Article 10 Leave

Article 10 Leave

Section 10.1 Funding

The Employer shall continue funding the leave program so as to continue the current leave earning level for the duration of this Agreement.

Section 10.2 Leave Regulations

1. The leave regulations in Subchapter 510 of the Employee and Labor Relations Manual, insofar as such regulations establish wages, hours and working conditions of employees covered by this Agreement, other than MHAs, shall remain in effect for the life of this Agreement.
2. Career employees will be given preference over noncareer employees when scheduling annual leave. This preference will take into consideration that scheduling is done on a tour-by-tour basis and that employee skills are a determining factor in this decision.
3. Article 30 of the National Agreement and Local Memoranda of Under- standing provisions do not apply to MHAs, except as specifically referenced in the 2019 National Agreement and as follows: During the local imple- mentation period, if properly raised in accordance with Article 30, the parties will discuss whether to include provisions in the local memoranda of understanding to permit MHAs to apply for annual leave during choice vacation periods, as defined in Article 10 of the National Agreement. Granting leave under such provisions must be contingent upon the MHA having a leave balance of at least forty (40) hours.

(The preceding Section, Article 10.2, shall apply to Mail Handler Assistant employees.) [See Memos, pages 151-158]

Section 10.3 Choice of Vacation Period

1. It is agreed to establish a nationwide program for vacation planning for employees in the regular work force with emphasis upon the choice vacation period(s) or variations thereof.
2. Care shall be exercised to assure that no employee is required to forfeit any part of such employee's annual leave.
3. The parties agree that the duration of the choice vacation period(s) in all postal installations shall be determined pursuant to local implementation procedures.
4. Annual leave shall be granted as follows:
   1. Employees who earn 13 days annual leave per year shall be granted up to ten (10) days of continuous annual leave during the choice period. The number of days of annual leave, not to exceed ten (10), shall be at the option of the employee.
   2. Employees who earn 20 or 26 days annual leave per year shall be granted up to fifteen (15) days of continuous annual leave during the choice period. The number of days of annual leave, not to exceed fifteen (15), shall be at the option of the employee.
   3. The subject of whether an employee may at the employee's option request two (2) selections during the choice period(s), in units of either 5 or 10 working days, the total not to exceed the ten (10) or fifteen (15) days above, may be determined pursuant to local implementation procedures.
   4. The remainder of the employee's annual leave may be granted at other times during the year, as requested by the employee.
5. The vacation period shall start on the first day of the employee's basic work week. Exceptions may be granted by agreement among the employee, the Union representative and the Employer.
6. An employee who is called for jury duty during the employee's scheduled choice vacation period or who attends a National, State, or Regional Convention (Assembly) during the choice vacation period is eligible for another available period provided this does not deprive any other employee of first choice for scheduled vacation.

Section 10.4 Vacation Planning

The following general rules shall be observed in implementing the vacation planning program:

1. The Employer shall, no later than November 1, publicize on bulletin boards and by other appropriate means the beginning date of the new leave year, which shall begin with the first day of the first full pay period of the calendar year.
2. The installation head shall meet with the representative of the Un- ion to review local service needs as soon after January 1 as practical. The installation head shall then:
1. Determine the amount of annual leave accrued to each employee's credit including that for the current year and the amount expected to be taken in the current year.
2. Determine a final date for submission of applications for vacation period(s) of the employee's choice during the choice vacation period(s).
3. Provide official notice to each employee of the vacation schedule approved for each employee.
3. A procedure in each office for submission of applications for annual leave for periods other than the choice period may be established pursuant to the implementation procedure above.
4. All advance commitments for granting annual leave must be honored except in serious emergency situations.

Section 10.5 Implementation of the Leave Program

1. If, at the end of the local implementation period provided for in this Agreement, the local parties have not reached agreement on the length of the choice vacation period, the choice vacation period will be 23 consecutive weeks commencing on the last Saturday in April unless the local parties agree to another starting date. The 23 weeks shall include military leave and union leave for conventions and conferences. The method of selecting vacations shall be determined locally.
2. The vacation sign up list, after the initial sign up period, shall be maintained at a location accessible to employees.
3. After the initial sign up period is completed and vacant weeks still exist on the vacation sign up list, requests for any of these vacant weeks shall be handled as follows:
1. The installation head will honor all requests for vacant weeks which are submitted no less than seven (7) days in advance of the leave period.
2. The installation head will make every effort to grant requests for vacant weeks submitted less than seven (7) days in advance of the leave period.
4. The installation head's policy in handling requests for emergency leave shall be made known to all employees and the Union. The installation head will consider each such request on the merits of the individual situation. The installation head shall post on the bulletin board the appropriate phone number to call by tour when an emergency arises.

Section 10.6 Sick Leave

The Employer agrees to continue the administration of the present sick leave program, which shall include the following specific items:

1. Credit employees with sick leave as earned.
2. Charge to annual leave or leave without pay (at employee's option) approved absence for which employee has insufficient sick leave
3. Employees becoming ill while on annual leave may have leave charged to sick leave upon request.
4. Unit Charges for Sick Leave and Annual Leave shall be in mini- mum units of one hundredth of an hour (.01).
5. For periods of absence of three (3) days or less, a supervisor may accept an employee's certification as reason for an absence.
6. Employees may utilize annual and sick leave in conjunction with leave without pay, subject to the approval of the leave in accordance with normal leave approval procedures. The Employer is not obligated to approve such leave for the last hour of the employee's scheduled workday prior to and/or the first hour of the employee's scheduled workday after a holiday.

[See Memos, pages 157-158]

MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING SICK LEAVE FOR DEPENDENT CARE

During the term of the 2019 National Agreement, sick leave may be used by an employee to give care or otherwise attend to a family member having an illness, injury or other condition which, if an employee had such condi- tion, would justify the use of sick leave by the employee. Family members shall include son or daughter, parent and spouse as defined in ELM Section 515.2. Up to 80 hours of sick leave may be used for dependent care in any leave year. Approval of sick leave for dependent care will be subject to normal procedures for leave approval.

MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING TASK FORCE ON SICK LEAVE

The parties agree to establish at the National Level a “Task Force on Sick Leave – Incentives.” The Task Force will explore available opportunities for the parties to determine if there are alternative options available to em- ployees with regard to the utilization of sick leave. Nothing in this memorandum is intended to negate or alter the applicable requirements of this National Agreement or be inconsistent with obligations under law.