11/12/09: The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has proposed to change its regulations in two different contexts to explicitly acknowledge the diverse nature of the federal workforce by, among other things, extending benefits to the same-sex domestic partners of federal employees. NTEU has filed comments endorsing that move (for example, see the attached Letter to Jerome Mikowicz on Leave Entitlement).

One of the regulations deals with who is eligible to apply for coverage under a long term care insurance plan. By statute, employees and “qualified relatives” are eligible to apply. OPM proposes to expand the definition of “qualified relatives” to include same-sex domestic partners. NTEU supports this change, as it will enhance workforce equity and help make the federal government competitive as a prospective employer.

The other regulation addresses the definition of “family member” and “immediate relative” in the context of regulations covering such matters as sick leave and family leave. Currently, an employee is entitled to take sick leave to care for a “family member” and to take funeral leave in connection with the funeral or memorial service of an “immediate relative.” Both of those terms are already defined broadly to include individuals who have a close association with the employee akin to a family relationship. OPM proposes to add additional examples to make explicit its intent that the terms be defined expansively. It proposes to list grandchildren, grandparents, step-relatives, legal guardians, legal wards, and those who stand “in loco parentis” to the employee. In addition, OPM proposes to include same-sex domestic partners, as well as the parents and the children of the domestic partners. The regulations do not require any documentation or attestation about the nature of the relationship.

NTEU supports this proposal, which recognizes the needs of blended and other nontraditional family relationships. In addition, by making explicit what had previously been unstated, the regulation will bring a necessary consistency to agencies’ interpretation and application of the regulations. An employee’s ability to take leave to care for someone the employee considers a family member or to attend that person’s funeral should not depend on agency policy or the whim of a supervisor.

We will will provide a further update when OPM issues its final regulations.