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1845 - Resolution - Vacation Share for EmployeesRESOLUTION NO. 1845 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF PORT ORCHARD, WASHINGTON, ESTABLISHING A POLICY ALLOWING CITY EMPLOYEES TO SHARE VACATION LEAVE IN CAREFULLY DEFINED CIRCUMSTANCES WITH EMPLOYEES WHO, IN THE ABSENCE OF A LEAVE SHARING PROGRAM, WOULD BE FORCED TO TAKE LEAVE WITHOUT PAY OR TO TERMINATE EMPLOYMENT. WHEREAS, the City provides vacation leave to its employees as a term of employment subject to certain restrictions, and WHEREAS, public employees historically have joined together to help their fellow employees who may suffer from, or have relatives suffering from, an extraordinary or severe illness, injury, impairment, or physical or mental condition which prevents such fellow employee from working and causes great economic and emotional distress to the employee and the employee's family, and WHEREAS, the aforesaid circumstances are typically exacerbated when affected employees use all of their accrued paid leave. Paid leave accrual is defined as vacation leave, sick leave, accrued compensatory time or floating holidays, and WHEREAS, the City finds it appropriate and in the public interest to permit city employees to share vacation leave in carefully defined circumstances with employees who, in the absence of a leave sharing program, would be forced to take leave without pay or to terminate employment, now therefore, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PORT ORCHARD DOES HEREBY RESOLVE: THAT: The Leave Sharing Policy attached hereto as Exhibit "A" is hereby adopted. PASSED by the City Council of the City of Port Orchard, APPROVED by the Mayor and attested by the Clerk in authentication of such passage this 281" day of December, 1998. LESLIE J. WEATHERILL, MAYOR ATTEST, Patricia Parks, City Clerk CITY OF PORT ORCHARD LEAVE SHARING POLICY INDEX EFFECTIVE DATE APPROVED Administrative 1 U4-008 December 28, 1998 Resolution No. 1845 REFERENCE City of Port Orchard RCW 41.04.650 - 41.04.800 PURPOSE The City provides vacation leave to its employees as a term of employment subject to certain restrictions as to use and accumulation. Public employees historically have joined together to help their fellow employees who may suffer from, or have relatives suffering from, an extraordinary or severe illness, injury, impairment, or physical or mental condition which prevents such fellow employee from working and causes great economic and emotional distress to the employee and the employee's family. The aforesaid circumstances are typically exacerbated when affected employees use all of their accrued paid leave. Paid leave accrual is defined as vacation leave, sick leave, accrued compensatory time or floating holidays. The City finds it appropriate and in the public interest to permit city employees to share vacation leave in carefully defined circumstances with employees who, in the absence of a leave sharing program, would be forced to take leave without pay or to terminate employment. An employee may only donate vacation leave to another employee. Sick leave, accrued compensatory time, floating holidays or other type of leave are not eligible for donation to another employee. POLICY SECTION 1. LEAVE SHARING POLICY ESTABLISHED. A leave sharing program is hereby established for the purpose of permitting city employees, to come to the aid of a fellow city employee who experiences an unusual or extraordinary situation or is suffering from, or has a relative suffering from, an extraordinary or severe illness, injury, impairment, or physical or mental condition. SECTION 2. CONDITIONS FOR RECEIPT OF SHARED LEAVE. A. The Personnel Director, with concurrence of the receiving employee's department director, may permit an employee to receive shared leave if: 1. The employee suffers, or has an immediate family member suffering 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 go on leave without pay status or to terminate their employment with the City. 2. The employee has depleted or will deplete his/her total available paid leave during the absence. NOTE: The receiving employee is subject to maximum 240 hour vacation leave carry over policy at the end of a calendar year. 3. Prior to the use of shared leave; the employee has abided by the City's sick leave policy. 4. The employee has diligently pursued and is found to be ineligible for state industrial insurance benefits, disability insurance benefits and/or any other benefits, which might be available, with the exception of state public assistance. CITY OF PORT ORCHARD - LEAVE SHARING PAGE I OF 3 ADMINISTRATIVE 100-008 5. If deemed appropriate, the Personnel Department may require that the employee provide appropriate medical justification and documentation both of the necessity for the leave and the time which the employee can reasonably be expected to be absent due to the condition. The amount of shared leave, if any, which an employee may receive shall them be calculated. No full-time employee shall receive more than a total of 520 hours of shared leave within a 12-month period. No part-time employee shall receive more than a total of 260 hours of shared leave within a 12-month period. For purposes of this policy a 12-month period shall be the 12-month period preceding an application to receive Shared Leave. B. The Mayor may permit an employee, who is experiencing an unusual or extraordinary situation that does not qualify as an extraordinary or severe illness, injury, impairment, or physical or mental condition, to receive shared leave if: 1. The reason for which the employee is or will be absent from the workplace is eligible for sick leave usage; 2. The receiving employee's department director recommends approval; 3. The employee has depleted or will deplete his/her total available paid leave during their absence; and 4. Prior to the use of shared leave; the employee has abided by the city's sick leave policy. SECTION 3. CONDITIONS FOR DONATION OF SHARED LEAVE. Employees may request the transfer of a specified amount of accrued vacation leave to an employee who has been authorized to receive shared leave, subject to the following conditions: 1. Transfer shall be in increments of not less than 8 hours; with maximum amount of leave donated by any one employee not to exceed 80 hours; 2. The donating employee must retain a total of 80 hours, or more, of total accrued vacation leave, after the transfer of shared leave; 3. The transfer of leave from a donating employee shall not exceed the amount specified by that employee; 4. All donations of shared leave shall be entirely voluntary; 5. Employees leaving the employ of the City, who have donated shared leave, shall not be eligible to receive payment for such donated leave at time of termination of employment or at any time in the future or under any circumstance. SECTION 4. INTERDEPARTMENTAL TRANSFERS OF LEAVE. Shared leave may be transferred without regard to the city department in which donating employees and receiving employees may be assigned. SECTION 5. EMPLOYMENT STATUS OF EMPLOYEES USING SHARED LEAVE. While an employee is using shared leave, they shall continue to be classified as a city employee and shall receive the same treatment in respect to salary and employee benefits as they would normally receive if using accrued sick leave or vacation leave. All salary payments made to an employee while using shared leave shall be made by the department to which that employee is assigned. CITY OF PORT ORCHARD - LEAVE SHARING PAGE 2 OF 3 ADMINISTRATIVE 100-008 The salary rate, total salary, and earned benefits of an employee using shared leave shall not change as a result of the employee being on shared leave, but shall continue as if the employee were using accrued sick leave. The Payroll Department shall be responsible for adjusting the accrued leave balances to show the transferred leave. Records of all leave time transferred shall be maintained in the event that any time is returned at a later date to the donor. The leave transferred, which remains unused, shall be returned to the leave accrual account of the employee or employees who donated the leave. In the event more than one employee donated the unused leave, the amount of leave shall be returned prorated at the percentage of leave each employee originally donated. The Personnel Department shall monitor the use of shared leave with the objective of establishing uniform administration of this Policy for all employees of the City. Inappropriate use or treatment of the shared leave provision may result in the cancellation of the donated leave or use of shared leave. In no event shall any unused -shared leave be paid to the recipient employee in the event of leaving city service. The City Treasurer shall determine the appropriate fund transfers and budget amendments as needed for City Council action. SECTION 6. PILOT PROGRAM. This program has been established as a pilot program of the City of Port Orchard subject to review within one calendar year. The City Council in its sole discretion may cancel this program. Participation in this program by union represented employees shall be predicated upon a receipt from each affected bargaining unit of a written waiver by the appropriate Union bargaining representative indicating that the Union understands that the program is a pilot program, agrees that the program shall not establish a past practice by the City or otherwise obligate the City to continue the program and acknowledging that the City may cancel the program at any time or review it on one-year increments, extending it from time to time as the City Council, in its sole discretion, shall determine appropriate. ATTACHMENT Application to receive donated leave Application to donate leave CITY OF PORT ORCHARD - LEAVE SHARING PAGE 3 OF 3 ADMINISTRATIVE 100-008