(a) Absences for Maternity Reasons.
(1) Absence from duty for reasons related to pregnancy and confinement is charged to sick leave, annual leave or leave without pay, depending on the circumstances and availability of each type of leave. All sick leave granted must be supported by a medical certificate showing that the employee is incapacitated to perform the duties of her position for the period covered by the certificate. Sick leave is not authorized for absence due solely to the employee's responsibility for care of the infant. Any additional absence is charged to annual leave or leave without pay.
(2) An employee requesting maternity leave is requested to state in her application whether she intends to return to duty. An employee who does not intend to return to duty is separated at the expiration of her approved sick leave and any annual leave which cannot be included in a lump-sum payment. Unless otherwise prohibited, an employee unable to return to duty because of her physical condition is not separated before the expiration date of the sick leave to her credit.
(3) A male employee may request annual leave or leave without pay for purposes of assisting or caring for minor children or the mother and newborn child while the mother is incapacitated for maternity reasons. Approval of leave requests for such purposes will be consistent with granting leave in similar situations and each request will be considered on its own merits.
(b) Absence for Voting or Registration.
(1) Except as provided herein, an employee requesting time off to vote is excused without charge to leave for the amount of time necessary to permit him to report to work three hours after the polls open or to leave work three hours before the polls close, whichever requires the least amount of time off. Normally, where the polls are open either three hours before or after the employee's regular duty hours, no time off is granted.
(2) Because of special circumstances the general rule stated in subsection (b)(1) hereof may not permit sufficient time for voting, in which case, the employee is excused for the additional time necessary, but not more than one workday.
(3) Where the employee's voting place is beyond normal commuting distance and voting by absentee ballot is not permitted, the employee is granted sufficient time off to make the trip. Time off in excess of one day is charged to annual leave or LWOP.
(4) The employee voting in jurisdiction where registration in person is required, is granted time off to register on substantially the same basis as for voting. However, no time off is granted without charge to leave if the employee can register on a non- workday and round-trip travel reasonably can be accomplished in one day.
(c) Absences Due to Emergency Conditions or for Managerial Reasons.
(1) The Manager may issue administrative orders relieving employees from duty, or when normal operations are interrupted by events beyond the control of management or employees, such as fire, flood, breakdown of equipment, labor disputes or when it is in the public interest to relieve employees from duty to participate in civil activities that the Municipality is interested in promoting.
(2) Under the above circumstances employees may be excused or absence charged to available annual leave. The authority to excuse employees under administrative orders is used sparingly and for short periods of time only. Normally, a single period of excused absence does not exceed three workdays. Under very unusual circumstances, two additional days may be authorized. However, employees cannot be excused without charge to leave when operations are suspended for managerial reasons known sufficiently in advance to permit the scheduling of leave. Normally, employees are notified twenty-four hours in advance, but where this is impracticable, employees may be placed on annual leave if they are notified by the close of the preceding workday.
(3) Employees participating in emergency rescue or protective work during an emergency, such as fire, flood, riot or search operations are excused or charged leave for the absence as follows:
A. Employees called to emergency duty as members of the Civil Air Patrol or similar organizations are excused without charge to leave. After five workdays any further absence is charged to available annual leave or the employee is granted LWOP.
B. Employees may be excused without charge to leave to participate in emergency rescue or protective work as volunteers. Normally, a single period of excused absence cannot exceed three days. Under unusual circumstances, two additional days of excused absence may be authorized. If an employee's services are required to protect Municipal property he may be denied permission to be absent to participate in rescue or protective work at other locations.
C. Except as authorized above, employees participating in emergency rescue or protective work are charged leave or carried in a nonpay status for the total period of absence.
(d) Early Dismissal. Only employees who are in a duty status, not on leave or who are expected to return from leave to duty status, at the time the early dismissal takes effect are excused without charge to leave.
(e) Absence for Brief Periods or Tardiness. Unavoidable absence of less than one hour and tardiness may be excused by the supervisor for adequate reasons, or charged to annual leave or compensatory time. Unauthorized absence during the workday also may be charged as AWOL if the circumstances do not justify excusing the absence or approval of annual leave. Repeated tardiness or unauthorized absences during the workday may warrant a disciplinary action. Such cases may be discussed with the Manager as to possible disciplinary action.
(f) Absence Resulting from Hostile Action. An employee who is injured as the result of war, insurgency or similar action is charged leave for absence, up to one year, resulting from the injury. The injury must not have been the result of vicious habits, intemperance, or willful misconduct of the employee.
(g) Blood Donations. The Municipality encourages the employees to volunteer as blood donors without compensation, to blood banks, or in emergencies to individuals. An employee is excused without charge to leave or loss of pay not to exceed four hours contiguous to donating blood.
(h) Disaster Program Activities. An employee participating in any disaster program in the Municipality is considered in duty status and no charge to leave is made. Absences to participate in any disaster activities at other locations are charged to annual leave or leave without pay unless excused absence has been specifically approved by the Manager.
(i) Consultation with Operating Officials.
(1) An employee is not charged leave for the time required to consult with operating officials on matters relating to his employment, provided that arrangements, satisfactory to his supervisor and the official to be consulted are made in advance. An employee who is specifically requested to report for an interview is not charged leave for the time required for the interview. Except as provided above, absence for placement interviews is charged to annual leave or leave without pay.
(2) An employee representing a labor organization is not charged leave for the time required for meetings or consultations with management officials.
(j) Meetings and Conferences.
(1) Absence, including required travel time, to attend meetings or conferences determined to be training, or absence to attend other meetings for which travel is authorized at Municipal expense is considered official duty and no charge to leave is made.
(2) Except as provided in subsection (j)(4) and (5) hereof, employees may be excused to attend conferences or conventions at expense to the Municipality when it is determined that attendance will serve the best interest of the Municipality. Excused absence of this type shall be limited to those situations where the employee is an official representative of the organization involved or an active, scheduled participant in the program.
(3) Officers or delegates of an association of management officials or supervisors with which an official consultative relationship has been established may be excused to attend conventions of the association.
(4) Excusing employees in connection with activities of labor organizations will be based on the mutual concern of the Municipality and the employee in his capacity as an organization representative. The excuse should be incident to the representative receiving information, briefing or orientation related to matter within the scope of labor management relations. Employees may be excused for labor sponsored activities only for short periods of time that are reasonable under the circumstances (ordinarily not to exceed eight hours).
(5) Employees will not be excused to attend conferences or conventions of political parties or partisan political groups or committees.
(k) Off-the-Job Training During Regularly Scheduled Duty Hours.
(1) No charge is made to leave for off-the-job training whether conducted on or off the activity which is approved, as directly related to the employee’s official duties, or those which the employee could reasonably be expected to perform in the future and is paid by the Municipality.
(2) No charge is made to leave for off-the-job training which is approved, as directly related to the employee’s present official duties, or those which the employee could reasonably be expected to perform in the future, when the training is approved and paid under 38 U.S. Code 1781, Veterans Administration educational assistance allowance, or when the employee pays all expenses of such training.
(3) Training taken by an employee on personal initiative for personal advancement must either be taken outside of scheduled duty hours or during periods of approved leave or LWOP.
(l) Travel Time.
(1) When privately-owned conveyance is authorized or approved as being advantageous to the Municipality for temporary duty travel, the employee is considered in travel status, without charge to leave, during the actual time required for official travel. In computing the actual time required, any excess time required because of a delay enroute or circuitous routing specifically determined to be for the employee’s convenience is deducted from the total elapsed time.
(2) When an employee is allowed to use his privately-owned conveyance for his own convenience on temporary duty travel, he is considered in travel status for the scheduled travel time by common carrier or usual mode of transportation that otherwise would be required. Any time in excess of this period which falls within the employee’s scheduled basic workweek is charged to leave.
(3) When extensive temporary duty travel outside of regularly scheduled hours of duty is required, employees are authorized to be absent from work without charge to leave or loss of pay for a reasonable time to recuperate from fatigue or loss of sleep. In determining “reasonable time” the supervisor considers the adverse effect on work performance, health, well being, and any safety hazard which might result from working while fatigued.
(m) Religious Holidays. Insofar as practicable, employees wishing to observe religious holidays are allowed time off for the purpose. If circumstances permit, work schedules may be rearranged to provide substituted work time, otherwise the absence is charged to annual leave or LWOP.
(Ord. 436. Passed 9-12-77.)
(n) Injury Leave. Injury leave up to a maximum of fifteen (15) days shall be granted to an employee who is injured as a result of an accident arising out of and in the course of the employee’s normal performance of duties, and if allowed as a claim by the Industrial Commission. In order to be eligible for such injury leave, the employee must apply for disability benefits under the Workers’ Compensation Act, and immediately upon receipt of such benefits, turn same over to the Finance Director. Injury leave payments hereunder shall be paid at one hundred percent (100%) of the employee’s regular rate of pay.
(Ord. 1377. Passed 12-27-05.)