State Employees.
State employees are entitled to at least eight hours of vacation leave with full pay for each month of employment. State employees may accrue 240 hours of total unused vacation leave.
State employees may accrue leave between the time 240 hours is accrued and the anniversary date of employment without a statement of necessity. If an employee does not use the excess leave by the anniversary date, then the leave is extinguished. If a leave request is deferred by reason of the employing office, department, or institution's convenience and a statement of necessity is retained by the agency, the accrued leave cap will be extended for each month that the leave is deferred.
When an employee has been terminated by a reduction in force, resignation, dismissal, or retirement, so long as the employee has been employed for at least six months, the employee is entitled to be paid for the amount of vacation leave accrued. If the employee dies, their estate is entitled to be paid the amount of vacation leave accrued.
Retirement Systems.
There are a variety of retirement systems for public employees, including the Washington State Patrol Retirement System, the Public Employees' Retirement System, and the Teachers' Retirement System. Retirement systems are divided into plans based on when the employee became a member.
State Employees.
State employees are permitted to accrue up to 280 hours of unused vacation leave. Internal references in statutory provisions relating to Teachers' Retirement Plan 1 and Public Employees' Retirement System Plan 1 are changed to clarify that pensions under those plans remain unaffected by the increase in the cap.
Retirement Systems.
The definition of salary for calculating pension benefits for the Washington State Patrol Retirement System members commissioned before July 1, 2001, is changed to exclude lump sum payments for unused vacation and annual leave in excess of 240 hours, plus hours earned since anniversary date.
School District Employees.
School districts affected by public health emergencies must establish a pool of paid leave available to staff who become ill or need to quarantine and who have limited leave balances, with priority given to those with 10 days or less of available leave.
The substitute bill removes a section related to the accrual of sick leave by school district employees, and removes references to specific types of leave in the pool of leave required to be established by school districts.
(In support) Educators have been hit hard by the pandemic and are concerned about running out of leave when they need to quarantine or stay home to stay safe. Many new educators have not accrued enough sick leave and their districts do not have a shared leave pool, making it difficult to recruit and retain quality educators. Increasing the cap on the amount of leave that can be accrued will allow educators to continue educating without worrying about managing sick leave. The shared leave pool will ensure that paid emergency leave will be available to sick teachers with limited sick leave balances and will help educators feel supported. Educators can continue to use the leave during their careers but cannot cash out on additional leave at the end of their career.
(Opposed) None.