1. Presentation Title Here
Principals & Deputy Principals Conference 2017.
Operation of Teachers Sick Leave Scheme & Related Topics.
John O’Brien & Niamh Cooper
Presentation Title Here

2. Source Documents
DES Circular 53/2015 and DES Web book 2 (Chapter 3):
Employee Assistance & Wellbeing Programme – Inspire Workplaces.
OHS (Medmark) Standard Operating Procedures Manual (SOPM) - June 2015 and the guidebook OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH ADVICE ON MEDICAL FITNESS TO TEACH. A GUIDE FOR BOARDS OF MANAGEMENT/VECs. (revised Oct 2011).
DES Quick Reference Manual for OLCS.
DES Ill-Health Retirement Procedures Booklet:

3. DES Circular 53/2015 & Web Book 2
Current Entitlement to Paid Sick Leave:
Ordinary Illness: 3 months Full Pay (92 Days)
3 Months Half Pay (91 Days)
Maximum 183 days in a rolling 4 year period
Critical Illness: 6 months Full Pay (183 Days)
6 Months Half Pay (182 Days)
Maximum 365 days in a rolling 4 year period
Temporary Rehabilitation Remuneration (TRR)

4. Temporary Rehabilitation Remuneration
Calculated on pensionable pay, and paid pensionable service at the time paid sick leave was exhausted, PLUS added years which would be awarded if ill-health retirement were granted.
TRR does not count as a period of pensionable service.
TRR will not exceed 18 months (548 days) in the case of an Ordinary Illness.
Under Critical Illness Provisions, TRR will be 12 months (365 days), followed a further period of TRR not exceeding 24 months (730 days)
The granting of TRR will be conditional on the confirmation from Medmark that there is a reasonable prospect of recovery and return to work.

5. Access to paid sick leave
Dual Lookback (Ordinary Illness):
Previous 4 years (rolling) – access to paid sick leave: If less than 183 days taken – e.g. 60 days taken = 123 days of paid sick leave remaining
Previous 12 months (rolling) – what rate of pay: Full or Half?
If less than 92 days of full pay in previous 12 months, then access to full pay up to and including 92nd day – e.g. 40 days on full pay in previous 12 months = 52 days full pay sick leave left. Then rate of pay will drop to half pay if sick leave continues.
Members can USE the Sick Leave grid on INTO website:
INTO Recommends Schools issue a Sick Leave print out annually to staff.

6. Certs & Self Certified leave
CERTS: Who should sign them?
What should they show?
To be signed by a duly qualified medical practitioner registered with the Irish/UK Medical Council/Dental Council of Ireland.
Medical certificates may be accepted from overseas medical practitioners in exceptional circumstances.
Should state “fitness to work” or otherwise (specify if PRSL). Covers absences for 1 week normally - BOM can accept up to 1 month.
Self-certified sick leave (formerly known as uncertified sick leave): –
Not more than 7 days in a rolling 2 year period (this is part of the overall limit of 183 days).
Max 3 consecutive school days any one occurrence.

7. Illness Benefit (Social Welfare)
Illness Benefit – only relevant for teachers who pay Class A PRSI. Absence must be longer than 6 consecutive days (don’t include Sunday in the count)
MC1 and MC2 Forms must be submitted to the Illness Benefit Unit of the DES. (available from a GP or Citizens Information centre)
Illness Benefit paid to the DES, not directly to the teacher (except where the teacher is on TRR)
DES will seek to recoup Illness Benefit from a teacher if forms not submitted

8. MedMark (OHS)
Standard Operating procedures Manual: Sickness Absence & Medical Fitness to return to Work:
Non-discretionary referral
Where an individual teacher’s absences total 28 days (cumulative) in previous 12 months – flagged on OLCS
Discretionary referral
Repeated short-term sickness absences.
Where concerns arise regarding performance of duties as a result of health factors.
Concern that work related factors may be adversely affecting employees’ health.
Alcohol or drug related problems.

9. Medmark Cont.
Process:
Referral made online – teacher to be supplied with a copy of the referral form.
MedMark will triage: contact the teacher by phone/may arrange an appointment / establish likely duration of absence and agree return to work date (if possible) – may need to schedule a review.
Report to issue to employer: “Fit or Not Fit” only – incl. reasonable accommodation recommendation.

10. Critical Illness Protocol (CIP)
The employee should ordinarily be under the current or recent clinical care of a Consultant.
The nature of the medical condition has at least one of the following Four characteristics:
 Acute Life Threatening Physical Illness
 Chronic Progressive Illness
 Major Physical Trauma
 2 consecutive weeks hospitalisation or greater (2 days in the case of PRSL)

11. Critical Illness Protocol
A teacher must apply to BOM to have CIP applied.
The case must be referred to Medmark for advice [online referral]
Decision to award the critical illness provisions is for the employer. Employer must primarily consider the OHS advice but should consider all the circumstances of the case. In this regard, although an employee does not meet the medical criteria, an employer may still make a decision to award in exceptional circumstances.
BOM should advise the teacher of the decision (not Medmark).
Teacher should be advised an Appeal procedure is available:
1. Employer decision or
2. Medical decision

12. Pregnancy Related Sick Leave
Pregnancy-related Sick Leave taken prior to introduction of new sick leave scheme in September 2014 can be discounted in full (record needed).
Pregnancy-related sick leave is initially treated the same as other sick leave – overall maximum of 183 days.
Cert from the GP should state absence is due to a Pregnancy related illness.

13. Pregnancy Related Sick Leave (cont.)
Some specific provisions:
Teacher on pregnancy-related sick leave will not fall below half pay for the duration of the pregnancy related absence.
Where paid sick leave is exhausted & teacher needs access to sick leave for a “non pregnancy-related illness”, but, a portion of the sick leave already used covered a pregnancy-related absence – those days can be discounted from the 183 (or 365) days taken, and the teacher will get a further period of half-pay.
Critical Illness – 2 days in hospital sufficient for MedMark to make recommendation.

14. QUESTIONS
ACTIVITY 1

15. Entering Sick Leave on OLCS
Things to remember about OLCS:
Entering GP Certificate - Start and End date must correspond with dates on leave record.
This generates a certificate number which should be recorded on back of hard copy certificate and filed
If sick leave in excess of 31 days is entered, two separate certificates need to be recorded
If sick leave exceeds 28 days in past year – referral to MedMark must be made to obtain an OHS number which is required to save leave successfully.
For CIP applications Medmark will provide schools with a unique “Recommendation Number” to be entered on OLCS.
BOM decision to award CIP can entered on OLCS using specific “drop down” option.

16. Entering Sick Leave on OLCS (cont).
Specific provision - When “Ordinary” Sick Leave on Full pay is exhausted:
Where entitlement to full pay is exhausted OLCS will ask if a referral has been made to MedMark for Critical Illness – Answer: Yes or No
If No – system will automatically split the sick leave record to the appropriate rate – half pay or TRR
If Yes – OHS referral Number (in all cases as noted above) and OHS Approval Number (if applicable) must be entered
Remember: Employer can award critical illness even where MedMark do not recommend = BOM decision.

17. Resumption of Duties.
Prior to a resumption of duties after 28 days on SL (or more than 2 years on other leave), the teacher must be referred to Medmark to confirm their fitness to resume - With recommendations if applicable.
If the teacher is unable to resume teaching and all paid Sick Leave (incl. TRR) has been exhausted, an option to move to a period of unpaid leave may be available on agreement with DES, where a reasonable prospect of a recovery still exists (on referral to Medmark) – recent case.
Where there is no prospect of a return and where all leave options and Medmark recommendations have been exhausted “the employer shall take such timely action as it deems appropriate, including, but not limited to termination of the contract of employment. BOM should take legal advise.
Three months notice should apply.

18. Partial Return to Work
“is subject to the recommendation of the OHS and the approval of the employer… to facilitate a teacher recovering from an illness to transition back to full duties over an agreed limited period of time.”
“At the end of this period it is expected that the teacher shall have reached a state of medical fitness sufficient to allow him/her to undertake full duties on a whole time basis.”
“The employer should ensure all reasonable steps are taken to facilitate the PRW arrangement…”

19. Partial Return to Work (cont.)
PRW arrangement will commence on an agreed date.
Duration of the agreement will be based on advice of OHS, and is permitted for a maximum period of one school term.
PRW may commence at any time within a school term, but not extend beyond the end of that term.

20. Partial Return to Work (cont.)
A teacher availing of PRW must “undertake to carry out their full responsibilities in accordance with their contract for a minimum of 2 full school days every week – full rate of pay for days worked
The remaining days on which the teacher does not work must be recorded as sick leave on OLCS – appropriate rate of sick pay / TRR will be applied
Substitute teacher may be employed to cover the sick leave days
PRW “subject to review over 2017/18 and 2018/19 school years”

21. Reasonable Accommodation
The Employment Equality Acts oblige employers to make reasonable accommodation for people with disabilities
Obligation is to take ‘appropriate measures’ to meet the needs of disabled people in the workforce
Appropriate measures = effective and practical changes that the employer puts in place to enable employees with a disability to carry out their work on an equal footing with others. These include:

22. Reasonable Accommodation (cont).
adapting the premises or the equipment, e.g. installing wheelchair ramps, providing special computers for the visually impaired;
offering flexible working times;
providing training or other supports that might help;
adjusting an employee’s attendance hours or allowing them to work from home; or
assigning an employee certain tasks, and substituting others for equivalent duties, in consultation with the employee.

23. Ill-Health Retirement (Retirement on Medical Grounds)
Instigated by the Teacher not the School or Medmark.
Usually the teacher will have been on Sick Leave for an extended period of time.
Method of Calculation: Service to date plus added years are awarded - generally 6 & 2/3 years.
Applications are determined solely on the basis of medical evidence and are always determined by Medmark.
Generally teachers apply 4/6 weeks before sick leave is due to expire but it is not necessary to have exhausted sick leave.

24. IHR Procedure The process may consist of up to four stages:
Stage 1 Application process – DES Pensions & Referral to Medmark.
Stage 2 Appeal, which will include a review of the medical evidence.
Stage 3 Internal Disputes Resolution, which involves a review of administrative processes (does not include a review of the medical evidence).
Stage 4 Complaint to the Office of the Pensions Ombudsman.
Following a successful application, the School will be informed by the DES. Three month notice period not applicable.

25. QUESTIONS
ACTIVITY 2.