|
|
Employee Benefits
Leave and Holidays
Catastrophic Leave Bank Program
Policy Number: C.E.S.P. 7-8
Date Revised: 4-25-2012
Supersedes: 8-30-2010 |
Summary: Establishes policies and procedures governing the Catastrophic
Leave Bank Program for Extension employees.
I. Authority
Act 169 of the 1991 Acts of the
Arkansas General Assembly authorized a Catastrophic Leave Bank Program for
full-time state employees. Act 1176 of the 1999 Acts amended certain sections of
the Arkansas Code pertaining to the Catastrophic Leave Bank Program.
II. General Information
The Act sets out certain guidelines
with regard to who is eligible to contribute to the program, who is eligible to
participate in the program, and under what terms participation may be
accomplished. The following definitions are provided for reference purposes.
- Catastrophic Illness means a
medical condition of an employee, or a qualifying family member, i.e., spouse or
parent of the employee, or a child of the employee claimed as a dependent
under the Arkansas Income Tax Act of 1929, as certified by a physician (or other
individual as provided in Ark. Code Annotated 21-4-201 et seq.) which requires
an employee's absence from duty for a prolonged period of time or intermittent
period of time and which, except
for the catastrophic leave program, would result in a substantial loss of income
to the employee because of the exhaustion of all earned sick, annual, holiday,
and compensatory leave time.
- Catastrophic Leave means paid
leave which is transferred to a leave recipient from the U of A Cooperative
Extension Service Catastrophic Leave Bank. Catastrophic leave may be granted in
one hour increments. While a recipient is on catastrophic leave, he or she will
continue to receive standard benefits, such as employer contributions to
insurance and retirement.
- Catastrophic Leave Bank
(hereafter referred to as “the Bank”) means a pool of accrued annual and
sick leave voluntarily donated by full-time, appointed employees which has
been approved by the U of A Cooperative Extension Service for use by other
employees.
- Catastrophic Leave Bank
Program means a program approved by the Director of the State Department of
Finance and Administration and administered by the Human Resources Office of
the U of A Cooperative Extension Service.
- Catastrophic Leave Committee
means a committee consisting of five members who represent a relative
demographic cross-section of the U of A Cooperative Extension Service work
force and who review employee applications for catastrophic leave and make
recommendations to the Associate Vice President for Agriculture - Extension
relating to such leave.
- Employee means a person who is
regularly appointed by the U of A Cooperative Extension Service, compensated
on a full-time basis, and eligible to participate in the University's fringe
benefits program. A person who works less than full time (40 hours per week)
is excluded from this definition and is not eligible to participate as a
donor or recipient in the Catastrophic Leave Bank Program.
- Leave Donor means an employee
whose voluntary written request to donate accrued annual and/or sick leave
to the Bank has been approved by the U of A Cooperative Extension Service.
No employee is allowed to be a leave donor if the donation will reduce that
employee's combined accrued sick and annual leave balance to less than 80
hours. All donated leave becomes the property of the Bank, and donated
leave may not be restored to the leave donor under any circumstances.
- Leave Recipient means a
current employee for whom the Associate Vice President for Agriculture -
Extension has approved an application to receive catastrophic leave from the
Bank.
- Medical Condition means a
personal emergency limited to catastrophic and debilitating medical
situations, severely complicated disabilities, and severe accidents of the
employee or a qualifying family member which cause the employee to be unable
to perform assigned job duties, which require a prolonged period of
recuperation, and which require the employee's absence from duty as
documented by a physician (or other individual as provided in A.C.A.
'21-4-201 et seq.). Elective surgery and/or disabilities resulting from
elective surgery do not qualify for catastrophic leave.
- Prolonged Period of Time means
a continuous period of at least thirty (30) working days or six (6) weeks
whereby a medical condition prevents the employee from performing work
duties.
- Intermittent catastrophic illness refers to catastrophic illness that
has resulted in an “ongoing” condition for the employee or a qualifying
family member that may require the use of sick leave at intermittent
times due to the type of illness or injury. In intermittent catastrophic
situations, an employee returning after a period of catastrophic leave
might then be eligible for catastrophic leave on an intermittent basis
for continuing treatment or transitioning back to work. The duration of
all catastrophic leave (a block of catastrophic leave plus intermittent
catastrophic leave) may not exceed six months, or 1040 hours, in
a twenty-four (24) month period.
- Substantial Loss of Income
means a continuous period of time during which the employee will not be
compensated by the U of A Cooperative Extension Service due to a medical
condition of self or qualifying family member after the exhaustion of all
the employee's earned sick, annual, holiday, and compensatory leave time.
III. Catastrophic Leave Committee
This five-member advisory committee
consists of employees selected by the Associate Vice President for Agriculture -
Extension. A Human Resources Office staff member will serve as an
ex-officio, non-voting member and will assure that all basic eligibility
requirements for catastrophic leave are met..
The committee will select a
chairperson from its membership. Committee recommendations require a minimum of
at least four voting members. No committee member will cast a vote if there is
an obvious conflict of interest or if the request comes from that member's
department.
The charge of the Committee will be:
- Review Catastrophic Leave
Requests where basic eligibility requirements are met.
-
Ensure all eligibility requirements are met.
- Make determinations of
continuing eligibility.
- Recommend action to the
Associate Vice President for Agriculture – Extension, who makes the final
decision to grant or deny the catastrophic leave request.
IV. Catastrophic Leave Committee Guidelines
The committee will utilize the
following guidelines to review catastrophic leave requests:
- No employee will be eligible for
approved catastrophic leave in excess of six continuous months, or 1040 hours,
in a twenty-four (24) month period.
- To be eligible, an
individual must have been employed by the U of A Cooperative Extension Service
or a state agency/institution in a full-time (100% appointed), benefits-eligible
position for a minimum of two (2) consecutive years. The employee
must not have been disciplined for any leave abuse during the past two (2)
years.
-
exhausted all sick, annual, holiday and compensatory leave time, and, at the
onset of the illness or injury, had to his or her credit at least eighty
(80) hours of combined sick and annual leave. "Onset of Illness" means the
initial beginning or start, as certified by a physician, of the medical
condition which created the need for the catastrophic leave request. If a
recurrence of the same illness necessitates a subsequent catastrophic leave
request, the eligibility requirement that the employee have eighty (80)
hours of combined sick and annual leave at the onset of the illness will not
be required on the illness recurrence date.
- If the illness or injury is
that of the employee and is covered by worker's compensation, the total
amount of the catastrophic leave compensation plus the weekly worker's
compensation benefit received by the employee cannot exceed the compensation
being received by the employee at the onset of the illness or injury.
- No employee will be approved
for catastrophic leave unless the employee has provided an acceptable
medical certificate from a physician (or other individual as provided in
A.C.A. ''21-4-201 et seq. and 6-63-602) supporting the continued absence and
setting forth that the employee is and will continue to be unable to perform
the employee's duties due to a catastrophic illness of the employee or a
qualifying family member. Information relative to the employee's assigned
duties must be made available to the physician and to the Catastrophic Leave
Committee.
- If the employee is requesting
catastrophic leave to provide care for a qualifying family member, a
statement must be submitted from the physician and from the employee
indicating why constant care is needed from the employee. An employee
requesting catastrophic leave to provide care for a child must certify
the child is his or her dependent.
- In no case will the employee
be granted catastrophic leave beyond the date certified by a physician as
the date when the employee is able to return to work because the health of
either the employee or the qualifying family member has sufficiently
improved.
- Once approved, catastrophic
leave will be counted toward the employee’s rights to leave under the Family
and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA).
- Catastrophic leave requests
which would result in a negative balance in the Bank will not be approved.
- The decision of the Associate
Vice President for Agriculture - Extension will be final and binding. The
Associate Vice President for Agriculture - Extension will consider the
impact on the organization's operation when granting or denying catastrophic
leave or modifying previously approved catastrophic leave.
- Applications for catastrophic
leave will be reviewed on a first-filed, first-considered basis.
V. Prohibition of Coercion
No employee may directly or
indirectly intimidate, threaten, or coerce, or attempt to intimidate, threaten,
or coerce, any other employee for the purpose of interfering with any such
employee's decision to donate or receive catastrophic leave.
VI. General Rules of Operation
- Eligible employees on
catastrophic leave will continue to accrue leave in accordance with existing
leave policies. Any leave earned while an employee is on catastrophic leave
must, as a condition of voluntary participation in the program, be assigned to
the Bank, and any restriction concerning the maintenance of minimum leave
balances will not apply to such assignment. If an employee is on catastrophic
leave for even one day in an accrual period, all leave earned during that period
shall be returned to the Bank. Exceptions may be made for employees awarded
intermittent catastrophic leave.
- Employees on catastrophic leave
will receive normal benefits such as employer contributions to insurance and
retirement. Employees on catastrophic leave will continue to receive their
normal pay and the employee’s merit increase eligibility date will not change.
- Receipt of catastrophic leave
shall be limited to the start of long term disability (LTD) payments, or a
maximum of six (6) months.
- Any unused catastrophic leave
will be returned to the Bank in the event the employee terminates
employment, retires, or returns to work prior to the expiration of the
previously approved catastrophic leave period. An employee may be dismissed
if he or she fails to report to work promptly at the expiration of the
approved catastrophic leave period. The Catastrophic Leave Bank Program does
not create any expectation or promise of continued employment.
- Donations to the Catastrophic
Leave Bank Program may only be submitted during the annual December open
donation period, upon resignation or upon retirement. No employee will be
allowed to donate leave to the Catastrophic Leave Bank Program if such
donation would reduce that employee's combined accrued sick and annual
leave balance to less than 80 hours. Employees must make any accrued annual
and/or sick leave donations in one (1) hour increments. This does not apply
to employees who are terminating their employment.
- Catastrophic leave will not
be awarded retroactively.
VII. Record Keeping Requirements
In order to comply with State rules,
the U of A Cooperative Extension Service Catastrophic Leave Program must include
a record keeping procedure which tracks:
- The hours donated by each
employee, the rate of pay and the dollar value of such donated leave at the time
of donation;
- The hours of catastrophic
leave awarded, including the name of the recipient, position number, rate of
pay and social security number; and
- Any other data as required by
the Director of the Department of Finance and Administration or the U of A
Cooperative Extension Service.
These records should be retained
by the U of A Cooperative Extension Service subject to audit by the
Department of Finance and Administration and the Division of Legislative
Audit.
Forms:
To make a donation to the
catastrophic leave bank, use this form:
EBEN-103: Catastrophic Leave Bank Program Donor Application Form
To request catastrophic leave, use these forms
and call the Human Resources office at 501-671-2219 to review eligibility requirements:
E.B.E.N.-370: U of A Cooperative Extension Service Catastrophic
Leave Bank Program Physician's Certification
E.B.E.N.-371: U of A Cooperative Extension Service Catastrophic
Leave Bank Program Recipient Application Form
E.B.E.N.-372: U
of A Cooperative Extension Service Catastrophic Leave Bank Program Liability
Agreement
Return to Leave and Holidays Index
Return to Employee Benefits Index
Return to Policy
Manual Home |
