Federal Agencies Must Grant U.S. Employees Administrative Time Off When Receiving COVID-19 Vaccines

The U.S. Safer Federal Workforce Task Force announced new guidance regarding mandatory COVID-19 vaccinations for federal employees. To promote the safety of the Federal workforce and the public they serve, agencies must grant leave-eligible employees up to four hours of administrative leave to receive any authorized COVID-19 vaccine booster shot.

Similarly, agencies must grant leave-eligible employees up to four hours of administrative leave to receive any authorized additional dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.

The administrative leave will cover the time it takes to travel to the vaccination site, receive the vaccination dose, and return to work.

Because there is currently no requirement for Federal employees to receive a vaccine booster shot or additional dose, granting duty time is not allowable in these instances.

In the case of booster shots, this policy may be applied retroactively to the time when authorized booster shots became available (i.e., no earlier than September 22, 2021, when the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) amended the emergency use authorization for the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine to allow for the use of a single booster dose).

In the case of additional doses, this policy may be applied retroactively to the time when authorized extra doses became available (i.e., no earlier than August 12, 2021, when the FDA amended the emergency use authorization for the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines to allow for the use of an additional dose in specific immunocompromised individuals).

For more information on booster shots, go to the CDC web page on COVID-19 vaccine booster shots.

For more information on additional doses, go to the CDC web page on immunocompromised patients & the COVID-19 vaccine.