LE STAFF: TDY AFGHANISTAN BENEFITS PACKAGE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 STATE 006085 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: AMGT APER AFSN SUBJECT: LE STAFF: TDY AFGHANISTAN BENEFITS PACKAGE (ABP) REF: Action Memos Signed November 4, 2009 and January 12, 2010 by the Under Secretary for Management. STATE 00006085 001.2 OF 003 ¶1. The Department authorizes each post to amend its Local Compensation Plan (LCP) to provide the following benefits in association with the new Locally Employed (LE) Staff temporary duty (TDY) Afghanistan Benefits Package (ABP). The ABP incorporates all benefits approved to date for those LES who are paid under a Local Compensation Plan other than the LCP for Afghanistan. Some benefits apply only to LE Staff who are serving on TDY in Afghanistan for six months or more, but the 50% special differential is effective upon arrival in Afghanistan, and Language Incentive Pay begins after 30 days. ¶2. While on TDY in Afghanistan, an employee will continue to be paid salaries and benefits from his/her home post's LCP. In order for employees on TDY in Afghanistan to be eligible for the ABP, each home country post must amend the remarks section of its LCP to include the following: "In accordance with (cite this telegram),an employee who is on a TDY assignment of six months or more (except where a different minimum is specifically noted below) in Afghanistan will be eligible for the following benefits outlined below, effective the beginning of the pay period in which the post adds the LE Staff TDY Afghanistan Benefits Package (ABP) to the LCP. Title: LE STAFF: Afghanistan TDY Benefits Package (ABP) (1) SALARY/PREMIUM PAY/TDY ALLOWANCE: While on TDY in Afghanistan, LE Staff will continue to be paid salary and premium pay for all overtime worked in Afghanistan. They will also receive a TDY Allowance equal to 50 percent of basic salary. Payments will be calculated in accordance with their home country LCP. The TDY Allowance ceases when the employee is outside of Afghanistan. Details of this allowance are contained in 05 State ¶93137. (2) LANGUAGE INCENTIVE PAY: LE Staff on TDY to Afghanistan for more than 30 days, who fill a Farsi/Dari or Pashto language - designated position (LDP) and possess FSI tested language skills at the levels stated below are eligible to receive Language Incentive pay for the following FSI tested levels: 10% of basic salary for an S-3/R-3; 15% of basic salary for an S-4/R-3 or higher. The language incentive pay will be paid in accordance with the home country LCP. The language incentive pay ceases when the employee is outside of Afghanistan. (3) VISITATION AND RECUPERATION BREAKS (VRB): --A. LE Staff on TDY in Afghanistan for six months or more, but less than one year, are eligible for one Visitation and Recuperation Break (VRB) trip back to the employee's home country after three (3) months service in Afghanistan. --B. LE Staff on TDY for one year to Afghanistan are eligible for three VRB trips back to their home country. The three VRB leave periods for a 1-year TDY should not exceed a total of 63 calendar days - a maximum of 21 calendar days away from the Afghan post (including travel time) for each VRB. --C. Employees will be given up to two days for travel time but not to exceed the actual time needed to get from Afghanistan to the home country. This travel time is not counted against excused STATE 00006085 002.2 OF 003 absence (see next paragraph) or against annual leave. If it takes longer than two days to return to the employee's home country, that additional transit time will be counted against excused absence or annual leave. Otherwise, counting VRB leave, as either excused absence or annual leave, begins the next work day after the employee returns to his/her home country. (4) LEAVE: --A. Excused Absence (consistent with 3 FAM 7450): LE Staff on TDY to Afghanistan for 6 months or more are authorized time off with pay to be used during VRB: ¶1. For 6 months or more but less than one year - up to five days may be used for the one VRB trip. ¶2. For one year TDY - up to five days may be used per VRB trip (3) not to exceed a total of 15 work days per year for this purpose. --B. Restoration of Annual Leave: The Department has designated employees serving in Afghanistan as performing "national emergency" work. Per the public interest determination (PID) approved by the Under Secretary for Management, LE Staff will not suffer the loss of annual leave accumulated during the year in which they serve at least six months TDY in Afghanistan. If the home country LCP contains a "use or lose" clause, the LCP is amended to reflect this exception as approved in the PID. LE Staff must formally apply for leave restoration through the home post timekeeper. --C. Transition Leave: LE Staff who complete a 12-month TDY assignment in Afghanistan are eligible for 10 (ten) work days of transition leave upon return to the home country. (5) EMERGENCY VISITATION TRAVEL: Employees on TDY to Afghanistan for one year are eligible to travel at U.S. Government expense to their home country, in certain situations of family emergency. For the purposes of this authorization, the employee's or the employee's spouse's immediate family is defined as a child, parent, or sibling. --A. Eligibility: Emergency travel is only authorized under the following circumstances and must be approved by the employee's American supervisor: -1. Medical - an immediate family member is seriously ill or injured and faces imminent death. -2. Death - an immediate family member has died. -3. Unusual Personal Hardship - emergency travel in situations involving unusual personal hardship may be approved in exceptional circumstances on a case- by-case basis by the American supervisor and the HRO. Requests for approval of travel at U.S. Government expense in this category must detail the exceptional circumstances under which such a request is made and must include a statement by the employee certifying the nature of the circumstances and any available documentation relating to the circumstances of the request. --B. Leave: Eligible employees must take annual or sick leave, in accordance with U.S. Department of State and their LCP leave regulations. (6) PAYMENT OF OVERTIME TO LE STAFF WHO ARE ON TDY IN AFGHANISTAN AND NOT OTHERWISE ELIGIBLE FOR OVERTIME PAY: LE Staff who are not otherwise eligible for overtime pay based on their home post's LCP are entitled to payment of overtime performed while on TDY to Afghanistan. The rate of overtime pay should be consistent with the home post's local compensation plan, local labor law, and/or prevailing practice. (7) CONTINUATION OF HOME POST'S UNIQUE CONDITIONS OF WORK ALLOWANCE(UCWA) FOR LE STAFF AWAY FROM STATE 00006085 003.2 OF 003 POST SERVICE TDY IN AFGHANISTAN: LE Staff will continue to receive the home post's Unique Conditions of Work Allowance (UCWA) while on TDY to Afghanistan. (8) ENTITLEMENT TO ALL LE STAFF TDY AFGHANISTAN BENEFITS FROM DATE OF ARRIVAL IN COUNTRY: LE Staff on TDY to Afghanistan are entitled to all LE Staff TDY ABP benefits from the date of arrival in Afghanistan, retroactive only to the date of this telegram. (9) OTHER BENEFITS: --A. Medical: Basic medical care for TDYers in Afghanistan in accordance with 03 State 328740. --B. UAB Shipment: Unaccompanied Air Baggage (UAB) consisting of 250 pounds gross weight is approved for LE Staff serving a one-year TDY in Afghanistan. No UAB is authorized for TDYers of less than one year. (10) END OF AFGHANISTAN TDY BENEFITS PACKAGE (ABP) ¶1. The effective date is the beginning of the pay period in which the post adds the LE Staff TDY ABP to the LCP, or the beginning of a later pay period if post prefers. A retroactive effective date is not authorized. ¶2. Post must immediately provide a copy of the signed, revised LCP to the pay-rolling FSC and HR/OE/CM. ¶3. The TDY Afghanistan Benefits Package does not apply to USAID FSN personnel services contractors who are paid in accordance with USAID's AAPD 03-11 in lieu of being paid under the Local Compensation Plan. ¶4. No further authorizations or amendments to Local Compensation Plans are required as a result of this authorization, and the Afghanistan Benefits Package, above, should be incorporated as an attachment under Item 17 - Afghanistan TDY Benefits to the Post's local compensation plan as soon as possible. This cable should be attached to post's LCP as authorization to provide these additional benefits. ¶3. Questions concerning the ABP should be directed to NEA-SCA/EX. Questions concerning the LCP should be referred to the HR/OE/CM compensation analysts. ¶4. Minimize considered. CLINTON