Question
If an agency orders its employees not to report to their offices during a pandemic influenza, will employees continue to be paid? Will employees be required to use their annual leave?
Answer
Agencies may offer alternative work arrangements to ensure work continues to be accomplished during a pandemic health crisis and employees continue to be paid. For example, agencies may direct employees who are under an approved telework agreement to telework from home or order employees to evacuate their worksites and direct them to work from home during a pandemic influenza.
An agency may authorize evacuation payments for employees who have been ordered to evacuate their worksites. Evacuation payments reflect the regular pay an employee would have received for the time period he or she would have been expected to work (but for the evacuation). An agency may require an employee to perform any work considered necessary or required to be performed during the period of the evacuation without regard to the employee’s grade or title. If an employee refuses to work from home, he or she may be required to use accrued annual leave (i.e., “enforced leave”), may be furloughed, or may be disciplined, as appropriate.