PERSONNEL
60.57
Revised 5-06
Human Resource Services
335-4521
OVERVIEW
Leave rules address voluntary leave usage, leave needed for illness and care of family, as well as mandatory leave for reasons such as jury duty.
The civil service employee leave regulations included in this section are primarily based upon Washington Administrative Code (WAC) 357-31. Unless otherwise noted, definitions used throughout this section are in accordance with WAC 357-01.
Collective Bargaining Unit Employees
Employees covered by collective bargaining unit agreements refer to the applicable agreements for information regarding leave.
Types of Leave
Types of leave described in this section include:
- Annual leave (see below)
- Bereavement leave (see below)
- Civil Leave (see below)
- Civil service employee leave with pay (see below)
- Compensatory time (see below)
- Disability leave, including disability leave due to pregnancy and/or childbirth (see below)
- Family care emergency (see below)
- Family medical leave (see below)
- Holiday (see below)
- Leave due to inclement weather (see below)
- Leave due to suspended operations (see below)
- Leave for life-giving procedures (see below)
- Leave for voting (see below)
- Leave without pay (see below)
- Military leave (see below)
- Parental leave (see below)
- Personal holiday (see below)
- Sick leave (see below)
- Training release time (see below)
- Unauthorized absence (see below)
- Work-related injury or illness (see below)
Shared Leave
For information regarding shared leave, see 60.58.
Departmental Guidelines
In addition to the rules specified in the Business Policies and Procedures Manual (BPPM), WAC 357-31, and any applicable collective bargaining unit agreements, departments should develop internal processes for requesting and approving all leave. (WAC 357-31-100)
Assistance
Supervisors and employees may contact Human Resource Services (HRS) regarding leave issues and for interpretations of these regulations; e-mail hrs@wsu.edu, or telephone the campus HRS office at:
- Pullman: 509-335-4521
- Spokane: 509-358-7554
- Tri-Cities 509-372-7302
- Vancouver: 360-546-9587
Reporting Leave
Overtime-eligible civil service and collective bargaining unit employees report leave use on the Time Report; see 60.60.
Overtime-exempt civil service or excepted collective bargaining unit employees report leave use on the Leave Report for Classified Employees; see 60.62.
Earning Annual Leave
Full- and part-time civil service employees are eligible to accrue and use annual leave. A full-time civil service employee is scheduled to work 40 hours in a work week. A part-time civil service employee is scheduled to work any configuration of hours less than 40 hours, but is required to work 20 or more hours in a work week.
Annual leave is credited each month upon completion of the month. (WAC 357-31-165)
Accrual Rates
A civil service employee progressively accrues annual leave throughout his or her years of state employment. (WAC 357-31-165)
Full-Time Accrual Rate
View the accrual rates for full-time employees below:
YearAccrual Per Year
Accrual Per Month
1 (of continuous state employment) 12 days
8.00 hrs.
2 (of continuous state employment) 13 days
8.67 hrs.
3-4 (of continuous state employment) 14 days
9.33 hrs.
5-7 (of total state employment) 15 days
10.00 hrs.
8-10 (of total state employment) 16 days
10.67 hrs.
11 (of total state employment) 17 days
11.33 hrs.
12 (of total state employment) 18 days
12.00 hrs.
13 (of total state employment) 19 days
12.67 hrs.
14 (of total state employment) 20 days
13.33 hrs.
15 (of total state employment) 21 days
14.00 hrs.
16 and longer (of total state employment) 22 days
14.67 hrs.
For years one through four, the accrual rate is based upon continuous state employment. (WAC 357-31-165)
For years five and after, the accrual rate is based upon total state employment. (WAC 357-31-165) See 60.19 for transferring service credit from other state agencies.
Part-Time Accrual Rate
The accrual rate for a part-time classified staff employee is based upon the percent of employment. (WAC 357-31-170(2)) NOTE: Percent of employment is also expressed as FTE (Full-Time Equivalent). Example: During the first year of employment, an employee who has an appointment of 75 percent FTE earns 75 percent of 8 hours, which equals 6 hours of annual leave per month. In the second year of employment, the employee earns 75 percent of 8.67 hours, which equals 6.5 hours of annual leave per month.
Change in FTE
If the FTE for a position changes or if an employee moves to a position with a different FTE, the annual leave accrual for the employee is based on the FTE of the employee's permanent appointment on the last day of the month.
LWOP Rule
If an employee is on LWOP for more than ten full working days in a calendar month, he or she does not earn annual leave or service credit for the month. (WAC 357-31-175, WAC 357-31-180(2))
Exceptions
Employees on LWOP for the following reasons earn monthly service credits:
- Military leave (WAC 357-31-180);
- Worker's compensation (WAC 357-31-345);
- Periods of scheduled leave for cyclic employees. See 60.30 and WAC 357-31-180.
New Employees
A new or reappointed employee appointed between the first through the fifteenth of the month accrues annual leave at the appropriate rate based upon percent of employment. If the employee is appointed or reappointed on or after the sixteenth of the month, the employee receives no accruals for that month.
Terminating Employees
An employee who separates from WSU service effective the first through the fifteenth earns no accruals for the month of separation. An employee who separates effective the sixteenth through the end of the month accrues annual leave.
Maximum Accrual
The maximum annual leave accrual as of the employee's anniversary date is 240 hours or 30 eight-hour working days. (WAC 357-31-210)
The civil service regulations (WAC 357-31-215) allow exceptions to the maximum accrual of 240 hours for voluntary excess accrual and denials of requests for annual leave.
Voluntary Excess Accrual
An employee may accrue more than 240 hours between anniversary dates. For detailed information regarding this exception, see WAC 357-31-215(2).
Anniversary Date
Anniversary date is defined as the employee's date of hire for the most recent period of unbroken service at WSU. (WAC 357-01-022) This date is shown as the Continuous Hire Date on the HEPPS Employee Screen.
Reporting Voluntary Excess Annual Leave
Indicate in the Comments space on either the Time Report (see 60.60) or the Classified Leave Report (see 60.62) that the annual leave hours were voluntarily accrued.
Denial of Request for Leave
When a supervisor must deny an employee's request to use annual leave, which then results in a leave accrual balance above 240 hours as of the employee's anniversary date, the supervisor must:
- Grant an extension as defined in WAC 357-31-215, and
- Submit a Statement of Necessity to HRS, in accordance with the instructions in WAC 357-31-220. NOTE: The supervisor must submit the Statement of Necessity before the employee's annual leave balance exceeds 240 hours.
If the request is approved, HRS notifies the employee and the supervisor of the date by which the employee must use the excess leave hours. HRS files the approved request in the employee's personnel folder. Deferred leave hours are lost if the hours are not used before the date specified.
Using Annual Leave
Annual leave must be earned before it may be used. (WAC 357-31-195)
An employee must complete six months of continuous state service before he or she can use annual leave. (WAC 357-31-190)
Supervisor's Approval
The employee must obtain the supervisor's approval before using annual leave.
A supervisor considers the employee's needs as well as the department's operational schedule and requirements when approving annual leave requests. (WAC 357-31-205)
The supervisor must allow the employee to use annual leave for the reasons specified below, in accordance with WAC 357-31-200:
- As a result of the employee's serious health condition.
- 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.
- To care for a minor/dependent child with a health condition that requires treatment or supervision.
- For parental leave as provided in WAC 357-31-460. See also below.
LWOP
Annual leave may not be used while on leave without pay. EXCEPTION: An employee who is on LWOP for one of the following may schedule leave each month for the period indicated below to maintain eligibility for WSU-sponsored employee benefits:
- Family medical leave (below), up to 12 weeks;
- Disability leave (below), up to four months;
- Disability leave due to pregnancy or childbirth (below), as long as medically certified;
- Parental leave (below), up to six months; and/or
- Worker's compensation (see below), as long as medically certified.
NOTE: Due to the multiple types of leave available for disability, maternity, or parental leave, or worker's compensation, consult with HRS regarding appropriate use of leave.
Prior State Service
An employee who transfers to WSU from another state agency with no break in service transfers accrued annual leave hours. (WAC 357-31-110) See 60.19 for more information and instructions.
Annual Leave Payoff
Upon termination of employment, WSU pays employees who have completed at least six continuous months of service for all unused accrued annual leave hours. See 55.49 and WAC 357-31-225 for more information regarding annual leave payoff.
A supervisor may approve the use of up to three days of bereavement leave to a civil service employee for a death in the family or household, as defined in WAC 357-01-172 and WAC 357-01-182. Upon request, the supervisor may approve additional leave to be charged against the employee's available paid leave balances, or the supervisor may approve the use of leave without pay. (WAC 357-31-250)
To request additional leave beyond the three days of bereavement leave, the employee submits a written request to her or his supervisor.
WSU grants employees leave of absence with pay to serve on jury duty, as trial witnesses or for other subpoenaed civil duties. Civil service employees refer to WAC 357-31-310, WAC 357-31-315, and WAC 357-31-320.
Public Hearings or Court Appearances
If the employee is representing WSU at a court appearance or before a public hearing the employee is not considered to be on leave. The activity is part of the employee's regular assignment.
CIVIL SERVICE EMPLOYEE LEAVE WITH PAY
WSU must grant a civil service employee leave with pay for the employee to:
- Receive assessment from the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) or the Employee Assistance Service (EAS). See 60.86.
- Take a state examination.
- Interview for another state position, unless it interferes with operational necessity.
Employers may limit the number of occurrences or the total amount of paid leave to be granted to an employee to participate in interviews or take examinations during scheduled work hours.
Additionally, WSU may grant a civil service employee leave with pay for the reasons listed in WAC 357-31-325(2).
Citation
Overtime-eligible civil service refer to 60.59 and WAC 357-31-230 regarding compensatory time.
Supervisors must grant leave to permanent civil service employees who are unable to perform their job duties because they are disabled. WAC 357-31-500 specifically provides such leave for civil service employees who are sick or temporarily disabled because of pregnancy and/or childbirth.
Requesting Disability Leave
An employee reports inability to work due to a disability, including disability due to pregnancy and/or childbirth, to his or her supervisor. The supervisor then refers the employee to HRS to apply for disability leave.
The employee must submit medical certification or verification to HRS for the period of disability.
For application advisory guidelines and more detailed information about disability leave, including disability leave due to pregnancy and/or childbirth, contact HRS or access the HRS website at:
Select Manager's Toolkit, then
Select Medical Leave Information.
Leave Usage for Disability
Disability leave, including leave due to pregnancy and/or childbirth, may be a combination of sick leave, annual leave, personal holiday, compensatory time, and leave without pay. The employee chooses the combination and use of paid and unpaid leave during a disability leave. (WAC 357-31-515)
If necessary due to continued disability, the employee is allowed to use a minimum of eight hours of accrued paid leave per month for up to four months of disability leave (or as long as medically certified for pregnancy and/or childbirth) to provide for continuation of employer-paid benefits. (The total months of disability leave include the twelve workweeks provided under the Family and Medical Leave Act, if eligible. See WAC 357-31-525.) NOTE: Eight hours of paid leave may not be sufficient to cover the employee's portion of the insurance premiums. Contact HRS for more information.
If the employee is not eligible for FML and during the fourth month, regardless of FML eligibility, the eight hours paid leave should be used on the first working day(s) of the month.
Civil service employees refer to WAC sections 357-31-285 through 357-31-305 regarding leave for family care emergencies.
Upon request, an eligible civil service employee must be granted up to a total of 12 work weeks of absence during a rolling twelve-month period to:
- Seek treatment and recover for an employee's serious health condition; and/or
- Care for an employee's parent, spouse, or child who has a serious health condition; and/or
- Provide care to an employee's newborn, adopted, or foster child. See WAC 357-31-460.
Citations
Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 USC 2601 et seq., WAC 357-31-525)
Eligible Employees
An eligible employee is an employee who has:
- Worked for the state for at least 12 months, and
- Worked at least 1,250 hours during the previous 12-month period. Paid leave does not count towards the 1,250 hours of work.
Citations
Provisions
The following family medical leave (FML) provisions apply to civil service employees:
- HRS designates absences that meet the criteria of family medical leave. (WAC 357-31-535)
- Designated paid or unpaid leave, excluding compensatory time, is counted towards the 12 weeks of family medical leave. (WAC 357-31-535)
- The employee may choose to use accrued paid leave or leave without pay for family medical leave. (WAC 357-31-540)
- The University must grant family medical leave to an employee on an intermittent or reduced schedule at the employee's request when medically necessary. (WAC 357-31-545)
- The employee must return to the same or equivalent position held prior to the FML absence. (WAC 357-31-550)
- The University must continue an eligible employee's employer-paid health insurance benefits during the FML period. The employee is still responsible for her or his portion of the premiums, and must make arrangements with HRS to ensure that these premiums are paid. (WAC 357-31-555)
Application Guidelines
For application advisory guidelines and more detailed information about the FML program, contact HRS or go to the HRS website at:
Select Manager's Toolkit, then
Select Medical Leave Information.
A holiday is a day when all University offices and departments on a WSU campus are closed except for certain essential service units.
The University provides ten holidays each fiscal year for civil service employees. Refer to the holiday schedule in 60.76 for current WSU holiday schedules for specified University locations.
Qualifications for Holiday Pay
Full-time and part-time civil service employees who are in pay status the entire work shift prior to the holiday qualify to receive pay for the holiday. (WAC 357-31-010)
Civil service employees refer to WAC 357-31-030 when a holiday falls on a scheduled day off.
A cyclic-year employee who is in full pay status on her or his last regularly scheduled working day prior to the cyclic break, qualifies for holiday(s) in that month.
An employee working a night shift schedule during which the holiday occurs is compensated her or his holiday leave as defined in WAC 357-31-050.
Holiday Hours Earned
A full-time civil service employee receives eight hours of holiday pay. Any differences between the scheduled shift for the day and eight hours may be adjusted by use of vacation leave, accrued compensatory time, or leave without pay.
Part-time employees calculate their percent of employment times eight hours to determine the number of paid holiday hours earned. Example: an employee on a 75% FTE appointment earns 75% x 8 hours = 6 hours of holiday pay.
Holiday Worked
See 60.60 and 60.62 to report a holiday worked.
Overtime-eligible civil service employees who are directed to work on a designated holiday must receive their regular rate of pay for the holiday, plus premium pay at the overtime rate for all hours worked on the holiday. See 60.59 and WAC 357-28-200.
Overtime-exempt civil service employees do not qualify for holiday premium pay.
LEAVE DUE TO INCLEMENT WEATHER
A civil service employee may be required to use compensatory time for absence due to inclement weather before using annual leave hours, unless this requirement would result in a loss of accumulated annual leave.
A civil service employee may use up to three days of sick leave per calendar year for absence due to inclement weather after all other paid leave is exhausted.
Civil service employees may request to use leave without pay for absences due to inclement weather.
Refer to WAC 357-31-255 for more information regarding leave due to inclement weather.
LEAVE DUE TO SUSPENDED OPERATIONS
Civil service employees refer to 50.40, 60.40, and WAC 357-31-260 regarding suspended operations.
LEAVE FOR LIFE-GIVING PROCEDURES
Employees are eligible for paid leave for the sole purpose of participating in life-giving procedures. (Executive Order 02-01)
Paid leave for participation in life-giving procedures:
- Is not to exceed five days in a two-year period;
- Is not charged against sick leave or annual leave; and
- Does not require the use of leave without pay.
A life-giving procedure is defined as a medically-supervised procedure involving the testing, sampling, or donation of blood, platelets, organs, fluids, tissues, and other human body components for the purposes of donation, without compensation, to a person or organization for medically necessary treatments.
Employees must provide reasonable advance notice of a desire to take paid leave time to participate in live-giving procedures. Supervisors may take into account program implementation and staffing replacement requirements in determining whether or not to grant such leave time.
In order to be credited with organ/blood donation leave time, an employee must provide written proof from an accredited medical institution, physician, or other medical professional that the employee participated in a life-giving procedure.
WSU takes into account provisions of collective bargaining agreements which cover leave usage. Employees covered by collective bargaining unit agreements should refer to the appropriate agreements. Any additional time needed for life-giving procedures is subject to University leave policies and collective bargaining agreements. Supervisors may also continue or implement informal, flextime, or other leave arrangements for these purposes.
The University's life-giving procedures leave policy does not create any entitlement or other right which may be converted to cash, other compensation, or any other benefit. The policy is intended only to encourage altruistic life-giving procedures, and to allow paid leave to participate in such procedures.
Supervisors are to arrange civil service employees' working hours on the day of a primary, general, or special election to allow employees reasonable time to vote. (Up to two hours may be allowed.) (RCW 49.28.120)
The supervisor may not deny the use of compensatory time or annual leave for up to two hours on an election day if:
- The employee's work schedule does not include two consecutive free hours during the time the polls are open, and
- The employee was not advised of his/her work schedule in time to obtain an absentee ballot.
Uses for Authorized LWOP
Civil service employees may use leave without pay for any of the reasons listed below:
- For any reason leave with pay may be granted, as long as the conditions for leave with pay are met;
- Educational leave;
- Leave for government service in the public interest;
- Military leave of absence (see below and WAC 357-31-370);
- Parental leave (see below and WAC 357-31-460);
- Family care emergencies (see above and WAC 357-31-295)
- Bereavement or condolence (see above);
- Absence due to inclement weather (see above and WAC 357-31-255)
- To accommodate annual work schedules of employees occupying cyclic year positions (see 60.30 and WAC 357-19-295);
- Serious health condition of an eligible employee's child, spouse, or parent (WAC 357-31-525);
- Leave taken voluntarily to reduce the effect of an employer's layoff;
- Leave that is authorized in advance by the appointing authority as part of a plan to reasonably accommodate a person of disability; or
- Employees receiving time loss compensation.
Citation
Requesting LWOP
To request leave without pay, a civil service employee submits a written request for LWOP to his or her supervisor specifying the leave dates and the reason for the leave request.
The employing official reviews and signs the request, if approved. See 60.10 for definition of employing official.
Route the approved written request to Human Resource Services.
More Than Ten Working Days
If the request is for more than ten full working days of LWOP, obtain approval from the employing official and Human Resource Services. Route a memorandum approved by the employing official to Human Resource Services to request leave without pay.
Affect of LWOP on Probationary or Trial Service Periods
A civil service employee's probationary period or trial service period is extended by one work day for each workshift of leave without pay which the employee takes during this period. (WAC 357-31-355)
Accruals While on LWOP
LWOP may impact an employee's accruals for annual leave, sick leave, and whether they receive compensation for University holidays.
Annual Leave
See above.
Sick Leave
See below.
Holiday Hours Earned
See above.
Benefits Eligibility
LWOP for a period which is equal to or greater than one calendar month requires personal payment of insurance premiums unless:
- Employee is on approved FML for up to 12 weeks and is paying her or his portion of the premiums (see above), or
- Employee is on disability LWOP and
Employee is using eight hours of paid leave per month to keep benefits in effect for:
Up to four months for her or his own condition, if requested, or
As long as medically certified for disability leave due to pregnancy and/or childbirth; or
Up to six months of parental leave.
NOTE: Eight hours of pay may not generate enough pay to cover the employee's portion of the insurance premium. Contact HRS to inquire how much leave must be used each month to cover employee's portion of the insurance premiums.
Contact HRS regarding personal payment of insurance premiums, as needed; telephone 335-4521.
Review the following for more information regarding eligibility for benefits during periods of LWOP:
Employee Return Rights
An employee returns from extended LWOP to the same position or to another position within the same class in the same geographical area and organizational unit if re-employment does not conflict with rules relating to layoff. (WAC 357-31-340)
Upon presentation of military orders to the supervisor, WSU grants civil service employees leave for active training duty with any of the armed forces of the United States.
Military Leave With Pay
Civil service employees refer to WAC 357-31-360 regarding military leave with pay.
Military Leave Without Pay
WSU must grant a military leave of absence without pay to a civil service employee for service in the uniformed services of the United States or the state, and to reinstatement as provided in RCW 73.16.
No adjustments are made to the seniority date, leave accrual rate, or periodic increment date while an employee is on paid military leave or a military leave of absence without pay.
Shared Leave During Military Leave Period
See 60.58 for information regarding eligibility and application for shared leave to cover a period of military leave.
An eligible employee may request parental leave for the birth and care of the employee's newborn child or the placement of a child with the employee for adoption or foster care. (WAC 357-31-460)
Civil service employees refer to RCW 49.78, WAC 357-31-460, and WAC 357-31-465 regarding conditions for requesting parental leave and eligibility criteria.
Refer to WAC 357-31-475 regarding circumstances in which the six-month period of leave may be denied or extended.
A total of 12 weeks of parental leave may be designated as family medical leave (FML) in addition to any FML taken for sickness or temporary disability due to pregnancy and/or childbirth. (WAC 357-31-480, WAC 357-31-495)
Parental Leave Request
The employee submits a written request to her or his supervisor for parental leave, providing a 30-day notice. In the event that the employee is unable to give 30 days notice due to the early birth or placement of a child, the employee is to submit a written request to the supervisor as soon as possible. (WAC 357-31-470)
The written request is to include the anticipated dates of the leave and the purpose of the leave.
If the requested period of parental leave exceeds the FML period, the supervisor must provide a written response within ten working days as to whether the request is approved or denied. Denial may be based on justifiable operational necessity only. (WAC 357-31-485)
Leave Usage
Parental leave may be a combination of annual leave, personal holiday, compensatory time, and leave without pay. The employee chooses the combination and use of paid and unpaid leave during parental leave. (WAC 357-31-490) Sick leave may be used for parental leave only if such use meets the criteria specified in WAC 357-31-130.
A civil service employee may use a minimum of eight hours of paid leave each month of a leave without pay period to maintain eligibility for the WSU-sponsored employee benefits for up to six months of parental leave. (WAC 357-31-490(2))
The employee is responsible for her or his portion of the insurance premiums. NOTE: Eight hours of pay may not generate enough pay to cover the employee's portion of the insurance premium. The employee may contact HRS with questions regarding her or his benefits.
A civil service employee who is scheduled to be or has been continuously employed for at least four months is entitled to a paid personal holiday.
The personal holiday is in addition to the designated legal holidays which all civil service employees receive in a calendar year. See 60.76 for the schedule of designated holidays.
Requirements
The civil service employee must take her or his personal holiday within the current calendar year or the holiday is forfeited. EXCEPTION: If the employee is denied use of the personal holiday during the current year, she or he may take the holiday the following year. (WAC 357-31-080)
Request
The employee provides the supervisor with a written request for a specific day in accordance with departmental leave guidelines.
The supervisor may deny use of the holiday on a particular date if the employee's absence interferes with the operations of the department. (WAC 357-31-070)
Use
An employee must use his or her personal holiday as a full day or shift. (WAC 357-31-090) The employee may not split the personal holiday by taking part of the hours on one day and the balance on another day except as allowed for the following:
- Care of a child (WAC 357-31-070(2)(a))
- Care for an eligible family member (WAC 357-31-070(2)(b))
- Donation to the shared leave program (WAC 357-31-425(3))
Compensation
Full-Time Employees
A full-time civil service employee receives eight hours pay for the personal holiday. An employee accounts for differences between the scheduled daily shift and eight hours by using accumulated annual leave, compensatory time, or leave without pay. (WAC 357-31-065(1))
Part-Time Employees
A part-time civil service employee receives personal holiday hours based upon the percentage of FTE (full time employment) times eight hours. Example: 75% FTE x 8 hours = 6 hours of personal holiday. (WAC 357-31-065(2))
Earning Sick Leave
Sick leave is credited to the employee's leave balances on a monthly basis, upon completion of the month. Civil service employees may accumulate unlimited sick leave hours. (WAC 357-31-115)
Accrual Rate
Full-Time Accrual
Full-time civil service employees earn eight hours of sick leave per month. (WAC 357-31-115(1))
Part-Time Accrual
The accrual rate for a part-time civil service employee is based upon the percent of employment. (WAC 357-31-115(3))
NOTE: Percent of employment is also expressed as FTE (Full-Time Equivalent). Example: An employee who has an appointment of 75% FTE will earn 75% of eight hours = 6 hours of sick time.
LWOP Rule
An employee who is on leave without pay for more than ten full working days in a calendar month is not eligible to earn sick leave for the month. (WAC 357-31-120)
Using Sick Leave
Sick leave must be earned before it is used. (WAC 357-31-140)
The supervisor must allow the employee to use accrued sick leave for the reasons specified below, in accordance with WAC 357-31-130:
- Illness, disability, or injury that has incapacitated the employee from performing required duties;
- Exposure of the employee to a contagious disease which might jeopardize the health of others if the employee was present at work;
- Care for a minor/dependent child with a health condition requiring treatment or supervision;
- Care for a spouse, parent, parent-in-law, or grandparent of the employee who has a serious health condition or emergency health condition;
- Family care emergencies (WAC 357-31-290, WAC 357-31-295, WAC 357-31-300, WAC 357-31-305);
- Personal health care appointments;
- Family members' health care appointments when the presence of the employee is required if arranged in advance with the employing official or designee;
- 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 above.
The employer must approve up to five days of accumulated sick leave each occurrence. Employers may approve more than five days.
For purposes of care for household members or relatives, the term "relatives" is limited to spouse, child, grandchild, grandparent or parent.
An employee may use sick leave as specified below, in accordance with WAC 357-31-130:
- Bereavement or condolence;
- Inability to report to work due to inclement weather, in accordance with the employer's policy on inclement weather (see above and WAC 357-31-255).
If an employee who is on approved annual leave were to have a condition arise that would be eligible for sick leave use under WAC 357-31-130(1), WSU may allow the employee to use sick leave in place of annual leave. The employee may request to adjust their leave balances by calling the supervisor notifying him or her of the need for sick leave. The employee may contact the supervisor with this request at the time the condition arises or upon her or his return from leave.
LWOP
Sick leave may not be used while on leave without pay.
EXCEPTION: An employee who is on leave without pay may use sick leave under the following conditions:
- Employee is approved to receive worker's compensation from the Department of Labor and Industries (see below); or
- Employee is scheduling leave each month to maintain eligibility for WSU-sponsored employee benefits, if the leave taken meets the criteria in WAC 357-31-490 and:
The employee is eligible for family medical leave (above); and/or
The employee is eligible for disability leave, including disability leave due to pregnancy or childbirth (above); and/or
The employee is eligible for parental leave (above).
Requesting Leave/Notifying Supervisor
An employee reports inability to work due to illness or disability to the supervisor at the beginning of any period of sick leave and daily thereafter unless the employee and the supervisor make other arrangements.
If the need to use sick leave causes the employee to miss more than three days of work, or is a chronic condition that requires ongoing treatment or ongoing intermittent leave, the employee must apply for disability leave or FML, if eligible.
For application advisory guidelines and more detailed information about disability leave or FML, contact HRS or go to the HRS website at:
Select Manager's Toolkit, then
Select Medical Leave Information.
Prior State Service
An employee who transfers from another state of Washington agency without a break in service transfers accrued sick leave hours. See 60.19 and WAC 357-31-110.
WSU restores unused sick leave balances, if any, for Washington state employees who are re-employed within five years of the termination of prior state employment. See 60.19 and WAC 357-31-160 for more details and limitations.
Payment For Accrued Sick Leave
The following two options allow an employee to be paid for accrued sick leave:
- Attendance incentive. See 60.41 and WAC 357-31-150(1).
- Payment upon retirement or death. See 55.49 and WAC 357-31-150(2).
At retirement, an eligible employee may either receive benefits from the Voluntary Employee's Benefit Association Medical Expense Plan (VEBA MEP) or receive payment for accrued sick leave. The employee does not personally choose between VEBA MEP or sick leave payment. See 55.49 for more information.
NOTE: Employees who separate from WSU for any reason other than retirement or death are not eligible for payment of accrued sick leave. (WAC 357-31-155)
Employees are entitled to 96 hours of release time per year to attend training sessions. See 60.72. Applicable training sessions may include management-assigned Skillsoft online classes.
Training release time is considered time worked for purposes of computing overtime for overtime-eligible employees.
Unauthorized absences will be treated as unauthorized leave without pay. Possible ramifications of unauthorized absences are addressed in WAC 357-31-105.
WORK-RELATED INJURY OR ILLNESS
In the event that a civil service employee sustains a work-related injury or illness and is approved to receive workers' compensation from the Department of Labor and Industries, WAC 357-31-235 allows the employee to:
- Receive workers' compensation exclusively, and go on LWOP with WSU; or
- Use accrued paid leave for their time off while receiving workers' compensation; or
- Use a combination of LWOP and accrued leave while receiving workers' compensation.
During the first three months in which an employee is off, he or she may use any combination of leave and LWOP.
As of month four, University policy does not allow for an employee to move back and forth from a paid leave to LWOP status. EXCEPTION: An employee who is receiving worker's compensation, is using his or her sick leave, and is participating in the sick leave buy back process. An employee may use any sick leave which he or she has bought back at the beginning of each month, and may continue to do so until her or his sick leave balance is depleted.
For more information regarding sick leave buy back, see the HRS website at:
Select Benefits, then
Select Workers Compensation.See also Safety Policies and Procedures Manual (SPPM) S25.27.
Use of Accrued Leave While on Worker's Compensation
For information regarding the implications of using sick leave while on worker's compensation, see SPPM S25.27 and WAC 357-31-240.
For information regarding the implications of using annual leave, compensatory time, or holiday pay while on worker's compensation, see SPPM S25.27 and WAC 357-31-245.
NOTE: An employee may use any combination of leave and LWOP during the first three months he or she is off work. As of month four, any accrued sick leave used must have been purchased back through the sick leave buy back procedure.
For additional information, contact HRS; telephone 335-4521;or go to the HRS website at:
Select Benefits, then
Select Workers Compensation.