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USDA: The Big Three, part 12

April 1, 2022

USDA seal (new 2022)

Here is the next installment of the “Big Three” questions we are hearing from you. On Fridays, USDA will share the CDC’s COVID-19 community levels to guide masking protocols for the following week. 

The CDC COVID community levels and masking protocols for the week of Sunday, April 3 through Saturday, April 9, are here. The USDA COVID-19 Workplace Safety Plan has been updated and can be found here.

As always, please continue to check our FAQs and the USDA Workplace Safety Plan, which are updated frequently, and reach out to futureofwork@usda.gov for any questions not already addressed.

Sincerely,

The Future of Work Taskforce

1. Now that USDA has started the next phase of its return to the physical workplace, is travel still limited to mission critical travel only?

Travel restrictions have been lifted for domestic travel to counties within the United States and its territories with a LOW or MEDIUM COVID-19 community level. However, only mission critical travel is permissible to counties with a HIGH COVID-19 community level in order to protect employee health and safety. Managers must assess whether travel to a county with a HIGH COVID-19 community level meets the mission critical requirements. Mission critical refers to activities necessary for the ongoing operation of the department and its programs which cannot be performed remotely. 

In counties where the COVID-19 community level is HIGH, any meeting, conference or event that is attended by more than 50 in-person participants requires approval by the agency head, in consultation with USDA’s COVID Safety Team. This approval process only applies for agency hosted events and includes both indoor and outdoor events. Any meeting, conference or event can be submitted for approval to sradvisorcovid@usda.gov.

In-person attendees at any meeting, conference or event hosted by USDA in a county with a HIGH COVID-19 Community Level must wear a mask in public indoor settings regardless of vaccination status. 

2. Are USDA facilities still limited to 25% occupancy?

No, the 25% occupancy limit has been lifted and is no longer in effect. However, agencies may establish occupancy limits for specific workspaces or workplaces as a means of ensuring physical distancing.

3. How can I reserve a meeting space in USDA headquarters? (This is intended for USDA Employees working in the National Capitol Region only)

Archibus Workplace is a web-based self-service tool that will coordinate reservations for over 100 conference rooms and meeting spaces throughout the USDA Headquarters facilities (Whitten Building and South Building) and George Washington Carver Center. Archibus Workplace is designed for use on desktop computers, laptops, tablets and phones that are connected to the USDA network. To access Archibus Workplace for reservations, please visit: 

https://archibus.usda.gov/archibus/workplace/

For an overview of the new system please use the links below.

In the near future, employees will be able to access the conference room reservation system and make reservation using the Outlook Calendar from their desktop. Additional hoteling, touch down and huddle rooms for small group meetings will be available soon as we add new features to Archibus Workplace. These features will accommodate our remote and teleworkers for temporary workspace at the office. If you have any questions, please contact the Office of Operations Customer Service Center at 202-690-7777.

The Big Three: Part 11

To the extent this policy may constitute a change in a condition of employment for bargaining unit employees, agencies/offices will implement it in accordance with the terms of their current labor agreement and 5 U.S.C. Chapter 71. If you are a bargaining unit employee and have questions regarding the content of this message and its potential impact on a current labor agreement, please refer them to your local union representative.

 

https://www.fs.usda.gov/inside-fs/mail-call/usda-big-three-part-12