Policy on Policies
1. Purpose
This Policy establishes the requirements and standard approach for proposing, developing, reviewing, approving, and communicating new and revised lab-wide policies, procedures, guidance, and manuals. It also provides certain requirements for policies, procedures, guidance, and manuals that are limited in scope to employees, affiliates, and users working within a specific Division, Office, or Project.
2. Scope
This Policy applies to all lab-wide policies, procedures, guidance, and manuals. A lab-wide policy, procedure, guidance, or manual is one that also applies to employees, affiliates, or users outside of the organization that owns the policy, procedure, guidance, or manual. This Policy also applies to Division/Office/Project-specific policies, procedures, guidance, and manuals where specified.
3. Applicability
This Policy applies to Fermi Research Alliance, LLC and all its employees, affiliates, and users.
4. Effective Date and Date Reviewed/Updated
This Policy went into effect on October 10, 2016, and its most recent update was effective on May 31, 2023.
5. Policy
a. Lab-wide policies are guiding principles that set out management’s expectations for governing the laboratory.
b. Policies, procedures, manuals, and guidance ensure successful, safe, and secure execution of the mission in a manner which meets all legal, regulatory, and Prime Contract requirements.
c. All lab-wide policies must be reviewed and approved by the Policies Oversight Board before they are issued. The Policy Oversight Board also establishes processes that govern lab-wide policies, guidance, and manuals. The Policy Oversight Board processes include:
- A central location for all lab-wide policies, procedures, guidance, and manuals – the ServiceNow policies database; the front end can be found at policies.fnal.gov.
- A common format for lab-wide policies and procedures – templates are located on policies.fnal.gov.
- An established update, review, and approval process for lab-wide policies, procedures,
guidance, and manuals, which includes all relevant stakeholders – the intake form for Policy Oversight Board review of lab-wide policies and procedures is located on policies.fnal.gov.
- Approval by other entities where required.
- Links to the associated procedure.
- A process for withdrawing and cancelling policies.
. - Ensuring that the policies and procedures accessible to employees, affiliates, and users are current.
- Standards for communicating and training employees, affiliates, and users on lab-wide policies, procedures, manuals, and guidance.
d. All lab-wide policies and procedures must be owned by a Requirement Owner or an ALD/Senior/Office/Project Director.
- Ownership of lab-wide policies may not be delegated; ownership of lab-wide procedures may be delegated only following approval of the Policy Oversight Board.
- Lab-wide procedures flow down from a relevant lab-wide policy and must follow the
procedures for lab-wide policies, procedures, guidance, and manuals established by the
Policy Oversight Board, including being located in the ServiceNow policies database. Lab-wide manuals such as FESHM, FRCM, and QAM are exceptions and do not have to be located in the ServiceNow policies database.
e. Divisions, Offices, and Projects may establish Division/Office/Project-level policies, procedures, guidance, and manuals. These documents must not apply to people working outside of the relevant Division/Office/Project; otherwise, they are considered to be lab-wide; they may apply to employees, users, and affiliates from across the laboratory who are working in that Division/Office/Project.
- Any Division/Office/Project-specific policy must be owned by the ALD/Senior/Office/Project Director; ownership of Division/Office/Project-specific procedures may be delegated down with the approval of the Division/Office/Project Director.
- Division/Office/Project procedures or guidance should flow from Division/Office/Project policies.
- A Division/Office/Project may develop implementing procedures, manuals, or guidance for a lab-wide policy or procedure that describe in more specificity how to implement it, but a Division/Office/Project may not develop a procedure, manual, or guidance that conflicts with any lab-wide policy or procedure without prior approval of the Policy Oversight Board.
f. Where a manual contains policies, procedures, or guidance, those items in the manual are subject to this Policy.
g. Any exceptions to this Policy must be approved by the Policy Oversight Board.
h. Certain policies or procedures may identify specific consequences for non-compliance, including where provided by law. Unless specific consequences for non-compliance are stated in the policy or procedure, an employee’s manager may impose consequences for non-compliance, in consultation with their ALD/Senior/Office/Project Director and HR partner, up to and including termination. See also the Human Resources Policy on Dismissals and the Statement on Community Standards.
i. Policies are not contracts and are not intended to create any obligations on the part of Fermi
Research Alliance, LLC. Policies may be terminated or changed at any time, with or without notice.
6. Definitions
Policy: A set of guiding principles that set out the expectations to govern the laboratory. Policies change infrequently, are expressed in broad terms, and convey management’s expectations.
Procedure: A document that prescribes a process (a sequence of actions) to be performed to achieve a desired outcome.
Guidance: Additional information helpful to execute a policy or procedure, or which articulates best practices.
Manual: A document or compilation that may contain policies, procedures, and/or guidance.
Lab-wide policy, procedure, guidance, or manual is one that also applies to employees and/or users and affiliates outside of the Division/Office/Project or Requirement Owner which owns the policy, procedure, guidance, or manual.
Fermilab is the physical site and property that is the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory.
Fermi Research Alliance, LLC is the operator and manager of the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory under Department of Energy Prime Contract No. DE-AC02-07CH11359 and is the principal employer of personnel working at Fermilab.
7. Responsibilities
Laboratory Director is responsible for approving all lab-wide policies. The Laboratory Director delegates this responsibility to the Policy Oversight Board. The Laboratory Director also delegates the responsibility for overseeing policy management to the Policy Oversight Board.
Policy Oversight Board is established by the Laboratory Director and is responsible for keeping the Director informed, reviewing and approving lab-wide policies, and developing processes and procedures in terms of the management, review, approval, communication, and withdrawal of lab-wide policies, procedures, guidance, and manuals. The Policy Oversight Board also resolves questions regarding the appropriate ownership of a policy, procedure, guidance, or manual. The Policy Oversight Board will include a designee from the Office of Contractor Assurance, the General Counsel, and other members as designated by the Laboratory Director.
Requirement Owners, ALD/Senior/Office/Project Directors are responsible for developing and maintaining policies and procedures that pertain to the scope of responsibilities of their office or requirements, in compliance with all legal, regulatory, and Prime Contract requirements. They are responsible for complying with this Policy and the processes of the Policy Oversight Board in the development, approval, update, communication, and withdrawal of all policies, procedures, guidance, and manuals.
8. Authorities
Prime Contract No. DE-AC02-07CH11359 Clause C.4(d)(2)
9. Owner
The Director of Contractor Assurance is the owner of this Policy.
10. Review Cycle
This Policy shall be reviewed every three years.
11. Communication Plan
The requirements of this Policy shall be communicated to all employees, affiliates, and users and periodic training shall be provided to Requirement Owners and ALD/Senior/Office/Project Directors. This Policy shall be available on the Fermilab Policy website. The Director of Contractor Assurance is responsible for the communication of this Policy.