The college provides a catastrophic
leave program to full-time employees. The purpose of this program is to permit
employees to voluntarily donate unused sick leave to fellow full-time
employee(s) who are in critical need of leave due to a catastrophic
illness/condition/injury of the employee or his/her close family relative and
who have no more paid leave. No sick or vacation leave will be accrued, or
personal leave granted while receiving donated leave from the catastrophic
leave program.
No donated leave from the catastrophic
leave program can be used once the individual becomes eligible for a paid
leave/retirement program such as long term disability, workers' compensation,
or disability retirement.
(A)
Eligibility.
(1)
The director of
human resources and the president make the determination of whether the
employee or a close relative of the employee has an extraordinary or severe
medical illness, condition or injury.
(2)
The employee has
abided by policies regarding the use of leave including contacting the college
appropriately, and securing necessary physician statements.
(3)
The employee has
exhausted or is likely to exhaust all paid medical leave accruals due to such
illness(es)/conditions(s)/injury(ies),and is not receiving other forms of
compensated leave, such as sick, vacation, or personal leave payments, workers'
compensation payments, or long-term disability payments.
(4)
The employee has
been out of work three days at own cost of sick leave or with financial
consequences; has a statement from a physician certifying the medical necessity
of the leave.
(B)
Donating leave.
(1)
College employees may donate accrued sick leave to another
employee only if these conditions are met.
(1)
(a)
The donation does not cause the sick leave balance of
the donating employee to fall below three hundred sixty hours.
(2)
(b)
The donated leave has been given voluntarily without
any coercion, threat, intimidation, or financial
inducement.
(C)
Administrative and accounting procedures and
requirements.
(1)
The employee requesting catastrophic leave must contact
the director of human resources and provide a letter from a medical physician,
which sets forth the circumstances that cause the illness, condition or injury
to be catastrophic and the expected duration of the illness, condition or
injury.
(2)
Human resources verifies the employee has no form of
accrued leave otherwise available and determines the amount of donated leave
the employee may receive.
(3)
Human resources sends an email to all employees
requesting donations (without specifying the recipient).
(4)
Donors respond
via email and acknowledge that the donation is voluntary.
(5)
Human resources
verifies the authenticity of the donor's email and uses the donor's email
response as a release to deduct leave from the donor.
(6)
Donated leave is
deducted from the donor's account and placed into a catastrophic leave bank for
the recipient employee.
(7)
When using the donated leave, the employee receiving
donated leave will be paid at their regular rate of pay. One day of donated
leave will cover one day of the recipient's pay without regard to any
differences in rate of pay. To clarify: if employee "a" is being paid ten
dollars per hour and employee "b" who receives twenty dollars per hour donates
one day of leave, Employee "a" will receive one day of paid leave, not two
days.
(8)
The employee can receive donated leave up to the number
of hours that he/she is normally scheduled in that pay period (no overtime or
overload).
(9)
The employee receiving donated leave may receive/use up
to one thousand four hundred and forty hours of donated leave or to the point
of qualifying for disability or their return to work, whichever occurs
first.
(D)
Definitions.
(1)
Close relative of
the employee means spouse, (dependent-as defined in the FMLA), or parent of the
employee.
(2)
A catastrophic illness, condition or injury is defined
as one that requires an extensive period of recovery. Not all illnesses,
conditions or injuries that disable an employee from working qualify as
catastrophic.
