December 8th, 2025
Weather & Safety Leave Policies and Agreements
Winter weather creates potentially unsafe travel conditions. The following provides guidance from relevant laws, regulations, policies, and agreements.
Master Agreement Article 20.6.d,
Weather and Safety Leave may be granted, in accordance with 5 USC 6329c, 5 CFR Part 630, Subpart P, and consistent with the OPM Governmentwide Dismissal and Closure Procedures. This type of leave may be appropriate when weather or other safety-related conditions prevent employees from safely traveling to, or safely performing work at an approved location due to an act of God, terrorist attack, or other applicable condition.
1. Ensuring employee safety is the primary consideration when determining whether to close a Forest Service office. Management retains the right to determine the operating status of its facilities. Office closure procedures will be in accordance with Office of Personnel Management (OPM) “Government Wide Dismissal and Closure Procedures.”
The Telework Enhancement Act of 2010,
“requires a written agreement between an agency manager and an employee that outlines the specific work arrangement agreed to.”
As of January 24, 2025, USDA Memo on Return to Office Policy states,
“This memorandum withdraws and replaces the policy previously established in Departmental Regulation (DR) 4080-811-002, Telework and Remote Work Programs, dated November 22, 2021, the associated memorandum signed by Secretary Vilsack on March 11, 2021, and any other telework policies and guidance previously issued. In addition, references to these documents are no longer in effect in any other Departmental policy, directive, forms or documents as of January 24, 2025.”
This means that all telework agreements that were signed prior to January 24, 2025 are no longer in effect and cannot be used for weather-related emergencies or office closures.
Furthermore, from Master Agreement Article 20.6.d.6,
“Employees will not be required to complete ad hoc/situational telework agreements simply to avoid granting weather and safety leave during office closures.”
If an office closure occurs at your duty station, during your scheduled work hours, you should code your time with Descriptor 34 Weather & Safety Leave, Transaction Code 66 Other Leave.
However, if an employee secured a telework agreement since January 24, 2025 (likely through the Reasonable Accommodation process) Master Agreement Article 31.3.m. applies:
Short term Unscheduled and Emergency Telework
1. Provisions related to performing telework during short term office closures (for example, weather-related closures) are covered under Section 5.b of the USDA DR and by Article 20.6.d. Generally, employees with Telework Agreements are not eligible to receive Weather and Safety Leave. Consistent with Article 20.6.d and in accordance with 5 USC § 6329(c), employees will be granted weather and safety leave when weather or other safety-related conditions prevent them from safely traveling to or safely performing work at their normal worksite, their telework site, or other approved location.
2. Employees under approved Telework Agreements who are working in the office when an early departure is announced due to weather or safety generally may receive weather and safety leave for the amount of time required to commute home, if they complete the remaining time (if any) in their workday either by teleworking or taking leave or other paid time off once they arrive home.