Description
Your agency has ordered some employees to return to the physical workplace, and one of them hasn’t shown up for work for three days straight. He hasn’t contacted his supervisor either. Is the best way to discipline the employee to charge him with AWOL? What if he comes up with a reasonable explanation for his absence? Can you deny a leave request when an employee was AWOL?
When it comes to AWOL, there are a lot of questions. And a lot of misunderstandings. For example: Considering the following statements:
- You can’t discipline an employee for AWOL unless it has reached a certain number of days.
- Employees can’t be removed for AWOL.
- You can’t be charged AWOL for time that you were physically present in the office.
None of these statements are true; they are AWOL myths.
In this 60-minute presentation, FELTG President Deborah J. Hopkins deconstructs the mystery of Absence Without Leave (and its companion charge, Unauthorized Absence), shatters the aforementioned myths, and offers strategies for agencies to take when an employee doesn’t show up for work.
Attendees learn how to:
- Understand the elements of the charges Absent Without Leave and Unauthorized Absence
- Determine reasonable penalties when AWOL is charged
- Identify situations where a perceived AWOL might be another type of absence
Recorded
02/01/24
Instructors
