Mr. Kenneth Brynien
President
Public Employees Federation, AFL-CIO
1168-70 Troy-Schenectady Road
P. O. Box 12414

Albany, New York 12212-2414

 

Dear Mr. Brynien:

 

            The following confirms the understandings reached during the course of negotiations of the 2003-2007  2007-2011 Agreement on the Leave Adjustment Pilot Program available to eligible part-time annual salaried employees scheduled to work additional hours beyond their payroll percentage.   Effective upon ratification, this program will no longer be a pilot.  Agencies must set up a procedure to review time records to provide the negotiated benefit described below.

 

Eligibility

 

            The provisions of this Program apply to eligible part-time annual salaried employees scheduled to work hours in excess of their payroll percentage.

 

            In order to participate in this Program, part-time annual salaried employees must be employed to work a schedule equated to their payroll percentage which entitles them to earn leave credits under the Attendance Rules (either five days per week or at least half-time per biweekly pay period), not including the additional time worked above their payroll percentage.

 

            "Employed to work a schedule" that entitles the employee to earn leave credits under the Attendance Rules means that the schedule assigned to the employee qualifies for the earning of leave credits under the Attendance Rules.  The employee need not actually work that schedule each pay period in order to remain eligible.  The employee may be on paid or unpaid leave from a qualifying schedule.

 

            The additional time worked cannot be counted to qualify an otherwise ineligible employee to earn leave credits under the Attendance Rules.  Leave credits can be granted for additional time worked only as described in this Program to part-time annual salaried employees already eligible to earn leave credits under the Attendance Rules for their work schedule equated to their payroll percentage.

 

            For example, an employee with a payroll percentage of 40% and corresponding work schedule of four days per pay period cannot participate in the Program even though the employee works additional time for a fifth day each pay period because the employee’s work schedule based on his/her payroll percentage is not a qualifying schedule.  On the other hand, an employee with a payroll percentage of 50% earns leave credits under the Attendance Rules based on the work schedule corresponding to his/her payroll percentage and is eligible to be granted vacation, sick leave and personal leave adjustment credits for additional time worked beyond his/her 50% schedule under this Program.

 

            Participating employees are not eligible to be credited under this Program for additional hours worked in excess of the normal 37.5 or 40-hour workweek.

 

Vacation and Sick Leave

 

1.       Agencies must review the additional time worked by eligible part-time annual salaried employees twice a year, for payrolls 1-13 and for payrolls 14-26.  Additional vacation and sick leave will be credited within 60 days after the end of payroll period 13 and within 60 days after the end of payroll period 26.

 

2.       Agencies must credit eligible employees with vacation and sick leave adjustment credits proportional to the additional hours worked during the 13 pay periods under review.

 

Sick Leave Adjustment Credits

          An employee must have worked a minimum of five (5) hours of additional time above the number of hours equated to his/her payroll percentage to earn an additional one-quarter (1/4) hour of sick leave.  Eligible employees are credited with one-quarter (1/4) hour of sick leave for every five (5) hours of additional time worked during the thirteen pay periods under review.  For this purpose, time worked includes time charged to leave credits (see (3) below).

 

Vacation Adjustment Credits for Employees Who Accrue at the Thirteen-Day Rate

          An employee who earns vacation at the 13-day rate must have worked a minimum of five (5) hours of additional time above the number of hours equated to his/her payroll percentage to earn an additional one-quarter (1/4) hour of vacation.  Eligible employees are credited with one-quarter (1/4) hour of vacation for every five (5) hours of additional time worked during the thirteen pay periods under review.  For this purpose, time worked includes time charged to leave credits (see (3) below).

 

Vacation Adjustment Credits for Employees Who Accrue at the Twenty-Day Rate

          An employee who earns vacation at the 20-day rate must have worked a minimum of three and one quarter (3.25) hours of additional time above the number of hours equated to his/her payroll percentage to earn an additional one-quarter (1/4) hour of vacation.  Eligible employees are credited with one-quarter (1/4) hour of vacation for every three and one quarter (3.25) hours of additional time worked during the thirteen pay periods under review.  For this purpose, time worked includes time charged to leave credits (see (3) below).

 

          When an employee’s seventh anniversary date falls during the 13 pay periods under review, the employee will be credited with vacation adjustment credits at the 13-day rate for those 13 pay periods and thereafter will be credited with vacation adjustment credits at the 20-day rate. 

 

Some examples follow:

 

          A.1.   During payroll periods 1-13 of 2005, a half-time PS&T unit employee with three years of creditable service works a total of 80 hours beyond her normal half-time schedule.  This employee would be credited with an additional four (4) hours of vacation and four (4) hours of sick leave within 60 days after payroll period 13.  (80 hours of additional time worked divided by 5 hours = 16 five-hour segments multiplied by .25 hour credited for each 5 hours of additional time worked = four (4) hours of additional vacation and four (4) hours of additional sick leave.)

 

          A.2. During payroll periods 14-26 of 2005, this employee works 155 hours above her payroll percentage and earns 7.75 hours of additional vacation and 7.75 hours of additional sick leave.  (155 hours divided by 5 hours = 31 five-hour segments multiplied by .25 hour credited for each 5 hours of additional time worked = 7.75 hours of additional vacation and 7.75 hours of additional sick leave credit.)

 

          B.1. During payroll periods 1-13 of 2005, a half-time PS&T unit employee with ten years of creditable service works a total of 80 hours beyond her normal half-time schedule.  This employee would be credited with an additional six and one quarter (6.25) hours of vacation and four (4) hours of sick leave within 60 days after payroll period 13.   The vacation is calculated as follows: 80 hours of additional time worked divided by 3.25 hours = 24.62 three and one-quarter hour segments multiplied by .25 hour credited for each 3.25 hours of additional time worked = 6.15 hours.  Rounding to the nearest quarter hour, the employee receives 6.25 hours of additional vacation.  The sick leave is calculated as described in example A.1 above.

 

          B.2. During payroll periods 14-26 of 2005, this employee works 155 hours above her payroll percentage and earns 12 hours of additional vacation and 7.75 hours of additional sick leave.  The vacation is calculated as follows: 155 hours divided by 3.25 hours = 47.69 three and one quarter hour segments multiplied by .25 hour credited for each 3.25 hours of additional time worked = 11.92 hours.  Rounding to the nearest quarter hour, the employee receives 12 hours of additional vacation.  The sick leave is calculated as described in example A.2. above.

 

3.       Employees must charge accruals on the basis of the total number of hours the employee is scheduled to work on a given day, beginning with the first day following the payroll period in which the employee is first credited with additional vacation and sick leave under this Program.  Until the first time the employee is credited with additional vacation and sick leave, the employee who takes a day off charges credits only to cover the normal schedule corresponding to the payroll percent and not to cover any additional scheduled hours.  The employee simply does not receive pay for those additional hours.  Beginning with the pay period after being credited for the first time with additional vacation and sick leave, the employee is required to charge credits for all scheduled hours on a given day, including any additional scheduled hours, and therefore receives pay for those additional hours. 

 

          For example, a 50 percent employee on the administrative payroll cycle who works 20 hours per week, four hours per day, begins working additional time for the first time in pay period 1 in fiscal year 2005-2006.  On November 1, 2005, the employee takes a day of sick leave, charges 4 hours to cover his normal schedule, and receives 4 hours pay for the day even though he was scheduled to work additional time on that day.  On November 2, 2005, the last day of a pay period, the employee is credited for the first time with additional vacation and sick leave under this Program for pay periods 1 through 13.  On November 4, 2005, the employee takes a day of vacation.  His work schedule on that day is 8 hours, including 4 hours of additional time.  He is required to charge 8 hours to cover his full schedule, and receives 8 hours pay for the day.

 

4.       Vacation and sick leave adjustment credits must be added to the employee’s regular vacation and sick leave balances.  Employees continue to be subject to a prorated sick leave maximum, and to a prorated vacation maximum on April 1 of each year, based on their payroll percentage.  Employees who separate from State service receive a lump sum payment for unused vacation of up to 30 prorated days based on their payroll percentage.  Separating employees should be credited as of the date of separation with any additional leave to which they are entitled under this Program so that such leave can be included in the vacation lump sum payment and, for retirees, in the calculation of retirement service credit and the sick leave credit for health insurance in retirement, subject to applicable maximums based on the employee’s payroll percentage.

 

Personal Leave

 

1.       Agencies must review the additional time worked by eligible part-time annual salaried employees once a year. Employees who work additional time will be credited with personal leave adjustment credit once a year on the personal leave adjustment date.  The personal leave adjustment date will not change if the employee is not in pay status on that date.  The first personal leave adjustment date will be May 30, 2005 for the six month period October 1, 2004 through March 31, 2005.  The personal leave adjustment for the period April 1, 2005 through March 31, 2006 will be credited on May 30, 2006.  The personal leave adjustment for the period April 1, 2006 through March 31, 2007 will be credited on May 30, 2007.  . The personal leave adjustment date will be May 30, following the end of each April 1-March 31 fiscal year.

 

2.       Agencies must credit eligible employees with personal leave adjustment credits proportional to the number of additional hours worked during the 26 pay periods under review. An employee must have worked a minimum of 13 hours of additional time above the number of hours equated to his/her payroll percentage to earn an additional one-quarter (1/4) hour of personal leave.  Eligible employees are credited with one-quarter (1/4) hour of personal leave for every 13 hours of additional time worked during the 26 pay periods under review.  For this purpose, time worked includes time charged to leave credits.

 

          For example, during the period April 1, 2005 through March 31, 2006, a PS&T unit employee works a total of 235 hours beyond her payroll percentage and earns 4.50 hours of personal leave adjustment time.  (235 hours of additional time worked divided by 13 hours = 18.08 13-hour segments multiplied by .25 hour credited for each 13 hours of additional time worked = 4.52 hours.  Rounding to the nearest quarter hour, the employee received 4.50 hours of personal leave adjustment credit.)

 

3.       Employees must charge accruals on the basis of the total number of hours the employee is scheduled to work on a given day beginning with the first day following the pay period in which the employee is first credited with additional vacation and sick leave credits under this Program (see Vacation and Sick Leave (3) above.)

 

4.       Personal leave adjustment credits accrued as a result of additional time worked will be kept in a separate leave category called “Personal Leave Adjustment.”

 

5.       An employee will have 12 months from the personal leave adjustment date to use personal leave adjustment credits.  Unused leave will lapse at close of business on the day prior to the personal leave adjustment date.

 

6.       If the payroll percentage of an eligible employee changes (i.e., 50% to 75%, 50% to 100%, etc.) the employee’s unused regular personal leave balance will be converted to days based on the new percentage.  Personal leave adjustment time will not be carried forward.

 

Additional Issues

 

         Agencies or facilities may develop procedures in local labor/management regarding access during the 60-day recording period, in cases of special need for leave, to vacation, sick leave and personal leave adjustment credits earned but not yet recorded.

 

         The parties shall develop guidelines for application of this program to PS&T Unit members to work on a part-time basis in ten-month items as soon as practicable upon ratification of the 2007-11 State/PEF Agreement.  Such guidelines shall be applicable to all agencies employing ten-month employees on a part-time basis.

 

Sincerely,

 

John Currier
Deputy Director for Contract Negotiation and Administration

Governor's Office of Employee Relations

 

Countersigned for PEF:

 

 

 

Kenneth Brynien

President

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