Performance Work Statement_Draft_2024 05 15.pdf

Performance Work Statement (PWS) Internal Revenue Service (IRS)

Employee Assistance Program (EAP) & Work-life Referral Services (WLRS)

1.0 BACKGROUND

Federal agencies are authorized by 5 U.S.C. § 7901 to establish health services for the promotion and maintenance of the physical and mental fitness of employees in the Federal Government. Employee Assistance Programs (EAP) and Work-Life referral services are provided for under this authority. This work-based program offers confidential assessments, short-term counseling, referrals, and follow-up services to employees who are dealing with personal or work-related problems that may affect their attendance, work performance and conduct.

Executive Order 12564 mandates that Federal agencies establish a drug-free Federal workplace program, which includes EAP as a component to achieve a drug-free workforce. As a Federal agency the IRS is fully committed to the well-being of its employees, recognizing that employees may occasionally face a broad range of personal issues that require assistance to cope with stressful life changes.

Employees may also require assistance with severe life experiences, especially when such circumstances begin to impact the employee’s ability to perform in the workplace. Mental health and work-life balance are critical for the IRS to ensure that employees and their families are fully embraced within the IRS organization.

OBJECTIVES

The objective of this Performance Work Statement (PWS) is to obtain contractor support for maintaining optimal performance and improving employee wellness through an effective approach. The following expectations shall be met:

• Increase the number of informal EAP sponsored work-life sessions.

• Enhance efforts to publicize and promote EAP services to agency employees.

• Strengthen the linkages between the EAP and various stakeholders, including the health unit, safety office, employee and labor relations office and National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU).

• Intensify efforts to improve the levels of privacy and confidentiality associated with EAP services.

• Improve or increase supervisory/management training.

• Monitor contract EAP personnel closely.

2.0 SCOPE

Work under this PWS is a hybrid Firm-Fixed Price (FFP) and Labor Hours (LH). This PWS seeks an integrated Employee Assistance and Work-life Referral Service Program for Internal Revenue Service employees. The EAP helps employees experiencing problems that may affect job performance and quality of life. All IRS employees and their immediate family members eligible to participate in the integrated Employee Assistance and Work-life Referral Service (WLRS) Program. “Immediate Family Members” is defined as members of the immediate household who are dependents, which may include children, elderly parents, or spouses/partners who share financial and family caretaking responsibilities.

The contractor shall also provide IRS employees who separate from the IRS and their immediate family members who live in the employee’s household six months of coverage following the employee’s separation date (unless an employee is removed for cause).

The Contractor, subcontractors, consultants, and their respective employees shall comply at all times with applicable provisions of Federal, state, and local law, including the Health Insurance Portability and

Accountability Act (HIPAA). Services are provided to all IRS employees and their immediate family members regardless of their function or geographic post of duty, including those overseas. There is no cost to employees and eligible family members for EAP and Work-life services. There are times when it is appropriate to refer employees or family members to outside community resources or their Federal Employee Health Benefits Plan (FEHB). When employees accept these referrals, they are responsible for the fees charged by the facility or health plan. The EAP goal is to work with employees and their family members to keep the cost within their financial means. The current population of the IRS is 90,000 and expected to be more than 110,000 by the end of calendar year 2024.

3.0 SUMMARY OF REQUIREMENTS

The contractor shall provide the services listed below. Tasks 3.1 through 3.9 are tasks/services that do not require on site presence. Tasks 3.10 through 3.16 may require on-site services. The Contractor shall provide a nationwide accessible, toll-free telephone number, 7 days a week, 24 hours a day for EAP and Work-life services. Duties and responsibilities of the contractor shall include:

3.1 TASK 1, ORIENTATION (FFP)

Within five business days after award, the contractor shall conduct an orientation briefing for the Government. The Government does not desire an elaborate orientation briefing nor does it expect the contractor to expend significant resources in preparation for this briefing. Rather, the intent of the briefing is to initiate the communication process between the Government and contractor by introducing key contract participants, explaining their roles, reviewing communication ground rules, and assuring a common understanding of contract requirements and objectives.

The orientation briefing shall be held virtually, and both parties shall mutually agree upon the date and time. The meeting agenda shall be provided to the Government two business days before the meeting.

The completion of this briefing shall result in the following:

• The contractor and Government personnel who will perform work under this contract will be introduced.

• The Government will show the applicable facilities to the contractor and determine if the contractor will be performing work on the Government’s site.

• The Government may provide any government furnished property (GFP)/ government furnished information (GFI) to the contractor at this time.

• Any issues concerning the contractor clearances for contractor personnel will be discussed.

• The contractor shall confirm their understanding of the work to be accomplished under this PWS.

• The contractor shall deliver accurate meeting minutes within two business days after the meeting.

• Discussion on what the contractor will include in their Quality Control Plan (QCP) within 30 days after the briefing.

3.2 TASK 2, RAMP-UP (FFP)

There will be a 60-day ramp-up schedule starting on the date of award in which the contractor shall identify all candidates, receive Government furnished equipment, acquire Personal Identity Verification (PIV) smartcard, achieve network access, troubleshoot IT issues and onboard and train staff. All levels of effort associated with ramp-up shall only be charged to the corresponding Contract Line Item Number (CLIN) for ramp up. The ramp-up is a one-time event in the base period of the contract and is not repeated when options are exercised or if there is contractor staff turnover. Ramp up costs are at the contractor’s expense if the contractor experiences staff turnover. A one-time request for payment for initial ramp-up activities will be made 60 days after contract award or upon the initial staff being fully staffed and training completed. The contractor is not required to begin services within the first 60 days after the date of award.

3.2.1 TRANSITION SERVICES (FFP)

The Contractor shall assume work (EAP and Work-life Referral Services) that is in progress from the incumbent Contractor during an overlap of services without deterioration of services currently being provided.

Phase-In In preparation for assuming operations, the contractor shall cooperate and work in good faith with incumbent contractor(s) and shall coordinate and with the Government any differences between the incumbent’s Phase-Out Plan and the contractor’s Phase-In plans, including timeframe needed to complete transition. During the phase-in period, the contractor shall become familiar with performance requirements to be able to commence full performance of services effective on the contract start date with no break or delay in any services. The contractor’s Transition Plan shall describe the approach to be utilized in transitioning services and records (both paper and electronic) from existing sources, to include Government and contractor, as applicable, to meet performance requirements of this PWS effective contract start date. Appropriate planning should ensure transition can be accomplished without disruption or delay and without compromising EAP and WLRS. The Transition Plan shall include the start and end period, transition approach and work effort, and the contractor shall include reach back capability to ensure optimal workforce efficiency. The Transition Plan shall also include contract delivery point milestones for all areas reflected as requirements within the PWS. The final Transition Plan shall be presented within 10 business days after award.

Phase-Out At the end of the contract, the contractor will be required to provide phase-out support for up to 90 days pursuant to the applicable continuity of services contract clause to include all government furnished property and data created or produced for this effort (both paper and electronic). The contractor shall, upon the CO's written notice, initiate phase-out services and negotiate in good faith with a successor to determine the nature and extent of the transition services required. The phase-out plan shall be subject to the CO's approval, specify a training process and a date for transferring responsibilities for each task described in the PWS to the follow-on contract awardee. The contractor shall provide sufficient experienced personnel during the phase-out period to ensure services are maintained at levels without a break or delay in services. The incumbent contractor shall work cooperatively and in good faith with the follow-on contract awardee and provide information and data (both paper and electronic) in a timely and professional manner to ensure a smooth and effective transition of operations from the incumbent to the follow-on contractor. The contractor shall ensure that all services/activities for which the contractor is responsible shall be completed before the end of the period of performance of the resulting contract.

The Government will notify the contractor 30 days prior to the end of the contract and the contractor shall provide an updated Phase-Out Plan to the Government within 10 calendar days after notification.

3.3 TASK 3, PROGRAM MANAGEMENT (FFP)

The contractor shall provide all program management services necessary to successfully satisfy the requirements and performance objectives of the PWS.

3.3.1 PROJECT MANAGEMENT

The contractor shall provide project management support for all projects identified under this PWS. The contractor shall:

• Ensure contractor staff follows OPM, Treasury and IRS policies/regulations for EAP services.

• Provide monthly performance status reports and participate in monthly meetings. The project office will schedule these meetings. Status report expectations are identified under Manager Reports task below.

• Formally provide written notice to the IRS PM and COR of any delays as soon as they are known but no longer than eight hours.

• Perform quality control and management activities to ensure services provided meet the government’s requirements and are delivered timely. Deliverables will be sent to the COR and the IRS PM with an email indicating the contractor’s PM has reviewed the deliverable.

• Participate in management meetings and be prepared to report on any of the tasks identified in this PWS. The Government will provide the contractor any necessary information and expectations about the meeting no less than two business days prior to the meeting.

• The contractor shall immediately report to the COR any security or privacy breaches that compromise employee health information. Within 15 business days of any such incident, the contractor shall submit a report detailing the resolution of the incident to the COR.

• All service complaints shall be investigated by the contractor and reported to the COR and Government project office within three working days of the incident. Corrective actions shall be indicated in the report.

3.3.2 MANAGEMENT REPORTS

The contractor shall provide customized monthly reports, quarterly reports and an annual report to the IRS on the status of the EAP/Work-life Program. Reports should provide (at a minimum) data on utilization, types of problems and trends noted, workshops and training sessions offered, on-site counseling and transition counseling statistics, web utilization, critical incidents, demographic statistics, and more. Reports shall be transmitted via email in Microsoft Word or Excel using Microsoft 2016 or later. All monthly reports should be emailed to the IRS contracting officer's representative (COR) and the EAP Program Manager (IRS PM) no later than the 7th day of the month for the prior month. Reports shall contain the following (minimum) information as follows:

• Critical Incidents Reports (when requested)

• Number of clients

• Sites

• Nature of incidents

• Time spent for assessment and planning

• Number of debriefings

• Number of clients counseled individually

• Number and type (private or community) referrals made

• Response time from initial telephone request to follow-up assessment call.

• Response time from initial plan and the site visit

• EAP/Work-Life Reports

• Number of calls by presenting issue type

• Monthly comparative data (quarterly for web site visits, cumulative annually)

• Usage

• Number of telephone counseling sessions

• Number of face-to-face counseling sessions

• Number of employees referred to another source

• Number of employees counseled under Drug Free Workplace Program

• Assessment of employee reaction to promotion efforts

• Cycle time from initial call to intake triage to EAP/Work-life counselor

• Number of EAP to Work-life referrals

• Number of education/training seminars

• Web usage

• Demographic information

• Transition Counseling Services Report (when requested)

• Site

• Number of clients

• Type of transition counseling service

• Demographic information

• Number of employees referred to another source

• Education/Training Services Reports

• Site

• Number of clients/participants/attendees

• Type of training/education seminar

3.4 TASK 4, WEB-BASED INFORMATION AND RESEARCH SERVICES (FFP)

The contractor shall provide an EAP website with on-line training, educational materials, information, tools, and other resources available to support employees and their families with work, home, and daily life needs. The contractor shall address a wide range of topics to help employees live healthy and work well including parenting and childcare, wellness, behavioral health topics, life events, financial information, legal information, eldercare, balancing work and life, and travel tips. The contractor shall have technology software in place to communicate with employees 24 hours a day, 365 days a year via telephone, web applications and smartphone applications.

3.5 TASK 5, EMERGENCY BACKUP DEPENDENT CARE (LH)

The contractor shall provide an Emergency Backup Dependent Care program giving employees a back-up solution if regular child or elder care arrangements fall through. Emergency Backup Dependent Care will connect employees with reliable, licensed care providers available to provide care for children, adult loved ones and themselves. Availability of backup dependent care is based on the contractor’s capacity and scheduled hours available for care.

3.6 TASK 6, MANAGEMENT CONSULTATION/REFERRAL SERVICES (FFP)

Contractor shall provide consultations with managers to assess interpersonal issues affecting group performance, facilitate short-term intervention strategies or refer to other available agency resources.

Contractor shall consult with managers and management officials about recurring or special problems in the agency (e.g., downsizing, transition, pandemic, flu, and more) and provide assistance when requested to help resolve those problems. Contractor shall consult with managers to discuss a potential manager referral, to help managers understand and effectively communicate about a potential referral or current EAP client or to follow up on a referred employee’s progress. Contractor shall perform management consultation services virtually or by telephone.

3.7 TASK 7, MANAGEMENT TRAINING AND EDUCATION (FFP)

The following types of training shall be provided by the Contractor:

• Orientation sessions to introduce employees to the Employee Assistance Program and its provisions,

• Orientation sessions for managers to provide awareness of EAP for such areas as critical incidents, referral services for job performance problems, change management, redeployment, workplace stress, and more, and

• Training sessions to provide employees with ways to identify issues, to encourage seeking help for problem resolutions and to offer insight and relief from problems through EAP services.

The Contractor shall assist managers in dealing with employees who have personal problems or who are exhibiting performance, conduct or attendance problems. The Contractor shall coordinate problem-solving techniques/solutions with the affected employee and manager. As appropriate and when requested by the COR, the Contractor shall conduct work-site group interventions. The Contractor must request and document the manager’s preference for either a face-to-face meeting or a telephone contact. The Contractor shall establish a case file for each management consultation.

For management-initiated employee referrals, the Contractor shall interview the referring manager and provide the manager with guidance and strategies to address job performance and behavioral problems with an employee. Counselors shall interview or consult with managers and management officials on an individual or group basis regarding the procedural process for referring an employee with behavioral or job performance problems.

The contractor shall provide training programs for managers to educate them about EAP procedures and how to identify, interact with, consult, and refer employees, as well as how to use critical incident services and training services for workgroups.

• The Trainer’s Guide must include:

o Workshop objectives, o Curriculum outline, o Handouts/Videos/Overheads/PowerPoint slides, o Workshop agenda, o Participant sign-in sheets, and o Participant workshop evaluations.

• The contractor shall notify the EAP Program Manager and the COR anytime the Contractor’s personnel cancel a training session and explain what alternatives are being considered to meet the original training needs.

Every training session shall include an opportunity for the attendees to complete an approved, confidential, evaluation form. No employee identifying information may be required on the form. All evaluations, tests, and analyses are to be delivered to the COR. Only IRS staff may process completed evaluation forms.

3.8 TASK 8, EDUCATION/WELLNESS PROGRAMS (FFP)

The contractor shall provide seminars, webinars, workshops, brown bag lunches, support groups and other sessions for all employees. Upon request by the COR or requested by IRS managers, the contractor shall provide formal and informal sessions on work-life, health and wellness, EAP and other issues. Training and education programs delivered by the contractor may be modified to address organizational needs.

The contractor shall, upon request by the COR, develop and provide customized training, wellness and education workshops for the IRS. Funding for customized workshops shall be obligated in an estimated amount when required by modification to the task order before the workshop development cost is incurred. In the event travel is required, the contractor shall be reimbursed in accordance with the Federal Travel Regulations. Travel shall be approved in advance by the COR.

3.9 TASK 9, PROGRAM OUTREACH PROMOTION (FFP)

Contractor shall provide promotional items such as posters, fliers, newsletters, brochures, wallet cards, giveaways (i.e., pencils, stress balls, and more), posters, manager manuals, videos, bulletins, e-mails, and other related items for reminding employees about the program’s services and to increase utilization.

The contractor shall conduct an ongoing promotional campaign to ensure EAP awareness at all organizational levels.

The contractor shall develop a fact sheet/brochure to be distributed electronically to all employees on the nature, scope and availability of EAP/Work-life management services as well as information on management referrals to EAP.

The Contractor shall conduct an ongoing promotional campaign to provide EAP and Work-life awareness to all employees that encourages utilization. Promotional materials shall consist of both hardcopy handouts and electronic, web-based materials.

Promotional materials shall contain the IRS logo and shall publicize the EAP/Work-life program, its purpose, types of services, phone and TTY numbers and staff availability (24/7). Promotional materials shall also include access instructions, confidentiality notices and a statement that services are free of charge to the employee.

Within 15 calendar days after the effective date of the contract award, the contractor shall submit to the COR for approval drafts of the promotional materials. Government approval/disapproval will be completed within five working days of receipt.

The Contractor shall provide web-based promotion for marketing of EAP and Work-life programs. Web site shall advertise and provide information about the program and its services.

The Contractor shall develop a fact sheet/brochure to be distributed to managers describing the nature, scope, and availability of EAP/Work-life management services as well as information on management referrals to EAP.

The Contractor shall provide newsletter articles monthly to the PM. Articles will be used to promote/market EAP and placed in internal IRS publication vehicles.

3.10 TASK 10, ON-SITE COUNSELING SERVICES (FFP)

The Federal Government requires on-site counselors. IRS has identified 10 sites, and additional sites may be identified after award for a maximum of 15 sites. See Section 4.0 for Place of Performance.

Services may be required for individual sites or multiple sites simultaneously.

On-site, licensed professional counselors shall provide IRS employees and managers orientations, training, workshops, consultations, counseling, and more in the workplace. In certain instances, counselors shall also provide services through virtual methods. On-site counselors shall provide 4 confidential, 1-hour counseling sessions per year per each employee EAP issue. If necessary, a referral to a local community therapist at the fourth session will be provided.

The Contractor shall provide telephonic, virtual or face-to-face EAP counseling up to a maximum of four sessions per participant per presenting issue. EAP counseling services include assessment, counseling and referral for face-to-face services when deemed necessary.

The Contractor shall have a nationwide network of certified counselors. The contractor shall have a nationwide network of affiliate counselors geographically convenient to all IRS posts of duty."

The Contractor shall provide telephonic EAP access to process calls for service. Counselors shall work in coordination with all IRS personnel to maximize mental health and wellness program initiatives throughout the agency.

Counselors shall work in coordination with all IRS personnel to maximize mental health and wellness program initiatives throughout the agency. On-site EAP counselors shall be supervised and work in conjunction with the contractor and shall adhere to all laws, regulations and guidelines of any licensed, professional counselor including federal privacy and confidentiality regulations.

The contractor’s PM and clinical director shall meet regularly with on-site EAP counselors to ensure efficient and effective quality service delivery. On-site EAP counselors shall be placed at an IRS Service Center and shall be available to assist in other IRS locations when needed on a temporary basis. At the IRS’ discretion, on-site EAP counselors may work part-time or full-time and counseling can be provided in-person, by telephone or by video conference during the core business hours 8:00 a.m.to 4:30 p.m.

Eastern Standard Time.

3.11 TASK 11, ASSESSMENT COUNSELING (FFP)

The contractor shall provide 4 confidential, 1-hour counseling sessions per year per each EAP issue. If additional counseling is necessary, a referral to the employee’s FEHB plan or a community facility will be provided. Counseling may be face-to-face, telephonic or virtual and will address issues such as marital conflict, job pressures, grief and loss, stress, anxiety, depression, substance abuse, relationships, problems with children, psychological/emotional concerns, alcohol/drugs, and more. The contractor shall provide telephonic services 24 hours a day, 365 days a year via a toll-free number for employees to receive immediate assistance.

All calls shall be answered within three rings. No call shall be placed on hold for more than two minutes to obtain appropriate services once an issue has been determined and the correct informational personnel has been identified. The contractor shall provide telephonic or video services 24 hours a day, 365 days a year via a toll-free number for employees to receive immediate help.

Counseling activities shall be short term in nature and shall focus primarily on diagnostic evaluation, motivational counseling, and referral to community resources in such a manner as will permit appropriate and skillful management of the problem presented. Should a participant be dissatisfied with the professional counseling (either telephonic or face-to-face sessions) being given under the contract for the presenting issue, the contractor shall give the participant the opportunity, at no additional cost or loss of counseling sessions, to see another professional until the EAP service is provided satisfactorily.

The contractor shall provide IRS employees with the same counselor for each request unless otherwise requested by the employee.

3.12 TASK 12, WORK-LIFE REFERRAL (FFP)

In addition to employee self-referrals, the contractor shall accept referrals of eligible employees from managers, human resources, employee health units and National Treasury Employee Union (NTEU).

The contractor shall inform managers, employee health units and NTEU that written consent must be obtained from a referred employee before proceeding with an interview. Ensure in consultations that managers, NTEU stewards and others differentiate between disciplinary actions and EAP referrals. The contractor shall not accept referrals from managers and NTEU stewards who use the EAP as a disciplinary tool (for example, coercing/mandating an employee attend EAP counseling in lieu of disciplinary actions). EAP is strictly voluntary for referrals. Final responsibility to accept referral for diagnosis and treatment rests with the individual employee or family member only.

The contractor shall provide consultation and referral on a variety of work-life issues. Work-life counseling and referral services include, but are not limited to the following:

• Telephone consultation for problem assessment and proposed solution,

• Matters that relate to health, financial, legal and work-life solutions, including but not limited to, online health assessments, tobacco cessation, Medicare guidance, health and wellness coaching, retirement planning and taxes, relocation, mortgages, insurance, budgeting, debt, bankruptcy, divorce, adoption, real estate transactions, family law, wills, trusts, child and elder care, purchasing a car and finding automobile insurance, hiring movers or home repair contractors and planning events or locating pet care,

• Distribution of educational and informational materials to employees through electronic means or by mail to their homes upon request,

• Researching programs and services in local communities for employees who need them and

• Follow-up to ensure the employee’s referrals were made and the effectiveness of the service.

The contractor shall have a nationwide network of affiliate counselors geographically convenient to all IRS posts of duty.

The Contractor must provide clients with current and timely referrals and ensure that referrals are identified, evaluated, and utilized per the client’s request. Within 14 days following a referral, the Contractor shall determine if the referral was used and whether it resolved the client’s issues.

The results of these 14-day ‘call backs’ shall be noted in the client’s record. When referring clients to other sources, the Contractor shall check the following elements and advise the client on:

• Relevant licensure, accreditation, certification and experience,

• Services compatible with employee benefits and needs,

• Affordable fees,

• Reimbursement policies,

• Effective intake/admission procedures,

• Appropriate and medically sound treatment regime,

• Services and hours compatible with employee/organization needs, and

• Willingness to work cooperatively with the EAP.

Counselors, as appropriate, shall encourage clients to participate in rehabilitation programs and shall assist clients in making initial contacts and necessary arrangements to get started in the program.

Written documentation shall be retained for participants requiring services in greater duration than one telephonic session or in which the employee or family member provides background information.

Documentation shall include the nature of the issue, the assessment as to any course of action required (i.e., face-to-face counseling, drug/alcohol referral, and more), type of services rendered, follow-up requirements, and when necessary, goals related to treatment services. All records and documentation shall be maintained in a manner compliant with HIPAA regulations.

3.13 TASK 13, CRITICAL INCIDENT STRESS MANAGEMENT (CISM) (LH-NTE)

Contractor shall facilitate a meeting or series of meetings held with witnesses, victims or co-workers involved in a traumatic incident to gather facts and assist with their immediate emotional needs. Upon request by IRS managers, the contractor shall provide CISMs to IRS work groups affected by a traumatic

(critical) incident. Examples of traumatic incidents include, but are not limited to deaths, serious injuries, incidents involving children or co-workers, personal assaults, industrial accidents, and more. IRS managers shall request CISM services directly with the EAP contractor.

The debriefing staff for crisis intervention telephone consultations dedicated to this contract shall be available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The contractor shall assign qualified CISM trained counselor(s) for site visit debriefing(s). The professional(s) who are to make the contact shall call the employee no later than close of business on the day the employee initially calls the contractor for assistance. The contractor must have enough capacity to respond in-person for all calls. If an on-site counselor is deemed necessary, the counselor should be on site within 24 hours.

3.13.1 TASK 13, CRITICAL INCIDENT STRESS MANAGEMENT (CISM) (LH-NTE)

During a Critical Incident Stress Management circumstance, a Clinical Director will supervise the operations, while designated EAP Counselors will be assigned to specific locations.

3.14 TASK 14, TRANSITION COUNSELING SERVICES (FFP)

The contractor shall provide EAP transition counseling services and support to IRS employees impacted by technology and organizational changes when requested by the IRS COR. The IRS COR shall provide the contractor a minimum of five business days’ notice to obtain transition counselor(s) who shall be qualified as indicated in staff qualifications. The COR shall provide the Contractor a minimum of one week's notice to obtain transition counselor(s). Transition counselors shall be available during formal meetings and briefings to help employees as needed during and outside of core business hours of 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.

3.15 TASK 15, SERVICE IN THE EVENT OF AN EXTRAORDINARY EVENT-Clinical Director (LH-

NTE)

An extraordinary event is an event that could not possibly be anticipated at the time of contract award (for example, the 9/11 national disaster in 2001 or Hurricane Katrina in 2005). The contractor shall provide in-person EAP counseling sessions for any employee or family member in the occurrence of an extraordinary event. The in-person EAP counseling sessions for an extraordinary event must be requested in writing by the COR. If the sessions are requested in writing by the COR, the contractor shall first exhaust the maximum four in-person counseling sessions for any single participant before beginning face-to-face counseling sessions for an extraordinary event for any single participant.

At the written request of the COR, the contractor shall provide CISM services (see 3.13). Should medical doctors/counselors be required for the CISM, the contractor and IRS will enter into negotiations for a fair and reasonable rate for those providers.

3.15.1 TASK 15, SERVICE IN THE EVENT OF AN EXTRAORDINARY EVENT-Counselor (LH-NTE)

During an exceptional circumstance, a Clinical Director will supervise the operations, while designated EAP Counselors will be assigned to specific locations.

3.16 AGENCY SURGE SUPPORT (LH-NTE)

The Government may determine that an increased quantity of support is required for the tasks defined in the PWS. Surge support is optional and is not a guarantee. If the Government determines that an increased quantity of support is required, the Government reserves the right to exercise the CLIN unilaterally. The CO may exercise the option by written notice to the contractor at least 10 calendar days prior to the exercise of the option. Delivery of added items shall continue at the same rate that like items are called for under the task order unless the parties otherwise agree. The Government reserves the right to convert surge support to FFP.

4.0 PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

On-site EAP counseling services and support will be available at the following 10 IRS Service Center Campuses:

• Andover, MA,

• Atlanta, GA,

• Austin, TX,

• Brookhaven, NY,

• Covington, KY,

• Fresno, CA,

• Kansas City, MO,

• Philadelphia, PA,

• Memphis, TN and

• Ogden, UT.

Additional sites may be identified after award for a maximum of 15 sites.

5.0 PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE

The Period of Performance will consist of a base period of 12 months and 4, 12-month option periods.

6.0 DELIVERABLES

The contractor shall review all draft and final deliverables to ensure accuracy, functionality, completeness, professional quality, and overall compliance with government policies, regulations, laws, and directives.

• Final documentation deliverables shall be provided in soft copy using MS Office products. Daily, weekly, interim, informal deliverables and working-copy products may be provided by e-mail or disk, as arranged.

• The government will have five business days to accept or reject deliverables. If a deliverable is rejected and returned to the Contractor for revision, the Contractor shall provide the corrected deliverable within five business days of notification of the request for revision.

• All Deliverables shall be submitted to the COR and PM. A copy of the Monthly Status Report shall be submitted to the COR, IRS PM, and CO.

DELIVERABLE DUE DATE

Kick-Off Meeting Agenda 3 days prior to scheduled meeting

Kick-Off Meeting Minutes 2 days after the meeting Monthly Cost/Status Reports 7th of the month Quarterly Report Every 3 months on the 15th calendar day (after award) Annual Report Yearly on the 15th calendar day (after award) Draft flyers, brochures, wallet cards 15 days after award Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan Within 30 business days after award, updated monthly on last business day Final Flyers, Brochures, and Wallet Cards

30 days after award

Newsletter Articles on EAP 17th day of each month Transition Plan 10 days after award Phase Out Plan 30 days prior to contract ending Emergency Backup Dependent Care Plan

Last business day of the month

Disaster Plan 30 days after award; update at the end of each contract period of performance (POP)

Unless otherwise specified below, all deliverables and work products shall be provided no later than 4:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time as identified in the table above.

7.0 GOVERNMENT FURNISHED PROPERTY

7.1 OFFICE SPACE

The contractor shall be required to furnish all facilities (except all training for the EAP/Work-life Services and CISM), supplies, and materials to be used during the performance of this contract (including a laptop for onsite counselors). The IRS will provide office space for employee orientation, training, and employee behavioral consultations. In addition, the IRS will provide facilities for debriefing/CISM sessions at other sites than those identified in Section 3.10 when required.

7.2 GOVERNMENT FURNISHED PROPERTY, SUPPLIES AND EQUIPMENT

The Federal Government will furnish all property, supplies and equipment listed in this section. If the property, supplies, and equipment are not listed here, the contractor shall be responsible for providing them.

• One IRS standard laptop computer for each on-site EAP contractor,

• Telephone lines and voicemail for on-site services,

• Equipment required for debriefing/CISM sessions at other sites than those identified in Section 3.10 when required.

The contractor shall not use any government furnished property for anything other than “official use only” in performance of this task order. The contractor’s staff shall not use government property in any manner for any personal advantage, business gain or other personal endeavor.

The issuance, handling, and disposition of GFP shall be conducted in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulations 52.245-1, Government Property, Alternate I, 52.245-9, Use and Charges.

8.0 STAFF QUALIFICATIONS

The contractor shall be responsible for employing technically qualified personnel to perform the work specified in this PWS. The contractor shall maintain the personnel, organization, and administrative control necessary to ensure that the work delivered meets the government's specifications and requirements. The work history of each contractor employee must contain experience directly related to work required under this PWS.

The Government reserves the right, during the life of the task order, to request work histories on any contractor employee for the purposes of verifying compliance with the above requirements; additionally, the government reserves the right to review and approve resumes of contractor personnel proposed to be assigned to the task order. The contractor must have the demonstrated ability to reach out to a wide variety of subject matter experts in relevant fields, retain their services, and productively engage them in support of government requirements.

The contractor is responsible for obtaining and ensuring that the Contractor’s employees and any subcontractors obtain the necessary licenses, permits and insurance required to perform the services covered by the task order. The contractor shall be responsible for validating the qualifications of employees and subcontractor personnel assigned to providing telephone or face- to-face interviews with IRS clients, as well as any other services described herein.

Before key staff personnel are hired, the contractor shall provide the employee resume for IRS EAP program manager and COR approval.

8.1 KEY PERSONNEL

The following positions are designated as Key Personnel:

Project Manager

The Project Manager shall have overall responsibility for the management and coordination of the contractor's requirements pursuant to the PWS and for reporting to the COR. The Project Manager must possess full authority to act on behalf of the Contractor. This person may or may not perform direct services as part of the role.

The Project Manager shall, at a minimum, meet the following requirements:

• Provide documented evidence of project management expertise,

• Provide familiarity with the traumatic incidence field, as well as knowledge of policies, regulations and laws governing the operation of EAP in the Federal Government,

• Uphold professional standards of conduct including prohibition against subcontractors or affiliates referring clients to oneself in a private capacity. This also includes a prohibition against referring to persons/facilities with which the project manager has any financial interests unless it can be demonstrated that there is some overriding clinical reason why it is necessary (such as its cost or quality being the best for the client or that there are no other treatment facilities available in the area) and

• Have a bachelor’s degree plus seven years of experience.

EAP Clinical Director

The contractor shall also designate a clinical director, to oversee all clinical aspects of the program. The proposed clinical director must meet the qualifications listed below:

• If a clinical social worker, the person must be trained at the master’s level and possess a current state license or state certification or possess an Association of Clinical Social Workers certification or other national certification.

• If a clinical psychologist, the person must possess and maintain a current and unrestricted state license.

• If the person holds a graduate degree in mental health counseling, it must be demonstrated that the academic training includes a supervised clinical experience. This person must hold a state license or possess a National Board of Certified Counselors or other similar national certification (for example, marriage, family, child counseling or professional counseling) requiring two years of supervised clinical experience.

• The person must maintain active membership in the professional association appropriate to their degree.

• Experience with managing an integrated traumatic incidence, EAP and Work-life resource and referral program is desirable.

• Master’s degree and 10 years of experience or bachelor’s degree with 10 years of experience.

8.2 NON-KEY PERSONNEL

The contractor shall provide experienced and professionally trained/licensed staff with Federal and civilian experience. The contractor shall provide only professionally trained and licensed staff at the master’s level or above as EAP counselors. EAP counselors must have actual clinical experience and working experience with business, industry, or Government agencies to assess probable causes of employee work performance problems.

Critical Incident counselors must have specialized knowledge and training in critical incidence management and trauma. Counselors shall belong to a professional organization in their field.

EAP Counselor Qualifications A single counselor is required for each currently identified site listed in Section 4.0 Place of Performance.

Resumes for on-site EAP counselors at the current identified 10 sites shall be submitted with the offeror’s proposal. Resumes for replacement on-site counselors, surge counselors and all other counselors shall be provided to the IRS PM and COR for review five days prior to offering the position. Replacements for on-site counselors should be identified and selected by the contractor within 30 calendar days.

Staff and Subcontracted Personnel Qualifications Work-life counselors shall be professionally qualified in one or more of the following: elder care, childcare and child development, education counseling, career counseling, health education, public health education, physical education/exercise physiology, social work, financial counseling, nursing or human development and counseling. Attorneys shall be licensed and knowledgeable in their field and state law for which the services are being required. Financial staff shall be knowledgeable in their field and state law and possess appropriate certification for which the services are being required.

8.3 UNACCEPTABLE CONTRACTOR PERSONNEL

Contractor personnel shall be deemed unacceptable and rejected under this contract if:

• A conviction for a felony, a crime of violence or a serious misdemeanor exists or a record of arrest for continuing offenses exists or

• Poor performance identified by the COR or IRS PM exists which could include missing appointments, not completing work timely and being unprofessional.

The removal of contractor personnel shall occur immediately from this contract who is found to be unfit to perform their duties. A determination of an unfit contractor employee may be made from, but not limited to, the Rules and Regulations Governing Conduct on Federal Property, 41 CFR 101-20.3.

9.0 ON-SITE AND OFF-SITE WORKING CONDITIONS, HOLIDAYS AND OTHER CLOSURES

See Section 4.0 for Place of Performance. Prior approval is required by the COR/IRS PM if work is requested at sites not listed above. No case material or equipment will be removed from any IRS site without IRS approval and such removal of material and equipment must meet IRS security policy.

• IRS facilities are smoking restricted workplaces. Due to the nature of the work, facilities and requirements, contractor staff may only smoke in designated smoking areas.

• Normal operating hours at the IRS are 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding

Federal holidays.

Contractor staff is responsible for providing their own transportation to and from the place of performance and for any applicable parking fees at that location.

Government personnel observe the following days as holidays:

• New Year's Day

• Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr.

• Washington’s Birthday

• Memorial Day

• Juneteenth

• Independence Day

• Labor Day

• Columbus Day

• Veterans Day

• Thanksgiving Day

• Christmas Day

Federal law (5 U.S.C. 6103) establishes the public holidays listed in these pages for Federal employees.

Please note that most Federal employees work on a Monday through Friday schedule. For these employees, when a holiday falls on a non-workday (Saturday or Sunday), the holiday usually is observed on Monday (if the holiday falls on Sunday) or Friday (if the holiday falls on Saturday).

In addition to the days designated as holidays, the Federal Government observes the following days:

• Any other day designated by Federal Statute or Executive Order,

• Any other day designated by President’s Proclamation and

• Presidential Inauguration Day.

It is understood and agreed between the Federal Government and the contractor that observance of such days by Federal Government personnel shall not otherwise be a reason for an additional period of performance or entitlement of compensation except as set forth within the contract.

When the Federal, state, local or other Governmental entity grants excused absence to its employees, assigned contractor personnel may also be dismissed. The contractor agrees to continue to provide sufficient personnel to perform critical tasks already in operation or scheduled and must be guided by the instructions issued by the CO or COR.

If Federal Government personnel are unavailable due to furlough or any other reason, the contractor must contact the CO or COR to receive direction if the following situations apply:

• Contractor personnel who can continue contract performance, on-site or at a site other than their normal workstation, must continue to work and the contract price shall not be reduced or increased and

• Contractor personnel who are unable to continue contract performance may be asked to cease their work effort, which may result in a reduction to the contract price.

10.0 OTHER APPLICABLE CONDITIONS

10.1 ACCESSIBILITY

As per Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the contractor shall ensure that their services and resources are accessible and responsive to the needs of all eligible individuals, including those with disabilities. It is crucial that individuals accessing all EAP resources have their needs met promptly and equitably, regardless of any disabilities they may have.

The contractor shall provide integrated EAP and Work-life referral services to all IRS employees and their immediate family members, regardless of their location or post of duty, including those who are overseas. To ensure accessibility, the contractor shall offer a toll-free number for EAP/Work-life services that is available worldwide, 7 days a week, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. The contractor shall also provide a toll-free TTY number for individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing.

The contractor shall be capable of handling a large volume of calls and ensuring that employees are immediately connected with a counselor for problem consultation in no more than six rings. The call answer speed should not exceed 25 seconds, and the call abandonment rate should be 4% or less.

Employees should not be placed on hold or transferred to telephonic holding areas for more than two minutes during intake.

The contractor shall have a nationwide network of affiliate counselors that are geographically convenient to all IRS posts of duty. Interpreting services must be available for deaf or hard of hearing employees and family members. If requested, the contractor shall provide a counselor with skills for hearing or speech-imparied employees. For non-emergencies, employees must receive an immediate referral to a counselor that’s geographically convenient to all IRS posts of duty, while life-threatening, non-medical emergencies must be given immediate access to a counselor that’s geographically convenient to all IRS posts of duty.

10.2 PARTNERSHIP

The contractor shall collaborate with other IRS work-life and wellness programs to aid employees. The EAP will specifically partner with the IRS Drug Free Workplace Program to facilitate the following objectives:

• Assist managers in handling the repercussions of their employees’ drug use and

• Support employees in their efforts to recover from drug use and avoid future use.

To fulfill these objectives, the EAP contractor shall offer its regular services. The IRS Drug Free Workplace Plan involves screening employees for illegal drug…