DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATIVE & FINANCIAL SERVICES

Bureau of Human Resources

November 29, 2011

 

CIVIL SERVICE BULLETIN 11.10E

 

TO: All Agency Heads, Agency Human Resource/EEO Representatives

 

SUBJECT:  Emergency Work Cancellation, Delay, or Early Release

 

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This bulletin supersedes Civil Service Bulletin 11.10D issued on November 8, 2011.

 

I.   POLICY

 

     A.  Normal Workday (7:30 am to 5:00 pm, Monday through Friday)

 

          When severe weather or other emergency conditions make traveling to and from a work location unsafe, the Governor, upon the recommendation of the Maine Emergency Management Agency, may delay or cancel a normal workday or may authorize early release on a regional or statewide basis.  Announcements of cancellation, delay, or early release will be made on the State’s central website (under the Citizen ALERT System) and on radio and television stations.

 

          Essential services (maintenance of security, heating, communications systems; direct-care and custody; public health and safety, etc.) will be maintained in all instances.

 

          If a normal workday is cancelled, delayed, or ended early because of storm or emergency conditions, affected employees shall be provided paid administrative leave on an hour-for-hour basis for all cancelled hours, except that employees who had received prior approval to use accrued leave credits or who had received prior approval for another type of leave, paid or unpaid, shall have their full absences charged as originally approved.

 

          Even though a normal workday may be cancelled, delayed, or ended early, some employees may be required to travel to a work location or to stay at a work location during the cancelled or released hours to perform essential services.  Such employees shall be credited with compensatory time off on an hour-for-hour basis for all hours worked during the cancelled or released hours.

 

          Employees who are required to work beyond their normal workday as a result of this policy shall receive pay or compensatory time off, but not both, in accordance with the provisions of the applicable collective bargaining agreement and/or Civil Service Rules.

 

          Employees who had received prior approval to work from home on a delayed start or early release day will not be provided administrative leave for any part of that day.

 

          Employees who had received prior approval to work from home on a cancellation day will be provided administrative leave on an hour-for-hour basis for that day.

 

          Employees may request to use accrued leave credits in order to leave their work location early because of storm or emergency conditions.  An employee who has been authorized leave for this reason will not be eligible for administrative leave should there be an early release announced after leave has been approved.

 

          Employees who are unable to report to work as scheduled because of storm or emergency conditions will be charged compensatory time, vacation time, personal leave time, or be placed on unpaid leave as appropriate.

 

          Employees who are late in reporting for work as scheduled because of storm or emergency conditions will be treated in accordance with agency policy for lateness.

 

     B.  Shift (5:00 pm through 7:30 am), Holiday, and Weekend Schedules

 

          Decisions with respect to storm or emergency conditions outside of the normal workday will be made by agency heads.  It will be the responsibility of agency heads to determine staffing requirements in order to maintain essential and public services, and to determine whether or not work outside of the normal workday shall be maintained on a full-staff or “skeleton crew” basis.

 

     C.  Travel Prohibitions

 

          If a municipality or a portion of a municipality should officially close to traffic, and this closing prevents employees from reporting work or staying at work within the closed area, the employees affected should comply with the local prohibition on travel.  Each situation of this kind shall be reviewed in order to determine the leave action to be taken.

 

 

S/  Joyce A. Oreskovich

Joyce A. Oreskovich, Director

Bureau of Human Resources