Know Your Rights, First Quarter of 2010

Recently MEA filed a grievance on behalf of one of its members when he/she was required to provide a doctor’s note for a sick day, or their timecard would be changed to Red-K, resulting in the employee not being paid. This demand violated Article 18, Sections 8 and 9, titled, Annual Leave and Compensatory Time Off. MEA’s MOU specifically states,

8. Approved unscheduled annual or sick leave properly used for family, dependent or significant other/co-tenant illnesses shall be considered as a separate category when reviewing employee performance with regard to attendance and/or absenteeism issues and shall not be subject to disciplinary action. Should the City, for good and sufficient reasons, determine that an employee is abusing this leave provision, the appointing authority may request a bona fide doctor’s statement from the employee to substantiate the leave request(s). Failure to provide documentation, by a mutually agreed upon date, to the appointing authority may be subject to disciplinary action in accordance with the City’s Personnel Regulations.

9. Criteria to be considered in determining leave abuse shall not be limited to stated department/division numerical standards, and must include but not be limited to, length of service, prior attendance record throughout City career, reason for absence, past performance reports, hard to the work unit, leave balances, past discipline, as well as job classification and working conditions.

If disciplinary action for employee leave abuse under this article is proposed which deviates from this criteria, the appointing authority or designee must obtain prior approval from the Labor Relations Manager.

So if you are required to provide documentation of a doctor’s visit and do not feel it is warranted, let us know. We are here to protect and enforce your rights as a City of San Diego employee.