SPECIAL NOTICE
R -- Supervisor Guides
- Notice Date
- 6/7/2016
- Notice Type
- Special Notice
- NAICS
- 541612
— Human Resources Consulting Services
- Contracting Office
- Department of State, Office of Acquisitions, Acquisition Management, 1735 N. Lynn St., Arlington, Virginia, 22209, United States
- ZIP Code
- 22209
- Solicitation Number
- SAQMMA16I0048
- Archive Date
- 6/29/2016
- Point of Contact
- Adrienne Y. Bell, Phone: 703-516-1667
- E-Mail Address
-
bellam@state.gov
(bellam@state.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- REQUEST FOR INFORMATION This is a Request for Information (RFI) as defined in FAR 15.201(e). Description: Department of State (DOS), Bureau of Human Resources (HR) is performing market research to determine industry interest and capabilities in conducting an external review and update of The Director General Human Resources' guides to supervisors of Foreign Service and Civil Service employees that provide guidance on how to address misconduct and performance issues. T his is a Request for Information (RFI) announcement only. This is not a solicitation or request for proposal and in no way commits the Government to award a contract. The Government does not intend to award a contract(s) based solely on the submissions of this RFI nor does it intend to pay for any costs incurred in the response to this announcement. This RFI is solely intended for information and planning purposes and does not constitute a solicitation. Responses to this notice will not be considered as offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. Respondents are solely responsible for expenses associated with this RFI. Respondents will be not briefed on the Government's review of submissions of this RFO. Scope of work: The DGHR has published these separate guides to supervisors of Foreign Service (2004) and Civil Service (2007) employees that explain how to identify and address misconduct issues. However, these guides have not been updated to incorporate the latest Department guidance on areas such as drug and alcohol abuse, workplace violence, sexual harassment, prostitution, and tax obligations. This lapse hampers supervisors' ability to take disciplinary action in a timely and informed manner. The contractor would review these documents for accuracy, update the documents to incorporate current statute and Department Guidance, and provide the Bureau editable.pdf files that are suitable for publishing (printed pamphlet) or posting on the HR Portal for reference. It may or may not include imbedded graphics to further enhance the document and should be viewable on a variety of electronic media (e.g., smartphone, tablet, desktop with dynamic resizing or displays as appropriate.) The updated supervisor guides should deal with both conduct and performance problems. The documents should reflect additional conduct issues such as threats and workplace violence, updated family-friendly policies on sick leave, administrative leave for conduct issues, and additional samples of discipline letters to further assist supervisors and managers, as well as HR Specialists in addressing performance and conduct issues. These guides will address the role of the supervisor/manager when there is a reason to suspect that a personal problem (e.g., alcohol, drugs, or emotional) could be the cause of, or a contributing factor to, the misconduct or unacceptable performance. The documents should be tailored to the rules and regulations as they pertain to members of each document. The updated guides should at a minimum address the following items shown below as expounded in the attached reference guides and resolve any deficiencies identified in ISP-I-15-04, Office of Inspections' November 2014 report, "Review of the Department of State Disciplinary Process." Recommendation 1: The Bureau of Human Resources should update the guides for supervisors of Foreign Service and Civil Service employees so that they contain the latest Department of State guidance on disciplinary issues. (Action: DGHR) Supervisors Guide to Civil Service •Right to Discipline •The Probationary Period to include: Purpose; Supervisor's Responsibilities; Separation Procedures; Sample Letter of Warning: Probationary Employee; Evaluation of Probationary Employee Form (DS-1764); Sample Discharge of Probationary Employee Letter; and Questions and Answers •Investigation of Misconduct •Conduct v. Performance to include: Purpose; Factual Documentation; Examples of Conduct Issues; Documenting Misconduct; Insubordination/Failure to Follow Instructions; and Sample Letter of Reprimand •E-Mail, Internet Abuse, Personal Use of Government Equipment to include equipment, telephones, E-Mail/Internet with the appropriate references •Workplace Violence to include Threats, Emergency Contacts, and References •Leave Administration •Correcting Leave Problems •Performance Management System •Addressing Unacceptable Performance •Within-Grade Increase Denial •Employee Consultation Service •Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) - Mediation •Security Issues •Whistleblower Protection Act •Drug and alcohol abuse •Workplace violence •Sexual harassment •Prostitution •Tax obligations Supervisors Guide to Foreign Service •Overview of the Discipline Process •The Right to Discipline •Admonishment and Disciplinary Actions •Investigations of Misconduct •Discipline Procedures •Conduct vs. Performance •Insubordination vs. Failure to Follow Instructions •Leave Administration •Employee Consultation Service •Security Incidents •Personal Use of USG Equipment •Workplace Violence •Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) - Mediation •Government-Contracted Charge Accounts •Chief of Mission Instructions Regarding Conduct, Suitability and Discipline Abroad •Curtailment of Employees Based on Conduct, Suitability and Discipline Issues •Whistleblower Protection Act •drug and alcohol abuse •Workplace violence •Sexual harassment •Prostitution •Tax obligations Background The rules and regulations covering the discipline and unacceptable performance of Federal employees are contained in Title 5 Code of Federal Regulation (CFR), Chapters 752 and 430, and in the implementing regulations of Volume 3 of the Foreign Affairs Manual (3 FAM), parts 4510 and 4550, respectively. The Foreign Service discipline program is based on 5 U.S.C. 301, 22 U.S.C. 3921 (Section 201 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980), 22 U.S.C. 4131 (Chapter 11, Foreign Service Act of 1980), 22 CFR Parts 901-911 and 5 CFP Part 2635, Standards of Conduct. Implementing regulations for the Department of State's Foreign Service discipline program are also set out in 3 FAM 4300 and 3 FAM 4100. The Department has wide latitude to decide on penalties for misconduct. Although 3 FAM 4377 (Foreign Service) and 3 FAM 4542 (Civil Service) provide lists of offenses subject to disciplinary action, these are not intended to be all inclusive. Most types of misconduct have no specific penalties associated with them but can range from a letter of reprimand, to suspension, or to termination. Penalties for some offenses are set forth in statutes (see Appendix III below). Additionally, an employee may be disciplined for actions not specifically listed, such as for exercising poor judgment. Appendix III: Summary of Actions Available Within the Disciplinary Process The various forms of disciplinary actions for Foreign Service and Civil Service employees, along with a comparison of the disciplinary processes, are described below. These include an employee's rights to advance notice of a proposed action (where applicable) and right to grieve disciplinary actions. Civil Service employees covered by Collective Bargaining Agreements adhere to union-specific negotiated grievance procedures. The information pertaining to Civil Service employees below applies solely to employees covered by the Department's Administrative Grievance procedures (3 FAM 4700). Oral or Written Admonishment (Foreign Service, 3 FAM 4330; Civil Service, 3 FAM 4513): Serves as a warning. Not considered formal discipline, and no admonishment is placed in employee's official personnel file. Civil Service: No advance notice. Cannot be grieved. Foreign Service: No advance notice. Cannot be grieved. Letters of Reprimand (Foreign Service, 3 FAM 4340; Civil Service, 3 FAM 4514): Least severe form of formal discipline. Civil Service: No advance notice. Can be grieved. Foreign Service: Advance notice of proposed action. Can be grieved. If agency denies grievance, employee can appeal to the FSGB. Suspension (Foreign Service, 3 FAM 4350; Civil Service, 3 FAM 4520 and 3 FAM 4530): Involuntary, temporary placement in nonduty, nonpay status. Civil Service: Advance written notice of proposed action. Suspension for for 14 days or less can be grieved within the agency. Employee can appeal suspensions for more than 14 days to the MSPB. Foreign Service: Advance written notice of proposed action. Employee can appeal suspensions for any length of time. If agency denies grievance, employee can appeal to the FSGB. Separation for Cause (Foreign Service, 3 FAM 4360; Civil Service, 3 FAM 4530): Used for such cause as will promote the efficiency of the Civil Service or the Foreign Service. Civil Service: Cannot be grieved. Separations may be appealed to the MSPB. Foreign Service: Advance notice of proposed action is given. The employee cannot be separated unless the employee waives right to a hearing before the FSGB, if the employee has been convicted of a crime for which a sentence of more than 1 year may be imposed, or if the FSGB finds cause for separation. Additional and/or Different Civil Service Employee Rights Under Collective Bargaining Agreements A Civil Service employee who is covered by the National Federation of Federal Employees and receives an adverse action may: •file an appeal to the MSPB; •file a formal Equal Employment Opportunity complaint with the Office of Civil Rights; •file a complaint with the Office of Special Counsel, which can be followed by an Individual Right of Action appeal filed with the MPSB; or •file a grievance under Articles 20 and 24 of the National Federation of Federal Employees Collective Bargaining Agreement. An election is deemed to have been made based on which of these four actions the employee filed first. A Civil Service employee who is covered by the American Federation of Government Employees and receives an adverse action may: •file an appeal to the MSPB; •file a formal Equal Employment Opportunity complaint with the Office of Civil Rights; •file a complaint with the Office of Special Counsel, which can be followed by an Individual Right of Action appeal filed with the MSPB; or •file a grievance under Article 21, Section 5c of the American Federation of Government Employees Collective Bargaining Agreement. An election is deemed to have been made on the basis of which of these four actions the employee filed first. Any employee at any time, regardless of level of disciplinary action, can file an Equal Employment Opportunity or Office of Special Counsel complaint. An Individual Right of Action appeal refers to a special appeal right for whistleblowers. Market Reserach (Capability Statement): The following are instructions for vendor's response to this RFI Instructions: 1.Provide a detailed capability statement, focusing on your firm's proven ability to provide the requirement and not exceed ten (10) pages including cover pages, table of contents etc. 2.Provide company and contact information 3.Sale brochures, videos, and other marketing information materials are not solicited and will not be reviewed. 4.Provide price information 5.Identification of the available contract vehicles, such as: GSA Federal Supply Schedules (schedule/contract number and appropriate Special Item Numbers) or other GWAC vehicles by agency and contract number. 6.Provide the size classification of your business. If you are classified as a small business, HUBZone small business, Service Disabled Veteran Owned small business, Woman-owned small business and/or 8(a) certified small business, 7.Interested companies shall submit an electronic copy of their response (along with supporting documentation) via email to Adrienne Bell at bellam@state.gov The due date and time for submission of responses is 4:00 pm EST June 14 2016. 8.No phone calls related to this RFI will be accepted. All correspondence shall be sent via email only. Disclaimer This RFI is not an offer. This RFI is issued solely for information and planning purposes and does not constitute a solicitation. All information received in response to this RFI that is marked "Proprietary" will be handled accordingly. Responses to the RFI will not be returned, nor will there be any ensuing discussions or debriefings of any responses. However, information obtained as a result of this announcement may be reflected in the subsequent solicitation if issued. This announcement is Government market research and may result in revisions in both its requirements and its acquisition strategy based on industry responses. In accordance with FAR 15.201 (e), responses to this notice are not offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. Responders are solely responsible for all expenses associates with responding to this RFI.
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