“Safe Leave” Introduced for Federal Employees

Federal employees now have a new form of leave that can be used to deal with a variety of challenging circumstances involving either themselves or a family member.

So-called “safe leave” will allow federal employees to take time off to deal with issues including domestic violence, dating violence, sexual-based trauma, and stalking.

According to the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), safe leave is designed to “assist Federal employees in need of time off for safe leave purposes with navigating the various leave options and other flexibilities available to them to keep themselves and their family members safe and to recover from incidents of abuse and harassment.”

The additional leave was issued in compliance with President Biden’s memo to support access to leave for federal employees.

“The Federal government is committed to supporting the safety of our employees and providing them flexibility to recover from trauma, helping employees remain in good standing in their jobs to safeguard their financial independence, rebuild, and heal,” wrote OPM Acting Director Rob Shriver in a memo announcing the policy change.

Leave Types

OPM reminds agencies that various types of workplace flexibilities are available and that agencies “should work in collaboration with the employee to consider all options for taking time off and should provide time off or other workplace flexibilities to the maximum extent practicable.”

Leave options include annual leave, advanced annual leave, sick leave, leave without pay, use of a leave bank, and weather and safety leave. Leave options differ if an employee is requesting time off for themselves or time off for dealing with an issue involving a family member. There are also options for telework and flexible work schedules.

Under no circumstances can agencies require employees to contact law enforcement or report the violence as a condition for accessing leave.

Leave can be used for a variety of activities including:

·         Seeking medical treatment

·         Relocation due to the abuse

·         Obtaining services from groups that provide help for survivors of domestic violence and other forms of abuse

·         Participating in safety planning

·         Attending court

OPM also released a fact sheet spelling out the terms and conditions surrounding the use of safe leave, as well as the definition of a family member.