POLICY GUIDE

Executive Order 1

On January 14, 2006, Governor Timothy Kaine signed Executive Order I (EO), Equal Opportunity, which continues to assure equal opportunity in all facets of state government. The EO specifically prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, sex, color, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, age, political affiliation, veteran status , or against otherwise qualified persons with disabilities. This EO expands protection from discrimination to also include sexual orientation and veteran status. Further this EO provides employment preference for veterans as defined in §2.2-2903 of the Code of Virginia. As stated in this Code section, veteran is defined as “any person who has received an honorable discharge and has provided more than 180 consecutive days of full-time, active-duty service in the armed forces of the United States or reserve components thereof, including the National Guard, or has a service-connected disability rating fixed by the United States Veterans Affairs.”

Annual Leave Maximum Carryover

Every year, questions are raised about the amount of annual leave that employees may carry over from one leave year to the next. The maximum carryover amount is the greatest amount of annual leave that an employee may have at the beginning of the new leave year, January 10 th . Therefore, if the annual leave accrual on January 9 th pushes an employee's leave balance above the maximum, the balance is reduced and the maximum becomes the new balance that is available to the employee on January 10 th .

For example, consider an employee with 16 years of service. The maximum carryover for this employee is 42 days, or 336 hours of annual leave. Assume that the employee has 360 hours of leave on December 25 th and uses 28 hours of leave during the December 25 th to January 9 th pay period. That leaves the employee with a balance of 332 hours prior to the January 9 th accrual.

On January 9 th , the employee earns 7 additional hours of annual leave. The employee's total leave after the accrual is 339 hours. Since this amount exceeds the 336-hour maximum carryover, the employee's balance is reduced to 336 hours at the beginning of the new leave year, January 10 th .

In order for this employee to realize the full value of the January 9 th accrual, the employee needs to use more of his or her previously-earned leave so that the balance prior to the January 9 th accrual is 329 hours or less (336-7=329) .

As Policy 4.10 says, “(w)hen practical, and for as long as the agency's operations are not affected adversely, an agency should attempt to approve an employee's request for annual leave.” Approving employees' leave requests is the best way to avoid their loss of leave at the end of the year. Agencies should encourage employees to use their annual leave throughout the year .

FMLA Reminders

Hourly/Wage Employees : The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) gives job protection for up to 12 weeks per year when employees need time off for certain defined personal and family reasons. FMLA further provides continuation of health care coverage for employees who have this coverage (such as salaried state employees). Hourly/wage employees who meet FMLA eligibility criteria have access only to the job protection portion of the FMLA.

Compensation Policy Clarification

A discrepancy between the text of Policy 3.05 and its Attachment C, the chart entitled Exceptional Recruitment and Retention Incentive Options , has created some confusion.

• The Annual Leave sub-section of Exceptional Recruitment and Retention Incentive Options states that “[a] formal agreement, which includes requirements for satisfactory performance and continued employment for at least one year must be executed . . ..”
• The chart, however, indicates that an employee who receives an Annual Leave grant or advance must agree to work for “ up to one year .”

The text of Policy 3.05 will be amended to state that an employee who receives a grant or advance award of annual leave as an Exceptional Recruitment and Retention Incentive shall sign an agreement requiring him or her to meet performance requirements and not to voluntarily separate from that position for a stated period of time, normally up to one year . Extensions beyond one year must be approved as exceptions by DHRM.

Notification Required For Employees Moving to Long Term Disability

When employees move to LTD, agencies should notify them of their status: 1) that either the job will be held for their return to work or; 2) that they are being separated from employment with the Commonwealth. Additionally, agencies are required to notify these employees of their health care options, including extended coverage (COBRA).

In a recent ruling from the Department of Employment Dispute Resolution (EDR) this notification was key in determining an employee's access to the grievance procedure. The grievance procedure states that a grievance “ must be initiated within 30 calendar days of the date that the employee knew, or should have known, of the event that formed the basis of the dispute.” EDR ruled that the 30-calendar day period for access to the grievance procedure did not start until the employee received notification from the agency stating unequivocally that he had been terminated. In this case, notification occurred several months after the employee moved to LTD.

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