There are currently no special notices to employees.

POLICY (Operational Summary #17, February 2004)

I. Purpose

This policy describes the procedures for early dismissal and closure at the Jefferson Laboratories of the FDA. It applies to hazardous or emergency conditions that may threaten the safety of travel to or from the Jefferson Laboratories. Regardless of the situation, an employee’s first priority should be his/her personal safety.

II. Coverage

This policy applies to all employees of the National Center for Toxicological Research (NCTR) and the Arkansas Regional Laboratory (ARL), referred to hereafter as the Jefferson Laboratories.

Employees designated as "essential" are exempt from this policy and will report for work as usual. Office and Division Directors will identify essential employees in their organizations and will provide copies of their lists to the Associate Director for Management Services and Director, Environmental Health and Program Assurance Staff.

III. Authorities

The Director, NCTR, has the authority to activate the Early Dismissal and Closure Policy. The Director re-delegates this authority to the Associate Director for Management Services and Director, Environmental Health and Program Assurance Staff, NCTR. These NCTR officials, in coordination with the Director, ARL, will determine if early dismissal or closure of the Jefferson Laboratories is warranted and take the appropriate action.

IV. Announcements and Information

When conditions arise that make it necessary to activate the Early Dismissal and Closure Policy, employees should consult the following sources for information:

• Call Jefferson Labs at 1-800-858-1468 or 870-543-7721 for recorded message
• NCTR Intranet web page
• FDA/NCTR Internet web site: www.fda.gov/nctr, click “Notice to Employees” at bottom of page
• Television Channel 11, KTHV web site: www.todaysthv.com
• Television Channel 16, KLRT web site: www.klrt.com
• Radio stations and web sites: KARN web site: www.karnnewsradio.com, AM 920/FM 102.5 KSSN web site: www.kssn.com, FM 96 Delta 4 Radio network: no web site, KOTN-AM 1490, KZYP-FM 99.3, KPBQ-FM 101.3, and KCLA-AM 1400

V. Access to Facilities

The NCTR has established an agreement with the Pine Bluff Arsenal (PBA) which stipulates that when conditions make the county road impassable or too dangerous to attempt all Jefferson Laboratories employees who possess PBA identification badges will be allowed to traverse through the Arsenal. On those occasions vehicle decals will not be required.

VI. Procedures
 

Guidance on Excused Absence – Supervisors may excuse an employee without loss of pay or charge to leave (i.e., grant a reasonable amount of excused absence) if the employee is unavoidably delayed in arriving for work. Factors such as distance, availability of transportation, the need to make alternative child care arrangements, and the success of other employees in similar situations should be considered in determining the amount of excused absence to grant. However, employees have no entitlement to excused absence.

NOTE: For Bargaining Unit Employees - Please see the Collective Bargaining Unit Agreement, which states in Article 20, Section 3:

C. If severe inclement weather conditions exist, but the office is not closed and the employee attempts to come to work but does not get to the duty site, the Employer will grant excused absence for all or part of the workday if the employee provides the supervisor with acceptable written justification that a reasonable effort was made to get to work, but severe weather conditions prevented him or her from doing so.

D. If the employee has a disability, his or her disability must be taken into account in determining what constitutes a reasonable effort. If the supervisor denies a written request for excused absence, upon request, the denial will be in writing. Determining factors used by the Employer in a decision to grant excused absence due to emergency or inclement weather conditions will include: the distance between the employee's residence and place of work; mode of transportation normally used; efforts by the employee to get to work; and success of other similarly situated employees in being able to report to work.

Adverse Conditions After the Workday Begins

When adverse conditions occur during normal work hours and an "EARLY DISMISSAL" policy is announced, Jefferson Laboratories employees should be dismissed relative to their normal departure time from work. For example, if a 3-hour "EARLY DISMISSAL" policy were announced, employees who normally leave their offices at 5:00 p.m. would be authorized to leave at 2:00 p.m.

Additional guidance on excused absence is provided in the following table.

When the "EARLY DISMISSAL" policy is announced:

For additional information, contact the Office of Management Services.

Prepared By: Office of Management Services (HFT-300)
Replaces Operational Summary #15, Inclement Weather Policy Jefferson Labs of the FDA dated January 2003