SICK LEAVE
OBJECTIVE
It is the Commonwealth's objective to provide employees with paid leave from work for health-related reasons.
I. EMPLOYEES TO WHOM POLICY APPLIES
[REVISED 12/94]II. PURPOSE OF SICK LEAVE
A. Employee sick leave
Employees shall be allowed to use their accrued sick leave to take time off from work for the following reasons:
1. if medically necessary, during an employee's temporary disability from performing his or her duties, including disability related to pregnancy or childbirth;
2. if an employee has, or has been exposed to, a contagious disease such that his or her presence on the job might jeopardize the health of others; and
3. if an employee's medically-related appointment(s) cannot be scheduled during his or her non-work hours.
NOTE: See Policy 4.20, Family and Medical Leave.
B. Family sick leave
Employees also shall be allowed to use their accrued sick leave to take time off from work for the illness or death of an immediate family member.
1. Immediate family
An employee's immediate family shall be considered the employee's:
a. parents, including step-parents;
b. spouse;
c. children, including step-children and foster children;
d. siblings, including step-siblings; and
e. any relative, either by blood or marriage, living in the employee's household.
2. Limit on amount of family sick leave
The maximum amount of family sick leave that an employee may use is:
a. 24 work hours for any one illness, injury or death; and
b. 48 total work hours in a calendar year.
NOTE: See Policy 4.20, Family and Medical Leave.
III. VERIFICATION OF AN EMPLOYEE'S NEED FOR SICK LEAVE
A. Sick leave is subject to verification
1. An employee who wishes to use sick leave must comply with a management request for verification of the need to use sick leave.
2. An employee's use of paid sick leave may be denied if the employee fails to comply with a management request for verification of the need for sick leave.
B. Forms of verification include, but are not limited to, the following:
1. certification from the employee's treating physician that the employee is temporarily disabled from work;
The physician's certification should indicate the extent of the employee's disability and the estimated period of disability.
2. certification from the employee's physician that the employee currently has or has been exposed to a contagious disease such that his or her presence on the job might jeopardize the health of others; or
3. evidence that the employee has a medical appointment that could not have been scheduled during the employee's non-work hours.
C. Verification before sick leave is to be taken
An employee who anticipates being disabled from work due to a medical condition, including but not limited to such things as elective surgery, pregnancy, and childbirth, should submit a physician's certification of disability as soon as possible, to assist management in planning for the employee's absence.
D. Verification may be required at any time
For an employee to request or continue to use sick leave due to temporary disability, the employee may be required to submit a physician's certification of disability at any time.
IV. ACCRUAL OF SICK LEAVE
A. Rate of accrual
1. Full-time employment
An employee working full-time will accrue sick leave at the rate of five work hours for each completed semimonthly period of service he or she works without taking any leave without pay.
2. Part-time classified employment
An employee working classified part-time must work at least 20 hours per week to earn sick leave, and will accrue sick leave at a rate proportionate to the number of hours worked each week.
EXAMPLE:
An employee works 20 hours per week, or one-half of the full-time schedule. She accrues sick leave at the rate of 2.5 hours for each semimonthly period of service.
B. No maximum accrual amount
Unlike policy governing annual leave, which limits the amount that can be carried over from one year to the next, there is no limit on the amount of sick leave that employees can carry over from one year to the next.
C. When accrual begins
Sick leave accrues at the end of each pay period. An employee cannot use sick leave until it is accrued.
D. When sick leave does not accrue
Sick leave does not accrue:
[REVISED 12/94]
1. during any semimonthly pay period when (i) the employee is on leave without pay, or (ii) no work is performed by the employee (e.g., 9-10-11-month employees);2. after 60 consecutive work days of leave with pay, regardless of the type of leave to which the absence is charged;
3. during any pay period when an employee is on suspension (see Policy 1.60, Standards of Conduct), except that:
a. if a suspension extends into a second pay period, accrual of sick leave shall resume in the second pay period unless the period of suspension exceeds 15 calendar days; and
b. if a suspension extends into a third pay period, accrual of sick leave shall resume in the third pay period unless the period of suspension exceeds 31 calendar days; and
c. if a suspension exceeds 31 calendar days resulting from an official investigation, accrual of sick leave will not resume until the employee returns to work; and
4. when an employee is on layoff, except that the period of layoff (up to 12 months) counts as service for purposes of obtaining five years of service for the payoff of excess sick leave balances when the employee leaves state service. (See Policy 1.30, Layoff, for additional information.)
V. TREATMENT OF ACCRUED SICK LEAVE UPON CHANGE OF STATUS
A. Payment when leaving state service
1. Full lump sum payment
An employee shall be paid in a lump sum for the maximum allowable amount of accrued sick leave, as provided in section V(E) below, when the employee leaves state service by resignation (including resignation from layoff status), retirement, termination, or death.
2. Payment upon employee's death
Payment upon an employee's death shall be made to the Administrator or Executor/Executrix. If there is no Administrator or Executor of the employee's estate, payment shall go to the surviving spouse, or if none, to the next of kin in accordance with section 64.1-123 of the Code of Virginia. Payment may be held for 60 days.
B. Partial payment when change from full-time to classified part-time
1. An employee with five or more years of continuous state service who changes from full-time to part-time employment for a period greater than three months shall be paid in a lump sum for the proportionate amount of accrued sick leave to which the employee is entitled.
EXAMPLE:
An employee who worked 40 hours as a full-time employee changes to a part-time schedule working 20 hours, or half of the former schedule. She receives a lump sum payment of 25% of half of the maximum amount of her accrued sick leave, i.e., up to $2,500.
2. An employee with less than five years of continuous state service who changes from full-time to part-time classified employment for a period of three or more months shall have his or her sick leave balance reduced by an amount proportionate to the percentage of work-hours reduced. The excess hours are forfeited.
3. If an employee changes from full-time to classified part-time employment for less than three months, the employee cannot be paid for the proportionate part of accrued sick leave, nor can the employee use the proportionate part, until he or she resumes full-time employment.
C. Payment optional when transferring from covered to non-covered position
An employee may be allowed to retain his or her accrued sick leave, or may be paid in a lump sum, when the employee transfers from a covered position to a non-covered position (with the agreement of the agency to which the employee transfers).
[REVISED 12/94]
D. Return to state employment within 180 days of separation [REVISED 12/94]2. If the employee did receive payment, he or she may be credited with the accrued sick leave held at the date of termination provided the employee reimburses the agency the full amount of sick leave paid at termination.
E. Maximum amount of accrued sick leave that may be paid
1. Employees with five or more years of continuous service
The maximum amount of accrued sick leave that may be paid to a full-time employee with five or more years of continuous state service is 25% of the employee's accrued sick leave, but not more than $5,000. An eligible classified part-time employee is entitled to be paid a lump sum for 25% of the proportionate amount of sick leave to which the employee is entitled.
The remaining 75% of the employee's accrued sick leave shall lapse.
2. Employees with less than five years of continuous service
The accrued sick leave of an employee with less than five years of continuous service shall lapse and the employee receives no payment.
3. Period of non-covered employment included in years of service
For the purpose of determining an employee's years of continuous service, an employee who transfers, without a break in service, into a full-time covered position from a full-time non-covered position shall receive credit for his or her service.
F. Retention of accrued sick leave
1. To different covered position
When an employee is transferred, promoted or demoted from one covered position to another covered position in the same or a different agency, the employee will retain his or her accrued sick leave.
2. From non-covered to covered positions
a. If the same sick leave accrual system
If the sick leave accrual rate of an employee exempt from the Virginia Personnel Act is the same as that provided by this policy, the employee may transfer his or her accrued sick leave to the covered position.
b. If a different sick leave accrual system
If the sick leave accrual rate of an employee exempt from the Virginia Personnel Act is different from that provided by this policy, the employee may not transfer the sick leave.
3. Other instances of retention
An employee will retain his or her accrued sick leave, but may not be paid in a lump sum, when placed on:
a. educational leave with full or partial pay;
b. layoff, (although an employee does not accrue sick leave while on layoff, he or she does receive credit, up to 12 months, for the time spent on layoff for the purpose of determining the employee's years of continuous service);
c. military leave without pay; or
d. any other conditional or unconditional leave without pay for a period exceeding three calendar months.
VI. AUTHORITY AND INTERPRETATION
A. This policy is issued by the Department of Personnel and Training pursuant to the authority provided in Chapter 10, Title 2.1, of the Code of Virginia. This policy supersedes Rules 10.3 (a) and (b) from Eligibility for Leave of Absence, 10.4 entitled Sick Leave, and 10.13 (a) (b) (c) and (d) from Disposition of Balances of Leave Credits on Change of Status or Death, of the Rules for the Administration of the Virginia Personnel Act, effective July 1, 1977.
B. The Director of the Department of Personnel and Training is responsible for official interpretation of this policy, in accordance with section 2.1-114.5(13) of the Code of Virginia. Questions regarding application of this policy should be directed to the Department of Personnel and Training's Office of Policy and Personnel Programs. The Department of Personnel and Training reserves the right to revise or eliminate this policy as necessary.