The following are questions (and answers) employees frequently have about training within the Department of Interior.
The Frequently Asked Questions are:
- What is the definition of training?
- Who is responsible for planning and recommending training?
- How do I acquire training?
- Is training mandatory/required?
- What employees may receive training (permanent/temporary/contract)?
- How do I determine what training is right for me?
- Does a training request have to be approved prior to the start of the training?
- Can my normal working hours be adjusted so that I may take course at my own expense?
- Can I receive training leading to a promotion?
- If I am a newly hired employee, can I be given training through non-government facilities?
- Is it required that training be applicable to my current position?
- Can The Department of the Interior pay for my college degree.
- Can college classes be taken on official duty time?
- What training expenses are appropriate for the Department of Interior to pay?
- Can the Department of the Interior pay for correspondence courses or Internet training?
- Are the tuition and other fees paid for by the Department of the Interior counted as income for income tax purposes?
- What happens if I don't complete a training class?
- I am a nonexempt employee under the Fair Labor Standards Act and have been assigned to training that extends beyond my 8-hours workday/40 hour work week. Am I entitled to overtime pay? Am I entitled to receive overtime pay for traveling outside normal working hours to or from a place of training which is different from my regular work station?
- Can the Department of the Interior pay a mileage allowance and parking fees for my attendance at training at other than the my normal work location?
- I am anticipating that I may be subject to a RIF action. Is it possible for the Department to pay for a training program that will help me meet the minimal education qualification requirement for another Federal occupation?
- What can I do if I feel that I have been unjustly denied permission to attend training?
- Where on the Internet can I find more information about the Department of the Interior and other training and development and career management information?
What is the definition of training?
"Training" means the process of providing for and making available to an employee, and placing or enrolling the employee in, a planned, prepared, and coordinated program, course, curriculum, subject, system, or routine of instruction or education, in scientific, professional, technical, mechanical, trade, clerical, fiscal, administrative, or other fields which will improve individual and organizational performance and assist in achieving the agency's mission and performance goals." (5 U.S.C. 4101(4))
Who is responsible for planning and recommending training?
The responsibility for training is shared by the employee, the supervisor, agency management, and the agency training and development office. The basic responsibility rests with the employee. Employees are responsible for being qualified, and remaining qualified, for their jobs. They are also responsible for keeping their knowledge, skills, and abilities current. Supervisors and managers also have a responsibility. They are responsible for workforce planning; determining if employees' current skill sets meet current and anticipated organizational needs; identifying their employees' learning and development needs; budgeting to meet those needs; assigning employees to training; and evaluating the results or outcomes of the training.
Law requires the heads of agencies to review the requirements of the agency at least once every three years. The agency is also required to review, at least annually, its program for meeting identified training needs. Most bureaus use an Individual Development Plan (IDP) for assessing and planning employee training. This IDP is cooperatively developed between you and your supervisor to forecast, identify, and schedule individual training and development opportunities to meet mission, organizational, and individual requirements. Once you and your have developed a IDP, your training courses for the year can be scheduled.
Is training mandatory/required?
There is some mandatory training for all Federal employees such as computer security training required by 5 CFR 930.301-305 (1997), ethics training required by 5 CFR 2638.703(b), and executive, managerial, and supervisory training as required by 5 CFR 412 (1997). Agencies also have the authority to mandate additional training for employees.
What employees may receive training (permanent/temporary/contract)?
Any government employee (permanent/temporary/contract) may receive Government-funded training. Several factors to consider are: (a) employee's need for training to resolve performance problems or prepare for a new assignment requiring different skills; (b) the extent to which the employee's knowledge and skill will be improved; (c) the organization's need for new skills and the length of time it will benefit from the employee's training; (d) the employee's previous training, and (e) the funds available to train all employees.
How do I determine what training is right for me?
To determine what training is appropriate you, your supervisor, and an employee development specialist should prepare a training needs assessment. This assessment should be tied to the GPRA and the strategic plans of your agency/bureau. Your training needs should be assessed within the context of the organization's strategic goals to ensure competent performance. Your supervisor and the employee development specialist will help you choose courses and plan assignments to help you strengthen and advance your skills to meet organizational and individual goals and requirements.
Does a training request have to be approved prior to the start of the training?
Yes. Like other assignments and procurements, training must be approved in advance. Approval is necessary to authorize the training as a legal activity; designate training as a work assignment; documents costs to be shared by agency and employee; obligate funds for the training purchase or procure training; and document a continued service agreement (if applicable).
Can my normal working hours be adjusted so that I may take course at my own expense?
Yes. Supervisors may adjust an employee's normal working hours so the employee can take courses not sponsored by the agency if additional costs to the agency will not be incurred; completion of the course will better equip the employee for work in the agency; and there will not be appreciable disruption of work. In addition, if the course is related to official duties, the employee may pay for the course and the supervisor may assign the employee to training during regular duty hours.
Can I receive training leading to a promotion?
It depends. An employee may receive training that directly leads to a promotion only if the employee is selected competitively before the training begins under the merit promotion program and according to merit systems principles.
If I am a newly hired employee, can I be given training through non-government facilities?
Yes. Supervisors can secure training for any of their employees, regardless of tenure, from the best source, Government or non-Government.
Is it required that training be applicable to my current position?
No, the purpose of training is to improve an employee's performance of his/her official duties, or in his/her anticipated official duties. An agency can train employees to prepare them for anticipated future assignments or to accomplish special agency initiatives. When employees are affected by reduction-in-force, restructuring or re-engineering, the training provided must be related to the knowledge and skills required by the employees' current positions or to prepare them for anticipated duties in a different occupation in Interior, another Government agency, or the private sector.
Can The Department of the Interior pay for my college degree?
The government can pay only for courses leading to a degree for a shortage category occupation where the agency has authority to pay recruitment or retention bonuses. The selection of employees for academic degree programs must be done competitively and according to merit system principles. However, the government may pay for one or more college courses to improve an employee's performance in his or her assigned duties.
Can college classes be taken on official duty time?
Yes. An employee assigned to training, including college classes, during normal duties is considered on duty for the period of the training, and no charge is made to leave. Even when the employee pays for the training, no charge is made to leave if the training is authorized to meet a performance improvement need.
What training expenses are appropriate for the Department of Interior to pay?
Each bureau and office may pay or reimburse an employee, fully or partially, for the expenses of approved training. Among the costs you may consider paying are the following: tuition and matriculation costs; fees and services (e.g., library and laboratory fees, books, supplies, and memberships if required for enrollment); travel and per diem.
Can the Department of the Interior pay for correspondence course or Internet training?
Yes. An agency may pay for any planned and coordinated course of instruction when the program will improve individual performance. So correspondence courses and Internet training are treated the same as any other type of training that the agency feels is necessary and beneficial.
It depends. If the agency pays tuition for training related to the employee's current occupation, the tuition is not considered income. If an employee is in the unusual situation in which Government training qualifies him or her for another occupation, the cost of that training may be considered income for tax purposes. Agencies report to the IRS as employee income any fees paid to an employee for per diem, travel, or transportation in connection with full-time training of more than 12 months duration.
What happens if I don't complete a training class?
Training law requires agencies to have ways to recoup costs should an employee fail to attend, or unsatisfactorily complete, assigned training paid for with Government funds. Agencies may have waiver procedures that apply to unusual circumstances.
Am I entitled to overtime pay?
Generally, training law prohibits paying overtime to employees. A few exceptions apply, such as training at night for events that only occur at night or when it will save the agency money to pay overtime. Fair Labor Standards Act regulations require that nonexempt employees be paid overtime when assigned to training that extends beyond an employee's regular tour of duty. (This does not apply to trainees or apprentices.)
Am I entitled to receive overtime pay for traveling outside normal working hours to or from a place of training which is different from the employee's regular work station?
Yes. An employee who is nonexempt from the Fair Labor Standards Act is paid overtime for travel that occurs outside the employee's regular tour of duty, including traveling to training held at a place different from the employee's duty station. However, employees who are exempt from the Fair Labor Standards Act are not paid overtime for travel outside their regular duty hours.
- At other than my normal work location?
It depends. An agency may pay or reimburse an employee for such expenses, but it is not required to by law or regulation. An employee may get a mileage allowance only if traveling on approved travel orders. The employee may be reimbursed parking fees if the training authorization or travel order specifies coverage of parking fees or if agency procedures provide for reimbursement for local travel.
- At my normal work location during regular working hours?
No. Expenses for traveling to and from work and for parking are personal expenses, even when the employee is assigned to training and not to regular duties.
Yes. In addition to other career transition assistance services, bureaus and offices can train employees to prepare them for anticipated future assignments. When employees are affected by reduction-in-force, restructuring or re-engineering, the training provided must be related to the knowledge and skills required by the employees' current positions or to prepare them for anticipated duties in a different occupation in Interior, another Government agency, or the private sector.
What can I do if I feel that I have been unjustly denied permission to attend training?
Employees who feel that they have been unjustly denied permission to attend training may use the agency's grievance procedures. A grievance is a request for personal relief (or reconsideration) about something under management control, including assignments to training. Employees may use the agency's procedures if the matter cannot be resolved at the supervisory level. Typically, employees may choose one of two grievance systems -- the one provided by the union (if available) or the one provided by the agency.
Internet websites providing helpful training and development and career management information include:
http://www.doi.gov/hrm/pmanager/develope.html - Department of the Interior, Personnel Manager, Employee Development Section;
http://www.doi.gov/training/doitrain.html - The Departmental National Business Center, DOI University website provides internal training opportunities and links to other related websites; and
http://www.alx.org - America's Learning eXchange (ALX) is a one-stop electronic marketspace for lifelong learning resources which provides access to everything from traditional classroom-based courses to internet-based training. It is a product of a public/private partnership among the U.S. Department of Labor, the American Association of Community Colleges, the Council for Excellence in Government, a consortium of 15 States, the American Society for Training and Development, and PBS Adult Learning Services.
