Compensation Plan for COVID-19
Last Updated on 4/1/2021
During the COVID-19 public health emergency, the City is committed to maintaining City employee income security to the fullest extent possible, and to providing additional resources to employees who are providing front-line services during the emergency.
Accordingly, as initially authorized in Mayor Breed’s Supplemental Proclamation dated March 31, 2020, the Human Resources Director and the Director of Transportation for SFMTA service critical employees implemented emergency leave and benefit policy changes, effective April 1, 2020. These policies are subject to continuing review and updates for the duration of the public health emergency. The following are summary provisions, effective as of October 31, 2020.
1. State COVID-19 Paid Sick Leave. The City has implemented provisions in Labor Code 248.2 and 248.3, requiring paid sick leave for employees affected by COVID-19. Full-time employees are eligible for up to 80 hours of paid sick leave for specified COVID-19 related reasons, including school closures related to COVID-19 outbreaks. The City uses a specific pay code for this state sick leave (i.e., pay code “CSP”). Part- time and as-needed employees are eligible for a prorated number of hours. These paid sick leave hours are subject to the daily and aggregate cap set in the Labor Code. Employees may request paid sick leave under this new law beginning March 29, 2021. The law is effective retroactive to January 1, 2021, and expires on September 30, 2021, unless extended.
2. Integration. Employees eligible for compensation through workers compensation/4850 pay and other third-party benefits like SDI and unemployment insurance must use those benefits and integrate them into the City-provided compensation. Employees using paid compensation under the State COVID-19 Paid Sick Leave Law are not required to integrate the benefit with workers' compensation benefits.
3. Additional City Paid Sick Leave Allocation. The City shall provide all regularly scheduled employees an additional 80 hours of new paid sick leave that employees can use for specified COVID-19 related reasons, including school/childcare closures and remote/hybrid learning arrangements. Part-time employees receive a prorated number of hours. The City will use a specific pay code for this additional sick leave (e.g., pay code ‘COV’). This additional sick leave expires on June 30, 2021.
4. City Leave Advancement. If employees exhaust their FFCRA Emergency Paid Sick Leave, the additional 80 hours of sick leave from the City, and their own leave balances, then regularly scheduled employees may still request to advance up to an additional 80 hours of sick or vacation leave under the City’s current leave advance program. Employees may credit the additional sick leave under (3) above toward any already advanced sick pay in lieu of foregoing sick pay accruals until the City has recovered the hours advanced.
5. Paid Leave Caps. For regularly scheduled employees who are near the maximum accruals for vacation and floating holiday but who cannot take time off during the public health emergency, the City will waive vacation leave and floating holiday caps through the duration of the declared emergency. Employees can accrue up to an additional 80 hours over the vacation maximum accrual limit through June 30, 2021. Part- time employees can accrue a prorated number of hours. Employees must use vacation and reduce their balance below the maximum accrual by December 31, 2021. Employees can roll over an additional 120 hours of floating holidays above the normal roll over limit for FY20-21 and an additional 80 hours for FY21- Additionally, in-lieu legal holidays earned in the fiscal years 2019-20 and 2020-21 may be carried over to the following fiscal year upon written request by the employee.
6. Compensatory Time for Salaried ("Z" Symbol) Employees.
a. Employees Eligible for Compensatory Time. The City will waive compensatory time caps for salaried employees so that those employees can earn up to an additional 80 hours above any compensatory caps for the extra work they perform through October 30, 2020. Part-time employees are eligible for a prorated number of hours. Compensatory time is not subject to cash out for salaried employees. Any compensatory time earned above the compensatory time caps must be used by December 31, 2021.
b. Employees Not Eligible for Compensatory Time. For MEA Miscellaneous and other employees who are not eligible to earn compensatory time, the City will allow those employees to earn up to 80 hours of compensatory time on an hour for hour basis for work through October 30, 2020 for hours worked in excess of their regular work week. Part-time employees are eligible for a prorated number of hours. Compensatory time is not subject to cash out for salaried employees. Any compensatory time earned must be used by December 31, 2021
7. Employees Working in the Workplace or Field.
a. Paid Administrative Leave. For employees performing essential services who must remain in the workplace, the City will provide paid administrative leave if those employees are diagnosed with COVID-19, have symptoms consistent with COVID-19 infection, or must isolate/quarantine pursuant to direction of a healthcare provider or order from a federal, state or local official. For purposes of eligibility for paid administrative leave only, the City will presume these employees became exposed or sick in the workplace if the symptoms or diagnoses occurs within fourteen (14) days of having been in the workplace. Employees must use their State COVID-19 Paid Sick Leave and additional City Paid Sick Leave (COV) first and can supplement with this paid administrative leave or other available benefits (see (2) above).
b. Additional Floating Holidays. For regularly scheduled employees performing essential services who must remain in the workplace, the City will provide 8 hours of floating holidays (FHP) for every 40 hours of regularly scheduled hours worked (WKP) in the workplace (i.e., 0.2 FHP hours for every hour of WKP), up to a maximum of 80 hours of floating holiday through October 30, 2020. Part-time employees are eligible for a prorated number of hours. The City will credit these floating holiday hours by November 30, 2020. As with other floating holidays, these hours are not subject to cash out.
8. Furloughed Employees per Shelter in Place Order. The City will continue to provide paid furlough for employees who are available to work but who are not required to work in the workplace providing essential services and who cannot perform their work remotely. This benefit will remain in effect through June 30, 2021.