§ 82-480. Return from leave of absence

At the end or expiration of the approved leave of absence, the employee has the following options:

(1) Return to work as scheduled on or before the end of the 90-day leave of absence period. When returning to work after a leave of absence, the following guidelines shall apply:

a. Employee shall provide the supervisor two business days' notice of intent to return to work, if feasible;

b. Employee must provide fitness for duty certification from his physician stating the employee is able to return to work and perform all job duties with or without accommodations, if the leave was due to the employee's own illness;

c. Employee must receive medical clearance from the county's employee health center, if the employee (excludes sheriff's department law enforcement employee) has been absent from work more than 45 days due to an illness or injury.

If a law enforcement employee of the sheriff's department has been absent from work more than 30 days due to an illness or injury, then the employee must receive medical clearance from the county's employee health center.

d. If an employee is injured on the job, and at the end of the leave of absence the employee is unable to perform the essential functions of his position with or without accommodations but is able to perform "light duty assignments"; then:

1. At the discretion of the elected official/department head, "light duty assignments" may be provided for up to 45 days; however,

2. At the end of the 45 days, if the employee is still not able to perform the essential functions of his position with or without accommodations, the employee will be terminated unless the elected official/department head requests and receives approval for an extension of the leave from commissioners court.

For example, employee "A" was injured on the job while restraining a youth in the detention center. The employee was released to return to work with restrictions that prevent him from working in detention. The department head may assign the employee to a clerical position for up to 45 days.

Once the 45-day light duty assignment has ended, if the employee remains unable to perform the essential functions of his position with or without accommodations, he will be terminated unless additional leave time has been requested by the department head and approved by commissioners court.

3. At the end of a leave of absence when an employee is unable to return to work and perform the essential functions of his position, all decisions to terminate an employee must be reviewed by the human resources/civil service director for compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

(2) If an employee is unable to return to work at the end of the leave of absence and requires additional leave, the employee may request an exception to policy to the elected official/department head and commissioners court. If the employee's injury or illness is not an on-the-job injury/illness, and the employee is not able to perform the essential functions of his position with or without accommodations, the following guidelines shall apply:

a. "Light duty assignments" are not available to employees for non-work related illnesses or injuries;

b. The elected official/department head chooses not to request an extension of the leave, or if requested, commissioners court does not approve an extension of the leave of absence, the employee will be terminated; and,

c. Employees who are unable to return to work and perform the essential functions of their positions with or without accommodations are encouraged to contact their departmental HR representative or the county's HR/civil service department to apply for other positions within their department or the county and/or the county's long-term disability insurance program. For example,

Employee "B" was injured while off-duty while playing football. The employee was released to return to work with restrictions that prevent him from working as a building mechanic, light duty assignments are not available for non-work related illnesses or injuries. The employee must receive approval for an extension of leave from the elected official and commissioners court or be terminated.

d. Under no circumstances shall the leave granted as an exception to this policy by commissioners court and/or the sheriff's department civil service commission exceed an additional 90 days or until the end of grant funding (if applicable), whichever comes first.

(3) If the employee does not return to work on or before the end of the 90-day leave of absence period and does not request a leave of absence extension, the employee's termination will be considered a voluntary resignation with no right to appeal, if covered under the civil service system. The following guidelines shall apply to resignations:

a. Ensure the employee has resigned with no intent to seek an exception to policy and request a written resignation letter from the employee;

b. Forward a general notice of separation along with a copy of the separation notice to the employee with a written request to return all county equipment, keys, etc., in the employee's possession; and

c. Process the notice of separation form via the human resources/civil service department, payroll hotline, and county treasurer's office.

(Ord. No. 2011-1463, 8-30-2011)