2014 Delaware Code
Title 14 - Education
CHAPTER 13. SALARIES AND WORKING CONDITIONS OF SCHOOL EMPLOYEES
§ 1318. Sick leave and absences for other reasons; accumulation of annual leave

(a) Teachers and other school employees shall be allowed 10 days of sick leave per year with full pay; those teachers and other school employees employed 11 months a year shall be allowed 11 days of sick leave per year with full pay; and those teachers and other school employees employed 12 months a year shall be allowed 12 days of sick leave per year with full pay. Any unused days of such leave shall be accumulated to the employee's credit without limit.

(b) In the case of a death in the immediate family of the employee, there shall be no reduction of salary of said employee for an absence not to exceed 5 working days. Members of the immediate family shall be defined as the employee's spouse or domestic partner; parent, stepparent or child of the employee, spouse or domestic partner; employee's grandparent or grandchild; employee's sibling; spouse of employee's child; any relative who resides in the same household; or any minor child for whom the employee has assumed and carried out parental responsibilities. This absence shall be in addition to other leaves granted the employee.

(c) In the case of a serious illness of a member of the employee's immediate family, as defined in subsection (b) of this section that requires the employee's personal attention, an employee may use accrued sick leave. An employee needing sick leave under the provisions of this title shall inform that employee's own immediate supervisor of the fact and reason in advance, when possible, or otherwise before the expiration of the first hour of absence or as soon thereafter as practicable; failure to do so may be cause for denial of pay for the period of absence. Before approving pay for sick leave, the supervisor may at that supervisor's discretion require either a doctor's certificate or a written statement signed by the employee setting forth the reason for the absence. In the case of an absence of more than 5 consecutive days, a doctor's certificate is required as a condition of approval.

(d) In case of the death of a near relative, there shall be no deduction in the salary of the employee for absence on the day of the funeral. A near relative shall be defined as: first cousin, aunt, uncle, niece, nephew, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, grandparent-in-law, or any other friend living in the employee's household.

(e) In the case of the observance of recognized religious holidays, an employee may be absent without loss of pay on no more than 3 calendar days per year. The days so lost are to be counted in the sick leave of the employee.

(f) An employee may be absent without loss of pay no more than 3 days per fiscal year for personal reasons of the employee. Such absences shall be included in the sick leave of the employee. Such absences must be approved by the chief school officers.

(g) An employee retired subsequent to June 1, 1969, after serving in covered employment under Chapter 55 of Title 29, shall, on retirement, be paid for each unused sick leave day, not to exceed 90 days. The total amount paid shall be based upon that portion of the salary computed in accordance with state schedules, regardless of the source of funding, and shall be based upon 50 percent of the per diem rate of pay in effect at the time of retirement. Effective July 1, 1986, in the event of the death of a teacher or other school employee, payment shall be made to that teacher's or other school employee's estate at the rate of 1 day's pay for each day of unused sick leave not to exceed 90 days. Effective July 1, 1991, for school employees of the Department of Education and school district boards of education the per diem rate shall be 1/185 in the fiscal year beginning July 1, 1999; 1/187 in the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2000; 1/188 for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2001; and each succeeding fiscal year, of the annual salary based on state salary schedule for those employed 10 months; for those employed 11 months the per diem rate shall be 1/204 in the fiscal year beginning July 1, 1999; 1/206 in the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2000; 1/207 for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2001; and each succeeding fiscal year, of the annual salary based on state salary schedule; and for those employed 12 months, the per diem rate shall be 1/222 of the annual salary based on state salary schedule. The local employing agency shall certify the number of days to which the employee shall be entitled.

(h) The maximum amount of annual leave which any employee shall be permitted to accumulate shall be 42 days. At the end of each fiscal year, the accumulated annual leave of each employee shall equal not more than 42 days. Where, prior to the end of a fiscal year, an employee has accumulated more than 42 days of annual leave, such annual leave shall be adjusted to 42 days at the end of such fiscal year.

(i) Effective September 1, 1991, the per diem rates used to pay retiring employees for accrued annual leave shall be identical to the per diem rates for sick leave contained in subsection (g) of this section.

(j) Any absence not covered in subsection (a), (b), (c), (d), (e), (f) or (g) of this section shall be considered unexcused.

(k) A duly elected president of the Delaware State Education Association, as defined in Chapter 40 of this title, who requests a leave of absence without pay from a school board shall be granted a leave of absence by said school board from service for the duration of the elected term. Said employee shall be eligible to purchase health insurance for himself or herself and eligible dependents and other state benefits at that employee's cost during said leave of absence. Other duly elected officers of the Delaware State Education Association shall be granted 45 release days by the employing board to represent the Association for education-related business. The Association shall be responsible for the costs of substitute teachers when utilized to provide coverage for the elected officer. In addition, when the Association determines the need and makes a request for the hiring of a teaching partner, the duly elected officer shall be granted no less than 60 or more than 100 release days by the employing school board to represent the Association for education-related business. The teaching partner will be hired on a full-time and annual basis to ensure continuity of instruction during periods of time when the Association officer is engaging in education-related business as a representative of the Association. Release time granted pursuant to this section shall be in addition to other leaves granted the employee by this section. The Association shall be responsible for the cost incurred related to the hiring of the teaching partner.

14 Del. C. 1953, § 1318; 50 Del. Laws, c. 436, § 1; 50 Del. Laws, c. 602, § 1; 51 Del. Laws, c. 44; 55 Del. Laws, c. 147; 56 Del. Laws, c. 39; 56 Del. Laws, c. 287; 57 Del. Laws, c. 238; 58 Del. Laws, c. 120; 58 Del. Laws, c. 306, § 5f; 58 Del. Laws, c. 549; 59 Del. Laws, c. 456, § 1; 59 Del. Laws, c. 503, § 1; 62 Del. Laws, c. 35, § 1; 62 Del. Laws, c. 154, § 1; 62 Del. Laws, c. 345, § 1; 63 Del. Laws, c. 167, § 1; 66 Del. Laws, c. 96, § 1; 67 Del. Laws, c. 117, § 1; 68 Del. Laws, c. 84, §§ 186, 187; 69 Del. Laws, c. 64, § 272; 70 Del. Laws, c. 186, § 1; 70 Del. Laws, c. 425, § 351; 71 Del. Laws, c. 136, § 1; 71 Del. Laws, c. 180, § 69; 70 Del. Laws, c. 186, § 1; 72 Del. Laws, c. 215, § 1; 72 Del. Laws, c. 294, § 39; 72 Del. Laws, c. 395, § 352; 73 Del. Laws, c. 74, § 346; 73 Del. Laws, c. 312, § 258; 74 Del. Laws, c. 68, § 270; 74 Del. Laws, c. 307, §§ 308(c), 309; 75 Del. Laws, c. 89, § 343; 75 Del. Laws, c. 298, § 1; 75 Del. Laws, c. 350, § 354.;

§ 1318A Donated leave program.

(a) "Donated leave program" means a program:

(1) In which 1 or more employees of a public school district may transfer accrued, unused sick leave days to 1 or more other employees of the same public school district;

(2) Is established by the public school district as a local Board of Education policy and/or pursuant to the terms of a collective bargaining agreement negotiated under the terms of Chapter 40 of Title 14; and

(3) Is consistent with the provisions set forth in subsection (b) of this section. No donated leave program shall prohibit participation by employees based on inclusion in or exclusion from a certified bargaining unit.

(b) Any donated leave shall be required to comply with the following requirements:

(1) Employees wishing to donate accrued sick leave must donate in increments of whole days. For every 2 days donated, 1 day will be made available to a recipient.

(2) Donated days shall be made available only for recipients within the school district for a catastrophic illness of a recipient or of a member of a recipient's family. For this section, "catastrophic illness" shall mean any illness or injury to an employee or to a member of an employee's family which is diagnosed by a physician and certified by the physician as rendering the employee or a member of the employee's family unable to work, or, in the case of a family member who does not work, the medical equivalent of "unable to work", to work for a period greater than 5 calendar weeks. Separate periods of disability lasting 7 consecutive work days or more each, and totaling more than 5 calendar weeks, resulting from the same or a related medical condition and occurring within any 12-month consecutive period, shall be considered the same period of disability. For this section, "family member" or "member of an employee's family" means an employee's spouse, son, daughter or parent who resides with the employee and who requires the personal attendance of the employee during the family member's catastrophic illness. Donated leave may be used by the recipient for subsequent absence because of personal medical treatments or personal illness directly related to the employee's "catastrophic illness" as certified by the physician. This provision is limited to an absence that occurs because of an employee's "catastrophic illness" not a family member's "catastrophic illness."

(3) The local school district shall convert the donated leave available for use by a recipient into cash value at the donor's rate of pay, shall re-convert the cash value to hours of leave at the recipient's rate of pay, and shall then credit the recipient's account.

(4) The recipient of the donated leave shall have been an employee with the local school district for at least 6 months before that employee is eligible for donated leave time.

(5) The recipient shall have used all of that recipient's own sick days and personal days and half of that recipient's annual leave, where applicable. However, when donated leave is for the catastrophic illness of a family member, the employee must have used all of that employee's sick days, personal days and annual leave.

(6) The recipient shall have established medical justification for such receipt, which must be renewed every 30 days during any absence.

(7) No potential donor nor any other person shall sell any accrued leave which might otherwise be donated under this section.

(8) The liability of the State under this program shall be limited to paying the state share of salary, benefits and other employment costs paid to employees for sick leave properly utilized pursuant to a donated leave program established pursuant to and in compliance with this section and § 4002 of Title 14, if applicable.

(9) Any recipient of this program is subject to a 1-work-year cap with the number of days equal to 188 days for a 10-month employee; 207 days for 11-month employees; and 222 days for a 12-month employee.

(10) If a long-term disability program is available to employees, a period of disability defined herein shall be limited to the waiting or elimination period defined in the policy.

(c) The Department of Education is authorized to operate a donated leave program. Such donated leave program shall conform, to the extent practicable, to the provisions of § 5956 of Title 29.

71 Del. Laws, c. 136, § 2; 70 Del. Laws, c. 186, § 1; 71 Del. Laws, c. 354, § 390; 72 Del. Laws, c. 294, § 44; 72 Del. Laws, c. 395, § 353; 72 Del. Laws, c. 440, §§ 1-5; 73 Del. Laws, c. 74, § 347; 73 Del. Laws, c. 312, § 259; 73 Del. Laws, c. 321, § 15; 74 Del. Laws, c. 68, § 269; 74 Del. Laws, c. 307, § 308(b); 74 Del. Laws, c. 402, §§ 1-3; 75 Del. Laws, c. 89, § 342.;

§ 1318B Leave for bone marrow or organ donation.

(a) Definitions. — As used in this section:

(1) "Bone marrow" means the soft material that fills the human bone cavities;

(2) "Bone marrow donor" means a person from whose body bone marrow is taken to be transferred to the body of another person;

(3) "Organ" means a human organ that is capable of being transferred from the body of a person to the body of another person;

(4) "Organ donor" means a person from whose body an organ is taken to be transferred to the body of another person.

(b) In any calendar year, a teacher or school employee is entitled to the following leave in order to serve as a bone marrow donor or organ donor:

(1) No more than 7 days of leave to serve as a bone marrow donor;

(2) No more than 30 days of leave to serve as an organ donor.

(c) A teacher or school employee may use the leave provided by this section without loss or reduction of pay, leave to which the teacher or employee is otherwise entitled, credit for time or service, or performance or efficiency rating.

(d) This section applies to teachers and school employees who are included in a collective bargaining unit, unless a collective bargaining agreement contains provisions dealing with leave for bone marrow donation and organ donation.

73 Del. Laws, c. 104, § 2.;