When it comes to using sick leave for military service obligations in Austin, Texas, there are certain limitations that must be taken into account. It is important to understand the rules and regulations surrounding sick leave in order to ensure that employees are able to take the necessary time off without any issues. If an employee needs to take annual leave to care for a family member who has become ill, the agency can grant them sick leave. This is also applicable for those who have returned to federal service as a recipient of reemployed alimony, as they have the right to have the remaining 50 percent of their sick leave credited to them.
However, it is important to note that the employee must actively care for the family member in order to use sick leave for this purpose. Additionally, if an employee has already used 12 weeks of sick leave to care for a family member with a serious health condition, they cannot use an additional 13 days of the same year of leave for this purpose. When it comes to taking annual vacation, an agency can grant sick leave for any of the purposes for which it is granted. This includes pregnant employees who need time off from work before giving birth for their own health or that of the fetus. In this case, the annual time off and sick time accumulated while the employee is on leave are frozen and held until they return to employment. When an employee requests sick leave to care for a family member (for family care or for reasons related to the death of a family member), the agency may require them to document their relationship with that family member.
Conversely, it would not be appropriate for the employee to use sick leave to care for a healthy spouse who has been exposed to a communicable disease, but has no symptoms. An employee who has a break in service and returns to work for the Federal Government has the right to have their sick leave credited, regardless of the length of the break in service. Additionally, they may need to request prior approval for sick leave to care for a family member undergoing medical, dental, or optical examination or treatment, to care for a sick family member or with a serious health condition, for grief purposes, and for adoption-related procedures. Qualifying leave by requirement (QE) provides up to 12 weeks of leave for urgent, non-medical needs related to the call to active duty by a reservist or active duty member (spouse, son, daughter, or parent) to active duty. An employee also has the right to use sick leave if health authorities or a healthcare provider determine that their presence at work would endanger the health of others due to exposure to a communicable disease. It is important that agencies keep track of the amount of sick leave an employee uses for general family care, death, or care for a family member with a serious health condition. For people who have returned to work, any sick leave used to calculate their annuity is charged to their sick leave account and cannot be used, transferred, or re-credited in the future. These flexibilities include annual leave, sick leave, advanced annual leave or advanced sick leave, leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), leave donated under the voluntary leave transfer program, unpaid leave, alternative work hours, credit hours in flexible work hours, compensatory time off, and telework.
