Managing Teacher Absenteeism

Why is Teacher Leave Use Important ? Research correlates with lower student achievement National benchmark for business/industry much lower (4%) than school districts (8% or higher) Teacher work year usually 190 days versus business/industry 260 days Daily leave use/leaves of absence often a major pain point for principals

Key Goals in Effective Leave Management Strategies 1. Clear and Consistent Leave Policies and Communication to Employees Review laws, board policies, contracts, manuals and SOPs to ensure consistency in leave policies. Tighten up language and deadlines where possible. Provide one-stop-shop on district website for information on leave. Provide tools and resources to school secretaries or other school based personnel who support schools in leaves. 2. Clear Roles and Responsibilities on Leave Management HR Partner owns helping to manage their schools’ leaves, particularly from staffing perspective Central Leaves Team owns processing of leave from initial request to completion of leave (re-entry or termination) The Legal division should be a partner with HR on policies and termination for employees who have abused leave. Principal signs receipt but NOT approval on leave request and is kept informed on leave status and return to work Employee submits proper documentation, responds to deadlines, returns to work per approved leave.

Key Goals in Effective Leave Management (cont’d.) Strategies 3. Timely and Accurate Processing of Leave Requests Set clear turnaround times for all leave types in your district. Clear escalation paths for leaves that go beyond set turn-around times. Online system with self-service for employees to submit leave requests. 4. Hold Adults Accountable to Leave Policies Set clear deadlines for employees to submit leave paperwork and notify of their intent to return. If employees do not respond to deadlines, move to terminate (partner with legal to understand what you can/can’t do). Establish appropriate triggers so employees are not taking multiple FMLA leaves without working full 12 months in between. Remind principals that absenteeism matters and they can and must do something about the excessive leave use.

Some Potential First Steps to Addressing Leaves Goal First Steps 1. Clear and Consistent Leave Policies and Communication to Employees Meet with legal and other relevant stakeholders to review leave policies, tighten up language and set clear deadlines. Set Notification Deadlines to Plan for School Opening. e.g., if a teacher is on child care leave, April 1 should be the latest deadline to notify HR if they are returning the following year or extending, if eligible. If they do not notify their intention by that date, let them know it is treated as a resignation. 2. Clear Roles and Responsibilities on Leave Management Document as-is state to understand who does what and where roles and responsibilities need to be clarified or shifted. Establish key metrics for HR to track and review on regular basis (and other stakeholders depending on data). Provide regular reports on leaves – especially day-to-day leave use by school -- to principals and principal supervisors. 3. Timely and Accurate Processing of Leave Requests Create triggers in HRIS that prompt automatic action on leaves 4. Hold Adults Accountable to Leave Policies Address egregious offenders first - work with legal to move to terminate them. Discuss with principals employees who have exhausted sick/personal leave for the year to determine appropriate next steps (e.g. progressive discipline, FMLA or other leave)

Actions for Monday Morning Determine percentage of leave use (day-to-day) and by category (sick, personal, professional development, etc.) Determine the fill-rate for substitute teacher requests by school Determine how much leave is caused by pulling out teachers for professional development Have payroll run a report of every teacher who has exhausted sick leave balances but is not on a long-term leave Run a report of any teacher who has taken multiple leaves of absence (returns to work but yearly applies for another leave) Check the leave balance/situation for every teacher who received an Ineffective rating in the previous year