(A) Annual leave.
(1) (a) Supervisory and professional employees.
Years of Service | Leave Accrual Per Month |
Up to 5 years | 10 hours |
5 to 10 years | 12 hours |
10 to 20 years | 14 hours |
20 years and over | 15 hours |
(b) Non-supervisors.
Years of Service | Leave Accrual Per Month |
Up to 5 years | 9 hours |
5 to 10 years | 11 hours |
10 years and over | 13 hours |
(2) Annual leave shall not be earned while on injury leave or leave without pay. Annual leave with pay shall, when requested, be granted for sickness when all accrued sick leave has been exhausted. Except in case of emergency, all applications for annual leave will be initiated by the employee in advance on the leave form prescribed by the City Manager.
(a) A maximum of 2-years’ accrual of annual leave may be carried forward into the beginning of the 12-month period following the employee’s anniversary date (month of initial employment by the city). If an employee has accrued 2 years of leave, and earns additional leave, the additional leave earned must be used during the year that it was earned or it will be lost. Any unused leave in excess of 2-years’ accrual will be lost on the employee’s anniversary date. Upon termination, an employee will be compensated for accrued annual leave as of the date of termination, up to a maximum of 2-years’ accrual.
(b) Employees should check with the City Manager’s office periodically in order to be aware of the status of their accrued leave.
(B) Sick leave. Eight hours of sick leave shall be accrued for each complete calendar month of service. Maximum accrual of sick leave will be 40 work shifts. Accrued sick leave is lost upon termination, and not to be restored upon reinstatement, except where the reinstatement is the result of a reversal of a dismissal action. Sick leave accrued in excess of 40 work days may be cashed in at the ratio of 1 hour’s pay for 2 hours of sick leave. The computation and payment to be made on or about the first day of December each year. Upon retirement, supervisory and unclassified personnel may convert 100% of unused sick leave to early retirement and nonsupervisory personnel may convert 60% of unused sick leave.
(1) Sick leave is for use when an employee is incapacitated to do his or her job, or for related reasons, such as:
(a) Exposure to a contagious disease that would endanger the health of coworkers;
(b) Presence of contagious disease in an employee’s immediate family which requires his or her personal care;
(c) Dental, optical, or medical examination or treatment;
(d) Sick leave may be granted when emergency circumstances require the presence of an employee in the home, hospital, or doctor’s office because of an illness in the employee’s immediate family. Immediate family as used is defined as employee’s spouse or children. A doctor’s statement specifying the circumstances will be required; and/or
(e) The City Manager may authorize sick leave up to 3 days, or for extenuating circumstances an additional maximum of 2 days, to attend the funeral of a member of the employee’s immediate family (wife, husband, children, stepchildren, guardian, brother, sister, parent, stepparent, mother-in-law, father-in-law, or any member of the immediate family living in the household).
(2) The employee who becomes ill is responsible for notifying his or her supervisor as soon as practicable and upon return will complete the appropriate sick leave form. Leave for prearranged medical, dental, or optical examination or treatment should always be applied for and approved in advance.
(3) Supervisors are responsible for the proper administration of sick leave. Accordingly, they have the responsibility to ensure that sick leave is not abused. A supervisor may require any employee to furnish a certificate from a physician for any sick leave taken. However, supervisors should not use this authority to harass employees, but rather only in cases of lengthy sick leave where the employee is obviously under a physician’s care or when the supervisor has adequate reasons to believe the employee has misused sick leave. In instances where an employee is on sick leave in excess of 3 days during any 1 pay period, or a pattern of sick leave absences immediately before or after weekends and holidays develops, a certificate from the attending physician may be required.
(4) Sick leave shall not be accrued when an employee is on leave without pay or injury leave.
(C) Leave without pay. Leave without pay may be granted under the following conditions.
(1) The City Manager may approve leave without pay upon the written request of the employee and recommendation of the appointing authority for a period not more than 30 consecutive calendar days in the case of a probationary employee, or 12 consecutive months in the case of a nonprobationary employee. Either period may be extended when the extension is approved by the appointing authority and the City Manager. Leave without pay, when requested by an employee, may be granted only when the appointing authority can assure a position of like status and pay at the same location.
(2) Leave without pay may be used to cover periods of unauthorized absence, maternity leave, parental leave, authorized absence, or when an employee is incapacitated, but does not have any accrued annual or sick leave.
(3) If an employee is granted leave without pay for a period in excess of 30 calendar days, only 30 calendar days will be credited toward eligibility for a salary increase or nonprobationary status. During the total period of leave without pay, neither annual nor sick leave shall be accrued. Any holidays accrued while an employee is on leave without pay will not be paid.
(4) Failure on the part of an employee to report for work upon the expiration of approved leave without pay shall be considered a voluntary resignation.
(D) Military leave with pay. Any full-time employee who is a member of the National Guard or Air National Guard of New Mexico, or any organized reserve unit of the armed forces of the United States, shall, if placed on active duty, be granted paid military leave for a period not to exceed 15 working days per calendar year, in addition to other authorized paid leave. A full-time employee, who is a member of an unorganized reserve component, shall be granted military leave with pay not to exceed 15 working days per calendar year for the purpose of attending organized courses of instruction or training periods officially authorized for members of the components. In all cases when military leave with pay is granted, the city office is required to maintain a copy of the official orders in the employee’s personnel folder. If an employee is called to active military duty in an emergency by the President of the United States or the Governor, the time spent on active duty, not to exceed 5 additional working days within a 12-month period, shall be authorized. Absence which is not chargeable to military leave can be charged to annual leave. Therefore, employees who are called to duty for a period beyond the 15-day period chargeable to military leave can use annual leave or leave without pay for the excess period. Temporary or part-time employees are not entitled to military leave with pay under this provision.
(E) Re-employment upon return from military leave. An employee returning from military obligation shall be re-employed in the position held by the employee before military service or to a position similar in pay. The employee will maintain his or her seniority status upon re-employment. Annual and sick leave accrued prior to the employee’
(F) Court and jury leave.
(1) When, in obedience to a subpoena or following the discretion of his or her appointing authority, an employee appears as a juror or is a witness for the federal government, the State of New Mexico, or a political subdivision thereof, in official capacity, he or she shall be entitled to a court or jury leave with pay for the period required. Fees received as a witness or compensation for jury, not including reimbursement for transportation, shall be paid to the city. Attendance in court or at an official hearing in connection with an employee’s official duties, and the time required in going and returning, shall not be considered as absence from duty.
(2) If, in obedience to a subpoena, an employee appears as a witness in a matter not related to his or her assigned duties, the appointing authority, with the approval of the City Manager, may at his or her discretion:
(a) Consider the employee’s attendance as a witness and the time spent coming and going as administrative leave, if the activity on the part of an employee is clearly a civic duty, and if the employee receives no remuneration for his or her appearance and travel, or if remuneration is received and the employee agrees to pay it to the city; or
(b) Allow annual leave or leave without pay if the conditions in division (F)(2)(a) above are not met.
(G) Administrative leave. Appointing authorities may authorize the paid absence of an employee under unusual circumstances when it is in the interest of the city to do so. Administrative leave shall not exceed 3 consecutive days without the approval of the City Manager. Examples of the uses of administrative leave are: participation by an employee in community activities; early departure from work because of hazardous road conditions; or treatment of an injury received on the job. However, the City Manager should establish adequate controls to ensure that this regulation is equitably administered in the best interest of the city.
(1981 Code, § 20-27) (Ord. 823, passed 1-22-1991)