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4.6 SR 12-18-2023�, Elk s �- River Request for Action To Item Number Ma Tor and CinT Council 4.6 Agenda Section Meeting Date Prepared by Consent A enda DecembeY 18, 2023 LauYen Wi eY, Human ResouYces Mana eY Item Description Reviewed by Earned Sick and Safe Time PolicyT Cal Pormer, Ci r Administrator Reviewed by Action Requested Approve, byT motion, the Earned Sick and Safe Time policyT effective January 1, 2024. Background/Discussion The iVlinnesota Legislature passed a law in 2023 requiring all employTers to provide Earned Sick and Safe Time (ESS"I� for employees. We have written our policyT to the minimum requirements of the law, utilizing e�sting sick leave that benefit-eligible employees earn. This will be a new benefit for employTees who don't currently receive paid sick leave and it `vill provide expanded usage for a portion of the banks earned byT current leave-earning employees. EmployTers are required to provide 1 hour of ESST for everyT 30 hours an employTee `vorks. Due to a limitation within our leave accrual syTstem, employTees will earn time slightlyT quicker byT earning a fraction of an hour of ESST foY each houY woYked. They will also accYue the balance of their sick leave at the same time. Due to the diffeYences in how these leaves accrue, moYe leave will be accrued at the beginning of the yreaY and less after the maxirrium accYual of ESST has been reached. The total amount of leave accrued at the end of the tireaY will be accurate. The policy provides an adjustment to the Severance PayT PolicyT for those leaving employTment mid-yTear on1yT allow pay out consistent with our original polic�r. Financial Impact A financial impact will occur when a previouslyT non-benefit earning employTee utilizes ESST. Mission/Policy/Goal The Elk RiveY Mission Attachments ■ Earned Sick and Safe Time Policy The Elk River Vision A 2a�elcolning co�nlnunity 2a�ith T evolutiona� y and spizzted T esou� cefulness, exceptional se�vice, and coln�nunity engagelnent that encou�ages and ins�iz•es pTo�pe�zty. row�REo er �I'1 ���� Update�l• January 2023 Earned Sick and Safe Time Beginning January 1, 2024, Minnesota law requires the implementation of Earned Sick and Safe Time (ESS"I). ESST is paid leave that can be used for certain reasons, including when an employee is sick, to care for a sick family member, when work or a child's school is closed, or to seek assistance if an employee or their family member has experienced domestic abuse, se�ual assault, or stalking. This specific leave applies to all employ ees (inclucling temporary and part-time employees) performing work for at least 80 hours in a year for the city. ESST is earned at the rate of one hour for every 30 hours worked, up to a ma�imum of 48 hours earned per calendar year. The hourly rate of ESST is the same hourly rate an employee earns from employment with the cit�-. Employees eligible for Sick Leave as defined in the section abo�Te will have a portion of that sick leave designated as ESST. Employees not eligible for Sick Leave as defined in the section abo�Te who work for the cit�- at least 80 hours in a calendar year will accrue ESST at the rate of 1 hour for every 30 hours worked. ESST may begin accruing at the beginning of the calendar year although employees may not use ESST until they have worked 80 hours in that year. Unused ESST is not paid out at the end of employment except as provided under Severance Pay above. After the employee has worked 80 hours in the calendar year, ESST may be used as it is accrued in the smallest increment of time tracked by the city's payroll system. r1n employee may use accrued ESST for the following reasons: ■ an employ ee's: o mental or physical illness, injury, or other health condition; o need for medical diagnosis, care, or treatment of a mental or physical illness, injury, or health condition; or o need for preventive medical or health care; ■ care of a family member: o with a mental or physical illness, injury, or other health condition; o who needs medical diagnosis, care, or treatment of a mental or phy sical illness, injury, or other health condition; or o who needs preventive medical or health care; ■ absence due to domestic abuse, sexual assault, or stalking of the employee or employee's family member, provided the absence is to: o seek medical attention related to physical or psychological injury or disability caused by domestic abuse, sexual assault, or stalking; 0 obtain services from a victim services organization; 0 obtain psychological or other counseling; o seek relocation or take steps to secure an e�isting home due to domestic abuse, sexual assault, or stalking; or o seek legal advice or tal�e legal action, inclucling preparing for or participating in any civil or criminal legal proceecling related to or resulting from domestic abuse, sexual assault, or stalking; ■ closure of the employee's place of business due to weather or other public emergency or an employee's need to care for a family member whose school or place of care has been closed due to weather or other public emergencti; ■ the employee's inabilit�r to work or telework because the employee is: o prohibited from working by the employer due to health concerns related to the potential transmission of a communicable illness related to a public emergency; or o seeking or awaiting the results of a diagnostic test for, or a medical diagnosis of, a communicable disease related to a public emergency and such employee has been exposed to a communicable disease or the employee's employer has requested a test or diagnosis; and when it has been determined by the health authorities having jurisdiction or by a health care professional that the presence of the employee or family member of the employee in the community would jeopardize the health of others because of the exposure of the employee or family member of the employee to a communicable disease, whether or not the employee or family member has actually contracted the communicable disease. For the purposes of this subdivision, a public emergency shall include a declared emergency as defined in MN Statute Section 12.03 or a declared local emergency under MN Statute Section 12.29. ESST may be used for the following family members: an employ ee's: o child, foster child, adult child, legal ward, child for whom the employee is legal guardian, or child to whom the employee stands or stood in loco parentis; o spouse or registered domestic partner; o sibling, stepsibling, or foster sibling; o biological, adoptive, or foster parent, stepparent, or a person who stood in loco parentis when the employee was a minor child; o grandchild, foster grandchild, or stepgrandchild; o grandparent or stepgrandparent; o a child of a sibling of the employee (niece or nephew); o a sibling of the parents of the employee (aunt or uncle); or o a child-in-law or sibling-in-law; a spouse or registered domestic partner's family members as listed above; any other individual related by blood or whose close association with the employee is the equivalent of a family relationship; and up to one individual annually designated by the employee. Required Notices If the need for the use of ESST is foreseeable, the employee must provide notice at least seven (7) days in advance of the use of the leave. Notice shall be provided by making the request through the employee's time management or HRIS system. If the need is unforeseeable, the employee must provide notice as soon as practicable. If possible, employees must notify their immediate supervisor at least thirty (30) minutes before the start of their regular start time if s/he intends to be absent from work. If an emergency prevents the employee from notifying the immediate supervisor, s/he must contact the immediate supervisor as soon as possible during the workday. Employees are required to keep their immediate supervisor informed of their anticipated return to work. Employees shall follo�� notice requirements for the use of sick time set forth in union contract if different from the requirements above. Employee is responsible to ensure sick time usage is recorded in the timekeeping system as soon as practicable but no later than the end of the pay period in which the time was taken. Time off requests must include who the time is being used for, their relation to the employee, and the reason for the use. When an employee uses ESST for more than three consecutive days, the employee shall provide appropriate supporting documentation (such as medical documentation supporting medical leave, court records or related documentation to support safety leave). However, if the employee or employee's f�nily member did not receive services from a health care professional, or if documentation cannot be obtained from a health care professional in a reasonable time or without added expense, then reasonable documentation may include a written statement from the employee indicating that the employee is using, or used, ESST for a qualifying purpose. The city will not require an employee to disclose details related to domestic abuse, se�ual assault, or stalking or the details of the employee's or the employee's family member's medical condition. In accordance with state law, the city will not require an employ ee using ESST to find a replacement worker to cover the hours the employee will be absent. Carry Over of ESST Employees will carry over accrued but unused ESST into the following calendar year. Accrued but unused ESST shall never e�ceed 80 hours. Retaliation Prohibited The city shall not discharge, discipline, penalize, interfere with, or othenvise retaliate or discriminate against an employee for asserting ESST rights, requesting an ESST leave absence, or pursuing remedies. Further, use of ESST will not be factored into any attendance point system the citt- may use. Additionally, it is unlawful to report or threaten to report a person or a family member's immigration status for exercising a right under ESST. Benefits and Return to Work During an employee's use of ESST, an employee will continue to receive the city's employer insurance contribution as if they were working, and the employee will be responsible for any share of their insurance premiums. An employee returning from time off using accrued ESST is entided to return to work at the same rate of pay received when their leave began, plus any automatic pay adjustrnents that may have occurred during the employee's time of£ Seniority during ESST absences will continue to accrue as if the employee has been continually employed. ��hen there is a separation from employment with the city and the employee is rehired again within 180 days of separation, previously accrued ESST that had not been used or paid out will be reinstated. An employee is entitled to use and accrue ESST at the commencement of reemployment.