Catastrophic Sick Leave Bank [a] The District will establish and manage a catastrophic sick leave bank from which eligible educators may draw leave under the conditions and restrictions outlined below. Teachers who wish to participate in the catastrophic sick leave bank program shall be required to contribute one (1) day of their available sick leave to the bank. This contribution must be made each year during the insurance open enrollment period, as designated by the District, by completing and submitting the appropriate form to the Human Resources Department. If the bank has a substantial balance of days remaining at the end of the academic year, the Association and District may agree to suspend the contribution requirement for one year. Any educator who did not previously participate in the bank but who desires to participate during the non- contribution year will be required to donate one (1) day to initiate eligibility by submitting the appropriate form to the Human Resources Department during the insurance open enrollment period, as designated by the District. [b] Only educators who have contributed to the bank and who have depleted their sick leave and personal leave balances shall be eligible to receive consideration for sick leave from the bank. [c] All requests for sick leave from the bank must be in writing and must be addressed to the Human Resources Director. Requests may be submitted and approved any time after the required sick leave has been contributed. The requests must include the reasons for the request, written verification from the attending physician indicating the nature and severity of the illness or health problem along with the projected recovery date, and the number of sick leave days requested. [d] Only severe, extended illness and catastrophic medical problems of an employee or immediate family member will be considered for leave withdrawals from the bank. Illness or medical problems of a short-term nature shall not be considered. Life-threatening illness or severe accidents requiring extended recovery periods will be given first priority. [e] Withdrawals from the bank for illness of the participating employee shall not exceed one hundred (100) leave days per employee during any four (4) year period. [f] Withdrawals from the bank for illness of an immediate family member shall not exceed twenty (20) days during any consecutive four (4) year period. For requests under this policy, immediate family members shall include husband, wife, son, daughter, father, mother, brother, sister, grandmother, and grandfather. In addition, exceptions may be considered by the Superintendent for other relatives or those who have virtually held the position of an immediate member of the family. [g] In all sick leave bank withdrawal requests, whether for the participating employee or for an immediate family member, the District reserves the right to approve requests, deny requests, or to approve only a portion of the leave days requested.
