District
creates bank for sick days
New policy. Teachers allowed to
donate time.
Tuesday, November 15, 2005 • By SARAH CASSI •
The Express-Times
PHILLIPSBURG | District teachers are now
allowed to donate up to two personal days a year to ailing
colleagues.
The school board unanimously approved a
measure creating a sick leave bank for district teachers
during the meeting Monday night.
Superintendent Gordon Pethick said the
district instituted a sick day bank years ago, but the
process by which the days were allocated was questionable.
The new policy allows teachers to voluntarily donate their
two annual personal days to the sick leave bank, and
teachers with "catastrophic" illnesses can apply to use the
banked days.
Unused days in the bank will be carried
over year to year, said Barbara Alderfer, president of the
Phillipsburg Education Association.
Alderfer said personal days had to be
used because state law prevents the teachers from donating
their contractual 10 annual sick days.
Pethick said requests to use the banked
days will go through his office and would be submitted to
the school board for approval.
A teacher would have to submit
documentation to qualify for the donated days and Alderfer
said the teachers in the union can only use 100 banked days
over a two-year period.
"Every now and then through the years we
have had teachers face serious illnesses," Pethick said,
adding the district hasn't had too many cases that would
qualify for the leave. "I think if we can have the teachers
help each other out, I think it's a very noble and
worthwhile cause."
Alderfer said the idea for the bank came
from the plight of a current Phillipsburg High School
teacher who is ill. School board President Rod Pianelli made
sure the policy will be retroactive for the high school
teacher.
"It's definitely a mechanism, to help
out," Pianelli said.
Alderfer said the terms of the policy can
be changed if the two sides agree to meet.
"We have a contract coming, so you never
know," Alderfer said.
Reporter Sarah Cassi can be reached at 610-258-7171 or by
e-mail at scassi@express-times.com.
© 2005 The Express-Times. Used with
permission.
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