ADMINISTRATIVE POLICY
TITLE: Sick Leave Donation Program / POLICY NUMBER
HR
08-119
EFFECTIVE: April 16, 2009
REVISED: February 17, 2011
PURPOSE
Provide policy and consistent procedures for Department of Management Services’ (DMS/department) employees who participate in the State of Florida’s volunteer sick leave donation program (credit transfer program).
SCOPE
All eligible DMS employees may donate to employees within the State Personnel System.
AUTHORITY
Section 60L-34.0042 (5), Florida Administrative Code (F.A.C.)
DISTRIBUTION
The followingindividuals should be notified of this policy / Method of Notification
All DMS Employees / · New Employee Orientation
· DMS communications via employee e-mail distribution list
· DMS Web site
DMS Executive Leadership / · Executive Leadership meetings
POLICY
1. DMS employees can donate sick leave hours to and receive sick leave hours from employees within the State Personnel System according to the procedures outlined in this policy.
2. Requests to donate sick leave hours to another employee are strictly voluntary. Employees must not coerce or pressure another employee to donate sick leave hours. Donors do not receive compensation or favors in return for the sick leave donation. The receiving employee is not in debt to the donor in any way. Employee(s) in violation of this policy are subject to disciplinary action.
3. Donated sick leave hours are for absences associated with documented illnesses beginning with the sixth missed workday or partial workday, or the first day the employee has exhausted all leave hours, whichever is later. There is a five-day absence requirement; HR reviews each request on a case-by-case basis.
4. Donated leave can be used consecutively, intermittently or in increments of a quarter hour (.25), as needed.
5. The DMS Human Resource (HR) Director and the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) investigate alleged abuse of the sick leave donation plan. If abuse is found, the participating employee(s) are not allowed to donate or receive sick leave hours and the employee(s) may be subject to disciplinary action.
6. Once an employee’s donation has been credited to another employee, it cannot be cancelled.
7. An employee who separates from employment with DMS with unused donated hours is not paid for the unused hours. Unused hours are credited back to the donating employee (see Procedures, sections 8, 9 and 10).
PROCEDURES
1. Transferring sick leave hours in People First (PF) is a manual process performed by HR.
2. Donating employees must meet the following eligibility requirements:
· maintain a minimum of 80 hours of sick leave hours after a donation,
· make a donation of at least eight hours, and
· provide a completed “HR-119-F1 - Request to Donate Sick Leave Hours” form to HR.
3. Employees requesting to use sick leave donations must:
· have used all accrued leave (sick, annual, compensatory and personal holiday),
· have suffered a documented illness, accident or injury which requires (as certified by the treating physician) absence from the workplace for a minimum of five consecutive days,
· have not used more than 1040 hours of donated sick leave hours in the preceding 12-month period,
· not be eligible for disability leave,
· provide a completed “HR-107-F2 – Request to Use Donated Sick Leave Hours” form to HR; completion of the form requires:
1. the bottom portion of form is to be completed and signed by his/her attending physician,
2. a new medical certification form if the request to use donated sick leave hours is beyond the physician’s “return to work date” on the original medical certification form.
4. HR receives the request to donate or use sick leave hours form and:
· reviews the request to ensure all requirements are met and either approve or disapprove per the required criteria,
· advises donating or requesting employee when a request is not approved and provide explanation why the request was denied,
· manually tracks donated and used sick leave hours on the “Sick Leave Log”,
· coordinates with other agencies when a request to donate or use sick leave hours is received, and
· updates DMS employees’ leave balances in PF. The donating/receiving employee name is entered in the “Comments” sections of the PF transaction when sick leave hours are increased or reduced.
5. HR logs donations in the order received within the following three groups processed in the following order.
· First - donations from the receiving employee’s spouse and the parents, grandparents, brothers, sisters, children, and grandchildren of either the employee and the spouse
· Second - donations from within DMS
· Third - donations from another agency
Within each of the above groups, HR logs donations in the order they are received and credits them to the receiving employee on a first in, first out basis.
6. HR credits employees receiving donated sick leave hours with the number of hours needed to bring them up to the minimum number of hours for the pay period. For example, if an employee has 35 hours in his/her “donated sick leave bank” and he/she needs 16 hours to bring him/her to 80 hours for the pay period, he/she is credited with 16 hours. Employee’s needs are reviewed each pay period.
7. All unused donated sick leave hours are returned to the donors in a last in, first returned order. HR completes the “HR-119-F3 – Return of Unused Donated Sick Leave Hours” form if the donating employee is from another agency and submits the form to the donor’s HR/Personnel Office.
8. When both the donating and receiving employee are DMS employees:
HR deducts hours from PF when the receiving employee needs the hours.
HR records “donated/used” hours on the Sick Leave Log and tracks them to
determine if and when the receiving employee uses all donated hours.
SPECIAL NOTE: When the donating employee is a DMS employee, each pay period HR deducts the exact number of hours the receiving employee needs from the donating employee’s PF balance. Donating employees are required to maintain 80 hours of sick leave; HR monitors this.
9. When donating employee is not a DMS employee and receiving employee is a DMS employee: Prior to sending the “Request to Donate Sick Leave Hours” form to HR (DMS), the donating employee’s HR Office deducts the total donated hours from the donating employee’s sick leave balance in PF.
When HR receives the donation form, they record the donation on the receiving employee’s Sick Leave Log. Each pay period, HR determines the number of hours the receiving employee needs to bring their total hours to 80 for that pay period. HR deducts from the log the number of hours needed and credits that number to the receiving employee in PF. HR continues to deduct from the log and credit the receiving employee (while on approved sick leave) until the donated hours are depleted.
10. When donating employee is a DMS employee and receiving employee is not a DMS employee: HR records the donated hours on the Sick Leave Log, deducts hours from the donating employee’s leave balance in PF and sends the “Request to Donate Sick Leave Hours” form to the receiving employee’s agency. The receiving employee’s agency tracks the use of the donated hours. If not all donated hours are used, the receiving agency submits their “Return of Unused Donated Sick Leave Hours” form to HR. HR records the returned hours on the log, credits the returned hours in PF to the donating employee and advises the donating employee of the returned hours.
RESPONSIBILITIES
Individualor Group / Responsibilities
Employee / · Adhere to procedures in this policy.
Supervisor / · Be aware of this policy and assist affected employees.
· Assist HR to obtain requested documents from employee.
HR Office / · Review policy during New Employee Orientation.
· Provide assistance to supervisors and employees.
· Place medical records in employee’s medical file.
· Maintain the “Sick Leave Tracking Log.”
· Coordinate with other agencies when sick leave donations occur across agencies.
· Update PF timely when sick leave is donated or used.
ASSOCIATED FORMS
HR-119-F1 – Request to Donate Sick Leave Hours
HR-119-F2 – Request to Use Donated Sick Leave Hours
DEFINITIONS
Word/Term / Definition· Sick Leave Hours / · Same as sick leave credits.
State Personnel System / The employment system includes CS, SES and SMS employees in all agencies except those in the State University System, the Florida Lottery, the Florida Legislature, the Justice Administration Commission or the State Courts System. For the purposes of this guideline, the State Personnel System is comprised of the following agencies (referred to in this policy as ‘employers’):
· Agency for Workforce Innovation
· Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
· Department of Financial Services
· Department of Education
· Department of Legal Affairs
· Department of State
· Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles
· Department of Law Enforcement
· Department of Revenue
· Department of Veterans’ Affairs
· Agency for Health Care Administration
· Department of Business and Professional Regulation
· Department of Children and Families
· Department of Citrus
· Department of Community Affairs
· Department of Corrections
· Department of Elder Affairs
· Department of Environmental Protection
· Department of Health
· Department of Juvenile Justice
· Department of Management Services
· Department of Military Affairs*
· Department of Transportation
· Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind*
· Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
· Florida Parole Commission
· Public Service Commission
· Executive Office of the Governor*
*Excludes established positions are not CS, SES or SMS.
Page 1 of 6 DMS Policy No. HR-08-119
Sick Leave Transfer (Donation) Plan