United States Department of Agriculture
Natural Resources Conservation Service		 New York Go to Accessibility Information
Skip to Page Content





Quality of Worklife (QWL) Program

Alternative Work Scheduling Options

Currently, NRCS employees may use the Maxiflex, or the 5-4/9, or the 4-10 alternative work schedules in lieu of the traditional work schedule of eight hours per day, five days per week.

Chapter 61, Title 5 U.S. Code, provides authority to government departments and agencies for flexible work schedules. NRCS policy on alternative work schedules is contained in the General Manual (GM) 360-Personnel, Amendment 71, Part 427, "Hours of Duty.

  • Maxiflex is a flexible work schedule that permits an employee to vary their starting and ending times, around the designated agency core hours, which are 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.. Employees may earn and use credit hours under this work schedule.

  • 4-10 or 4-Day Work week is a compressed work schedule that requires an employee to have a 10-hour invariable daily work requirement, four days per week.
     

  • 5-4/9 is a compressed work schedule where the basic work requirement of 80 hours shall consist of eight 9-hour days and one 8-hour day each pay period.

Leave Options

In recent years, laws were adopted that would provide Federal employees with other leave alternative in addition to the traditional leave options (annual leave, sick leave, and leave without pay). These alternatives are:

  • Federal Employees Family Friendly Leave Act (FEFFLA), allows employees to use sick leave when caring for family members and when arranging for or attending funeral services of family members (bereavement). Family members include spouses; children, parents, and brothers/sisters and spouses thereof; and any individual related by blood or affinity whose close association with the employee is equivalent of a family relationship. A maximum of 13 days or 104 hours of sick leave may be used for the above purposes in any leave year; however eligibility requirements do apply. This is a 3-year experimental program which went into effect on December 2, 1994. Please refer to 5 U.S.C. 6307 (d); 5 CFR Part 630, Subparts D and E for further information.
     

  • Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) entitles employees up to 12 weeks leave without pay in a 12-month period for a personal or family illness or emergency. Paid leave (annual or sick), credit hours and compensatory time may be substituted as available. Please refer to 5 CFR Part 630 for further details.
     

  • Sick Leave Re-credit allows former federal employees who become reemployed by the Federal government on or after December 2, 1994 (regardless of the date of separation), to re-credit unused sick leave balances, unless the sick leave was forfeited upon prior reemployment. Please refer to 5 CFR Part 630 for further details.
     

  • Sick Leave for Adoption expands the use of sick leave to include absences relating to adopting a child, effective September 30, 1994. Employees may also substitute sick leave for any or all annual leave used for adoption-related purposes retroactive to September 30, 1991. Employees should take caution to avoid any forfeiture of annual leave that could result from substituting sick leave for annual leave. Please refer to 5 CFR Part 630 and Public Law 103-329, Section 629(b) for further details.
     

  • Leave for Bone Marrow or Organ Donation provides up to 7 days of paid leave in a calendar year (in addition to sick or annual leave) for employees serving as a bone-marrow or organ donor. Please refer to 5 CFT Part 630 and Public Law 103-329, Section 629(a) for further details.

Other Family-Friendly Policies and Practices

NRCS has adopted the use of the following policies and practices that will assist employees balance the demands of work with family and other personal responsibilities.

  • Job Sharing is a form of part-time employment in which the schedules of two part-time employees are arranged to cover the duties of a single full-time position. There is no definite list of jobs "suitable" for job sharing. Also, there is no law or regulation that limits job sharing to specific types of positions or grade level. Please refer to General Manual (GM) 360, Part 405 Amendment 59 or 5 CFR Part 430, Subparts A and B for further details.
     

  • Flexible Workplace Program is designed to provide NRCS managers, supervisors, and employees with an alternative to the usual office setting for accomplishing the agency mission, by allowing employees to work at an alternative work site. Participation in this program is based upon the mutual benefit to be gained by the agency and the employee. Please refer to General Manual (GM) 360, Part 430, dated January 1992 for further details.
     

  • Dependent Care issues, including services for child care and elder care, can be handled by Quality of Worklife Coordinators in ways such as conducting seminars and hosting workshops and directing employees to referral and other organizations that provide the appropriate guidance, counseling, and assistance.

< Back to Civil Rights