May an employee receive hazard pay differentials or environmental differential pay if exposed to COVID-19 through the performance of assigned duties?
General Schedule (GS) employees may receive additional pay for the performance of
hazardous duty or duty involving physical hardship. (5 U.S.C. 5545(d) and 5 CFR part
550, subpart I). Appendix A to subpart I of part 550 of title 5, Code of Federal
Regulations, contains a list of approved hazard pay differentials. For example, a 25
percent hazard pay differential is authorized for employee exposure to “virulent
biologicals, “ which is defined as ‘work with or in close proximity to…[m]aterials of
micro-organic nature which when introduced into the body are likely to cause serious
disease or fatality and for which protective devices do not afford complete protection.’
To be eligible for the hazard pay differential, the agency must determine that the
employee is exposed to a qualifying hazard through the performance of his or her
assigned duties and that the hazardous duty has not been taken into account in the
classification of the employee’s position. A hazard pay differential is not payable if
safety precautions have reduced the element of hazard to a less than significant level of
risk, consistent with generally accepted standards that may be applicable. (See 5 CFR
550.904-550.906 for further information and exceptions.) OPM does not determine when
hazard pay differentials must be paid; agencies have the responsibility and are in the best
position to determine whether duties performed by employees meet the regulatory
requirements for hazard pay. Thus, agency managers, in consultation with occupational
safety and health experts, must determine whether an employee is entitled to hazard pay
on a case-by-case basis.
Prevailing rate (wage) employees may receive an environmental differential when
exposed to a working condition, physical hardship, or hazard of an unusually severe
nature. (See 5 U.S.C. 5343(c)(4) and 5 CFR 532.511.) A list of approved differentials is
contained in Appendix A to subpart E of part 532, of title 5, Code of Federal Regulations.
As with hazard pay differentials, determinations as to whether an employee qualifies for
an approved environmental differential must be made by agencies on a case-by-case
basis.
Last Updated: 3/7/2020