School board approves sick leave bank - WQOW TV: Eau Claire, WI NEWS18 News, Weather, and Sports

Eau Claire (WQOW) -  Colleagues helping colleagues:  That's the focus of a new sick leave bank approved by the Eau Claire School Board.  Employees can donate their sick days to co-workers.

Monday night, the board approved the new policy.  It won't take effect until July of next year.  Here's how it works:  Under the current system, if an employee ran out of sick days, they were eligible for an extended sick leave as long as they paid for their substitute.  That is being replaced with a bank.  Any employee who wants to donate to the bank would need to make a formal request; the same for anyone who wants extra days.

Sick leave can be rolled over from year to year, up to 120 days.  In other districts, employees may be able to cash out unused sick leave when they retire.  That's not a perk in the Eau Claire School District.