Personnel Regulation 27: Telework Policy

A. Telework. An alternative work mode in which the employee works at home or some other remote location instead of working in his/her principal work location.

B. Teleworker. Anyone who meets the eligibility requirements and has appropriate approval and resources to work effectively as a teleworker. Teleworking is not to be confused with alternative work schedules or flexible schedules. Although some teleworkers will have alternative work schedules or flexible schedules, not all who have such schedules will be teleworkers.

A. An employee may be eligible as a teleworker if:

B. Not every County employee is eligible for teleworking. Employees who would not be eligible for telework have jobs that are entirely, or primarily, location-dependent, or require access to resources that are not allowable, or practical, from a telework location.

C. While most employees have jobs that are at least partially location-dependent, if some portion of their work can be done essentially anywhere, these employees are potential teleworkers.

D. However, even among employees with teleworkable jobs there may be constraints on teleworking:

E. Telework is a work assignment, not a right, and is at the sole discretion of the department head (or designee).

F. The authorization for telework may be removed at any time for coverage requirements or any other reason by the department head or designee. Removal or denial of a telework schedule will not be deemed punitive and is not a grievable matter.

A. An employee may become a teleworker if he/she:

B. PMR 27 - Form 1, Telework Agreement Form, is to be completed as follows.

C. Departments may require periodic reviews of telework assignments to ensure coverage and other operational requirements are met.

A. In assessing telework assignments, departments are encouraged to consider that teleworking is preferred to be in whole days only, since one of the goals of teleworking is to reduce traffic congestion and related air emissions. Departments are encouraged to develop strategies that achieve these goals and assist employees to do their best work. That is, it is preferred that teleworkers spend an entire workday at their assigned telework location and not split the workday between their principal office and telework office. However, there are times when partial telecommute days can assist the employee in his/her work and help to reduce traffic congestion and associated air emissions if commuting to/from the principal work office is done during off-peak commute hours.

B. Telework days and hours must be agreed to in advance with the teleworker’s supervisor. The actual telework days per week or month may vary depending on the nature of the work at the discretion of the department head. A consideration in establishing telework hours is that IST technical support is only available during “normal” work hours.

C. Teleworkers will be as accessible as their onsite counterparts during their agreed-upon regular work hours, regardless of work location. Teleworkers and their supervisors should agree upon how teleworkers can ensure they are accessible to their clients, customers, and coworkers and the response time for returning phone calls.

D. In all cases, a teleworker’s regular hours of work, whether on a fixed or flexible schedule, must not exceed their normal schedule unless it is approved in advance by his/her supervisor. Prior approval of the supervisor is required for any overtime worked.

E. Performance standards and/or employee accountability for quantity and quality of output should normally not change as a result of teleworking. What may change is a supervisor’s method of monitoring and evaluating teleworker performance and possibly some modification of how the teleworker is expected to perform his/her assigned duties. This will be decided by the department head or designee. The teleworker, his/her supervisor, work teams, subordinates and coworkers may discuss and must ensure that they mutually understand what the teleworker is expected to produce, how that work is to be performed, when it is due, and what resources are necessary for success.

F. A teleworker must report any problems he/she may develop with, or because of, teleworking to his/her supervisor (such as relatives or friends always dropping in and causing distractions from work, absence of child care, feeling isolated and needing more interaction with co-workers, etc.).

A. Most teleworkers will need to have computers and other information technology at their telework location. Some teleworkers’ jobs may not involve computer use or other information technology, yet be “teleworkable.”

B. Teleworkers will take all precautions necessary to secure proprietary information in their home and from wherever they work and prevent unauthorized access to any county information or system.

C. All teleworkers using computers must abide by the policies and procedures established by the County, including those by IST, for the purposes of maintaining security and integrity of the County’s network system and supporting infrastructure.

D. IST has the right to inspect telework computers and/or to cancel access to the County data center. Employees may be directed to stop using their computer and either bring their computer used for telework into IST for inspection or to have it repaired locally before reauthorization is provided and access is re-established.

E. It is preferable that telework which requires computers be performed on-line (remotely accessing the County’s network) because data will be automatically backed-up, thus protecting against loss of work products. If working on-line is not possible or practical, each teleworker will be required to backup his/her own files, and then update those files on the County’s network when he/she goes back online.

F. Home office furniture used for telework must meet the County’s ergonomic standards following industry practices, which are detailed in the Ergonomic Self-Certification Checklist, presented in Part 3 of the attached PMR 27-Form 1. Also see Section 27.6, Health, Safety, and Risk Management, below, for more details.

G. Furnishing and household expenses, e.g., heating, electricity, etc., are the sole responsibility of the teleworker. Equipment for use at home is generally not provided nor is it a reimbursable expense.

A. In order to maintain a businesslike atmosphere and minimize the chance of accidents, teleworkers are expected to keep their home offices as clean and free from obstructions as if they were their regular County offices. A specifically designated work area, to be maintained during work hours, may be part of the formal agreement between the County and the teleworker. Teleworkers will need to complete a checklist of home safety rules and workspace ergonomic requirements, which are presented on Part 3 of the attached PMR 27-Form 1, Telework Agreement Form. Each teleworker will be required to certify that her/his home office meets or exceeds those requirements and that they will maintain a safe home office.

B. If a teleworker has a work-related accident at home during designated work hours and while conducting authorized County business, he/she will be subject to the same County rules and regulations regarding work-related accidents and must report the incident immediately to his/her supervisor. The County's Risk Management Division will investigate work-related accidents reported to have occurred while teleworking.

C. Home-based teleworkers will be required to keep their office free of dangerous obstructions, loose wires, and other hazards. They should also have desks, seating, keyboard heights, task lighting, glare reduction, acoustic isolation, and lighting that is conducive to a good work environment. Additionally electrical and telecommunications outlets should be available and in good working order.

A. Existing laws, rules, policies and contract provisions of the County are applicable to all teleworkers, including department or division level policies and procedures. If the teleworker is conducting authorized County business and his/her actions are within the course and scope of his/her employment the same workplace rules that apply to County facilities will be applicable to teleworkers’ home workplaces. This would include, but not be limited to, policies on Internet usage, safety and health, standards of conduct.

B. Teleworkers will accrue sick leave and vacation time at the same rate as they would in their principal office. If a teleworker is sick and unable to work in his/her home office, those hours are to be reported, as would occur in a traditional office setting. Teleworkers’ use of vacation, compensatory time off, sick leave, or any other type of leave is subject to prior approval and verification by their supervisors.

On a case-by-case basis an employee’s home, rather than the principal office, may be designated as the headquarters for purposes of calculating mileage or per diem when the employee is required to make business trips.

Teleworkers do not receive travel pay for the times when they have to come in to the office for meetings.

In addition to technology training, special management workshops for teleworkers and their supervisors may be given on effective teleworking. Workshops will emphasize the practical aspects of teleworking, such as: deciding when and how much to telework; setting up home offices (if applicable); workplace safety and ergonomics; scheduling meetings; keeping in touch with fellow employees; and generally dealing with the problems and issues that may arise. Every teleworker and his or her supervisor may be required to enroll in one of these workshops prior to starting to telework, or if currently teleworking, in order to continue to do so.

Effective Date: July 30, 2006
Revisions No. : 0
Prepared By: Laura Armor

Approved: ss/President, Board of Supervisors