Roles and Responsibilities of Remote Employees in the NIH Workplace Flexibilities Program
This checklist applies to employees on an existing agreement. Employees should have an initial discussion with their supervisor about their desire for a remote work arrangement. Thereafter, employees may request remote work via submission of a Workplace Flexibilities Agreement (WFA). Submit an HHS Workplace Flexibilities Agreement to your supervisor. If your ICO is using the ECM Workplace Flexibilities Management system, please submit your WFA here (VPN required).
Local and Non-Local Remote Employees must do the following:
- Obtain supervisor's approval prior to making any changes to alternative worksite and/or schedule
- Complete mandatory training prior to entering into any WFA. Training is required annually, or for each new WFA
- Maintain a current WFA detailing any emergency responsibilities specified for a continuity and/or pandemic event, as appropriate for the approved flexibilities
- Ensure remote work WFA accurately reflects alternative worksite information, timely request an update to the WFA if circumstances change, and renew the WFA annually
- Notify the supervisor of a decision to end participation in the Workplace Flexibilities Program (WFP)
- Notify supervisor within one (1) hour whenever problems arise that may adversely affect ability to perform work at the alternative worksite (e.g., power outages, technology issues, sick family members who require substantial attention, or other personal matters impacting their ability to perform their duties)
- Comply with the appropriate protocol for reporting computer security incidents or when the employee suspects there may have been an incident
- Adhere to the Standards of Conduct for Executive Branch employees and to supplemental standards, as issued
- During the hours the employee is on duty at an alternative worksite, the employee must be accessible by telephone, e-mail, instant messaging system, or other appropriate communication technology or software, as determined by management
- Ensure all Government-owned equipment is used in compliance with Departmental and OpDiv/StaffDiv policies. Additionally, the employee shall ensure they use the Department's VPN account to access all Government systems while working at the alternative worksite
- Be familiar with the agency's emergency plans (continuity plan, pandemic plan, etc.) and the manager's expectations for how the remote worker will perform their duties during such events