WSR 17-15-097 PROPOSED RULES OFFICE OF FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT [Filed July 18, 2017, 10:26 a.m.]
Original Notice.
Title of Rule and Other Identifying Information: WAC 357-31-170 At what rate do part-time employees accrue vacation leave?, 357-31-190 When can an employee start to use accrued vacation leave?, 357-31-210 What is the maximum number of hours of vacation leave that an employee can accumulate?, 357-31-215 When may vacation leave be accumulated above the maximum two hundred forty hours?, and 357-58-175 Can an employer authorize lump sum vacation leave or accelerate vacation leave accrual rates to support the recruitment and/or retention of an incumbent or candidate for a WMS position?
Hearing Location(s): Office of Financial Management (OFM), Capitol Court Building, 1110 Capitol Way South, Suite 120, Conference Room 110, Olympia, WA 98501, on August 23, 2017, at 8:30 a.m.
Date of Intended Adoption: August 23, 2017.
Submit Written Comments to: Kristie Wilson, OFM, P.O. Box 47500, email Kristie.wilson@ofm.wa.gov, fax (360) 586-4694, by August 16, 2017. For OFM tracking purposes, please note on submitted comments "FORMAL COMMENT."
Assistance for Persons with Disabilities: Contact OFM by August 16, 2017, TTY 711 or 1-800-833-6384.
Purpose of the Proposal and Its Anticipated Effects, Including Any Changes in Existing Rules: SHB 1521 went into effect July 1, 2017. SHB 1521 removes the requirement that an employee must work at least six months before using accrued vacation leave. This bill also changes "thirty working days" to "two hundred forty hours" for the maximum vacation leave accrual.
Reasons Supporting Proposal: To align Title 357 WAC with the changes in SHB 1521, which was effective on July 1, 2017.
Statutory Authority for Adoption: Chapter 43.01 RCW.
Rule is not necessitated by federal law, federal or state court decision.
Name of Proponent: OFM, governmental.
Name of Agency Personnel Responsible for Drafting, Implementation, and Enforcement: Kristie Wilson, 128 10th Avenue S.W., (360) 407-4139.
No small business economic impact statement has been prepared under chapter 19.85 RCW. Rules related only to internal government operations. No impact to businesses or industry.
A cost-benefit analysis is not required under RCW 34.05.328. Rules are related to internal government operations and are not subject to violation by a nongovernmental party. See RCW 34.05.328 (5)(b)(ii) for exemption.
July 18, 2017
Roselyn Marcus
Assistant Director
Legal and Legislative Affairs
AMENDATORY SECTION (Amending WSR 10-23-120, filed 11/17/10, effective 12/18/10)
WAC 357-31-170 At what rate do part-time employees accrue vacation leave?
(1) Part-time general government employees accrue vacation leave ((credits)) hours on a pro rata basis in accordance with WAC 357-31-125.
(2) Part-time higher education employees accrue on the same pro rata basis that their appointment bears to a full-time appointment. Time spent on temporary layoff as provided in WAC 357-46-063 is considered time in pay status for the purpose of this subsection.
AMENDATORY SECTION (Amending WSR 05-08-137, filed 4/6/05, effective 7/1/05)
WAC 357-31-210 What is the maximum number of hours of vacation leave that an employee can accumulate?
Vacation leave may be accumulated to a maximum of ((thirty working days (240)) two hundred forty hours(())). Exceptions to this maximum are described in WAC 357-31-215.
AMENDATORY SECTION (Amending WSR 09-23-057, filed 11/12/09, effective 12/15/09)
WAC 357-31-215 When may vacation leave be accumulated above the maximum two hundred forty hours?
There are two circumstances in which vacation leave may be accumulated above the maximum of ((thirty working days ())two hundred forty hours(())).
(1) If an employee's request for vacation leave is denied by the employer, and the employee is close to the maximum vacation leave (two hundred forty hours), the employer must grant an extension for each month that the employer defers the employee's request for vacation leave. The employer must maintain a statement of necessity justifying the extension.
(2) As an alternative to subsection (1) of this section, employees may also accumulate vacation leave in excess of two hundred forty hours as follows:
(a) An employee may accumulate the vacation leave ((days)) hours between the time ((thirty days)) the two hundred forty hours is accrued and his/her next anniversary date of state employment.
(b) Leave accumulated above two hundred forty hours must be used by the next anniversary date and in accordance with the employer's leave policy. If such leave is not used before the employee's anniversary date, the excess leave is automatically lost and considered to have never existed.
(c) A statement of necessity, as described in subsection (1) of this section, can only defer leave that the employee has not accrued as of the date of the statement of necessity. Any accrued leave in excess of two hundred forty hours as of the date of the statement of necessity cannot be deferred regardless of circumstances. For example:
On June 15th, an employee is assigned to work on a special project. It is expected that the assignment will last six months. Due to an ambitious timeline and strict deadlines, the employee will not be able to take any vacation leave during that time.
• On June 15th, the employee's vacation leave balance is two hundred sixty hours.
• The employee accrues ten hours monthly.
• The employee's anniversary date is October 16th.
Because the employee will not be able to use leave from June 15th through December 15th the employee files a statement of necessity asking to defer the leave accrued during this time. This deferred leave will not be lost as long as the employee uses the deferred hours by their next anniversary date (October 16th of the following year).
The twenty hours of excess vacation leave the employee had on June 15th are not covered by the statement of necessity.
REPEALER
The following section of the Washington Administrative Code is repealed:
AMENDATORY SECTION (Amending WSR 05-12-069, filed 5/27/05, effective 7/1/05)
WAC 357-58-175 Can an employer authorize lump sum vacation leave or accelerate vacation leave accrual rates to support the recruitment and/or retention of an incumbent or candidate for a WMS position?
In addition to the vacation leave accruals as provided in WAC 357-31-165, an employer may authorize additional vacation leave as follows to support the recruitment and/or retention of an incumbent or candidate for a specific WMS position:
(1) Employers may authorize an accelerated accrual rate for an incumbent or candidate; and/or
(2) Employers may authorize a lump sum accrual of up to eighty hours of vacation leave for the incumbent or candidate.
Vacation leave accrued under this section must be used in accordance with the leave provisions of chapter 357-31 WAC ((and cannot be used until the employee has completed six continuous months of service)).
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