The purpose of this policy is to outline an integrated
approach for the efficient and effective management of sick leave in accordance
with federal and state leave mandates, employee interests, changing workplace
dynamics, and administrative supervision.
2.1. Leave requests will be considered and granted or denied
in accordance with applicable leave laws, including the Family and Medical
Leave Act (FMLA), Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA), State law and workers'
compensation statutes. The Washington
County School
District complies with District policies and all
applicable State and federal leave laws. Employees who are denied leave in
accordance with federal and State laws but who nevertheless take leave will be
disciplined according to District policy at the level of up to and including
termination.
2.2. Unless other arrangements are made with the principal, manager, or
designee, employees must report to work immediately upon expiration of granted
leave or at the time identified by a doctor's release. If leave is granted and
an employee on leave does not return from leave on the day indicated in his or
her original application or in an approved extension, the employee will be
disciplined according to District policy.
2.3. The Washington County School District complies with the FMLA. Employees who
have worked for at least 12-months and for 1250 hours of service
are generally eligible to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave (paid leave is
counted simultaneously in the limits for FMLA leave, when applicable, according to District policy)
annually when the absence is necessitated by any of the following
circumstances:
2.3.1. Birth of a child,
2.3.2. Placement of a child with the employee for adoption or foster care,
2.3.3. A serious health condition that makes the employee unable to perform the functions of the employee's job,
2.3.4. Care of a spouse, dependent child, or parent of the employee with a
serious medical condition.
2.3.5.
Because of any qualifying exigency arising out of the fact that the
employee's spouse, son, daughter, or parent is a covered military
member on active duty in support of a contingency operation.
2.3.6.
To care for a covered service member with a serious injury or illness
if the employee is the spouse, son, daughter, parent, or next of kin of
the service member.
2.4. Employees who wish to take leave for medical treatment as a reasonable
accommodation of a disability must request leave as soon as possible, so Washington County School District
and the employee can engage in an interactive process for determining eligibility
and identifying a reasonable accommodation.
2.4.1. If the Washington County School District has a
legitimate business need to verify that the employee has a disability covered
by the ADA, the employee must provide adequate medical information or may be
required to submit to an examination authorized by the ADA to verify the
existence of a covered disability, the nature and extent of needed
accommodation, or the assessment of direct threat or fitness for duty.
2.4.2. To qualify as a reasonable accommodation under the ADA, the medical leave must be likely to
result in the employee returning to work within a reasonable time with or
without an accommodation. Indefinite leave is not required by the ADA and will not be
granted. ADA leave will not be granted or
extended if it results in an undue hardship, direct threat, or other denials
brought about by business necessity to the Washington County
School District. If a
reasonable accommodation other than leave is available, the Washington County
School District may
choose that accommodation instead of leave. An employee returning from ADA leave will be
returned to his or her original position only if he or she is qualified to
perform the job's essential functions with or without reasonable
accommodation.
2.4.3. If the employee has been on ADA
disability leave, the employee will have to provide medical information
documenting their ability to perform the job with or without reasonable
accommodation. If the documentation does not meet this requirement or the District
has reasonable question regarding the information provided, the District may
order the employee to undergo a fitness-for-duty examination to demonstrate
that he or she is able to perform the job's essential functions with or without
reasonable accommodation.
The following procedures and guidelines are designed to administer and
implement the requirements of the above policy.
3.1. Paid Sick Leave:
3.1.1. District means Washington County
School District.
3.1.2. Board means Washington County School District Board of
Education.
3.1.3. Serious health condition has the meaning given that term in the
Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA).
3.1.4. Health care provider has the meaning given that term in the
FMLA.
3.1.5. Disability has the meaning given that term in the Americans with
Disabilities Act (ADA).
3.1.6. Eligible employee means any employee who, based on his/her status,term, and condition of
District employment, is eligible for participation service credit in the Utah
Retirement System. (5-8-07)
3.1.7. An eligible District employee earns one day of sick leave for each
month in work status. This rate of earned sick leave accrual will be
proportionately reduced for eligible part-time employees or less than 12 months
of employment (see Table 3.1.7.). An employee will not be eligible for leave
accrual during periods of non-pay status, leave of absence, or sabbatical
leave.
Table 3.1.7, Part Time Proportional Adjustments (revised 12/11/01, revised 9/08)
|
Employee Contract
Days
|
Certified Employee FTE Range
|
Classified Employee
Daily Contract Hrs
|
Monthly Accrual
Rate in 8-hr Days
|
Annual Accrual
Rate in 8-hr Days
|
|
From
|
To
|
From
|
To
|
|
227+
|
.85
|
1.0
|
35
|
40
|
1
|
12
|
|
.58
|
.84
|
28
|
34.99
|
.75
|
9
|
|
.50
|
.57
|
20
|
27.99
|
.5
|
6
|
|
180 to 226
|
.85
|
1.0
|
35
|
40
|
.84
|
10
|
|
.58
|
.84
|
28
|
34.99
|
.63
|
7.5
|
|
.50
|
.57
|
20
|
27.99
|
.42
|
5
|
3.1.8. Unless otherwise approved in this policy/procedure,
eligible employees are only entitled to use, under the approval conditions and
limitations herein specified, accrued Paid Sick Leave for the employee's
personal illness, health condition, or disability. The
District will advance Paid Sick Leave for eligible first year
employees not to exceed the one year's annual accrual as identified in
Table 3.1.7. After the first year of employment the District will
not advance Paid Sick Leave for use before it is accrued
as defined in Table 3.1.7. If an employee's accrued leave is
insufficient to cover an approved absence the employee will be placed
in un-paid leave status and the employee's salary will be deducted in
the payroll month it was taken.
3.1.9. An employee may use up to 12 calendar days (for year-round
employment) or 10 calendar days (for traditional employment) of Paid Sick Leave
per year according to the Annual Accrual Rate in table 3.1.7 for any FMLA
qualifying event that is not directly related to an employee's personal
illness, health condition, or disability. No more than 5 days of Paid Sick Leave may be used for a non-personal qualifying event without obtaining prior approval from the Human Resource Director or designee. Within the above limit is
included time necessary for the death and burial of family members or
relatives. For the purposes of bereavement, the
term family members or relatives has the meaning given to the term
"Relative" in Utah Code Amended 52-3-1(1)(d); father, mother, husband,
wife, son, daughter, sister, brother, uncle, aunt, nephew, niece, first
cousin, mother-in-law, father-in-law, brother-in-law, sister-in-law,
son-in-law, or daughter-in-law. In addition to the relatives
identified above the District includes grandchildren and grandparents.
3.1.10. Certified educators and other eligible employees who transfer to the
Washington County School District
are eligible to transfer up to five days of sick leave, if the employee has
earned and not used those days according to the policy of the previous
employer. Employees must not have a break in service of more than four months
and must provide acceptable written evidence of available leave credit from the
previous employer. (2-5-05)
3.1.11. To be credited with one month's sick leave accrual, an employee must
be in pay status on the last day of the month. . Irrespective of the total
amount of accumulated Sick Leave, paid Sick Leave eligibility will end on the
date the employee becomes eligible for Long Term Disability benefits. (2-8-05)
3.1.12. An eligible part-time employee receives sick leave accrual in direct
proportion to the number of work hours identified on the employee's contract.
Additional hours worked, beyond the hours identified in the contract, will not
result in the additional accrual of sick leave. If
for any reason an employee's contract is changed and the change results
in becoming ineligible for Paid Sick Leave benefits the period of
ineligibility will be treated as a break in service as defined in
paragraph 3.2.
3.1.13. The Human Resource Director or designee may authorize sick leave only when
supported by evidence acceptable by District administration. Normally such
certification must be from a qualified health care provider.
Supervisors/principals are authorized to accept an employee's
self-certification of an illness for no more than a total of three (3) calendar days
per month totaling no more than nine (9) days per year. If there is a reason to believe that an employee is abusing sick
leave, the Human Resource Director or designee may require an employee to produce a health care
provider's certificate of illness regardless of the number of sick leave days
used.
3.1.14. An employee shall request advance approval for sick leave for the
purposes of receiving medical, dental, or optical examination or other
authorized scheduled treatment. Employees unable to report for work due to an
unexpected illness must notify their supervisor, principal, or designee prior
to the start of the work day in which leave is requested. If the duration of leave is anticipated to be more than three consecutive, full calendar (29 CFR 825.115 (a) days the employee must notify the Human Resource Director or designee.
3.2. Re-crediting Paid Sick Leave upon Reemployment
3.2.1. An employee who resigns (has a break in service) or becomes ineligible for Paid Sick Leave benefits and
is rehired or becomes eligible within 24 months into a position eligible for Paid Sick Leave
accumulation is entitled to a re-credit of sick leave after completion of a
12-month waiting period.
3.2.2. An employee who resigned to accept a position in another district to
which he or she transferred all or part of his or her sick leave is entitled to
a re-credit (under paragraph 3.2.1.) of the sick leave accumulated prior to
resignation less the days transferred to interim employment.
3.2.3. The re-credit of sick leave under this paragraph must be supported by
written documentation satisfactory to the District.
3.3. Short-Term Disability (STD) Benefits:
3.3.1.
Employees who meet all eligibility requirements for accrual of paid
sick leave may voluntarily purchase, by payroll deduction, STD Benefits
according the provisions of agreement(s) entered into by the District.
The District provides no assurance with reference to such
policies or products. All benefits, eligibility requirements,
limitations, entitlements, and any other terms or conditions of
participation are by agreement with the insurance provider and the
employee. Policy premiums are subject to change. The
District may cancel, modify, or change the terms or conditions of an
agreement with an STD provider at its
sole discretion.
3.3.2.
Under
the terms of such policy agreements, regardless of the total Paid Sick
Leave hours an employee may have accrued, employees who have opted for
STD benefits must fully cooperate in the application for and use of STD
benefits before the employee may use Paid Sick Leave. Once an
employee meets the qualification requirements and elimination period
for STD benefits s/he may elect to receive STD benefits according to
the terms and conditions of the STD agreement or, if eligible, the
employee may elect to use accrued Paid Sick Leave according to District
policy. An employee is not eligible to receive STD benefits and
Paid Sick Leave simultaneously. If an employee elects to use STD
benefits and is eligible to continue employment in non-pay status, s/he
will be placed in STD leave-without-pay status. While in STD
leave-without-pay status the employee will not be paid by the District,
will not accrue service credit toward state retirement, and will not
accrue additional Paid Sick Leave.
3.3.3.
If eligible, STD leave-without-pay status will be designated FMLA leave
and the District will maintain the employee's health coverage under the
group health plan on the same terms as if the employee had continued to
work.
3.3.4.
There
is no entitlement for or expectation of continued employment beyond the
terms of an employees contract, to include the provisions of a
temporary or at-will contract, even if the employee meets eligibility
requirements for or becomes eligible to receive STD benefits. The
fact that an employee qualifies for STD benefits will not constitute
approval for leave in excess of District Policy or FMLA limitations.
Within the limits of this policy, the ADA, FMLA, and other
applicable regulations, an employee who is unable to perform the
essential functions of his/her position, with or without accommodation,
will be considered disqualified and may be separated from his/her
employement.
3.4. Reserved. (2-5-05)
3.5. Long-term Disability (LTD) Benefits:
3.5.1. Eligibility: Non-temporary classified employees
contracted to work at least 20 hours per week for 180 days or more per contract
term and non-temporary certified employees contracted to work at least .5 FTE
(half time) for 180 days or more per contract term will be automatically
enrolled in LTD benefits insurance program. Temporary employees, as defined by
District policy or contract provisions, are not eligible to participate in this
benefit. The 180-day threshold may be adjusted for year- round schedule or
condensed workweek if the total number of hours in the contract will be at
least 720 hours.
3.5.2. Employees must submit a complete application for LTD
benefits at
least two months prior to the end of the minimum waiting period or Paid
Sick Leave will end on the date the employee would have met the waiting
period
regardless of eligibility.
3.5.3. Acceptance of and approval for Long Term Disability
(LTD) benefits constitutes a separation from employment with the
Washington County School District. As such, all District
entitlements, benefits, and benefit eligibility, to include District
early retirement incentives, will end on the date an employee becomes
eligible to receive an LTD payment. All subsequent LTD benefits
features to include continuation of health insurance coverage and
service credit toward retirement are exclusively bound to the
limitations, terms, and conditions of coverage under the current LTD
Group Insurance Certificate.
3.6. Leave Donation:
3.6.1. This procedure is established to allow a transfer of
personal, vacation leave to another District certified or classified employee
who has a compelling need and is entitled to leave under the FMLA.
3.6.2. The program creates the opportunity for a financial safety net to
assist employees with legitimate needs. It allows concerned individuals the
opportunity to participate in helping others with a recognized compassionate
act of service. As participants unite to help one another stronger morale,
friendship, and esprit de corps will emerge in the District.
3.6.3. Contributing to individual need hinges on a process that is
scrutinized by concerned individuals. They alone must carefully and
thoughtfully consider the situation before acting to donate. It is
appropriately a self-initiated choice.
3.6.4. Eligibility: Before a request for leave donation may be considered,
the following conditions must be met:
3.6.4.1. The absence must be considered a qualifying FMLA event and the employee must be eligible to take leave
under the limits and provisions of the FMLA. The Superintendent may approve exceptions for employees who would otherwise be eligible for sick leave but have fewer than 12 months of qualifying service.
3.6.4.2. The employee must have used all available "paid leave" to
include all personal, vacation, and available Paid Sick Leave.
3.6.4.3. No more than a total of 10 days of leave may be donated to an eligible employee per qualifying event.
3.6.5. Because medical and/or health information is considered private, the
administrator must obtain a written release from the employee before
identifying a need to other employees (District form 507).
The employee providing the release must state in writing what information they
are willing to share with other employees.
3.6.6. Once a release has been obtained, the District Human Resource Director or designee may make
an appeal to the immediate school or work location of the employee, using the
information in the release. If after a reasonable period of two or three weeks,
donated leave is insufficient to cover the qualified leave period, the District Human Resource
Director or designee may make a general appeal to employees of the District. The
general appeal will be communicated by sending an e-mail to employees, administrators
and secretaries who have correctly registered on the District e-mail distribution list.
3.6.7. No appeal will be compelling to the point of making employees feel
"obligated" to donate leave. Employees, administrators, or others
must not pass out a "signup list." Once a general appeal is issued,
administrators, associations, or other concerned individuals may announce that
eligible employees may contact the school office or District Human Resource
Director to obtain and submit a donation form.
3.6.8. A donating employee must sign a District form 513 to
identify the voluntary nature of the donation.
3.6.9. If an employee is willing to donate a personal leave day that
requires payment of the substitute cost, they must identify if they, as the
donating employee, are willing to have the cost deducted from their salary or
that they intend to defer the responsibility for the substitute cost to the
receiving employee.
3.6.10. If all donated leave is not used, unused leave will be returned to the employee from whom it was donated.
3.6.11. Leave must be donated in increments of full days
only. Receiving employees will not be eligible to receive more
than a total of 10 days of donated leave per FMLA qualifying event.
3.7. FMLA Leave:
3.7.1. Notifying the Washington County
School District of the
need for FMLA leave.
3.7.1.1. Employees, or an appropriate representative, shall
submit a completed Application for FMLA leave (District Form 512), 30 days in advance when the need for leave is
foreseeable, or as soon as possible in emergencies. Family Medical Leave Act
Request Forms are available on the District Home Page or at the District Human
Resource Department.
3.7.1.2. In an emergency, notice of the need for leave must be given as soon
as possible, but no later than five business days after the leave begins.
3.7.1.3. The District will allow employees up to 15 calendar days to
provide medical certification if FMLA leave was not foreseeable. WH-380
"Certification of Health Care Provider" forms are available from the
District Human Resource Office or online at: www.dol.gov/esa/whd/fmla.
3.7.1.4.
Employees must provide complete and sufficient certification by
submitting a completed Department of Labor, WH-380, "Certification of
Health Care Provider" form
available at http://www.dol.gov/esa/whd/fmla. A health care
certification is incomplete or insufficient if one or more applicable
entries have not been competed or if the information provided is vague,
ambiguous, or non-responsive. Employees will be allowed no more
than seven calendar days to cure any such deficiency. If the
deficiencies are not timely cured, the employee will be denied coverage
under FMLA and be subject to disciplinary action up to and including
dismissal.
3.7.2. The Human Resource Director or his or her designee shall document leave requests which
qualify as FMLA leave, and will designate any qualifying leave taken by
employees as FMLA leave. All leave which qualifies as FMLA leave shall be
designated as such and shall be subject to all the provisions of the FMLA and District Policy.
(2-8-05)
3.7.3. FMLA leave will run concurrently with short-term disability,
long-term disability, Paid Sick Leave, unpaid leave, paid vacation, and/or
personal leave used for an FMLA qualifying event. Washington County
School District requires
employees to exhaust paid vacation and sick leave before using any remaining unpaid
FMLA leave. If an employee uses accrued compensatory time, that leave time may
not be counted against the FMLA leave entitlement.
3.7.4. For instructional employees, as defined by the FMLA, the period
during the summer vacation when the employee would not have been required to
report for duty is not counted against the employee's FMLA leave entitlement.
3.7.5. Under FMLA leave, the employee has the right to return to work during
the approved FMLA leave period if a health care provider
provides a written Return to Work Statement to the District that the employee, in the opinion
of the health care provider, is able to perform the essential functions of the
job. Depending on the needs of the District, employees in an instructional
capacity may be required to extend their leave if the requested time off
interferes with the ending of an academic term.
3.7.6. If an employee fails to return to work after unpaid FMLA leave has
ended, the health insurance premiums paid by the District on the employee's
behalf during the FMLA event, with certain exceptions, is a debt of the
employee due and payable immediately to the District. An employee is considered
to have returned to work if he or she returns for at least 30 calendar days. An
exception to the rule may be made if an employee's circumstances change
unexpectedly beyond their control during the leave period, which make them
unable to return to work at the end of the 12 weeks. Medical certification is
required.
3.7.7. For the purposes of FMLA, the Washington County
School District's
"12-month period" is a "rolling" 12-month period measured
backward from the date an employee uses any FMLA leave.
3.7.8. If an employee and spouse are both eligible for FMLA leave and both
work for the District, their aggregate leave entitlement will be 12 weeks if
the leave is for the birth, adoption or placement of a child, or the illness of
a parent or dependent child.
3.7.9. During approved FMLA leave or Paid Sick Leave, Washington County
School District will
continue to provide group health insurance on the same terms and conditions as
provided other employees.
3.7.10.
The District will post notices for Employee FMLA Rights and
Responsibilities on the District self-service web access page.
All employees must access payroll deduction information from this
site.