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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2003-07• Whereas, the Town Council of the Town of Pulaski, Virginia has considered the value that would accrue to the Town's employees and the public in general by the adoption of a voluntary sick leave pool policy and has determined that the adoption of such a policy would be in the best interests of the citizens of Pulaski, VA; and ADOPTION OF VOLUNTARY SICK LEAVE POOL POLICY RESOLUTION 2003-07 Now, Therefore, be it Hereby Resolved by the Town Council of the Town of Pulaski, Virginia sitting in regular session on the 4~' day of March, 2003 that the attached policy, sick leave pool application and sick leave pool program regulations are adopted (copies attached and made a part hereof as if expressly set forth herein). This Resolution is effective immediately upon its passage. Bettye H. Steger John T. Bolen Pauline G. Mitchell Jeffrey S. Worrell - Aye Kenneth M. Fleenor - Aye James M. Neblett, Jr - Aye E. G. Black, Jr. - Aye - Aye - Absent - Aye Town of Pulaski, Virginia Charles W. Stewart, Jr., Mayor ATTESTED: - - Patricia Cruise, Clerk Town of Pulaski, Virginia • T Town of Pulaski, Virginia Human Resources Manual Policy No. 9.600 Sick Leave Policy Sick Leave Sharing. All leave sharing shall be within total discretion of the Town Manager. The Town Manager may permit a regular full-time or regular part-time employee to receive sick leave donations from the sick leave pool under this subsection if: The employee suffers from an illness, injury, impairment or physical or mental condition which is of an extraordinary or severe nature and which has caused, or is likely to cause, the employee to: a. Go on leave without pay status; or b. Terminate Town employment, 2. The employee's absence and the use of shared sick leave are justified by the reasonable expectation that the employee will be able to return to Town service at the expiration of the leave; 3. The employee has depleted or will shortly deplete his or her annual vacation leave and sick leave reserves; 4. The employee has abided by all personnel rules regarding sick leave use. The employee's participation shall be totally voluntary and no legal rights shall accrue to employee by virtue of any participation. The Town Manager may approve the requested amount of sick leave which an employee may receive under this section. However, an employee shall not receive, in donations, a total of more than seven hundred and twenty hours (720) of donated sick leave pool hours. An employee who has accrued a sick leave balance of more than 160 hours may request that the Town Manager transfer a specified amount of sick leave to the sick leave pool under this section. In no event may the employee request a transfer of an amount of sick leave that would result in his or her own sick leave account going below 160 hours. No probationary employee shall be eligible even if previously employed by the Town. • • Sick Leave Pool Program Regulations (Note: This policy applies to regular full-time or regular part-time employees) The Town of Pulaski has established a voluntary sick leave pool program. The purpose of the program is to provide a potential source of additional sick leave for employees who exhaust their sick leave because of catastrophic illness or injury suffered by either the employee or a member of the employee's immediate family. 2. To build the pool, current employees are periodically asked to contribute a portion of their accrued sick leave to the pool. An employee who has accrued a sick leave balance of more than 160 hours may request that the Town Manager transfer a specified amount of sick leave to the sick leave pool. In no event may the employee request a transfer of an amount of sick leave that would result in his or her own sick leave account going below 160 hours. 3. An employee who wants to withdraw sick leave from the pool because of catastrophic illness or injury must be eligible to accrue vacation and sick leave benefits at the time application is made. The employee must have exhausted all of his or her accrued sick and • vacation leave before hours from the pool maybe allocated. Approved sick leave pool hours may be less than the hours requested by the employee. An eligible employee may not draw time from the sick leave pool in an amount that exceeds the lesser of one-third of the total amount of time in the pool or a lifetime maximum benefits of 90 days (maximum 720 hours). The lifetime maximum benefit may be for one or a combination of more than one catastrophic illness or injury the total of which cannot exceed 720 hours. Sick leave hours granted from the pool may be taken on an intermittent basis in units of 8 hours. DEFINITIONS A catastrophic illness or injury is defined as a severe condition or combination of conditions affecting the mental or physical health of the employee or the employee's immediate family that requires the services of a licensed medical practitioner for a prolonged period of time and that forces the employee to exhaust all leave time earned by that employee and to lose compensation from the Town. • Immediate family is defined as any person living in the same household who is related by kinship, adoption (including foster children certified by the Virginia Department of Protective Services), or marriage. Minor children of the employee, whether or not living in the same household, are also considered immediate family. An employee's use of sick leave for family members not residing in that employee's household is strictly limited to the time necessary to provide care and assistance to a spouse, child or parent of the employee who needs that care and assistance as a direct result of a documented medical condition. SICK LEAVE POOL ADMINISTRATION The Sick Leave Pool Program Administrator (Town Manager) administers the Sick Leave Pool Program. The Town Manager, in his sole discretion, will determine whether or not an employee is eligible for sick leave pool hours and the exact amount of time that an eligible employee may draw from the pool. In determining the amount of sick leave to be granted to an eligible employee from the sick leave pool, the Town Manager will give consideration to but not limited to: • Information provided by the licensed medical practitioner; • The number of pending applications at the time; and . • The amount of sick leave available in the pool. All applications to use sick leave from the pool must be accompanied by a completed and signed Licensed Medical Practitioner Statement for review by a medical authority before making a determination of whether a condition is a catastrophic illness or injury and the number of hours to be granted from the Sick Leave Pool. Once a decision is reached, the pool administrator will provide written communication to the applicant and the department. Note: Employees who are injured on the job must notify their department and receive Workers' Compensation benefits rather than apply for sick leave pool hours. However, the seven- day waiting period prior to commencement of Workers' Compensation Insurance benefits can be submitted for sick leave pool consideration. PROCEDURE I. DONATING SICK LEAVE POOL HOURS Employees who wish to donate sick leave hours to the pool may submit the Sick Leave Pool Donation Form to their Department Head. The Department Head will certify that • the hours the employee wishes to donate are available and will forward the form to the Town Manager for processing and determination. • II. APPLYING FOR SICK LEAVE POOL HOURS An employee is eligible to withdraw sick leave from the pool if the Town Manager finds that the employee has exhausted all accrued annual leave and sick leave because of a catastrophic illness or injury. Eligibility does not mean an employee is entitled to receive sick leave from the pool. Employees who are applying for hours from the Sick Leave Pool must observe the following procedure: • Obtain the Sick Leave Pool Application Form and the Licensed Medical Practitioner Statement Form from the employee's Department Head. (Only verified sick leave is available). • Forward the completed Sick Leave Pool Application and the Licensed Medical Practitioner Statement to the employee's Department Head. (Note: The employee may choose to forward the completed Licensed Medical Practitioner Statement directly to the Town Manager. • Forward the completed application to the department head. The department head signs the completed Sick Leave Pool Application with or without a recommendation and forwards it and the Licensed Medical Practitioner Statement (if attached) to the Town Manager. • Applications to use sick leave pool hours will be processed on a first-come, first-served basis. A determination will normally be made within ten (10) working days after receipt of the fully completed application with appropriate attachments. If the application is approved, the pool administrator will send a notification letter to the employee and the employee's department head advising him or her of the number of hours approved. If the application is denied, the Town Manager will send a letter to the employee and copy the employee's department head notifying them of the decision. No reason need be stated by Town Manager. If not previously done, departments must place employees who are Family and Medical Leave (FMLA) eligible on FMLA if they are granted time from the sick leave pool. • THE TOWN OF PULASKI SICK LEAVE POOL DONATION • AN EMPLOYEE MAY TRANSFER TO THE POOL ONE OR MORE DAYS OF THEIR ACCRUED SICK LEAVE PER FISCAL YEAR NAME (PLEASE PRINT): DEPARTMENT S.S. # Number of hours donated (must be completed): * Must be in units of eight (8) hours. Signature Date I certify the employee listed above has sufficient sick leave hours as indicated to make the donation to the Sick Leave Pool. The department records will be adjusted accordingly. Signature of Department Official FOR POOL ADMINISTRATOR USE ONLY The Town of Pulaski would like to express gratitude for your generosity in donating to the Employee Sick Leave Pool. Date Approved: