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6.2. ERMUSR 04-12-2005Elk River Municipal 13069 Orono Parkway Elk River, MN 55330 March 29, 2005 To: Elk River Municipal Utilities Commission Jerry Takle Jim Tralle John Dietz From: Bryan Adams Subject: Sick Leave phone: 763.441.2020 Fax: 763.441.8099 An issue has recently arisen concerning the proper use of sick leave. The issue is, can employees use paid sick leave in the case of their parents being sick and needing care. The Elk River Municipal Utilities current sick leave policy does not directly address how sick leave is to be used. The current policy states... 16. SICK AND SEVERANCE PAY Employees accrue sick leave at a rate of one day per month of employment to a maximum of 120 days. An employee, upon resignation, termination or retirement, will be paid for unused sick leave to a maximum of 40% of 100 days (40 days) at his or her then prevailing wage. At the end of any calendar year, an employee who has over 120 days accrued, will be paid for 40% of any amount over 120 days to bring the balance back to 120 days. The resigning, terminating or retiring employee may elect, in lieu of being paid cash for the previously defined unused sick leave, to have 50% of the unused sick leave to a maximum of 50% of 100 days (50 days) placed in a fund which will be used for payment of medical insurance by the Utility. This medical insurance may be one of the employee's choosing, or the group policy in effect for the Utilities at that time. It can be used for either single or family coverage. If the employee dies before the fund is expended, the remainder shall be paid to the employee's designated beneficiary. ties Sick leave is a privilege, and misuse may result in disciplinary action. Medical confirmations by licensed medical personnel may be asked for by the Utilities. Employees are required to notify their immediate supervisor at least thirty (30) minutes prior to the start of their regular working hours if they intend to be absent from work. If an emergency prevents the employee from notifying his/her super- visor at such time, the employee is expected to call as soon as possible during the work day. Employees are also required to keep their supervisors informed of their condition and anticipated return to work. Past practice at the Elk River Municipal Utilities indicates paid sick leave can be taken in the case of sickness of employee, spouse or child, and does not include parents. Minnesota law requires paid sick leave for employee and child only, spouse and parents are optional (Sick Child Care Leave Act). The federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provide eligible employees unpaid leave in case of illness for employee, along with spouse, child and parent with serious health conditions. There is no legal requirement to include parents under the paid sick leave policy and it is at the employers' discretion. I have had a number of discussions with our employees concerning sick leave is a privilege, as our policy suggests and not an entitlement. Some employees view this benefit as an entitlement. I am finding it more of a generation issue where the older employees consider it a privilege where the younger employees consider it more of an entitlement. We must also keep in mind the following items. 1) We are still a relatively small company (34 employees) and employees being away from work affects the remaining employees, for much of our work has deadlines. 2) We compensate our employees for unused sick leave, thus hopefully minimizing the amount of sick leave used. 3) Unused or accrued sick leave is the bridge to disability insurance in case of off duty injury not covered by workers compensation insurance. 4) To avoid this discussion all together, many companies have gone to a paid time off (PTO) scenario, where vacation and sick leave are combined (with a reduction in overall time off) and the employee can take it off at their discretion. 5) Although I have not actually surveyed this issue, our insurance consultants' feeling is generally parents are not included as a reason for employees to use sick leave. 6) Some policies, including the City of Elk River, allow employees to utilize sick leave for dependants. A dependant is living under your roof and included on income taxes as a dependent. Do you have any strong feelings on this issue? The dependent approach may be a good compromise to this issue. Attached is a recent newspaper article on calling in sick. Calling in sick ...when you're not Surprise, surprise: Many American workers who call in sick may not actu- ally be ill, a study suggests. A recent Harris Interactive poll of 305 human resources execs found only 38% of employee absences on an unscheduled day off were due to ill- ness.The remaining workers took "sick days" to address family issues, stress or personal needs, or because of an "entitlement men- tality," says Paui Gibson, a vice president of CCH,an Illinois human resources information provider and the study's sponsor. Faced with a tougher job climate and increased work pressure, employees may be skipping work to "establish equity," says Arthur Brief, a business and psychology pro- fessor at Tulane University in New Orleans. When you feel overwhelmed, he says, call- ing in sick is a way to "get payback." Most employers allow for paid sick days (which usually are lost if unused), but com- panies that use a more flexible "paid time off bank"have cutabsenteeism,Gibson says: "The major benefit is giving people more control over their time away from work."