research activities are predominantly conducted in person, it is essential that in-person collaboration and community building for both Science and Operations are sustained in support of our commitment to Team Science.
Flexible work arrangements provide an opportunity to actively promote people stewardship, including employee well-being, community, and work-life balance. Supervisors are expected to seek solutions that advance the mission while also ensuring fairness and consistency for their employees and teams.
Eligibility for a flexible work arrangement varies depending on the activity or circumstances. Some roles require in-person presence and fixed schedules. Others may be performed effectively through flexible work. Supervisors must ground their decisions about flexible work arrangements in the mission and business needs of the Lab. Many factors affect and enable mission success, including coming together as a community to foster respect, trust, and collaboration, as well as support of or for each individuals’ well-being. Managing expectations and ensuring clear communication between employee and supervisor are critical to this endeavor.
Subject to overarching Berkeley Lab policies and guidelines, details for implementing workplace changes should be developed at an area and division level, taking into account the various potential Lab-wide impacts that may result from broader adoption and acceptance of flexible work arrangements. Although we strive for consistency across the Lab, we recognize that two similar employee positions (either in the same or different divisions) may call for two different types of work arrangements because of individual position duties, the varying needs of their teams, service needs of clients/customers, and the varying circumstances of individual employees.
An individual’s use of a flexible work arrangement should not be a factor in the review or assessment of their performance (other than to the extent the arrangement affects performance or execution of their duties), nor should it affect opportunities for professional development and career advancement.