The Community R-VI School District provides, as fringe benefits, certain allowable absences from duty as set forth in the paragraphs below. Such benefits apply equally to all regularly employed employees of the district, but not to temporary employees, substitutes or persons employed on a trial basis. Employees contracted half-time or more but less than full-time shall be entitled to such benefits, on a pro-rated basis, as their regular schedule bears to a normal full-time schedule for a similar position.
Requests for absence shall be considered in minimum segments of 2 hours and shall be directed, through the building principal, to the superintendent of schools.
Payment for absence for any of these reasons may be withheld by the board of education if, in the judgment of the board, such action is justified due to circumstances connected with the cause of absence.
Payment for absence before actually beginning the work of any given school year shall not be allowed new employees.
Sick Leave
Sick leave refers to absence due to personal illness or accidental injury of the employee, the employee’s spouse, or the employee’s dependent child.
Certified employees under nine-months' contract and full time regularly assigned nine-month support staff shall be allowed (eleven (11) days of) sick leave during the contract period according to the following formula:
Staff employed half-time or more, but less than full-time shall be entitled to such benefits, on a pro-rata basis, as their regular schedule bears to a normal full-time schedule for a similar position.
(Ten-month full-time employees will add an additional 8 hours to each of the above leave amounts; eleven-month full-time employees will add an additional 16 hours to each of the above leave amounts; and twelve-month full-time employees will add an additional 24 hours to each of the above leave amounts.)
The Board of Education, or its duly appointed administrative authority, may, when deemed appropriate, require the absent employee to submit a signed statement from a licensed physician (M.D. or D.O.) concerning absence due to illness.
Unused days of sick leave shall be allowed to accumulate to a maximum of ninety 720 hours which may be carried forward to future years. The employee shall be entitled to the current year's sick leave allowance in addition to the days carried forward from former years. Employees whose accumulation exceeds 720 hours at the end of a fiscal year shall be reimbursed for those days exceeding 720 hours at the rate of one fourth of the employee’s current hourly rate of pay for each hour exceeding 720 hours. The number of hours exceeding 720 hours will then be removed and the following year’s entitlement will be added on the first day of the new fiscal year.
An employee with more than twenty (20) years of continuous service in the school system, and whose sick leave has been exhausted, may file a written request for additional days of leave; and this request will be given consideration by the Board of Education.
Termination of employment for any reason shall automatically cancel all sick leave accumulation.
Employees with a minimum of ten (10) years of experience with the Community R-VI School District leaving the system at the end of the contract period shall be paid $40.00 for each day (8 hours) of accumulated unused sick leave.
Employees with a minimum of ten (10) years of experience with the Community R-VI School District that find it necessary to leave the system during a contract year for reasons over which they have no control, as verified by the superintendent of schools, shall also receive the compensation.
Personal Leave
(absence due to personal matters)
Requests for personal leave are to be made to the employee's building principal at least forty-eight (48) hours in advance, unless an emergency situation develops. The reason for requesting the personal leave need not be given to the building principal. However, the building principal shall have the authority to deny the request for personal leave if in his or her opinion the time of taking the personal leave would work a hardship on the school. Personal Leave will not be granted on the days immediately preceding or following school vacation or the first and last days of the school calendar (If leave is needed on one of these days due to special situations or circumstances, the employee may appeal to the superintendent of schools). Examples of times that may be considered a hardship are days on which several employees in the same school request a personal leave day or days on which it is known that a suitable substitute cannot be located.
Vacation
Employees working twelve (12) months of the year will be granted 80 hours of vacation after the first year of employment; 120 hours of vacation after completion of the tenth (10th) year of employment
Bereavement Leave
Bereavement leave refers to absence due to death in the employee's family.
Upon written request, the employee may be permitted to use sick leave, up to a maximum of five additional days, after bereavement leave has been used.
Family Emergency
Family emergency refers to absence due to illness or accidental injury of a member of the employee's immediate family, as defined in the Board Policy Manual.
In case of illness or accidental injury of a member of the employee's immediate family, the employee, upon written request, may be permitted to use sick leave, not to exceed three days on any one emergency.
Extended Contract - Such bereavement and family emergency leave benefits are not applicable to extended contract. If an employee is absent due to bereavement or family emergency during extended contract time, it is expected that the employee will make the time up.
Employees called for jury duty, for participation in the jury selection process, or subpoenaed to testify in a civil or criminal proceeding will be granted leave with pay. Employees will receive their normal pay less any jury or witness fees received. Employees called for jury selection or service on a jury will not be requested or required to use annual vacation, personal leave, or sick leave for time required in such civic service.
An employee who is a member of the National Guard, or an organized military service of the United States, and who is required by laws of the United States or the State of Missouri to report for military duty, including training, shall be eligible for a grant of military leave.
Application for military leave shall be made in advance, as soon as practicable after the employee becomes aware of his/her obligation to report and immediately upon the employee's receipt of official notice to report. A copy of the official orders must be added to the leave application. The Superintendent/designee must approve the application. Emergency mobilization orders shall be dealt with on an individual basis.
The District recognizes that employees who receive notice to report for duty typically are not provided with discretion as to when to report. However, whenever an employee has a choice as to when to report for military duty, the employee's military leave shall be arranged during periods in which school is not in session. When the employee is given a choice as to when to report for duty, the Superintendent/designee may request that the employee seek a change in military orders if such a change appears to be in the best interest of the District.
Employees shall receive leave with pay for up to one hundred twenty (120) hours of military leave in each federal fiscal year. Additional military leave shall be without pay, except as required by federal and state law. Any person entitled to military leave shall only be charged military leave for any hours which the person would otherwise have been required to work had it not been for such military leave at a minimum of one hour and additional charges will be in multiples of one hour.
Each employee shall furnish a copy of the employee's military payroll voucher to the Superintendent/designee within thirty (30) days of the employee's return to regular assignment so that the necessary salary adjustments can be made.
Employee eligibility for reinstatement after military duty is completed shall be determined in accordance with federal and state laws.
Domestic/Sexual Violence Victim Leave (See Policy and Regulation 4322).
Upon the recommendation of the Superintendent/designee and the approval of the Board, an employee of the District may be granted a leave of absence for non-Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) child care, education, or other good cause. Such leave is renewable upon written request for one additional year only. Application for leave is to be made in writing to the Superintendent/designee via Principal/supervisor and must include the period for which the leave is requested and the reasons for the request. The period should be set to least disrupt the education of students. Requests for leave for an entire school year should normally be made in writing before March 1 of the preceding year.
If leave is approved by the Board, the employee is not paid for the period of the leave. Insurance benefits may be continued by the employee by making all payments to the Payroll Office, one month in advance.
Whenever a leave of absence has been granted by the Board to the end of the school year, the employee must notify the Superintendent in writing by the first day of March of an intention to resume his/her position at the beginning of the next school year. Failure to notify the Superintendent/designee of such intention will be regarded as a resignation.
Upon completion of an approved leave, provided proper notification is given, a teacher will be re-employed by the District unless placed on involuntary leave of absence if tenured; or, if notified of nonrenewal of contract by April 15 if a probationary teacher.
If desired, and whenever feasible, the employee will be placed on the same or equivalent position to the one held prior to the approved leave.
NOTE: Leave of absence without pay under the provisions of this regulation does not apply as service towards tenure for probationary teachers.