Senate Bill sb0300

    Florida Senate - 2004                                   SB 300

    By Senator Clary





    4-357-04

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to employees of public schools;

  3         amending s. 1012.61, F.S.; deleting a

  4         restriction on who may receive annual payments

  5         for accumulated sick leave; revising

  6         restrictions on the amount of payment which an

  7         employee may receive for accumulated sick leave

  8         when his or her employment terminates;

  9         providing an effective date.

10  

11  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

12  

13         Section 1.  Paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of section

14  1012.61, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

15         1012.61  Sick leave.--

16         (2)  PROVISIONS GOVERNING SICK LEAVE.--The following

17  provisions shall govern sick leave:

18         (a)  Extent of leave.--

19         1.  Each member of the instructional staff employed on

20  a full-time basis is entitled to 4 days of sick leave as of

21  the first day of employment of each contract year and shall

22  thereafter earn 1 day of sick leave for each month of

23  employment, which shall be credited to the member at the end

24  of that month and which may not be used before it is earned

25  and credited to the member.  Each other employee shall be

26  credited with 4 days of sick leave at the end of the first

27  month of employment of each contract year and shall thereafter

28  be credited for 1 day of sick leave for each month of

29  employment, which shall be credited to the employee at the end

30  of the month and which may not be used before it is earned and

31  credited to the employee. However, each member of the

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    Florida Senate - 2004                                   SB 300
    4-357-04




 1  instructional staff and each other employee is entitled to

 2  earn no more than 1 day of sick leave times the number of

 3  months of employment during the year of employment. If the

 4  employee terminates his or her employment and has not accrued

 5  the 4 days of sick leave available to him or her, the district

 6  school board may withhold the average daily amount for the

 7  days of sick leave used but unearned by the employee. Such

 8  leave may be taken only when necessary because of sickness as

 9  prescribed in this section.  The sick leave shall be

10  cumulative from year to year.  There shall be no limit on the

11  number of days of sick leave which a member of the

12  instructional staff or an educational support employee may

13  accrue, except that at least one-half of this cumulative leave

14  must be established within the district granting such leave.

15         2.  A district school board may establish policies and

16  prescribe standards to permit an employee to be absent 6 days

17  each school year for personal reasons. However, such absences

18  for personal reasons must be charged only to accrued sick

19  leave, and leave for personal reasons is noncumulative.

20         3.  District school boards may adopt rules permitting

21  the annual payment for accumulated sick leave that is earned

22  for that year and that is unused at the end of the school

23  year, based on the daily rate of pay of the employee

24  multiplied by up to 80 percent.  Days for which such payment

25  is received shall be deducted from the accumulated leave

26  balance. Such annual payment may apply only to instructional

27  staff and educational support employees.

28         4.  A district school board may establish policies to

29  provide terminal pay for accumulated sick leave to

30  instructional staff and educational support employees of the

31  district school board.  If termination of employment is by

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    Florida Senate - 2004                                   SB 300
    4-357-04




 1  death of the employee, any terminal pay to which the employee

 2  may have been entitled may be made to his or her beneficiary.

 3  However, such terminal pay may not exceed an amount determined

 4  as follows:

 5         a.  During the first 3 years of service, the daily rate

 6  of pay multiplied by 35 percent times the number of days of

 7  accumulated sick leave.

 8         b.  During the next 3 years of service, the daily rate

 9  of pay multiplied by 40 percent times the number of days of

10  accumulated sick leave.

11         c.  During the next 3 years of service, the daily rate

12  of pay multiplied by 45 percent times the number of days of

13  accumulated sick leave.

14         d.  During the next 3 years of service, the daily rate

15  of pay multiplied by 50 percent times the number of days of

16  accumulated sick leave.

17         e.  During and after the 13th year of service, the

18  daily rate of pay multiplied by 100 percent times the number

19  of days of accumulated sick leave.

20         5.  A district school board may establish policies to

21  provide terminal pay for accumulated sick leave to any

22  full-time employee of the district school board other than

23  instructional staff or educational support employees as

24  defined in this section.  If termination of the employee is by

25  death of the employee, any terminal pay to which the employee

26  may have been entitled may be made to the employee's

27  beneficiary. For purposes of computing the amount of terminal

28  pay for accumulated sick leave, sick leave accrued after June

29  30, 2004, shall be compensated at no more than the daily rate

30  of pay applicable at the time the sick leave was earned.

31  

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    Florida Senate - 2004                                   SB 300
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 1         a.  Terminal pay may not exceed one-fourth of all

 2  unused sick leave accumulated on or after July 1, 2001, and

 3  may not exceed a maximum of 60 days of actual payment. This

 4  limit does not impair any contractual agreement established

 5  before July 1, 2001; however, a previously established

 6  contract renewed on or after July 1, 2001, constitutes a new

 7  contract.

 8         b.  For unused sick leave accumulated before July 1,

 9  2001, terminal payment shall be made pursuant to a district

10  school board's policies, contracts, or rules that are in

11  effect on June 30, 2001.

12         c.  If an employee has an accumulated sick leave

13  balance of 60 days of actual payment or more prior to July 1,

14  2001, sick leave earned after that date may not be accumulated

15  for terminal pay purposes until the accumulated leave balance

16  for leave earned before July 1, 2001, is less than 60 days.

17  

18  As used in this section, the term "educational support

19  employee" means any person employed by a district school board

20  as a teacher assistant; an education paraprofessional; a

21  member of the transportation, operations, maintenance, or food

22  service department; a secretary; or a clerical employee.

23         Section 2.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2004.

24  

25            *****************************************

26                          SENATE SUMMARY

27    Deletes a restriction on which employees of public
      schools may receive annual payments for their accumulated
28    sick leave. Revises restrictions on the amount of payment
      which an employee of a public school may receive for
29    accumulated sick leave when his or her employment
      terminates.
30  

31  

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