[R.O. 2010 § 130.540; CC 1996 § 130.540; Ord. No. 1030 § 1, 12-8-1997]
A. 
Employees will be provided up to twelve (12) weeks of unpaid leave under the following terms and conditions:
1. 
Only those employees who have worked for the City at least twelve (12) months and who have worked at least one thousand two hundred fifty (1,250) hours over the previous twelve-month period are eligible for leave.
B. 
Leave will be provided only for the following reasons:
1. 
Because of the birth of a child and in order to care for such child;
2. 
Because of the placement of a child with the employee for adoption or foster care;
3. 
In order to care for a child or parent or the spouse of the employee if they have a serious health condition;
4. 
Because of a serious health condition that makes the employee unable to perform the functions of his/her position.
C. 
The City will continue to provide coverage under its group health plan during the leave, under the same terms offered to the employee prior to such leave.
D. 
Upon return from leave, the employee will be restored to his/her former position or an equivalent position.
E. 
The employee must substitute five (5) days of his/her accrued paid vacation and/or sick leave for the first five (5) days of leave provided under this policy.
F. 
If the need for leave is foreseeable, the employee must give thirty (30) days' written notice to the City before taking such leave. Otherwise, the employee must notify the City as soon as is practicable.
G. 
Medical certification is required to support a request for leave under this policy because of a serious health condition and the City may require second and third opinions. Medical certification is also required upon returning from leave under this policy that the employee is able to resume work.
H. 
This policy is intended to be consistent with the Federal Family and Medical Leave Act ("the FMLA") and the words and phrases used in the policy which are defined in the FMLA shall have the meanings accorded to such words and phrases in the FMLA.
I. 
In cases of giving birth to a child and subsequently caring for that child, the employee has other options he/she can choose in addition to the provisions set forth above under the FMLA provisions. These options are set forth in Section 130.610, Maternity Leave, and Section 130.620, Leave Of Absence Without Pay.
J. 
The City of Bowling Green may establish a ShareLeave program for employees to donate leave to other employees. This program may be established under the conditions set out as follows:
[Ord. No. 1776 §§ I — II, 1-26-2015]
1. 
As used in this Section, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the following terms shall mean:
a. 
ShareLeave means a pool of leave hours donated by eligible employees that may be conveyed to other eligible employees;
b. 
A catastrophic illness or injury is one which is life threatening, terminal or likely to result in a substantial permanent disability; and
c. 
ShareLeave pool means a repository of eligible leave hours that is maintained for the purposes set forth under the ShareLeave program.
2. 
Employees eligible to donate leave to the ShareLeave pool are those employees that are employed in positions of a permanent or continuing nature and who have completed their original probationary period. Employees eligible to receive ShareLeave pool benefits are those employees who are employed in positions of a permanent or continuing nature and who have completed their original probationary period or six (6) months of successful performance;
3. 
Annual leave, overtime, compensatory time or sick leave, or a combination thereof, may be donated between employees. Donated sick leave benefits shall not exceed three (3) days [twenty-four (24) hours] per employee. There is no limit on the amount of annual leave, overtime or compensatory time which may be donated by an individual employee to another employee;
4. 
To be eligible for donated leave, recipient employees must have experienced a catastrophic illness or injury. Employees may also be eligible for donated leave if they can demonstrate that their spouse or children have experienced catastrophic illness or injury requiring the employee's personal care and attention. The final decision concerning the granting of leave under this Section shall rest with the City Administrator;
5. 
Recipient employees must have exhausted all of their own accrued annual leave, sick leave, and compensatory leave and all worker's compensation indemnity payments (if applicable) before being eligible for donated leave;
6. 
Employees eligible to receive disability benefits from the State of Missouri are not eligible for donated leave;
7. 
Donations may be made to individuals;
8. 
The maximum benefit which can be authorized for any one (1) employee for any one (1) instance of eligibility shall not exceed the equivalent of four (4) months of regular salary;
9. 
An employee receiving donated leave shall be credited with additional leave earnings during this period; and
10. 
All donations of eligible leave shall be voluntary. No employee may intimidate, threaten, or coerce any other employee with respect to donating or receiving leave under this program. Individual leave records that apply to ShareLeave are confidential and no individual employees shall receive remuneration of any kind for leave donated.