Special Points of Interest:

 Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA)

 Supervisor’s Employee Work Folder & Brief (AF Form 971)

 Oral Admonishments

 NSPS Info

The“FederalSupervisor”isaquarterlynewslettergearedtowardsthose who supervisorfederalcivilianemployees. ThisnewsletterismerelyonevenueinwhichtheHumanResources(HR)CivilianPersonnelOfficewillbeginutilizingin“reachingout” to Department ofAirForcesupervisors. ThepurposeofthisbulletinistoprovideimportantandusefulinformationonawidevarietyofHRtopicsthatwillempowersupervisorswiththeknowledge they needtoeffectivelysupervisefederalcivilianemployees.

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FamilyMedicalLeaveAct(FMLA)

FrontlineresponsibilityforcompliancewithFMLArestswithsupervisorsandmanagers. Supervisors and managers should be aware that an employee who invokes FMLA leave for any reason must provide 30 days notice of their intent to invoked FMLA or as much notice as possible given the circumstances involved. An employee who does not comply with the notice requirement or does not provide acceptable medical certification signed by the health care provider is not entitled to FMLA leave.

UndertheFamilyandMedicalLeaveActof1993(FMLA),coveredemployeesareentitledtoatotalof12administrativeworkweeksofunpaidleave(leavewithoutpay)duringany12-monthperiodfor one or more of the following: (1) birth of a child and care of the new born, (2) adoption or placement of a child for foster care, (3) care of a family member with a serious health condition or (4) care and treatment for a personal serious health condition that makes the employee unable to perform any one or more of the essentialfunctionsofhisorherposition.

TheNationalDefenseAuthorizationActforFiscalYear2008,whichwassignedintolawby former PresidentGeorgeW.BushonJanuary28,2008, amended FMLA provisions in 5 U.S.C. 6381-6383. ThenewprovisionsnowprovidemilitaryfamilyleaveentitlementsforaFederalemployeewho(1)isthespouse,son,daughter,parent,ornextofkin(definedasthenearestbloodrelative)ofacoveredservicememberwithaseriousinjuryorillnessand(2)providescareforsuchservicemember. TheseriousillnessorinjurymusthavebeenincurredbythecoveredservicememberinthelineofdutywhileonactivedutyintheArmedForces. Covered family members are entitled up to 26 weeks of FMLA leave during a single 12-month period to care for the servicemember. During the single 12-month period, the employee is entitled to a combined total of 26 weeks of regular FMLA leave and military family leave. For example, if during the single 12-month period an employee wants to take 6 weeks of regular FMLA leave for the birth of a child, as well as military family leave for care of a servicemember, the 6 weeks of regular FMLA leave would be subtracted from the combined entitlement of 26 weeks, leaving the employee with 20 weeks of military family leave for care of the servicemember.

Similar to regular FMLA leave, military leave is unpaid leave for which an employee may substitute any accumulated annual or sick leave.

If you have questions regarding FMLA, please contact your servicing Human Resources Specialist or call our Hotline at 556-4737.

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Supervisor’sEmployeeWorkFolderBrief(AFForm971)

Supervisors must maintain an official Employee Work Folder & Brief on each federal civilian employee they supervise. What should the AF Form 971 contain?? AF Form 971 should contain the following:

  • Current AF Form 971, Supervisor’s Employee Brief
  • Training records
  • Leave schedules
  • Position Description
  • Performance Appraisals
  • Pending personnel actions, awards recommendations, etc.
  • Disciplinary/adverse actions backup materials
  • Complaints of indebtedness

Medical documentation, including injury compensation forms, suitability and/or security information shouldnot be maintained in this folder.

There are three parts to the Supervisor’s Employee Work Folder & Brief:

  • Part A contains current personal employee data
  • Part B supervisor’s notes, performance, disciplinary discussions good and bad
  • Part C employee’s experience data, education, performance, training, and awards

Maintaining accurate, current, and complete records on each employee you supervise isyourresponsibility!!

Formoreguidanceandinstructionsonsupervisor’srecordsweencourageyoutoreadAirForcePamphlet36-106. YoumayalsocontactyourservicingHumanResourceSpecialistforguidanceorcallourHotlineat556-4737.

OralAdmonishments

An oral admonishment is a disciplinary discussion between the supervisor and employee. It is a disciplinary action, which is not an adverse action. It is informal and the least severe penalty in the disciplinary program. The oral admonishment is used to correct misconduct or delinquency or to motivate employees to improve their work habits, work methods, or behavior. Because of its adaptability to a variety of situations, the oral admonishment is often adequate to effect the required correction or improvement, particularly when the employee has no previous history of violations. Supervisors considering an oral admonishment should:

  • Gather available facts
  • Counsel employees privately. Let them know the purpose of the meeting, stating the problem and the facts so they clearly understand.
  • Give the employee an opportunity to answer and express their views on the matter.
  • Consider the employees answer and any explanations offered.
  • Inform the employee that they are being disciplined by receipt of an oral admonishment.
  • Identifyareaswheretheemployeeneedsimprovementandsuggesthowtheymaydo so, and offer assistance.

Important! Itisimperativethatassoonasyouobservethemisbehavioryouprovidefeedbacktotheemployeeimmediately. Disciplinemustoccurasclosetothemisbehavioraspossibleorittendsnottobeashelpfulininfluencingfuturebehavior. Supervisorsmustbecarefultoreprimandonlythebehaviorandneverattackaperson’sworthorvalue.

Beconsistentandfairatalltimes!

Supervisors conducting an oral admonishment must be sure to annotate the employee’s AF Form 971 with the words “oral admonishment” and a brief description of the reason for the admonishment, the effective date, and a note showing that you advised the employee of the admonishment. After two years from the effective date of the oral admonishment, ensurethatreferencetotheadmonishmentisdeleted.

“SupervisorsofBargainingUnitemployees(WageGradeandnon-supervisoryfirefighters)mustadheretoArticle30oftheCollectiveBargainingAgreement.”

For additional information and guidance concerning oral admonishments you are encouraged to read AirForceInstruction36-704,DisciplineandAdverseActions or you may contact your servicing Human Resources Specialist.

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Please check out the 21 SW Community of Practice (21 SW CoP) for NSPS information, samples, how-to-guides, and general information. We will continue to post any new information regarding NSPS in future issues of the “Federal Supervisor” as it becomes available.


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CHECK IT OUT!! NSPS Training is ongoing. NSPS course offerings, materials, schedules and registration information is available on HQ AFSPC’s Community of Practice (CoP) at: