Danger pay

United Nations ST/AI/2020/6 Secretariat 24 October 2020 20-14099 (E) 291020 *2014099* Administrative instruction Danger pay The Under-Secretary-General for Management Strategy, Policy and Compliance, pursuant to section 4.2 of Secretary-General’s bulletin ST/SGB/2009/4 and for the purpose of establishing conditions for the administration of danger pay, promulgates the following. Section 1 General Danger pay is a special allowance payable to internationally and locally recruited staff members who are required to work in locations where very dangerous conditions prevail. Section 2 Designation of locations for danger pay A location may be approved by the Chair of the International Civil Service Commission (ICSC) for the purposes of danger pay at any time under delegated authority from ICSC on the basis of any of the following criteria: (a) Locations where United Nations staff, owing to the fact of their association with, or employment by, an organization of the United Nations common system, are clearly, persistently and directly targeted or where premises are clearly, persistently and directly targeted, thus presenting an imminent and constant threat to staff and activities, as assessed by the Under-Secretary-General for Safety and Security; (b) Locations where United Nations staff or premises are at high risk of becoming collateral damage in a war or active armed conflict as assessed by the Under-Secretary-General for Safety and Security; (c) Non-protected environments where United Nations medical staff are specifically at risk to their life when deployed to deal with public health emergencies as declared by the World Health Organization. Section 3 Duration of danger pay 3.1 The Chair of the International Civil Service Commission shall normally approve the payment of danger pay in designated locations, in accordance with the process described in section 2, for a period of up to three consecutive months, and may ST/AI/2020/6 20-14099 2/3 approve danger pay for a further period, subject to quarterly reviews. However, significant changes in the situation at a location may result in a determination between these periodic reviews that a location should no longer be approved for danger pay. 3.2 Staff members shall be informed by the Office of Human Resources of the locations approved for danger pay. In addition, staff members shall be informed of the effective start and end dates of the period approved for danger pay in such locations. Section 4 Eligibility Staff members shall be eligible for danger pay when appointed, assigned or on official business travel to a location designated for danger pay. Eligibility for danger pay in a location authorized under section 2 (c) may be limited to staff members performing specific functions and/or tasks directly connected to the public health emergency as determined by ICSC in accordance with the recommendation of the Director-General of the World Health Organization. Section 5 Amount 5.1 For internationally recruited staff members in the Professional and higher categories and in the Field Service category, a danger pay monthly global rate shall be established by ICSC in accordance with its statute and is subject to periodic review by the Commission. 5.2 For locally recruited staff members in the General Service and National Professional Officer categories, a monthly amount of danger pay shall be established by ICSC for each eligible duty station in accordance with its statute and shall be subject to periodic review by the Commission.1 5.3 For eligible locally recruited staff members in the General Service and related categories and in the National Professional Officer category on official business travel to a location approved for danger pay that is located outside the country of recruitment, danger pay shall be paid at the global rate referred to in section 5.1. Section 6 Payment modality 6.1 Danger pay is payable to eligible staff members who are present in a location approved for danger pay. Where a staff member assigned to a location approved for danger pay resides in a different location that is not approved for danger pay, the allowance will be payable only for the days that the staff member reports to work and is present in the location approved for danger pay. 6.2 For staff members who spend one full calendar month in the location approved for danger pay, the monthly amount is paid irrespective of the number of days in the calendar month. 6.3 When a staff member is present at a location approved for danger pay for less than one calendar month, the amount of danger pay is prorated on the basis of 365 days. The daily rate is calculated by dividing the annual amount by 365 days and __________________ 1 The determination by ICSC of the danger pay monthly amounts for locally recruited staff in the General Service and National Professional Officer categories is based on the modality approved by the General Assembly in its resolutions 66/235 A and 66/235 B. Further details are available on the ICSC website (see https://icsc.un.org/Home/DataDangerPay). ST/AI/2020/6 3/3 20-14099 multiplying the daily amount by the number of days physically spent at the location and shall not exceed the monthly rate. 6.4 For internationally recruited staff assigned to a location approved for danger pay, danger pay is payable for time away from the location on rest and recuperation travel and official business travel up to a cumulative maximum of seven calendar days in a calendar month, including weekends or official holidays. 6.5 Where staff members from a location which is not approved for danger pay are on official business travel to a location approved for danger pay, and the staff members avail themselves of rest and recuperation, danger pay up to a maximum of seven calendar days on rest and recuperation is payable only if the staff members return to and spend a minimum period of 30 calendar days in the location approved for danger pay after completion of the period of rest and recuperation. Failure to satisfy this requirement of 30 calendar days will result in recovery of any danger pay amounts paid in connection with the rest and recuperation travel. 6.6 For locally recruited and, where applicable, internationally recruited staff members, danger pay is payable while on maternity, paternity, annual or sick leave as long as the staff member remains in the assigned location approved for danger pay. Danger pay is also payable to locally recruited staff members for time away from the location on official business travel up to a cumulative maximum of seven calendar days in a calendar month, including weekends or official holidays. 6.7 Except as provided in sections 6.4, 6.5 and 6.6, danger pay is not payable for any other days spent away from the location approved for danger pay. 6.8 Danger pay is payable for days of partial presence in connection with official business travel at a location approved for danger pay. However, danger pay shall not be claimed or paid more than once for the same calendar day (e.g., when both the departure and the arrival locations are approved for danger pay, and the official travel is completed within the same calendar day). Section 7 Relationship to other entitlements 7.1 A staff member who is temporarily relocated or evacuated from a location approved for danger pay to a location that is not approved for danger pay shall not be eligible to receive danger pay while on relocation or evacuation status. 7.2 A staff member who is temporarily relocated or evacuated to a location authorized by the Under-Secretary-General for Safety and Security that is also approved for danger pay may receive payment of both danger pay and the security evacuation allowance or security relocation allowance, if applicable, provided that the staff member is present in such location. Section 8 Final provisions The present administrative instruction shall enter into force on the date of its issuance. (Signed) Catherine Pollard Under-Secretary-General for Management Strategy, Policy and Compliance