State Leave Sharing Program

1. State Leave Sharing Program Office of Management and Enterprise Services

2. Objectives • Introductions to the State Leave Sharing Program. • New to shared leave rules. • Shared leave liaison. • Unchanged elements of shared leave. • How to: • Donate shared leave. • Request shared leave. • Shared leave process. • Frequently asked questions.

3. Introduction to State Leave Sharing Program • Senate Bill 1581: • Signed into law on May 3, 2018. • Effective Nov. 1, 2018. • Purpose of State Leave Sharing Program: • Permit state employees to donate annual or sick leave to a fellow state employee who has exhausted or will exhaust all types of leave.

4. New to the Shared Leave Rules • Agencies are required to accept leave from other state agencies. • Creation of the Leave of Last Resort Bank. • Administered by OMES. • Funded by voluntary donations of annual and sick leave from employees retiring or leaving state service (donor). • The donor may donate all of their excess leave to the Leave of Last Resort Bank. • Before donating all or a portion of their leave, the donor must be aware in writing, that: • No monetary compensation for the donation is given. • Sick leave donations given cannot be applied as a possible credit for years of service under the respective retirement system or reinstated if re-employed with the state. • The donation is voluntarily given.

5. Shared Leave Liaison • Designated by OMES. • Responsibilities include: • Inform all state agencies of the shared leave law. • Inform all state employees of the rights afforded under the shared leave law. • Ensure an employee requesting shared leave from other state entities meets the above criteria outlined in the new shared leave law. • Coordinate outreach efforts within the employing agency and to other state entities to obtain all necessary hours of shared leave for the employee. • Ensure an employee has exhausted all sources of shared leave both within his or her employing entity and other state entities before requesting leave from the Leave of Last Resort Bank. • Coordinate leave requested from the Leave of Last Resort Bank.

6. Unchanged Elements of Shared Leave • Eligibility: • Employees requiring family leave pursuant to the provisions of the Family Medical Leave Act. • Employees suffering from or have a relative or household member suffering from an extraordinary or severe illness, injury, impairment, or physical or mental condition. • Employees who are mourning the death of a relative or household member. • Must be used immediately after the death and not to exceed five days in calendar year. • Employees affected by a presidentially declared national disaster for 18 months after the date of declaration, who have: • Suffered a physical injury as a result of the disaster. • A spouse, relative or household member suffered a physical injury or died as a result of the disaster. • A domicile or have a relative whose home was damaged or destroyed as a result of the disaster.

7. Unchanged Elements of Shared Leave (Part 2) • Unless an employee is retiring or leaving state service, they may not donate an amount that would cause their annual and sick leave balances to fall below 80 hours each. • The employee’s chief administrative officer determines the amount of donated leave an employee may receive and may authorize up to a maximum of 261 days during state employment. • An employee suffering from a certified terminal illness may submit to the chief administrative officer a written request for additional leave above the maximum. • If the employee meets specific requirements, the chief administrative officer over the employee may still approve additional donated leave upon written request of the employee. • The employee’s chief administrative officer shall require medical certification before approval or disapproval of shared leave: • Under FMLA rules. • From a licensed physician or health care practitioner. • Verifying the need for the leave. • Expected duration.

8. Donate Shared Leave • Employees retiring or leaving state service: • Completes Separation from State Service Donation to Leave Bank Form HCM-33C: • Employee section. • Agency verification and approval section. • Appointing authority signature. • Shared leave liaison signature. • Leave is donated to the Leave of Last Resort Bank. • Current state employee: • Completes Request to Donate Share Leave Form HCM-33B: • Employee section. • Agency verification and approval section. • Appointing authority signature. • Leave is donated to a particular state employee.

9. Request Shared Leave • Employee completes Request to Receive Shared Leave/Bank Leave Form HCM-33A. The from consists of: • Employee section. • Agency verification and approval section. • Appointing authority signature. • Shared leave liaison signature. • Agency seeks to secure leave from within. • If none is found, the request moves to the next level. • Shared leave liaison will seek to secure leave from: • Employing agency. • Other state agencies. • Leave of Last Resort Bank.

10. Shared Leave Process

11. Frequently Asked Questions • How are applications prioritized? Shared leave requests are prioritized in the order that they come in. • What happens to requests if there is no leave in the bank? HCM will send an email via GovDelivery to those who are interested in giving leave in order to advocate leave. Employees interested in donating would need to subscribe to receive this email correspondence. • Can an employee get a full month of leave from the bank if they need it, or is there a limit? It is possible for an employee to receive a full month of leave. HCM will issue leave by pay periods. If this employee is employed at an agency that is paid monthly, he or she will receive a month of leave if needed.

12. FAQs Continued • What happens if you have multiple requests from employees and there is not enough leave in the bank to cover all of them, who gets what leave?  Leave will be issued out on a first come, first serve basis. • What happens if an employee gets approved for leave from the bank but receives a donation at the agency level at the last minute?  All efforts to obtain leave should be exhausted (both within the agency and outside of the agency) before being issued leave from the bank. Since the bank should be used as a last resort, the agency donation will be issued to the employee. The leave from the bank will be returned to HCM to be redistributed.

13. FAQs Continued • Does an employee need to complete the HCM-33A each month they need leave from the bank?  No. Continued communication between the agency and HCM liaison is required in order to know the continued needs of the employee. • What is the turnaround time once an HCM-33A is turned in to HCM for the agency to get confirmation of whether it is approved or if there is leave available?  Upon receipt of the HCM-33A and confirmation of information, HCM will notify the agency within 24 hours. As leave amounts are constantly fluctuating due to sharing leave and usage, distribution of leave from the Leave of Last Resort Bank will be based on the agency’s payroll deadline. The HCM liaison will work with the requesting employee’s agency contact to meet the needs by payroll deadline. Communication is key to ensuring timely assistance is provided to the employee.

14. FAQs Continued • If a retiree donates leave into the Leave of Last Resort Bank, will the agency ever be billed for that leave? The receiving agency would cover the costs of its use. The donating agency would only transfer the leave.  • Can an employee be placed on the Leave Sharing Registry before asking for the leave from the bank? Yes, an agency may request an employee be placed on the Leave Sharing Registry while working internally to acquire shared leave. The employee completes an HCM-33A and secures all signatures before sending it to OMES. If later the employee wishes to request leave from the Leave of Last Resort Bank, they can work with agency HR to update the form or provide a newly completed one.

15. For questions, contact: •  Rena’ Bigby, shared leave liaison rena.bigby@omes.ok.gov 405-522-6109 • Deanna Ferron deanna.ferron@omes.ok.gov 405-522-2190 • LaCree Austin lacree.austin@omes.ok.gov 405-521-6337 • Jevon Doolin jevon.doolin@omes.ok.gov 405-521-6315 • Nicklas Garner nicklas.garner@omes.ok.gov 405-522-6907