Employee Performance Appraisal Plans (EPAPs)

Instruction MemorandumUnited States Department of the InteriorBUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENTWyoming State OfficeP.O. Box 1828IN REPLY REFER TO: Cheyenne, Wyoming 82009-18281400-451 (953) POctober 7, 2011EMS Transmission:Instruction Memorandum No. WY-2012-001Expires: 9/30/2013To: All SupervisorsFrom: Associate State DirectorSubject: Employee Performance Appraisal Plans (EPAPs)Closeout of FY 2011 DD: 10/31/2011Performance Awards Submitted to HR DD: 11/30/2011Initiation of FY 2011 DD: 11/30/2011Program: The Department of the Interior (DOI) and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM)Awards Program 370 DM 451, Performance Management System 370 DM 430, 1400-430 and 1400-451.Purpose: The purpose of this Instruction Memorandum (IM) is twofold, (1) as an annual reminderof the requirements regarding employee performance appraisal plans (EPAP), and (2) to provideguidance and deadlines for processing performance-based cash awards and Quality StepIncreases (QSI).Policy/Action: EPAPs must be completed for Fiscal_Year (FY) 2011, and new EPAPs for FY 2012must be put in place by the specified deadlines; specific guidance follows.Background: Supervisors are required to develop an Employee Performance Appraisal Plan(EPAP) within 60 days of the employee entering on duty. Supervisors must evaluate eachemployee’s performance against that established criteria either when the employee leaves duty or at the end of each fiscal year, whichever is sooner, as long as the employee has been on duty at least 90 days.Closeout of EPAPs for FY 2011Completed EPAPs should show the employee and the rating official signatures reflecting thenotification and initiation of performance standards, receipt of training, at least one progress review, and the end-of-year rating.EPAPs with an overall summary rating of Exceptional (level 5), Minimally Successful (level 2), or Unsatisfactory (level 1), must be approved by both the rating official and a reviewing official prior to discussion with the employee. The authority to serve as a reviewing official is delegated to Field Managers or higher level managers, however, concurrence from the Deputy State Director or District Manager is required.Each Division and District must submit their completed EPAPs as a complete group to HumanResources (HR), and must account for all employees in their Division, Office or District. All EPAPs must be received in HR no later than October 31, 2011.Processing of FY 2011 Performance AwardsFor budget planning purposes, 1% of labor costs for the payment of monetary awards is the totalamount that can be spent. This would include performance-based cash awards based on anemployees end-of-year EPAP rating of record (ROR) as well as Special Thanks for AchievingResults (STAR) awards granted throughout the year in recognition of special accomplishments.Employees are not entitled to awards, and awards are not guaranteed regardless of rating level. All awards are given at the discretion of the supervisor.Performance Award amounts must be in accordance with the Department’s PerformanceManagement System, 370 DM 430:-Employees with ratings of Superior (level 4) are eligible to receive up to 3% of their gross income.-Employees with ratings of Exceptional (level 5) must be considered for an award, and are eligible to receive up to 5% of their gross income or a QSI. QSIs cannot be delayed beyondDecember 31, 2011, without Department approval.-Employees receiving Level 4 or 5 ratings can be approved for a time-off award up to a maximum of 40 hours in lieu of a cash award.-Employees with ratings of Fully Successful (level 3) or lower are not eligible to receive an end-of year performance award, but may receive a STAR for reasons other than sustained performance tied to the EPAP rating.End-of-year performance-based cash awards and QSIs are intended to reward employeeachievements and should be granted in a manner that differentiates between levels of performance.In accordance with Wyoming’s Delegation of Authority, awards up to $910 (gross) can be approved by the first-level supervisor. Awards greater than $910 (gross) must have concurrence/approval from the DM or DSD.Performance Awards for each office will not be processed until all EPAPs for that office have been received in HR. In addition, all awards will undergo a procedural review prior to processing; therefore, supervisors will not distribute or notify employees of awards prior to receiving the completed SF-50 and award from Human Resources.Each Division or District must enter performance-based cash awards, time-off awards, and QSIs into FPPS and forward a hard copy of the award to the Human Resources Office no later thanNovember 30, 2011, using the DOI Awards Form DI-451, Revised May 2008. A fillable version of this form is located on the HR intranet page web.wy.blm.gov/953/forms.htm. A copy of the front page of the employee’s completed EPAP is to be attached to the awards form as documentation supporting the award. Initiation of EPAPs for FY 2012Supervisors must adhere to the Department’s Performance Management System, 370 DM 430 when initiating EPAPs.The DOI’s EPAP forms, DI-3100 S for supervisors and DI-3100 for all other employees (both dated September 2009), should be used to establish critical elements and standards for employees within 60 days of the beginning of the performance appraisal cycle, or no later than November 30, 2010.These forms are located on the EPAP intranet page web.wy.blm.gov/953/epaps/index.htm.Employees may have up to five critical elements, but will have no fewer than four critical elements.Every employee is expected to have at least one critical element which is linked to the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) goals of the DOI/BLM. This element should cascade from the State Director or Associate State Director’s EPAP(s). The GPRA goals can be found in section 7 of BLM’s Strategic Plan, which is located on Wyoming’s EPAP intranet pageweb.wy.blm.gov/953/epaps/index.htm.When initiating EPAPs both the supervisor and the employee should fill out sections A-1, A-2, and A-3 of the front page of the EPAP form. The employee training information required for section A-2 is now included in the non-supervisory EPAP form, DI-3100, and is available on Wyoming’s EPAP intranet page web.wy.blm.gov/953/epaps/index.htm.EPAPs are required for all employees in place for at least 90 days. This includes details, temporary promotions, or other temporary assignments at least 90 days in length.All EPAPs for FY 2012 are to be initiated by November 30, 2011.Timeframe: Effective ImmediatelyBudget Impact: N/AManual/Handbook Sections Affected: Reference material includes 5 CFR 430, 5 CFR 451, 370DM 430, 370 DM 451, Personnel Bulletin 07-07, and BLM Manual 1400-430.Coordination: This policy was coordinated with the Deputy State Directors and District Managers.Contact: Please refer questions to Julie Nelson at 307-775-6107 or Julie_Nelson@blm.govor Missy Cook at 307-775-6352 or Missy_Cook@blm.gov.Signed by: Authenticated by:Ruth Welch Ike HasenauerAssociate State Director Legal AssistantDistributionDirector (700), 5613 MIB 1CF 1