Certificated employees employed five school days a week are entitled to 10 days' leave of absence with full pay for personal illness or injury (sick leave), per school year of service. Employees who work less than five school days per week (part-time employees) shall be granted sick leave in proportion to the time they work. However, any part-time employee who is entitled to less than three days of paid sick leave due to the amount of time worked shall be granted sick leave pursuant to Labor Code 246, if he/she is eligible. (Education Code 44978; Labor Code 245-249)
(cf. 4161.9/4261.9/4361.9 - Catastrophic Leave Program)
Use of Sick Leave
Certificated employees may use sick leave for absences due to:
1. Accident or illness, whether or not the absence arises out of or in the course of employment; quarantine which results from contact with other persons having a contagious disease during the employee's performance of his/her duties; or temporary inability to perform assigned duties because of illness, accident, or quarantine (Education Code 44964)
(cf. 4157.1/4257.1/4357.1 - Work-Related Injuries)
2. Pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, and related recovery (Education Code 44965, 44978)
(cf. 4161.8/4261.8/4361.8 - Family Care and Medical Leave)
3. Personal necessity (Education Code 44981)
(cf. 4161.2/4261.2/4361.2 - Personal Leaves)
4. Medical and dental appointments, in increments of not less than one hour
5. Industrial accidents or illnesses when leave granted specifically for that purpose has been exhausted (Education Code 44984)
(cf. 4161.11/4361.11 - Industrial Accident/Illness Leave)
6. In any calendar year, an employee may use the amount of sick leave he/she would accrue during six months at his/her current rate of entitlement for the following: (Labor Code 233, 246.5)
a. Need of the employee or his/her family member, as defined in Labor Code 245.5, for the diagnosis, care, or treatment of an existing health condition or for preventive care
b. Need of the employee to seek or obtain any relief or medical attention specified in Labor Code 230(c) and/or 230.1(a) for the health, safety, or welfare of the employee, or his/her child, when the employee has been a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking
An employee may take sick leave at any time during the school year, even if credit for sick leave has not yet been accrued. (Education Code 44978)
An employee shall reimburse the district for any unearned sick leave used as of the date of his/her termination.
Unused days of sick leave shall be accumulated from year to year without limitation. (Education Code 44978)
At the beginning of each school year, employees shall be notified of the amount of sick leave they have accumulated.
The district shall not require new employees to waive leave accumulated in a previous district. (Education Code 44979, 44980)
The Superintendent or designee shall notify any certificated employee who leaves the district after at least one school year of employment that if the employee accepts a certificated position in another district, county office of education, or community college district within one year, he/she may request that the district transfer his/her accumulated sick leave to the new employer. (Education Code 44979, 44980)
Notification of Absence
An employee shall notify the district of his/her need to be absent as soon as such need is known, so that substitute services may be secured. This notification shall include an estimate of the expected duration of absence. If the absence becomes longer than estimated, the employee shall so notify the district. If the duration of absence becomes shorter than estimated, the employee shall notify the district not later than three o'clock in the afternoon of the day preceding the day on which he/she intends to return to work. If the employee fails to notify the district and the failure results in a substitute being secured, the cost of the substitute shall be deducted from the employee's pay.
(cf. 4121 - Temporary/Substitute Personnel)
Continued Absence After Available Sick Leave Is Exhausted/Differential Pay
During each school year, when a certificated employee has exhausted all available sick leave, including all accumulated sick leave, and, due to illness or injury, continues to be absent from his/her duties for an additional period up to five school months, the employee shall receive his/her regular salary minus the actual cost of a substitute to fill the position. If the district has made every reasonable effort to secure the services of a substitute and has been unable to do so, the amount that would have been paid to a substitute shall be deducted from the employee's salary.
An employee shall not be provided more than one five-month period per illness or injury. However, if the school year ends before the five-month period is exhausted, the employee may take the balance of the five-month period in a subsequent school year. (Education Code 44977)
(cf. 4116 - Probationary/Permanent Status)
Verification Requirements
After any absence due to illness or injury, the employee shall verify the absence by submitting a completed and signed district absence form to his/her immediate supervisor.
The Superintendent or designee may require verification whenever an employee's absence record shows chronic absenteeism or a pattern of absences immediately before or after weekends and/or holidays or whenever available evidence clearly indicates that an absence is not related to illness or injury.
In addition, the Superintendent or designee may require an employee to visit a physician selected by the district, at district expense, in order to receive a report on the medical condition of the employee. The report shall include a statement as to the employee's need for further leave of absence and a prognosis as to when the employee will be able to return to work. If the report concludes that the employee's condition does not warrant continued absence, the Superintendent or designee may, after giving notice to the employee, deny further leave.
Any district request for additional verification by an employee's physician or a district-selected physician shall be in writing and shall specify that the report to be submitted to the district should not contain the employee's genetic information.
Any genetic information received by the district on behalf of an employee shall be treated as a confidential medical record, maintained in a file separate from the employee's personnel file, and shall not be disclosed except in accordance with 29 CFR 1635.9.
Before returning to work, an employee who has been absent for surgery, hospitalization, or extended medical treatment may be asked to submit a letter from his/her physician stating that he/she is able to return to duty and stipulating any necessary restrictions or limitations.
(cf. 4032 - Reasonable Accommodation)
(cf. 4113.4/4213.4/4313.4 - Temporary Modified/Light-Duty Assignment)
Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act Requirements
No employee shall be denied the right to use accrued sick days, and the district shall not in any manner discriminate or retaliate against an employee for using or attempting to use sick leave, filing a complaint with the Labor Commissioner, or alleging district violation of Labor Code 245-249.
To ensure the district's compliance with Labor Code 245-249, the Superintendent or designee shall:
1. At a conspicuous location in each workplace, display a poster on paid sick leave that includes the following information:
a. That an employee is entitled to accrue, request, and use paid sick days
b. The amount of sick days provided by Labor Code 245-249
c. The terms of use of paid sick days
d. That discrimination or retaliation against an employee for requesting or using sick leave is prohibited by law and an employee has the right to file a complaint with the Labor Commissioner if the district discriminates or retaliates against him/her
2. Provide at least 24 hours or three days of paid sick leave to each eligible employee to use per year and allow eligible employees to use accrued sick leave upon reasonable request
3. Provide eligible employees written notice, on their pay stub or other document issued with their pay check, of the amount of paid sick leave they have available
(cf. 4112.9/4212.9/4312.9 - Employee Notifications)
4. Keep a record documenting the hours worked and paid sick days accrued and used by each eligible employee for three years
Legal Reference:
EDUCATION CODE
44964 Power to grant leave of absence in case of illness, accident, or quarantine
44965 Granting of leaves of absence for pregnancy and childbirth
44976 Transfer of leave rights when school is transferred to another district
44977 Salary deduction during absence from duties up to five months after sick leave is exhausted
44977.5 Salary deduction during absence from duties for maternity or paternity leave up to 12 weeks after sick leave is exhausted
44978 Provisions for sick leave of certificated employees
44978.1 Inability to return to duty; placement in another position or on reemployment list
44979 Transfer of accumulated sick leave to another district
44980 Transfer of accumulated sick leave to a county office of education
44981 Leave of absence for personal necessity
44983 Exception to sick leave when district adopts specific rule
44984 Industrial accident or illness
44986 Leave of absence for disability allowance applicant
LABOR CODE
220 Sections inapplicable to public employees
230 Jury duty; legal actions by domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking victims, right to time off
230.1 Employers with 25 or more employees; domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking victims, right to time off
233 Illness of child, parent, spouse or domestic partner
234 Absence control policy
245-249 Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act of 2014
CODE OF REGULATIONS, TITLE 5
5601 Transfer of accumulated sick leave
UNITED STATES CODE, TITLE 42
2000ff-2000ff-11 Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008
CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS, TITLE 29
1635.1-1635.12 Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008
COURT DECISIONS
Veguez v. Governing Board of Long Beach Unified School District, (2005) 127 Cal.App.4th 406
Regulation STANDARD SCHOOL DISTRICT
approved: October 11, 2016 Bakersfield, California