VACATION LEAVE

All full-time employees earn annual vacation leave according to their number of years of service with the Holmes SWCD as follows:

  • Less than 1 year of service completed – vacation can be used after successfully completing the probationary period.

  • 1 year of service, but less than 8 years completed - 80 hours.

  • 8 years of service, but less than 15 years completed - 120 hours.

  • 15 years of service, but less than 25 years completed - 160 hours.

  • 25 years or more of service completed - 200 hours.

 The above service requirement need not be continuous.

 Vacation is credited to a full-time employee for each biweekly pay period at the following standard rates:

  •  3.1 hours per pay period for those entitled to 80 hours annual vacation.

  •  4.6 hours per pay period for those entitled to 120 hours annual vacation.

  • 6.2 hours per pay period for those entitled to 160 hours annual vacation.

  • 7.7 hours per pay period for those entitled to 200 hours annual vacation.

 Any full-time limited hours employee regularly scheduled to work less than eighty (80) hours in each pay period will accrue vacation at the following prorated amount of the standard rate:

 After successfully completing probationary period, but less than 8 years completed - 3.875 % of hours worked.

  • 8 years of service, but less than 15 years completed - 5.75 % of hours worked.

  • 15 years of service, but less than 25 years completed - 7.7% of hours worked.

  • 25 years or more of service completed - 9.6 % of hours worked.

 Forty (40) hours of additional vacation leave shall be added to the full-time employee’s accumulated vacation leave balance as recorded in the official timekeeping system upon completion of the 8th, 15th and 25th years of service. Full-time, limited hours employees shall have an amount added that is prorated to reflect hours in active pay status during the full calendar year immediately prior to the anniversary date.

 Any employee who transfers from one SWCD office to another, or who transfers from other public employment in Ohio, shall be credited with the time served in his/her prior service towards vacation leave anniversary dates. The employee is responsible for obtaining certification of his/her time previously served for Holmes SWCD personnel records. Employees who transfer with service credit can begin using vacation leave after his/her probationary period has ended.

 Vacation schedules are subject to the approval of the Holmes SWCD Board and/or Program Administrator. Notice should be given to the Holmes SWCD Board of the first day of an extended vacation (1 week or more) at the regularly scheduled Holmes SWCD board meeting the month prior. Any short term or emergency vacation request requires approval from the Program Administrator or appropriate authority.

 Employees are expected to use accrued vacation leave each year prior to the employee’s next anniversary date. However, an employee may carry over a maximum of three (3) years earned vacation leave as approved by the board of supervisors. Vacation credit more than three years’ accrual will be eliminated from the employee’s record.

 District employees shall be entitled to compensation at their current rate of pay for all vacation leave to their credit at the time of separation.

 In the case of an employee’s death, earned, but unused vacation leave shall be paid to the employee’s spouse, children, or parents in that order, or to his/her estate.

HOLIDAYS

Full-time employees shall receive eight (8) hours of holiday pay for:

  • New Year’s Day

  • Martin Luther King Day

  • Presidents Day

  • Memorial Day

  • Juneteenth

  • Independence Day

  • Labor Day

  • Columbus Day

  • Veteran’s Day

  • Thanksgiving Day

  • Christmas Day

 The office may voluntarily close the day after Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve. All employees must use vacation time or comp time for those days off.

 Full-time, limited hours employees shall observe and receive above said holiday pay for the holidays occurring on the employee’s regularly scheduled workday.

 Seasonal employees shall observe and shall be paid for the above said holidays that occur during their period of employment.

 Intermittent employees shall not work on holidays nor receive holiday pay unless an exception is granted by the board of supervisors.

 Employees may be eligible for any other day appointed by the Governor of the State of Ohio or the President of the United States of America, as a day of fast, mourning or thanksgiving. The Holmes SWCD will adhere to federal policy in those instances when USDA NRCS/FSA has been given the authority to close their offices as part of a holiday or day of observation.

If the holiday falls on a Saturday, the Friday immediately preceding shall be observed as the holiday; if it falls on a Sunday, the Monday immediately succeeding shall be observed. An employee shall receive holiday pay rather than sick leave for any holiday that occurs when he/she is absent on sick leave. When a paid holiday occurs during an employee’s vacation, the employee shall receive holiday pay and will not be charged with a vacation day for such holiday. Employees are not expected to work holidays unless specifically requested to do so by the Holmes SWCD Board or Administrator. Employees who are required to work holidays will earn compensation time (see compensation time section).

PAID LEAVES OF ABSENCE - SICK LEAVE

Each Holmes SWCD employee earns 4.6 hours paid sick leave upon completion of each 80 hours of service. Employees working less than 80 hours in a biweekly period will be prorated (5.75%). Unused sick leave shall be cumulative without limit.

Any employee who transfers from one SWCD office to another, or who transfers from other public employment in Ohio, shall be credited with the unused balance of his/her sick leave accumulated in his/her prior service. The employee is responsible for obtaining certification of his/her previously accumulated sick leave for Holmes SWCD personnel records within 45 days of employment.

Employees may use sick leave for absence due to personal illness, pregnancy, injury, exposure to contagious disease that could be communicated to other employees, and for absence due to illness, injury, or death in the employee’s immediate family. “Immediate family” for the purposes of this policy include grandparents, brothers, sisters, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, daughter-in-law, son-in-law, parents, father-in-law, mother-in-law, spouse, children, grandchildren, aunts/uncles and a legal guardian or other person who stands in the place of a parent to the employee.

An employee who is absent due to one of the above reasons must report his/her absence to the Holmes SWCD office by 8:30 A.M. of the first day of sick leave.  When the absence is more than three consecutive days, the employee may be asked to have a licensed physician complete a medical certificate to state in writing the reason for the absence (which may or may not be approved by the Holmes SWCD Board). If the absence is not approved, the employee will need to use vacation leave or comp leave, or be unpaid for the days of absence.

When sick leave is used, it shall be deducted from the employee’s credit based on one hour of sick leave for every one hour of absence from previously scheduled work. The sick leave payment shall not exceed the normal scheduled work hours or work week earnings.

Upon the death of an employee, unused accumulated sick leave shall be paid to the employee’s spouse, children, or parents, if any, in that order, or to his/her estate. Payment for accumulated sick leave at the time of death shall be based on the employee’s straight-time hourly rate at the time of death, with one such hour of pay for every four hours  of accumulated sick leave (to a maximum of 120 hours of sick leave payout).

An employee may elect, at the time of retirement from active service and with ten or more years of public service in Ohio, to be paid in cash for a portion of his/her accumulated sick leave. Payment for accumulated sick leave at the time of retirement shall be based on the employee’s hourly rate at the time of retirement, with one such hour of pay for every four hours to a maximum of 960 hours of accumulated sick leave (to a maximum of 240 hours of sick leave payout).

Sick Leave Abuse

Application by an employee for sick leave through fraud or dishonesty will result in denial of such leave together with disciplinary action up to and including dismissal. Patterns of sick leave usage immediately prior or subsequent to holidays, vacation, days off and/or weekends or excessive sick leave usage may result in sick leave denial and appropriate disciplinary action. The District reserves the right to investigate allegations of sick leave abuse. The District reserves the right to question employees concerning their sick leave use. Whenever an employee is on sick leave he/she must be at home during his/her scheduled work hours or obtaining treatment or medication.

Family Medical Leave Act

UNPAID LEAVE

Employees may request an unpaid leave of absence for professional, educational, or other personal reasons. The District has sole discretion to grant or deny the leave. A personal leave of absence may be granted for one day to six months for any reason the District deems appropriate. Upon completion of approved unpaid leave, the employee will be returned to his/her former position or to a similar position within the same classification. Requests for, and approvals of, unpaid leave shall be made in writing. While on leave without pay status, an employee shall not accumulate paid leave or holiday pay. An employee on a non-FMLA unpaid leave of absence will be given COBRA notification regarding his/her health insurance benefits. The District may revoke an unpaid leave of absence for business reasons upon one week’s written notice to the employee that he must return to work. An employee on an unpaid leave of absence who is determined to be using the leave for purposes other than for which the leave was granted may be ordered to return to work immediately.

SEVERANCE PAY

An employee may elect, at the time of disability or service retirement under the Public Employees Retirement System (PERS), to be paid in cash for one-fourth the value of his/her accrued, but unused, sick leave. The payment shall be based on the employee’s rate of pay at the time of retirement. The total value of sick leave paid as severance pay shall not exceed the value of 30 eight-hour days’ paid leave (240 hours) and shall be calculated as one-fourth of the total sick leave accumulated.

 To qualify for this severance benefit, the employee must have at least 10 years of service with the state, any political subdivision of the state, or any combination of such service. Payment for sick leave under this policy will eliminate all sick leave credit accrued by the employee at that time.

 See Vacation Leave and Compensation Time Policy for severance pay information.

CIVIC DUTY LEAVE

A. Jury Duty. Employees will be excused from regularly scheduled work for jury duty. If an employee’s jury duty is concluded prior to the completion of the employee’s regularly scheduled workday, he must return to work for the remainder of the workday. Holmes SWCD will compensate an employee who is called to, and reports for, panel and/or jury duty, at the employee’s straight-time hourly rate for the hours he was scheduled on that day. The employee must give the District prior notice of jury duty, and pay his/her jury duty fee to the District, in order to receive his/her regular pay.

B. Work Related Proceedings. Employees who are required by Holmes SWCD to appear in court or other proceeding on behalf of the District, will be paid at their appropriate rate of pay for hours actually worked. Employees must obtain prior approval from their supervisor before appearing in court or administrative proceedings on behalf of the District. Employees who receive a subpoena for work-related matters and have a concern regarding that subpoena should seek assistance from their supervisor, who may then contact the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.

C. Personal Matters. Employees who are required to appear in court on personal matters, or on matters unrelated to their employment with the District, must seek an approved vacation leave or unpaid leave of absence

MILITARY LEAVE

Military leave shall be extended to employees of the Holmes SWCD in accordance with Sections 124.29, 5923.05 and Chapter 5903 of the Ohio Revised Code and Chapter 43, Title 38, Sections 2021 (inducted employees) through 2024 (enlisted employees and reservists employees called to active duty) of the United States Code.

HAZARDOUS WEATHER LEAVE

The Administrator will be in contact with the USDA offices regarding weather situations, but Holmes SWCD employees will follow the lead of the Holmes County government offices (Commissioners and/or Clinton Street offices) in the event of closing due to inclement weather. If these county offices are closed, delayed to open, or dismissed early due to weather conditions, Holmes SWCD employees will do likewise. Under these circumstances, employees will be excused without charge to leave, provided he/she was not on scheduled vacation, compensatory or sick leave.

Employees are responsible for obtaining conditions of roadways and listening to weather related cancellations prior to leaving for work to determine whether the Holmes County government offices are closed or delayed in opening and follow the same schedule regarding reporting to work.

If the Holmes County government offices are open, and an Holmes SWCD employee determines road conditions are unsafe for travel, he/she must contact the program administrator prior to 7:45 a.m. to request the use of annual or compensatory leave. If the county offices are open and all Holmes SWCD employees have determined they are using annual or compensatory leave, the Holmes SWCD office will be closed.

 In the event severe weather occurs after the opening of business and the county offices are not closed early, Holmes SWCD employees may request the use of annual or compensatory leave to dismiss early. If all employees use leave, the office will be closed.