Sick Leave Pool For Non-Faculty Employees: 3.32

ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES

PURPOSE

This procedure establishes guidelines for participation in the Sick Leave Pool by eligible full-time regular non-faculty employees.

PROCEDURE

The Sick Leave Pool is established to provide additional paid sick leave protection to eligible employees after all accumulated paid leave has been exhausted. The Sick Leave Pool is intended to be used by eligible employees to assist in covering the gap between the exhaustion of all accumulated paid leave and the 90 day waiting period until long-term disability insurance benefits may become effective. As such, eligible employees may utilize a maximum of 300 hours, forty (40)days, in two increments of up to 150 hours, twenty (20) days.

1. ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS
   
   1. Participation in the Sick Leave Pool is voluntary.
   2. An employee who has been in a full-time regular status for at least one (1) year and who has accumulated at least ninety (90) hours (twelve (12) days) of accrued sick leave will be eligible to apply for membership in the Sick Leave Pool.
2. ENROLLMENT REQUIREMENTS -An eligible employee may submit an application form in accordance with the following guidelines:
   
   1. During the semi-annual enrollment period (first two weeks of October and April), an employee may complete and forward the Application for Membership in the Sick Leave Pool form to Human Resources.
   2. Employees will initially contribute two (2) days (15 hours) to the Sick Leave Pool, following approval of the employee's eligibility for membership. The two days will be deducted from the contributing employee's accrued sick leave balance.
3. PARTICIPATION - The following guidelines apply to an employee's participation in the Sick Leave Pool:
   
   1. Employees must be an approved member of the Sick Leave Pool.
   2. Employees must be on an approved medical leave of absence Employees must provide medical certification stating that they are unable to work when initially applying for hours from the Sick Leave Pool and again if requesting additional hours. The College at its own expense may require a second opinion. The certification will contain the following information:
      1.  a written statement that the employee is unable to work;
      2.  a statement indicating the diagnosis and prognosis;
      3.  a statement of the expected treatment plan; and
      4.  an estimation of when the employee will be able to return to work.
   3. Employees will not be eligible to use sick leave from the pool until all accrued leave has been exhausted and the employee has been on 37.5 hours, five (5) days of unpaid leave. Employee's accrued leave will be utilized in the following order: compensatory, sick, vacation and frozen sick leave if applicable.
   4. Employees receiving hours from the Sick Leave Pool may return to work on a part-time basis if Human Resources receive a certified return to work with limited-hours restriction from a treating health care provider. Sick Leave Pool hours may be used to complete the 7.5 hours of a work day for a period no longer than thirty (30) calendar days and may not exceed the maximum 300 hours allowed.
   5. Hours from the Sick Leave Pool will be deducted as needed up to the maximum hours allowed.
   6. A participating employee who uses sick leave from the Sick Leave Pool will not accrue sick or vacation leave during an absence.
   7. A disability that is covered by Workers' Compensation shall not be covered under the Sick Leave Pool.
4. REPLENISHMENT - The following guidelines apply to replenishing the balance of the Sick Leave Pool:
   
   1. Human Resources will call for replenishment of the Sick Leave Pool when the number of days in the Sick Leave Pool is reduced to sixty (60).
   2. Human Resources will notify each participant how many days each participating employee will be required to transfer to the Sick Leave Pool.
   3. Each member of the Sick Leave Pool will be required to transfer an equal number of days to the Sick Leave Pool.
   4. The employee will complete and forward the Authorization to Replenish Sick Leave Pool form to Human Resources. If an employee fails to authorize the replenishment, Human Resources will remove the employee from the Sick Leave Pool.
   5. An employee may withdraw from the Sick Leave Pool with written notice submitted to Human Resources; however, the fifteen (15) hours required to join will not be returned.
   6. A member of the Sick Leave Pool who does not have sufficient accumulated sick leave for the replenishment allocation will be required to complete the Sick Leave Pool Replenishment Waiver form to maintain membership in the Sick Leave Pool. This form includes an authorization to transfer the required hours of sick leave as accrued to the Sick Leave Pool. The employee will forward the completed form to Human Resources.

History:

Replaces Procedure 2.046, Sick Leave Pool, dated October 5, 1994.