|
Home > About USPS & News > Forms & Publications > Postal Periodicals and Publications > Manuals > Employee and Labor Relations Manual - Issue 18 > 4 Pay Administration > 470 Recognition and Awards
470 Recognition and Awards
471 Overview
The Recognition and Awards Program is intended to recognize employees
who have achieved outstanding performance, have superior competence, or
have performed some other significant accomplishment. The program is not
intended to provide incentives to employees to meet predetermined goals.
The program has been broadly designed to ensure that the recognition and
award needs of all organizations and functional areas are met and provides
awards ranging from a letter of appreciation to $10,000 in cash.
Recognition falls into five broad categories: (a) Certificates of Appreciation;
(b) Service Awards, for which noncash recognition items, such as Service
Award Pins, Service Award Certificates, and the Benjamin Franklin Award
plaque are awarded; (c) Informal Awards, for which noncash gift items valued
at less than $50 are awarded; (d) Formal Awards, for which cash and
cash-equivalent items valued at up to $3,000 are awarded; and (e) Special
Awards, including Team Awards, Vice President Awards, and Postmaster
General Awards, for which cash and cash equivalent items up to $10,000 are
awarded.
A summary description of service recognition and incentive awards is
contained in Exhibit 471.1.
Exhibit 471.1
Service Recognition and Incentive Awards
|
Award Category
|
ELM
Reference
|
Employees
Eligible
|
Others Eligible
|
Award Description
|
|
Certificate of Appreciation
|
472
|
All
|
Contractors and
customers
|
Noncash recognition
|
|
Service Award
|
Service Award Pin
|
473.2
|
Career
|
blank |
Noncash recognition
|
|
Service Award
Certificate
|
473.3
|
Career
|
blank |
Noncash recognition
|
|
Ben Franklin Award
|
473.4
|
Career
|
blank |
Noncash recognition
|
|
Informal Award
|
474
|
All
|
Contractors
|
Noncash
Gift Item
less than $50
|
|
Formal Award
|
Spot Award
|
475.2
|
Career
|
blank |
Cash or
Cash Equivalent
from $50 to $3,000
|
|
Quality Step Increase
|
475.3
|
Career
bargaining unit
on step schedule
|
blank |
Change in Base Pay
|
|
Special Award
|
Team Award
|
476.2
|
Career
|
blank |
Cash or
Cash Equivalent
from $50 to $2,000
|
|
Vice President Award
|
476.3
|
Career
|
blank |
Cash
up to $5,000
|
|
Postmaster General
Award
|
476.4
|
Career
|
blank |
Cash
up to $10,000
|
471.2 Management Control
Postal managers must use appropriate review and control procedures to
identify individual performance, programs, or operational areas of superior
work. Managers must ensure that related actions, such as performance
evaluations, are fully considered to maintain compatibility between awards
and other relevant factors. It is the responsibility of all levels of management
to ensure that all employees are treated fairly and equitably and to provide a
workplace environment characterized by recognition and celebration of
business success. Vice presidents, district managers, senior and lead plant
managers, and the Headquarters vice president of Employee Resource
Management periodically audit the awards process.
471.31 Noncash
Noncash awards include the following:
a. Recognition items, such as pins, certificates, and plaques.
b. Gift items, such as mugs, clothing, event tickets, and gift certificates
redeemable only for merchandise.
The market value of noncash awards should be less than $50.
471.32 Cash and Cash Equivalent
Cash awards are issued in the form of checks by the Eagan Accounting
Service Center (ASC). Cash equivalent awards are issued in the form of a
"gift check" or similar item that can be immediately converted to cash.
All cash awards and cash equivalent awards, regardless of value, are
considered ordinary income and are subject to income tax withholding and
involuntary deductions.
The award budget for an organization to cover informal noncash and formal
cash and cash equivalent awards should be equal to at least 1/2 percent of
aggregate salaries paid and should not exceed 1 percent of the aggregate
salaries paid at the beginning of the fiscal year.
471.5 Privacy Act Considerations
Award records contain personal information; therefore, such records must be
handled and disclosed only as stipulated in the Privacy Act and implementing
instructions (see Handbook AS-353, Guide to Privacy and the Freedom of
Information Act). Records of cash awards received by employees are
maintained in the privacy system USPS 120.070, Personnel Records -
General Personnel Folder (Official Personnel Folders and Records Related
Thereto). Records of achievement awards are maintained in USPS 120.100,
Personnel Records - Performance Awards System Records.
471.6 Presentation Ceremonies
Whenever possible, installation heads should (a) coordinate publicity with
public information personnel and (b) provide an appropriate ceremony for
each award in the presence of the employee's managers and co-workers.
471.7 Documenting Awards
Awards are documented by a permanent record filed in the recipient's official
personnel folder.
|
