This subpart implements section 1203 of the Panama Canal Act of 1979, which provides for the detail or transfer of Federal employees to the Panama Canal Commission with reemployment rights in the former agency.

In this subpart—

Act means the Panama Canal Act of 1979 (22 U.S.C. 3601 et seq.).

Agency means an Executive agency, the United States Postal Service, and the Smithsonian Institution.

Commission means the Panama Canal Commission as established by section 1101 of the Act.

Competitive area is defined in § 351.402 of part 351 of this chapter.

Competitive level is defined in § 351.403(a) of part 351 of this chapter.

Detail is the assignment of loan of an employee to the Commission without the employee's transfer. The employee remains an employee of the agency in which employed and continues to be the incumbent of the position from which detailed.

Term of employment means the period of employment specified in the written agreement between the Commission and the agency for the transfer of an employee or extension of transfer.

Transfer means the change in appointment of an employee from an agency to a new appointment with the Commission.

(a) Authority to approve. The head of an agency may enter into written agreements with the Commission for the detail or voluntary transfer, for set periods of time, of agency employees to the Commission in accordance with section 3643 of title 22, United States Code, and this subpart. Refusal by the head of the agency to agree to a detail or transfer, or extension of detail or transfer, is not reviewable by the Office of Personnel Management or appealable.

(b) Employee notice. The agency will furnish the employee with a copy of the written agreement which must contain a statement of the time limits for exercising reemployment rights and the conditions of reemployment.

This subpart covers only eligible employees transferred or detailed to Commission positions with duty stations in the Republic of Panama.

(a) Employees eligible. Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section, an employee serving in a position in an agency under any of the following appointments may be granted rights under this subpart:

(1) Career or career-conditional appointment in the competitive service;

(2) An appointment without a specific time limit in the excepted service; or

(3) A career appointment in the Senior Executive Service.

(b) Employee not eligible. The following employees are not eligible under this subpart:

(1) An employee who is serving a trial period or probationary period under an initial appointment;

(2) An employee who has received a proposed notice of involuntary separation (e.g., separation based on reduction in force, adverse action, or performance);

(3) An employee who is serving in a position excepted from the competitive service under Schedule C of part 213 of this chapter, or under Presedential appointment; or

(4) An employee whose resignation has been accepted for reasons other than to accept employment with the Commission.

(a) An employee detailed to the Commission is subject to the same conditions of employment at his or her employing agency as if the employee has not been detailed.

(b) The Commission and the employing agency will arrange for the termination of a detail and the agency will return the employee to his or her former position or an equivalent one as provided in § 352.908 (b) and (c).

At the conclusion of a term of employment agreed upon as provided in § 352.903, employment with the Commission may be terminated without regard to parts 351, 359, 432, 752, or 771 of this chapter.

(a) Exercise. An individual who has been transferred under this subpart to the Commission and wishes to be reemployed must apply in writing to the former employing agency. The time limits for application for reemployment are—

(1) No later than 30 calendar days after the expiration of the term of employment with the Commission;

(2) No later than 30 calendar days after receipt of notice of involuntary separation during the term of employment with the Commission; or

(3) No later than 30 calendar days after resignation with the consent of the Commission.

(b) Termination. Reemployment rights terminate if the individual—

(1) Fails to apply within the time limits stated in paragraph (a) of this section;

(2) Resigns without the written consent of the Commission; or

(3) Within 10 calendar days, fails to accept an offer of reemployment made under § 352.908 that is determined to be a proper offer of reemployment by the reemploying agency or by the Merit Systems Protection Board on appeal.

(a) Time limits. An employee is to be reemployed by the reemploying agency as promptly as possible, but not later than 30 calendar days after receipt of the reemployment application or on termination of the term of employment with the Commission, whichever is later.

(b) Conditions. An employee will be reemployed or returned from detail without loss of pay, seniority, or other rights or benefits to which the employee would have been entitled had he or she not been transferred or detailed. An employee in the Senior Executive Service will be reemployed or returned at not less than the rate at which paid immediately before the transfer or detail. An employee who is reemployed is not eligible for grade or pay retention under part 536 of this chapter based on a grade or rate of pay attained while employed by the Commission.

(c) Position to which entitled. (1) If the function with which the employee's former position was identified has been transferred, the employee's right is to a position in the gaining agency or activity.

(2) An employee whose right is to a position in the Senior Executive Service may be reemployed in or returned to any Senior Executive Service position in the former agency for which qualified.

(3) All other employees are entitled to be reemployed in or returned to a position at the same grade or level and in the same competitive area as the position last held in the former agency. If the reemployment would cause the separation or demotion of another employee, the applicant should be considered an employee for the purpose of applying the reduction-in-force regulations to determine to what, if any, position the employee is entitled. If the employee is not placed at the former grade or level, the agency must extend consideration beyond the competitive area. Responsibility for reemployment is agencywide.

(4) Reemployment may be at a higher grade than that to which the employee is entitled if all appropriate standards and requirements are satisfied and if this will not cause the displacement of another employee.

(5) The reemployment obligation may be satisfied by placement in any position within the agency that is acceptable to the employee.

(d) Agency refusal to reemploy. An agency may refuse to reemploy under this section only when the employee was separated from the Commission for serious cause showing unsuitability for reemployment.

(a) If an agency denies reemployment to an applicant who claims reemployment rights under this subpart, the agency must notify the applicant in writing of that denial and its reasons. In the same notice, the agency will inform the applicant of the right to appeal to the Merit Systems Protection Board under the provisions of the Board's regulations. The agency must comply with the provisions of § 1201.21 of this title.

(b)(1) When an agency has reemployed or returned an employee, it will advise the employee of the right of appeal if he or she considers the reemployment or return not to be in accordance with the Act and this subpart.

(2) An employee in a bargaining unit covered by a negotiated grievance procedure that does not exclude this matter must use the negotiated grievance procedure.

(3) An employee to whom paragraph (b)(2) of this section does not apply is entitled to appeal to the Merit Systems Protection Board under the provisions of the Board's regulations. The agency must comply with the provisions of § 1201.21 of this title.