BONNEVILLE POWER ADMINISTRATION

**HUMAN CAPITAL MANAGEMENT**

**Portland, Oregon**

PERSONNEL LETTER NO. 335-3 DATE: January 2007

**SUBJECT:** Time-Limited Promotions for Competitive General Schedule
(GS) Positions.

# PURPOSE: {#purpose .unnumbered}

This personnel letter:

-   Establishes Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) policy regarding
    the use of time-limited promotions, or "temporary promotions," in
    the competitive service for GS positions.

-   Clarifies BPA's past practice that an employee selected for a
    time-limited promotion will be returned to his or her former
    position of record (or a position of equivalent grade and pay) upon
    separation from service (see Section II. F.).

-   Covers all annual positions in the competitive service. All
    time-limited promotions in excess of 120 days will be filled in
    accordance with BPA's Merit Promotion Plan, PL 335-1.

-   Supersedes PL No. 335-3 (Rev), Time-Limited Promotions for
    Competitive General Schedule (GS) Positions, dated September 12,
    2003.

**POLICY SUMMARY**:

> BPA uses time-limited promotions for a variety of reasons to
> accomplish its strategic business objectives. Managers have the
> authority to determine the situations that require time-limited
> promotions and to determine the length of time for the time-limited
> promotion, up to five years. At the end of the specified time,
> employees return to their former position of record or to one similar
> in pay and grade.

I.  **DEFINITION**

> [Time-Limited Promotion]{.underline} is a promotion to a classified
> position to meet a specific management need of a short-term nature
> with a not-to-exceed date.

II. **COVERAGE**:

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A.  Time-limited promotions are used

-   To fill temporary positions,

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-   To accomplish project work,

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-   To fill positions temporarily pending planned future reorganization
    and/or downsizing, or

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-   For any legitimate temporary business need for a specific period of
    not more than five years unless the Office of Personnel Management
    (OPM) authorizes BPA to make and/or extend a time-limited promotion
    for a longer period.

B.  Time-limited promotions will [not]{.underline} be used unless the
    time spent in the higher-graded position exceeds 30 days, with the
    exception of employees covered under paragraph F. and G. below.

C.  Managers have the authority to determine the situations that require

> time-limited promotions and to determine the length of time for the
> time-limited promotion, up to five years.

D.  When an employee is selected for a time-limited promotion, the
    vacancy resulting from the promotion must be filled on a
    time-limited basis unless there is a written agreement that the
    promoted (?) employee will be placed in an established or planned
    position at the end of the time-limited promotion.

E.  An employee selected for a time-limited promotion is entitled to be
    returned to his or her former position or one similar in grade and
    pay.

F.  If an employee is serving on a time-limited promotion and is
    separated, the employee will be returned to his or her former
    (lower-graded) position of record (or position of equivalent grade
    and pay) upon separation. Unless management terminates the
    time-limited promotion before the separation date, the effective
    date of the change to lower grade will be the same date as the date
    of separation. In both cases this would result in any lump-sum
    annual leave payment being based on the rate of basic pay for the
    official (lower-graded) position of record.

G.  For professional positions, in accordance with the Professional
    Division of Laborer's International Union agreement, BPA will
    temporarily promote a professional employee who is, or was, assigned
    to a higher-graded bargaining unit position for 21 calendar days or
    more provided that the employee meets the qualifications and
    time-in-grade requirements and is assigned the full range of the
    duties and responsibilities of the higher-graded position. The
    effective date of the time**-**limited promotion will be the first
    full day that the employee serves in the higher-graded position.
    Time-limited promotions will not be made when the period of service
    in the higher-graded position is less than 21 calendar days.

H.  Employees [may]{.underline} be promoted to System Protection and
    Control and to Power System Control District Engineer positions for
    a minimum of 14 calendar days beginning with the first full day of
    the District Engineer's absence.

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III. **EMPLOYEE NOTICE**

> Vacancy Announcements for time-limited promotions must include

-   The time limit of the promotion;

-   The reason for a time limit;

-   The requirement for competition for promotion in excess of 120 days,
    where applicable;

-   A statement that the employee may be returned at any time to the
    position from which temporarily promoted or to a different position
    of equivalent grade and pay;

-   A statement that an employee will be returned to his/her position of
    record (or position of equivalent grade and pay) when separated from
    service;

-   The requirement, if applicable, for completion of a managerial or
    supervisory probationary period; and,

-   A statement that, if the employee returns to his/her former position
    or a position of equivalent grade and pay prior to completing the
    temporary promotion, the employee is not subject to the procedural,
    appeal, or grievance rights in 5 CFR Parts 351, Reduction in Force,
    432, Performance Based Reduction In Grade and Removal Actions, 752,
    Adverse Actions, or 771, Agency Administrative Grievance System.

IV. **TIME LIMIT**

> The five-year time limit applies to the total continuous time an
> employee is promoted to a time-limited position without new
> competition. If an employee later competes for and is selected for a
> second time-limited promotion (either at the same or a higher grade),
> the five-year period starts running anew with the second time-limited
> promotion. However, if an employee is noncompetitively promoted for
> 120 days and the promotion is extended after the employee competes for
> the position, the first 120 days counts toward the five-year limit.

**PROBATION REQUIREMENT**

> If applicable, employees selected for time-limited promotion will
> serve the required probationary period for managers and supervisors.

**IX. WITHIN-GRADE ELIGIBILITY**

> When an employee returns from a time-limited promotion to his or her
> former position, or to a position at equivalent grade and pay, he/she
> is eligible for any within-grade increases that would have accrued had
> the employee not received the time-limited promotion.

X.  **QUALITY STEP INCREASE**

> An employee who is on a time-limited promotion is not permitted to
> receive a quality step increase (QSI). For other QSI eligibility
> requirements, see Personnel Letter No. 531/451.

XI. **CONVERSION OF TIME-LIMITED PROMOTION TO PERMANENT PROMOTION**

> A time-limited promotion may be made permanent without further
> competition provided the time-limited promotion action was made under
> competitive procedures and the fact that it might lead to a permanent
> promotion was made known to all potential candidates at the time the
> time-limited position was advertised.

# REFERENCES

A.  5 CFR, Part 330, Recruitment, Selection, and Placement (General)

B.  5 CFR, Part 335, Promotion and Internal Placement

C.  The conditions identified in this issuance are in regulatory
    compliance with all of the references listed in BPA Manual Chapter
    400/300A, Employment

D.  BPA Manual Chapter 400/500A, Compensation, Position, and
    Organizational Management

E.  Collective Bargaining Agreement Between the Administrator BPA and
    the Professional Division Laborers' International Union, Local 335
    (PDL)

Mary Zeiher,

Acting Chief Human Capital Officer