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The COVID-19 school closures have created unique situations for San Diego Unified employees.
This page provides information for our substitute and regular employees.
Employee Pay Frequently Asked Questions
Information for certificated and classified substitute employees
I am a visiting (substitute) certificated employee. Will I be paid during the school closure?
Response: Visiting Certificated Employees who had a confirmed job in the substitute management system as of 5:00pm on March 13, 2020 and all scheduled and confirmed jobs during the school district’s closure will receive full pay for those assignment(s). Pay for those assignments will follow the rates outlined in Appendix D, Section 2.00, 3.00 and 8.00.
I am a classified substitute. Will I continue to be paid during the school closure?
Response: Classified substitutes who had a confirmed job in the substitute management system as of 5:00pm on March 13, 2020 and all scheduled and confirmed jobs during the school district’s closure will receive full pay for those assignment(s). Pay for those assignments will follow your regular rate of pay for that classification.
I am a visiting certificated employee/ classified substitute/ retiree who self-quarantined (due to having traveled to Level 3 notice countries, being part of an at-risk group, or coming in contact with a person who had a confirmed case of COVID-19, or was told to not report to work) and used my own sick leave prior to schools being closed. Will I get this leave back?
Response: Yes, you will be covered under and given access to the “alternative paid sick leave absence” program that SDUSD set up for all other regular employees. If you used your sick leave between March 9 - March 13 for this purpose, this leave will be restored.
I am a classified substitute/ retired employee, but I do not obtain work through the SAMS system. Will I be paid during the school closure?
Response: If you are asked to work during the school closure, you would submit a timecard and would be paid using the normal procedures. If you are not able to work as much as you had previously worked before the school closure, you may be eligible for unemployment benefits.
If the schools had not closed, I would have been able to work more days as a substitute. What are my options?
Response: The state of California provides resources for employees affected by COVID-19. Please visit the Labor & Workforce Development Agency’s website to review the benefits that are available. A simple overview of options provided by the state can be found here: https://www.labor.ca.gov/coronavirus2019/#chart
A more comprehensive overview can be found on the Labor & Workforce Development Agency’s website: https://www.labor.ca.gov/Coronavirus2019/ The District will not oppose unemployment claims unless legally required to do so.
I had a number of confirmed assignments in the SAMS system and they were canceled. Will I be paid for those jobs?
Response: Yes, you will be paid for all jobs completed through March 13, 2020. Although some jobs scheduled March 16, 2020 or later may appear to have been canceled in the SAMS system, you will be paid for the confirmed jobs. The assignments will be restored, confirmed and verified by the Human Resource Services Division so that you will be paid.
Information for active regular monthly employees (non- substitutes)
I am on a paid leave due to illness or injury. Will I be paid during the school closure?
Response: Yes, your normal paid leave will continue using the alternative sick leave COVID-19 absence code for any dates after March 9, 2020 and through the date of reopening.
I am an active employee working in a regular position (not a substitute) and am working remotely. Do I need to report a partial day absence?
Response: No. Partial day absences are suspended while employees are working remotely.
I am working remotely, but will not be available during part of my work calendar. Can I use vacation, PPI or other kinds of leave?
Response: Yes, if you choose to be unavailable during the regularly scheduled workweek/ day, you would submit a timecard using the normal procedures. This is for full-day absences only as partial absences do not need to be reported.
Can I use personal necessity during the school closure?
Response: Yes, if you choose to be unavailable during the regularly scheduled workweek/ day, you would submit a timecard using the normal procedures. This is for full-day absences only, as partial absences do not need to be reported.
Can I use 2-hour personal business absence during the school closure?
Response: No, as employees are working remotely and can manage their own schedules, additionally, partial day absences do not need to be reported during the school closure.
I am a 10 or 11-month employee and my calendar states that I will be using forced vacation during the school closure, will this still occur? What if I don’t have enough vacation hours to be paid?
Response: Yes, the vacation pay will be used for the days identified on the applicable employee calendars. If an employee is out of this leave balance, the District will pay the employee for these dates during the school closure.
Information for employees in unpaid (inactive) status
I am on an unpaid leave of absence, will I be paid during the school closure?
Response: Employees on an unpaid leave of absence will continue to remain in unpaid status.
I am in an unpaid status however, I am ready to return to work. Will I be paid during the school closure?
Response: Employees returning from leave should follow the normal return to work procedures through the Human Resource Services Division. Once you are cleared to return to work, your pay status will be established.
Employee Leave Information and FAQ
Effective March 9, 2020, the District is creating an alternative paid sick leave absence type for all regular monthly employees. The Time Reporting Code to be used for this type of absence will be provided to Timekeepers at sites and departments before close of business Friday, March 13, 2020. Directions for using it will also be provided. This leave is only to be utilized for the normal workdays in the employee’s work calendar, additional pay (e.g. overtime, extra time or hourly pay) for additional duties/ hours are not covered by this leave. Employees in the following situations will not need to use their accrued sick leave and can use the alternative paid sick leave:
Staff who are exhibiting symptoms and must stay home from school;
Staff members who have a travel history over the course of the last 14 calendar days to an area identified by the CDC as a Level 3 Travel Health Notice must self-quarantine for 14 days. This list can be found at: https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/notices;
Staff members who have been in close contact (3-6 ft) with a person with a laboratory-confirmed case of 2019 novel coronavirus over the past two weeks will be able to use this leave (or until cleared by the local public health department); or
Staff who are in the at-risk population for serious disease and opt to stay home from school.
How many days of paid leave are available to employees who qualify?
Staff who were directed to be quarantined, or who self-quarantine, as outlined above were told to do so for 14 calendar days. The use of the leave should be only for the workdays that fall into this 14-day period. That means that if you are quarantined or decide to self-quarantine, the first day you exhibit symptoms or are under quarantine is day one. The fourteenth day would be fourteen calendar days later, including weekends or any holidays that may fall during this period.
Here’s an example:
Pat has a heart condition and is considered high risk.
On Monday, March 9, Pat does not go to work and is advised by her doctor that she should stay home. Pat’s timekeeper will enter the time reporting code of 19SLC with the description of - “A-Sick Leave Mthly req-COVD19” for March 9- 13 (days 1-5), days 6 and 7 are weekends, therefore no pay would be recorded. March 16-20 (days 9-13) would be recorded and March 21 is a weekend. Therefore, the 14th day would not be recorded. After the 14th day, if Pat is not exhibiting symptoms she will return to work the following work day.
If a salaried employee has already been sent home prior to this notification and sick leave has been reported for the absence, does it need to be changed to the new time reporting code?
Yes. As of March 9, 2020, any salaried employee who was sent home for exhibiting symptoms and has had an absence reported in Peoplesoft time and labor must have the time removed and the new time reporting code entered onto the timesheet.
If an employee was sent home for exhibiting symptoms do they need to provide a doctor’s note to return to work?
If the employee was sent home for exhibiting symptoms, they have remained quarantined for 14 calendar days and they are no longer exhibiting symptoms, they do not need to provide a doctor’s note to return to work.
In order to return to work, staff members must remain fever free for 24 hours, without fever medication, and have no respiratory symptoms. If respiratory symptoms are not completely gone, but they are improving and one week has passed since the onset of illness, the employee may return to work.
If an employee has been in close contact (3-6 ft) with a person with a laboratory-confirmed case of 2019 novel coronavirus over the past two weeks should they be sent home?
Yes. The employee will need to be sent home until they have been cleared by the local public health department.
How much information can an employer request from employees who report feeling ill at work or who call in sick?
Employers may ask such employees if they are experiencing symptoms such as fever with a cough or other respiratory symptoms. Employers must maintain all information about employee illness as a confidential medical record.
If an employee was sent home due to a travel history over the course of the last 14 days to an area identified by the CDC as a Level 3 Travel Health Notice, do they need to provide a doctor’s note to return to work?
Per the CDC, employees must self-quarantine for 14 calendar days and may return to work if they are not exhibiting symptoms.
If an employee was sent home due to being in close contact (3-6ft) with a person with a laboratory-confirmed case of 2019 novel coronavirus over the past two weeks do they need to provide a doctor’s note to return to work?
No. They must be cleared by the local public health department to return to work.
Sources:
US Equal Opportunity Commission’s Pandemic Preparedness in the Workplace and the Americans with Disabilities Act
Center for Disease Control https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html
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