Work from Home (WFH) should not be treated as Paid Leave for Govt Employees

Guidelines on Work From Home (WFH) for Central Government Employees and Officers

No.CDN/MF-CGA/Misc./255/2020
Ministry of Finance,
Department of Expenditure
Office of the Controller General of Accounts

Mahalekha Niyantrak Bhawan
Dated 31st March 2020

Office Memorandum

Subject: Guidelines for Work From Home (WFH)

In the backdrop of the complete Lockdown announced by the Government as part of preventive measures to contain the spread of COVID-19, reference is invited to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) order WNo.40-3/2020DM-I(A) Dated 24.3.2020 and addendum No.40-3/2020-DM-I(A) Dated 25.3.2020 wherein inter alia Pay and Account Offices, and field offices of the Controller General of Accounts with bare minimum staff are exempted from lockdown.

2. Further, with reference to DOPT O.M. No.F.No.11013/9/2014-Estt (A-IIT) Dated 25.3.2020 for the instructions for the offices declared as essential in the above context, regarding working with skeletal staff and Work From Home (WFH) for rest of the staff, the following is advised:

it is to be ensured that Work from Home (WFH) should not be treated as paid leave.
Instructions may be issued to all the officials working from home to be available on phone or through mail.

3. The following protocol may also be observed to ensure productivity of staff and officers who are working from home:

Web VPN connection facility may be obtained from NIC for smooth Functioning of e-Office from home.
Directory or contact list of the concerned officials with telephone numbers and email id may be circulated for effective communications.
Every working day, by 10 AM, each officer on WH Shall fix targets / specific work for their immediate subordinate to be achieved on the day. This shall be sent through eoffice/email (not by phone). The recipient of this e-file/ mail shall further allocate work to his/her subordinate (and so on}. This correspondence shall be available on eoffice/email.
On the receipt of the work so allotted, each employee shall acknowledge to the reporting officer the receipt of work using eoffice/email. This communication shall be received by 10:30 AM.
Every employee shall be available for telephonic consultation during office hours and phone shall be answered all the time.
In case of any issue that needs consultation; officers can set up remote-meeting (RM) either through the phone or through a WhatsApp Video Call (VC). The notice for such remote-meeting shall preferably be communicated at least one hour in advance. Everyone who is called for VC shall necessarily attend
Every employee on WFH shall dispose of all the receipts and files in their eoffice/email by 5.30 PM each day. This shall be monitored by the reporting officer by a daily report showing unattended receipts/files.

4. These orders shall also apply to the consulting or outsourced manpower in PFMS or any other vertical in O/o CGA.

5. The hierarchy of reporting of the government employees is well-defined. However, for the consulting/outsourced manpower in O/o CGA the same may be defined as in the line of Govt. employee. The heads of respective verticals may prepare the same and issue thereafter as an addendum to this order.

This issue with the approval of Controller General of Accounts.

sd/-
(U S Negi)
Sr. Accounts Officer ( CDN)

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