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Dorchester 02 board committee advances sick-leave bank proposal with limits and appeal rules
Summary
The board policy committee reviewed a proposed sick-leave bank that would let participating employees draw up to 90 paid days over a career, require an initial contribution and committee approval, and pair leave with FMLA; members pressed for clearer appeal and financial safeguards.
The Dorchester 02 Board Policy Committee on June 10 discussed a proposed district sick-leave bank that would let participating staff draw paid time from a pooled fund in serious health situations.
Speaker 3, who presented the proposal, said the bank would be a pooled model rather than a direct donation program and would include an initial enrollment contribution (one day in year one). Under the draft, an employee could receive up to 90 days from the bank over the course of a career and would be required to apply to a committee for approvals. Speaker 3 said FMLA would run concurrently with bank use and that paid parental leave already available in South Carolina affects maternity-related eligibility.
Board members raised financial and procedural concerns. Speaker 4 asked whether employees who retire or leave get paid out for unused sick days and how donated days would be accounted for; Speaker 3 said the district has been developing accounting measures and would monitor participation and usage before expanding donation options. Several members questioned whether appeals should be reviewed by the same committee that initially denied applications; Speaker 3 said the draft requires new supporting information for appeals but agreed the board could reconsider appeal routing.
The draft would require at least 30% staff participation for the bank to operate and sets thresholds and an open-enrollment mechanism if the bank runs low. Speaker 3 said the model parallels how other districts operate but acknowledged past litigation around sick banks prompted a cautious approach.
Next steps: the committee indicated it would move the draft forward out of committee for further consideration and asked staff to provide additional financial modeling and clarified appeal language before a final recommendation to the full board.
