The Wauwatosa School Board has established this policy regarding benefits for regularly employed custodial and maintenance employees. Childrearing Leave of Absence In addition to any available leave under federal or state FMLA laws, all full-time buildings and grounds employees who have been employed for a minimum of one (1) year prior to the request, may request an unpaid leave immediately following birth or placement of a child for adoption or foster care. Requests must be made in writing to the Director of Human Resources at least three (3) months prior to beginning of leave and must identify length of leave requested. No such leave will be granted more frequently than once every three (3) years or exceed one (1) calendar year. During non-FMLA unpaid childrearing leave, the District shall not contribute toward a building and grounds employee’s insurance premiums or other fringe benefits. No extension will be granted unless there are highly unusual circumstances based on recommendation of Superintendent and discretion of Board. If granted, this leave shall run concurrent with FMLA leave under state and federal law. Dental Insurance Single or family group premium will be paid by the Board for all full-time buildings and grounds employees. Benefits will be determined under the terms of the District’s current dental plan. Regular part-time buildings and grounds employees may participate in the District’s dental plan, with premiums paid on a pro-rata basis. The dental plan design and benefits may be modified at any time at the discretion of the Board. Post-Employment Benefits A buildings and grounds employee may be eligible, after fifteen (15) years of full-time, continuous employment with the Wauwatosa School District, attainment of age fifty-five (55), and who retires, to receive benefits set forth herein. Building and grounds employees desiring to do so shall notify the Superintendent in writing sixty (60) days prior to the anticipated effective retirement date.
For those buildings and grounds employees with at least fifteen (15) years, but fewer than twenty-five (25) years of continuous employment with the District and who retire, the District shall pay the health insurance premium in force at the date of retirement for the District program for a single or family plan, whichever was in effect prior to retirement. Payments of health insurance premiums for employees who retire under this provision shall continue until the employee reaches Medicare eligibility, the employee’s death or sixty (60) payments have been made by the District on behalf of the retiree, whichever comes first.
For those buildings and grounds employees who retire and have at least twenty-five (25) years of continuous full-time employment with the District, the District shall pay the health insurance premium in force at the date of retirement for the District program for a single or family plan, whichever was in effect prior to retirement. Payments of health insurance premiums for employees who retire under this provision shall continue until the employee reaches Medicare eligibility, the employee’s death or eighty-four (84) payments have been made by the District on behalf of the retiree, whichever comes first.
For those buildings and grounds employees, under this policy, who met both the age and eligibility requirements under the 2010-2013 Agreement between the Wauwatosa School District and the Wauwatosa Educational Support Association (WESA), shall maintain the level of benefits under Article 17 of that Agreement as of July 1, 2013, but shall not be entitled to earn a higher level benefit under that contract provision for additional years of service beyond July 1, 2013. Such an employee may, however, elect to retire with the benefits outlined in paragraph B, above, should the employee’s additional years of service qualify him/her for a higher benefit category. D. All Buildings & Grounds Employees Receiving Post-Employment Benefit Under This Policy Changes in law may create significant liability for District if the benefits outlined in this post-employment section of this policy (hereinafter “this section”) result in penalties, fees, or excise tax payments. Accordingly, notwithstanding anything in this policy to the contrary, if the District reasonably determines that one or more provisions of the benefits outlined in this section may subject the District to liability for any penalty, fee, or excise tax payment, or the potential for same, under any provision(s) of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, the Health Care and Reconciliation Act, any regulations formulated pursuant to either such Act or otherwise, or any other relevant law, the District reserves the right to unilaterally modify the benefits outlined in this section to eliminate the potential liability for District. In the event the District unilaterally modifies one or more of the benefits in this section as a result of liability for any penalty, fee, or excise tax payment, or the potential for same, the District will (a) provide notice to the retired buildings and grounds employee that it is modifying the benefit(s) pursuant to this paragraph; and (b) provide the retired buildings and grounds employee with a cash payment or other benefit(s), as determined by the District, of approximately the same cost to the District. It is the District’s stated intent that it will make a good faith effort to attempt to maintain the approximate value (based on the cost to the District) of the benefits provided for in this section in any unilateral modification(s) instituted pursuant to this paragraph. Buildings and grounds employees must give sixty-days (60) notice of the intent to retire and receive benefits under this policy. The policy may be modified from time-to-time by the Board. Limited Purpose Flexible Spending Account The buildings and grounds employee has the option to establish a limited purpose flexible spending account and to have dollars deducted from his/her paycheck on a pre-tax basis to pay for qualified dependent care expenses, in accordance with the terms of the District’s limited purpose flexible spending plan. Health Savings Account The buildings and grounds employee has the option to establish a health savings account and to have dollars deducted from his/her paycheck on a pre-tax basis to pay for qualified medical expenses, in accordance with the terms of the District’s health savings account. Funeral Leave Up to five (5) days’ leave will be granted for the funeral of parent, sibling, spouse, child, son-in-law, daughter-in-law or domestic partner of the buildings and grounds employee . In addition, one (1) day per year will be allowed for other relatives not listed above. Days taken as funeral leave are charged to sick leave. Group Life Insurance Group life insurance is provided to full-time buildings and grounds employees in multiples of $1,000 to a maximum to the next even $1,000 above the buildings and grounds employee’s basic wage or salary for the preceding calendar year, with a minimum coverage of $10,000, at no cost and without a medical examination. The basic wage or salary is the employee’s earnings based on his/her regular work schedule, excluding any premium or overtime payments. Buildings and grounds employees may purchase additional insurance, up to the plan maximum, at no additional expense to the Board. Upon retirement, a full-time buildings and grounds employee who qualifies for post-retirement benefits with at least twenty-five (25) years of continuous service, shall continue to receive a life insurance benefit equal to amount of coverage in force prior to his/her retirement. The retired employee’s amount of life insurance will reduce to $7,500 on the retiree’s 65th birthday. Health Insurance Eligible buildings & grounds employees choosing health insurance coverage may select between two plans:
Benefits will be determined under the terms of the current health care plans. The health care plan design and benefits may be modified at any time at the discretion of the Board. Vision Insurance The buildings and grounds employee has the option to purchase vision insurance through payroll deduction in accordance with the terms of the District’s group vision insurance plan. Short-Term Disability Insurance The buildings and grounds employee has the option to purchase short-term disability income insurance through payroll deduction in accordance with the terms of the District’s group short-term disability insurance plan. Long-Term Disability Insurance The Board will pay the cost of long-term disability income insurance for full-time building and grounds employees with maximum monthly benefit of ninety percent (90%) of monthly salary up to the plan maximum. Personal Leave Up to one day of personal leave per school year with pay shall be granted. Requests to use personal leave must be approved by the employee’s direct supervisor and the Director of Human Resources. Personal leave shall be taken only in increments of half days or full days and shall not be deducted from sick leave nor shall it be used for that purpose. 10-month building and grounds employees may roll over personal days to be used in a future year to a maximum of three (3) days of accumulation. Retirement Fund The Board will pay the required employer contribution to the Wisconsin Retirement System (WRS). The buildings and grounds employee will pay an amount equal to one-half of all actuarially required contributions to WRS. Sick Leave Buildings and grounds employees earn 1 sick day per month. Part-time buildings and grounds employees’ accumulation of sick leave is prorated based on the buildings and grounds employee’s regular work schedule. Sick days may be accumulated to one hundred (100) days. Sick leave may be used for personal illness or to attend medical appointments. Up to one-half (1/2) of accumulated days or fifteen (15) days, whichever is less, may be used in case of illness of member’s spouse, child, parent or domestic partner. No buildings and grounds employee of less than one year’s service with the District shall be entitled to sick leave benefits. After completion of one year’s services, the buildings and grounds employee shall be able to utilize the sick leave accrued during the first twelve months of service. Sick leave benefits may be used in increments of one (1) hour or multiples thereof. To the extent permitted by applicable law, use of sick days for leave which qualifies under state or federal FMLA provisions shall run concurrently with such FMLA leave. Tuition The District shall reimburse buildings and grounds employees for tuition costs for courses related to present work assignments or for courses related to job advancement with the District. To be eligible for reimbursement, the buildings and grounds employee must have prior approval of the Superintendent and submit to the Superintendent proof of satisfactory completion of any courses. Furthermore, to be eligible for reimbursement, the buildings and grounds employee must earn a minimum grade of “B” or “P”. The scholarship award amount is deducted. In selected circumstances, the Superintendent or his/her designee may waive the requirement that courses receive pre-authorization to qualify for tuition reimbursement. If the buildings and grounds employee receives tuition reimbursement pursuant to this policy and then voluntarily terminates employment with the District within three (3) years after receiving tuition reimbursement, the buildings and grounds employee agrees to repay the District for tuition monies paid to the buildings and grounds employee according to the following schedule:
A. Within one year after the check date with which tuition reimbursement is paid: one hundred percent (100%) of all tuition monies paid to the buildings and grounds employee; B. Within two years after the check date with which tuition reimbursement is paid: sixty-six percent (66%) of all tuition monies paid to the buildings and grounds employee; C. Within three years after the check date with which tuition reimbursement is paid: thirty-three percent (33%) of all tuition monies paid to the buildings and grounds employee. Prior to receiving tuition reimbursement, the buildings and grounds employee must enter into a contractual arrangement with the District, and the contract shall, at a minimum, contain the tuition reimbursement parameters outlined in this policy. The Board delegates to the Superintendent or his/her designee authority to draft and enter into this type of contract on behalf of the District. Vacation Days 12-month building and grounds employees will receive vacation days.
A 12-month buildings and grounds employee hired prior to July 1, 2001 shall be entitled to an annual paid vacation in accordance with the following schedule based on continuous length of service computed from the day of hire, as of July 1: 15 days after 5 years of service 20 days after 12 years of service 25 days after 22 years of service 26 days after 25 years of service 27 days after 26 years of service 28 days after 27 years of service 29 days after 28 years of service 30 days after 29 years of service
A 12 month buildings and grounds employee hired on or after July 1, 1996 (except for part-time employees and ten month employees) shall be entitled to an annual paid vacation in accordance with the following schedule based on continuous length of service computed from the day of hire: 5 days after 6 months of service 6 days after 7 months of service 7 days after 8 months of service 8 days after 9 months of service 9 days after 10 months of service 10 days after 11 months of service 10 after 1 year of service 15 days after 5 years of service 20 days after 12 years of service Any employee with less than one year of service at July 1 shall be entitled to an annual paid vacation in accordance with the above schedule, such annual vacation to be prorated based on continuous length of service computed from the date of hire.
On July 1 of each year, a determination shall be made for each buildings and grounds employee, in accordance with the schedule set forth in section A above, of the amount of vacation with pay to which he/she is entitled. In making such determinations, buildings and grounds employees who complete their 5th or 12th year of service after July 1 in such calendar year will be entitled to take additional vacation time in such years after their anniversary date. This accrued vacation must be taken prior to the following June 30th.
Vacations are not cumulative and must be taken within the vacation year of July 1 through June 30 of the following year unless a written request is filed with the principal and/or designated director and approved by the Superintendent. Vacation schedules must be approved by the appropriate supervisor and the Director of Human Resources. Vacations may be taken in increments of one-half day for a maximum of one week of an employee's vacation time in a year. Vacations may be taken in full-day increments for up to a maximum of two consecutive weeks. Holidays Except for covered cafeteria workers (cooks), the District shall observe a total of ten (10) paid holidays for 12 month full-time buildings and grounds employees: January 1, the Friday preceding Easter, Memorial Day, July 4, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, the day following Thanksgiving Day and December 24, 25, and 31. Cooks shall receive the following paid holidays: January 1, the Friday preceding Easter, Memorial Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, the day following Thanksgiving Day. 10 month buildings and grounds employees shall receive Memorial Day, Labor Day, and Thanksgiving Day. In order to be eligible for holiday pay, an employee must work the employee's regularly scheduled workdays immediately preceding and following the holiday, unless the employee is on an excused absence with pay. Employees on an unpaid leave of absence shall not be eligible for holiday pay if the holiday falls during the absence period. Full-time For the purpose of this policy, a full-time maintenance/custodial employee is one who is regularly scheduled to work forty (40) hours or more per week, and a full-time cook is one who is regularly scheduled to work thirty (30) hours or more per week. Benefits and Domestic Partners Health, dental and vision insurance benefits are offered to domestic partners of employees of the Wauwatosa School District on the same basis as married couples. For the purposes of Wauwatosa’s benefit policies, a “domestic partner” is defined as an individual who has signed and filed a declaration of domestic partnership in the office of the register of deeds in the county in which he or she resides. Approved/Adopted: July 13, 2009 Revised: August 29, 2011 Revised: July 8, 2013 Approved: July 15, 2013 Approved: November 9, 2015 Revised: August 8, 2016 |
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