8.28 – Sick Leave Bank

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Scope: NMSU System

Source: ARP Chapter 8 | HR-Benefits

Responsible Executive: Vice President Administration and Finance

Responsible Administrator:

Last Updated: 10/21/2015

Related

Cross-Reference:

Revision History:

2017 Recompilation, formerly Rule 7.20.80
10/21/2015 Amendment ratified by Board of Regents
08/17/2015 Provisional Amendment implemented by Chancellor
07/21/2015 Amendment ratified by Board of Regents
04/16/2015 Provisional Amendment implemented by Chancellor

  1. This program establishes a Sick Leave Bank for eligible participating university employees affected by a personal medical emergency, and who have insufficient paid sick or annual leave to cover required work absences.  Only university employees who are eligible to accrue sick and annual leave may elect to participate in the Sick Leave Bank benefit.
  2. A personal medical emergency is defined as an unusual and catastrophic medical or immediate family medical emergency that is likely to require an employee’s absence from duty for a prolonged period of time and to result in a substantial loss of income because of the unavailability of paid leave.
  3. Only those items allowable under the university Sick Leave Rules are covered by the Sick Leave Bank.
  4. The bank allows employees to share the risk of severe circumstances by donating to a common pool of leave.
  5. Members of the pool are required to enroll in the long-term disability insurance program as a protection against income loss while recovering from a severe medical condition.  The long-term disability policy covers total disability after a waiting period of 135 consecutive calendar days or 100 work days.
  6. The maximum a recipient can receive from the Sick Leave Bank is 70 days per personal emergency with no more than one withdrawal from the bank per fiscal year or per personal emergency.  No more than 70 days can be withdrawn for a particular medical condition.
  7. Employees would be wise to maintain a balance of at least 30 days of combined sick and annual leave to cover them during the first 30 days of personal emergency or total disability.  The Sick Leave Bank does not provide for the first 30 days of the personal emergency; these are the responsibility of the employee and are covered by the employee’s sick and annual leave or leave without pay.
  8. Program requirements and application procedures are maintained on the web pages for the Office of Human Resource Services.