[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 25 (Tuesday, February 7, 2023)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 7833-7835]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-02670]


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  Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 25 / Tuesday, February 7, 2023 / 
Presidential Documents  

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 Title 3--
 The President

[[Page 7833]]

                Memorandum of February 2, 2023

                
Supporting Access to Leave for Federal Employees

                Memorandum for the Heads of Executive Departments and 
                Agencies

                By the authority vested in me as President by the 
                Constitution and the laws of the United States of 
                America, and in order to strengthen the Federal 
                Government as a model ``employer, it is hereby ordered 
                as follows:

                Section 1. Policy. Workers must have access to paid 
                leave when they face a medical or caregiving need that 
                affects their ability to work. Yet, the United States 
                is one of the few countries in the world that does not 
                guarantee paid leave--and 92 percent of the Nation's 
                lowest wage workers, who are disproportionately women 
                and workers of color, lack access to paid family leave 
                through their employer. Lack of access to paid family 
                and medical leave can risk the health, well-being, and 
                economic security of workers and their families. Paid 
                leave policies benefit both employees and employers and 
                will strengthen our economy as a whole. That is why my 
                Administration supports a national, comprehensive paid 
                family and medical leave program that will ensure that 
                workers have access to paid leave to bond with a new 
                child; care for a seriously ill loved one; deal with a 
                loved one's military deployment; heal from the worker's 
                own serious illness; grieve the death of a loved one; 
                or seek safety and recover from domestic violence, 
                dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking. In 
                addition to recognizing the importance of access to 
                paid leave, my Administration acknowledges that unpaid 
                leave can serve as a critical stopgap, allowing 
                individuals to maintain their employment while 
                attending to family or medical needs.

                As the Nation's largest employer, the Federal 
                Government must be a model for providing leave 
                policies, both paid and unpaid, that allow employees 
                time away from work to care for themselves or a loved 
                one. Being a model employer includes updating our 
                workplace policies and practices to reflect the 
                emerging needs of our workforce today and tomorrow. It 
                also requires recognizing an employee's important 
                caregiving relationships with family members, including 
                extended family and other individuals with equivalent 
                relationships. In addition, Federal employees need 
                access to extended family and medical leave, 
                particularly during their first year of Federal service 
                when they may not have accrued sufficient leave and are 
                not yet eligible for leave under the Family and Medical 
                Leave Act of 1993. By supporting Federal employees' 
                access to leave throughout their service, the Federal 
                Government will strengthen its ability to recruit, 
                hire, develop, promote, and retain our Nation's talent 
                and address barriers to equal opportunity, especially 
                with respect to women's participation in the Federal 
                workforce.

                Sec. 2. Supporting Federal Employees' Access to Leave 
                Without Pay. (a) In furtherance of the policy set forth 
                in section 1 of this memorandum, the heads of executive 
                departments and agencies (agencies) are encouraged to 
                consider providing leave without pay for Federal 
                employees, as appropriate and consistent with 
                applicable law, including in the following 
                circumstances:

(i) to bond with a new child, to care for a family member with a serious 
health condition, to address an employee's own serious health condition, or 
to help manage family affairs when a family member is called to active 
duty, including during an employee's first year of service; and

(ii) bereavement after the death of a family member, including during an 
employee's first year of service.

[[Page 7834]]

                    (b) The Director of the Office of Personnel 
                Management (OPM) and the Director of the Office of 
                Management and Budget, through the Deputy Director for 
                Management, shall support agencies in carrying out 
                subsection (a) of this section.
                    (c) Agency heads, or their designees, shall inform 
                the President, through the Assistant to the President 
                and Director of the White House Gender Policy Council, 
                on progress towards implementation of this memorandum 
                within 1 year of its issuance.

                Sec. 3. Supporting Federal Employees' Access to Paid 
                and Unpaid Leave to Seek Safety and Recover from 
                Domestic Violence, Dating Violence, Sexual Assault, or 
                Stalking. Consistent with applicable law, the Director 
                of OPM shall provide recommendations to the President, 
                through the Assistant to the President and Director of 
                the White House Gender Policy Council, within 180 days 
                of the date of this memorandum, regarding actions OPM 
                and agencies may take to support Federal employees' 
                access to paid leave, such as sick leave, or leave 
                without pay, for purposes related to seeking safety and 
                recovering from domestic violence, dating violence, 
                sexual assault, or stalking--including, for example, 
                obtaining medical treatment (inclusive of mental health 
                treatment), pursuing assistance from organizations that 
                provide services to survivors, seeking relocation, or 
                taking related legal action, as well as assisting a 
                family member in engaging in any of these activities.

                Sec. 4. General Provisions. (a) Nothing in this 
                memorandum shall be construed to impair or otherwise 
                affect:

(i) the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or 
the head thereof; or

(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget 
relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.

                    (b) This memorandum shall be implemented consistent 
                with applicable law and subject to the availability of 
                appropriations.
                    (c) This memorandum is not intended to, and does 
                not, create any right or benefit, substantive or 
                procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any 
                party against the United States, its departments, 
                agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or 
                agents, or any other person.

[[Page 7835]]

                    (d) The Director of OPM is authorized and directed 
                to publish this memorandum in the Federal Register.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

                THE WHITE HOUSE,

                    Washington, February 2, 2023

[FR Doc. 2023-02670
Filed 2-6-23; 8:45 am]
Billing code 6325-39-P