PROPOSED RULES
Original Notice.
Exempt from preproposal statement of inquiry under RCW 34.05.310(4).
Title of Rule and Other Identifying Information: WAC 357-31-001 What definitions apply to this chapter of the civil service rules?, 357-31-005 What legal holidays are designated by statute?, 357-31-010 Which employees qualify for holiday compensation?, 357-31-015 How many hours are general government employees compensated for on a holiday?, 357-31-020 For general government part-time employees, how is holiday compensation pro rated?, 357-31-025 How many hours are higher education employees compensated for on a holiday?, 357-31-030 What happens when a holiday falls on an employee's scheduled day off?, 357-31-035 How is an employee who works on a holiday compensated?, 357-31-040 What happens when a holiday as identified in WAC 357-31-005 falls on Saturday or Sunday?, 357-31-045 If an employee resigns or is dismissed or separated during a month in which there is a holiday, will he/she be compensated for the holiday?, 357-31-050 How is an employee's holiday determined when an employee works a night shift schedule which begins on one calendar day and ends on the next?, 357-31-055 When does an employee qualify for a personal holiday?, 357-31-060 How many hours are general government employees compensated for when taking a personal holiday?, 357-31-065 How many hours are higher education employees compensated for when taking a personal holiday?, 357-31-070 When is an employer required to approve an employee's request to use a personal holiday?, 357-31-075 Within what timeframe must the personal holiday be taken?, 357-31-080 What happens if an employee requests to use his/her personal holiday in accordance with the employer's leave procedures and the employer denies the request?, 357-31-090 Can an employee request to donate or use part of a personal holiday?, 357-31-095 If an employee donates a personal holiday to another employee and a portion of the personal holiday is returned, can the donating employee use the remaining hours?, 357-31-100 Must an employer have a policy for requesting and approving leave?, 357-31-105 How will an unauthorized absence be treated?, 357-31-110 What happens to an employee's accrued leave when the employee changes employers?, 357-31-115 How many hours of sick leave does an employee earn each month?, 357-31-120 Do employees accrue sick leave if they have taken leave without pay during the month?, 357-31-125 For general government part-time employees, how is leave accrual pro rated?, 357-31-130 When can an employee use accrued sick leave?, 357-31-135 When and how does an employee request the use of sick leave?, 357-31-140 May an employee use sick leave before it is accrued?, 357-31-145 When an employee is on vacation leave and a condition listed in WAC 357-31-130(1) arises, can the employee use sick leave in place of vacation leave?, 357-31-150 Can an employee be paid for accrued sick leave?, 357-31-155 Does an employee who separates for any reason other than retirement or death get paid for accrued sick leave?, and 357-31-160 When a former employee is reemployed, is sick leave restored?
Hearing Location(s): Department of Personnel, 600 South Franklin, Olympia, WA, on January 26, 2005, at 2:00 p.m.
Date of Intended Adoption: January 26, 2005.
Submit Written Comments to: Sharon Whitehead, Department of Personnel, P.O. Box 47500, fax (360) 586-4694, by January 20, 2005. FOR DOP TRACKING PURPOSES PLEASE NOTE ON SUBMITTED COMMENTS "FORMAL COMMENT."
Assistance for Persons with Disabilities: Contact Department of Personnel by January 20, 2005, TTY (360) 753-4107 or (360) 586-8260.
Purpose of the Proposal and Its Anticipated Effects, Including Any Changes in Existing Rules: The proposed rules address definitions that apply to chapter 357-31 WAC, Holidays and leave, holidays and sick leave.
Statutory Authority for Adoption: Chapter 41.06 RCW.
Statute Being Implemented: RCW 41.06.150.
Rule is not necessitated by federal law, federal or state court decision.
Agency Comments or Recommendations, if any, as to Statutory Language, Implementation, Enforcement, and Fiscal Matters: Due to the passage of SHB 1268 the director of the Department of Personnel has rule-making authority regarding holidays and leave for state employees. The proposed rules implement this provision of the Personnel System Reform Act.
Name of Proponent: Department of Personnel, governmental.
Name of Agency Personnel Responsible for Drafting: Sharon Whitehead, 521 Capitol Way South, Olympia, WA, (360) 664-6348; Implementation and Enforcement: Department of Personnel.
No small business economic impact statement has been prepared under chapter 19.85 RCW. Not required.
A cost-benefit analysis is not required under RCW 34.05.328.
December 22, 2004
E. C. Matt
Director
Holidays and Leave
(1) Anniversary date (Higher Education): For employees of higher education institutions or related higher education boards, anniversary date is the most recent date of hire into state service. The anniversary date is used to determine when vacation leave over two hundred forty (240) hours is lost. Higher education employers may make the anniversary date the first calendar day of the month in which the date of hire occurred. A higher education employee receives a new anniversary date when that employee is rehired following a break in state service, but not when the employee promotes, demotes, or transfers to another higher education employer.
(2) Anniversary date (General Government): For employees of general government agencies, anniversary date is the unbroken service date plus prior state service minus leave without pay when it exceeds fifteen (15) consecutive calendar days as provided in WAC 357-31-345. The anniversary date is used to determine when vacation leave over two hundred forty (240) hours is lost and for computing the rate of vacation leave accrual beginning with the fifth (5th) year of total state employment.
(3) Unbroken service date (General Government): The date a general government employee began current continuous state service. This date is used for computing the rate of vacation leave accrual through and including the employee's fourth (4th) year of continuous service. The unbroken service date is adjusted by leave without pay when it exceeds fifteen (15) consecutive calendar days as provided in WAC 357-31-345.
(4) Minor/dependent child: A biological, adopted, or foster child, a stepchild, a legal ward, or a child of a person standing in loco parentis, who is:
| • | Under eighteen (18) years of age, or |
| • | Eighteen (18) years of age or older and incapable of self-care because of a mental or physical disability. |
(5) Child: A biological, adopted, or foster child, or a stepchild.
(6) Family members: Individuals considered to be members of the family are parent, step-parent, sister, brother, parent-in-law, spouse, grandparent, grandchild, minor/dependent child, and child.
(7) Household members: Persons who reside in the same home who have reciprocal duties to and do provide financial support for one another. The term does not include persons sharing the same house when the living style is primarily that of a dormitory or commune.
(8) Parent: A biological parent of an employee or an individual who stood in loco parentis to an employee when the employee was a child. A person who had day-to-day responsibilities to care for and financially support the employee when he or she was a child is considered to have stood in loco parentis to the employee.
(9) Parent-in-law: A biological parent of an employee's spouse or an individual who stood in loco parentis to an employee's spouse when the employee's spouse was a child. A person who had day-to-day responsibilities to care for and financially support the employee's spouse when he or she was a child is considered to have stood in loco parentis to the employee's spouse.
(10) Emergency health condition: A sudden, generally unexpected occurrence or set of circumstances related to a person's health, which requires immediate action and is typically short-term in nature.
(11) Full-time employee: An employee who is scheduled to work:
| • | Forty (40) hours in one (1) workweek; |
| • | Eighty (80) hours over two (2) workweeks; or |
| • | For law enforcement positions, one hundred sixty hours (160) in the twenty-eight-day work period. |
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(1) The first day of January (New Year's Day);
(2) The third Monday of January (Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birthday);
(3) The third Monday of February (Presidents' Day);
(4) The last Monday of May (Memorial Day);
(5) The fourth day of July (Independence Day);
(6) The first Monday in September (Labor Day);
(7) The eleventh day of November (Veterans Day);
(8) The fourth Thursday of November (Thanksgiving Day);
(9) The day immediately following Thanksgiving Day; and
(10) The twenty-fifth day of December (Christmas Day).
Higher education employers may designate other days to be observed in place of the above holidays. Holiday schedules for higher education employers may be determined on a calendar or fiscal year basis. When a higher education employer establishes a modified schedule, paid holidays must be granted based on the modified schedule.
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(a) For at least eighty (80) non-overtime hours during the month of the holiday; or
(b) For the entire work shift preceding the holiday.
(2) Cyclic year position employees scheduled to work less than full monthly schedules throughout their work year qualify for holiday compensation if they work or are in pay status on their last regularly scheduled working day before the holiday(s) in that month.
(3) Part-time general government employees who are in pay status during the month of the holiday qualify for holiday pay on a pro rata basis in accordance with WAC 357-31-020.
(4) Part-time higher education employees who satisfy the requirements of subsection (1) of this section are entitled to the number of paid hours on a holiday that their monthly schedule bears to a full-time schedule.
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(1) Full-time employees receive holiday pay for the number of hours they are scheduled to work on that day.
(2) Part-time employees are entitled to the number of paid hours on a holiday on a pro rata basis in accordance with WAC 357-31-020 (General Government pro-rata)
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(1) Full-time employees receive eight (8) hours of regular holiday pay per holiday. Any differences between the scheduled shift for the day and eight (8) hours may be adjusted by use of vacation leave, use of accumulation of compensatory time as appropriate, or leave without pay.
(2) Part-time higher education employees are entitled to the number of paid hours on a holiday that their monthly schedule bears to a full-time schedule.
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(1) For a full-time employee who is eligible for holiday compensation, the employer may:
(a) Designate the prior or the following work day as the holiday;
(b) Provide the employee with equivalent paid time off; or
(c) Allow the employee to request an alternate work day to observe as the holiday. The employer may require that the employee request an alternate day off within the same pay period as the holiday.
(2) For a part-time general government employee who is eligible for holiday compensation, the employer must compensate the employee on a pro rata basis in accordance with WAC 357-31-020.
(3) For a part-time higher education employee who is eligible for holiday compensation, the employee is entitled to the equivalent paid time off for the holiday that their monthly schedule bears to a full-time schedule.
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An employee who is scheduled to work less than six (6) continuous months over a period covering two (2) calendar years only receives one (1) personal holiday during this period.
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(2) Part-time employees are entitled to the number of paid hours for a personal holiday on a pro rata basis in accordance with WAC 357-31-020.
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(2) Part-time higher education employees are entitled to the number of paid hours on a personal holiday that their monthly schedule bears to a full time schedule.
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(a) The employee is entitled to a personal holiday in accordance with RCW 1.16.050 and WAC 357-31-055;
(b) The employee has requested the personal holiday in accordance with the employer's leave procedures; and
(c) The employee's absence does not interfere with the operational needs of the employer.
(2) At any time, an employer must allow an employee to use part or all of the personal holiday for either of the following reasons:
(a) To care for a child with a health condition that requires treatment or supervision.
(b) To care for a spouse, parent, parent-in-law or grandparent of the employee who has a serious health condition or an emergency health condition.
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(1) When donating a portion of the personal holiday to the shared leave program as provided in WAC 357-31-425(3), or
(2) When using a portion of the personal holiday to provide care as provided in WAC 357-31-070(2).
Any portion of the personal holiday that remains and is not used for the purposes specified in WAC 357-31-070(2) must be taken by the employee in one absence not to exceed the work shift on the day of the absence.
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(2) Part-time general government employees earn sick leave on a pro rata basis in accordance with WAC 357-31-125.
(3) Part-time higher education employees earn sick leave on the same pro rata basis that their appointment bears to a full-time appointment.
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(2) Full-time and part-time higher education employees who have more than ten (10) working days of leave without pay in a month do not earn a monthly accrual of sick leave.
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(1) Employers must allow the use of accrued sick leave under the following conditions:
(a) Because of and during illness, disability, or injury that has incapacitated the employee from performing required duties.
(b) By reason of exposure of the employee to a contagious disease when the employee's presence at work would jeopardize the health of others.
(c) To care for a minor/dependent child with a health condition requiring treatment or supervision.
(d) To care for a spouse, parent, parent-in-law, or grandparent of the employee who has a serious health condition or emergency health condition.
(e) For family care emergencies per WAC 357-31-290.
(f) For personal health care appointments.
(g) For family members' health care appointments when the presence of the employee is required if arranged in advance with the employing official or designee.
(h) When an employee is required to be absent from work to care for members of the employee's household or relatives of the employee/employee's spouse who experience an illness or injury, not including situations covered by subsection (1)(d) of this section.
(i) The employer must approve up to five (5) days of accumulated sick leave each occurrence. Employers may approve more than five (5) days.
(ii) For purposes of this subsection, "relatives" is limited to spouse, child, grandchild, grandparent or parent.
(2) Employers may allow the use of accrued sick leave under the following conditions:
(a) For condolence or bereavement.
(b) When an employee is unable to report to work due to inclement weather in accordance with the employer's policy on inclement weather.
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(1) In January of each year, an employee whose sick leave balance at the end of the previous year exceeds four hundred eighty (480) hours may elect to convert the sick leave hours earned in the previous calendar year, minus those hours used during the year, to monetary compensation.
(a) No sick leave hours may be converted which would reduce the calendar year-end balance below four hundred eighty (480) hours.
(b) Monetary compensation for converted hours is paid at the rate of twenty-five (25) percent and is based on the employee's current salary.
(c) All converted hours are deducted from the employee's sick leave balance.
(d) Hours which are accrued, donated, and returned from the shared leave program in the same calendar year may be included in the converted hours for monetary compensation.
(2) Employees who separate from state service because of retirement or death must be compensated for their total unused sick leave accumulation at the rate of twenty-five (25) percent or the employer may deposit equivalent funds in a medical expense plan as provided in WAC 357-31-330. Compensation must be based on the employee's salary at the time of separation. For the purpose of this subsection, retirement does not include "vested out-of-service" employees who leave funds on deposit with the department of retirement systems (DRS).
(3) No contributions are to be made to the department of retirement systems (DRS) for payments under subsection (1) or (2) of this section, nor are such payments reported to DRS as compensation.
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If the employee was retired from government service before being re-employed, when the employee subsequently retires again or dies, only that unused sick leave accrued since the date of reemployment minus that taken within the same period may be compensated per the conversion provisions of WAC 357-31-150.
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