Compassionate Transfer of Leave

Purpose:

To allow voluntary transfer of accrued annual leave to other employees who are unable to work because of a catastrophic illness or injury.

Applicability:

Classified (non-exempt), faculty, and administrative (exempt) staff who are employed to work 20 hours per week (50 percent FTE) or more for a continuous period of six or more months.

Procedure:

Staff may voluntarily transfer accrued leave or personal leave to other employees who are eligible to accrue leave and who are unable to work because they are suffering a catastrophic illness or injury with the employee's immediate family, established household, or in situations that place primary responsibility for care on the employee. These transfers are subject to the following conditions:

1. An illness/injury shall be considered catastrophic if it is:
   1. Seriously incapacitating, (in the case of the employee, the employee is unable to perform all of the duties of the job held at the time of disability or is unable to perform available light duty work);
   2. Extended, i.e., the anticipated duration of the disability is at least 30 days, and
   3. Confirmed in writing by a physician chosen by the employee, subject to reconfirmation by a physician chosen by the college.
2. Recipients must have exhausted all forms of paid leave (e.g., annual leave, sick leave, personal leave, compensatory time) prior to the leave transfer. Recipient cannot accrue sick leave or annual leave while using leave hours donated under this procedure.
3. Recipients must have passed their probational period.
4. Contributions must be voluntary. Human Resources or Payroll offices cannot identify potential contributors.
5. Contributors must retain a minimum balance of 80 hours of annual leave after the leave transfer; however, the contributors may transfer all personal leave hours.
6. In no event shall compassionate transfer of leave be used in lieu of long-term disability benefits unless the carrier has denied the claim.
7. Contributions shall not exceed the anticipated period of disability or until long-term disability benefits commence, whichever period is shorter.
8. Transfers shall be accomplished by determining the dollar value of the hourly annual or personal leave contribution and by increasing the recipient's sick leave balance by that value.
9. Family Medical Leave (FML) is not additional value; rather, it is to be used concurrently with compassionate leave, if applicable.

Process:

Recipient and/or Recipient's Supervisor:

Obtain approval from the College President to use compassionate leave transfer. The recipient's supervisor must endorse the request. The request must include a copy of a physician's statement, documenting the illness or injury, and written authorization to release "Protected Health Information" as defined by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. The President will forward the approved request to the Payroll Office for action.

Payroll Office:

Notify the recipient and the recipient's supervisor when transfer has been approved.

Contributing Employee:

Send a signed, dated memo to the Payroll Office indicating the hours to be donated.

Payroll Office:

Determine the dollar value of the vacation hours contributed. Convert that value to sick leave hours for the recipient and notify the recipient and recipient's supervisor of the hours to be credited. Increase the recipient's sick leave balance. Decrease the contributor's leave balance. Retain a copy of the donation memo. Place copies in the contributor's and recipient's personnel files.

Recipient's Supervisor:

When the employee returns to work or receives long-term disability benefits, notify the Payroll Office.

Payroll Office:

Remove any remaining hours from the recipient's accrued sick leave balance and credit them to the contributor's leave balance.