D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser launched two new programs on Thursday aimed at retaining her administration’s veteran agency leaders while streamlining the transition process for those who may be considering retirement or a position outside of the city’s government, a move that follows several key departures from the administration as Bowser begins her third term.
One of the initiatives, which offers individuals a paid sabbatical of up to 90 days through the rest of this year, was conceptualized soon after Bowser (D) won reelection in November, according to City Administrator Kevin Donahue. The sabbatical is available to Cabinet members who have served more than four consecutive years at agencies that report to Bowser, allowing them up to three months’ leave to focus on their well-being or pursue professional development opportunities — with a commitment to serve for at least one to two years upon returning.
The second program offers a “transition incentive” focused on long-term succession planning. Between Thursday and July 15, the Bowser administration is offering support to Cabinet members who have led agencies under Bowser’s purview for at least three consecutive years to think through whether they want to leave their post or stay in the role, allowing officials extra time to prepare for their exits, including any recruitment required for the leadership change.
As an incentive, Donahue said that employees who participate in the transition planning effort over the next six weeks and notify Bowser of their intent to depart would be eligible for severance pay when they leave; that departure date would be worked out with Bowser’s administration. Cabinet members who have served between three and five years in the role would get eight weeks of severance pay; those who have been in the job for at least five years would get 12 weeks.
“The sabbatical is recognizing that you have people in place for a long time, the transition incentive is recognizing that it’s natural for departures to happen and allows for us to do succession planning in a much more coherent way,” Donahue said.
Over the past year, several of Bowser’s appointees have departed from the administration, including Police Chief Robert J. Contee III, who announced in April that he was retiring to take a job at the FBI — a decision that caught several city lawmakers by surprise and sparked a sudden, nationwide search to replace him.
Enrollment in both programs requires an application and is subject to the mayor’s approval, Donahue said. Applications are slated to go online Thursday at the Mayor’s Office of Talent and Appointments.
Bowser’s Cabinet includes about 64 D.C. agencies with directors or leaders who report to the mayor. Donahue said that about half of them would be eligible to apply for the two incentives.
“Out of those 64 agencies there is a natural attrition that will always be occurring,” Donahue said. “[The incentive] allows for us to focus on that transition, and allow for us to time it, plan for it and begin recruitment if needed.”
Donahue said some D.C. agencies have previously offered employees similar retirement or transition incentives focused on succession planning, including D.C.’s departments of Public Works and General Services, though such programs have not been applied to Cabinet-level workers until now. As for the sabbatical initiative, Donahue said city officials looked at federal agencies and corporations that offer similar programs, which typically allow employees to take between 90 days and six months of paid leave to focus on professional development or take better care of themselves.
Sabbaticals have become increasingly popular among employers in the United States, with Habitat for Humanity Philadelphia and Bank of America among the companies to launch paid sabbatical efforts this year. Research by DJ DiDonna, founder of the Sabbatical Project and a senior lecturer at Harvard, found that 80 percent of people who take sabbaticals returned to their company refreshed, The Washington Post’s Heather Long reported earlier this year.
“Sabbatical programs do in fact often lead to greater retention,” Donahue added. “Someone without a sabbatical may find they have to leave to really engage in that self-care or that professional development opportunity.”
During the transition period after Bowser’s reelection, Donahue said, several longtime agency directors approached the mayor, expressing a desire to continue serving in their roles and also while also taking a meaningful break. Among them was Laura Zeilinger, the director of D.C.’s Department of Human Services who has served in the role since Bowser was sworn into her first term in January 2015.
Starting this week, she will be the first of the mayor’s Cabinet members to participate in the sabbatical program.
Zeilinger, 50, oversees several of the city’s homelessness services and prevention efforts, as well as benefit programs such as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. In an interview, she said she remains passionate about the Human Services Department’s efforts toward closing income gaps and reducing poverty, but as of late, she’s felt “increased signs of burnout.”
She reached out to Bowser about her concerns.
“Serving through the pandemic has been a lot … I was actually thinking about if I needed to leave because I felt like I was not able to bring the same energy to the job,” Zeilinger said. “[The mayor] was extremely supportive. I know that I needed to do something to be able to continue to offer what I have to give.”
Zeilinger said she intends to return after some time off with the “energy, drive and vigor that will allow me to continue to be an agent for change in this community.” In the meantime, she said she’ll be able to be more present for her two children.
“I know I’m not the only one. And I really appreciate the way the administration is looking at this as a starting place,” she added.
Donahue said he does not expect a “significant number” of eligible Cabinet members to leave the administration or take a sabbatical. Those approved for sabbaticals will be permitted to take them between Thursday and the end of this calendar year — an intentional effort to avoid overlap with the District’s annual budget process and associated hearings, which typically run from January through March.
He added that some directors may opt for shorter periods of leave, like one or two months. Those approved for a sabbatical will also be tasked with recommending an interim director, with final approval coming from Bowser. Employees will receive their full pay and benefits while on sabbatical, Donahue said, but will not accrue sick or annual leave.
Upon their return, if an agency director were to depart before the end of that one- to two-year commitment period, Donahue said the city would reduce the amount of accrued annual leave they would otherwise be eligible to cash out once they leave the D.C. government: “Ultimately, employers can’t compel people to stay,” he added.
City officials anticipate that the sabbatical program will be a mainstay, with a likely expansion to other government employees seeking professional development or opportunities to recharge.
“This is our first foray into it as the government, so we’ll learn from the first cohort,” he said. “We’re starting out with the Cabinet, and if it improves retention and professional development, then I very much expect this to be a program that we would be able to look at with other employee groups.”
