ARTICLE 4.    BENEFIT AND LEAVE PROGRAMS                        EFFECTIVE DATE:  05/04/98
RULE 408.       LEAVES OF ABSENCE WITHOUT PAY                   REVISED DATE:

A.    TYPES OF LEAVE: At the request of the Division Head and upon approval of the Presiding 
        Judge, leaves of absence without pay for absences of one payperiod or longer may be granted to 
        regular status employees for the following reasons and lengths of time:

                    Reason                     Maximum Leave Time
                    Education                     One (1) year
                    Personal                        Six (6) months

B.    EDUCATION: An employee may be granted leave of absence without pay for educational 
        purposes when it is determined that such a leave will not be detrimental to the Division. An 
        employee requesting an educational leave of absence without pay must expend all PTO leave 
        accruals before educational leave-without-pay, if granted, is permitted.

C.    PERSONAL REASONS: An employee may be granted a leave of absence without pay for 
        personal reasons when it is determined that undue hardship to the employee would otherwise result 
        and that the operation of the division would not be adversely affected. Personal leave may include  
        those leaves of absence over and above leaves provided for by Rule 411 regarding FMLA due to 
        the medical disability of the employee (including pregnancy-related disability), adoption or care of a 
        child, serious illness of a member of the immediate family, and may also include a situation out of 
        the ordinary which requires the employee's immediate attention. For personal leave-without-pay 
        requests, an employee must expend all compensatory, PTO leave and EIB credits if applicable, 
        before personal leave without pay, if granted, is permitted.

D.    GENERAL PROVISIONS:

        1.    An employee shall submit his/her request for leave of absence without pay at least two (2) 
               weeks in advance of such leave unless advance time is reduced or waived by the Division Head 
               in an emergency or extreme condition. The employee must also complete a leave of absence 
               agreement and make arrangements for payment of insurance as outlined in Rule 408(D)(7) 
               below. The written agreement shall include that the employee's ability to return to work is 
               conditioned upon the availability of an appropriate position and sufficient appropriation or 
               authorization of personal service funds. The employee shall have any unused accruals, if any, 
               reinstated at the time of return to duty.

        2.    PTO leave shall not accrue while an employee is on leave of absence without pay and who is 
                in a non-active work status. Non-active work status is defined as that period of time which 
                exceeds two full consecutive payperiods during which the employee is absent from work.

        3.    An employee on leave of absence without pay shall not receive pay for holidays.

        4.     An approved leave of absence without pay is considered a break in service as such may pertain 
                to any state retirement plan and the meeting of years of service for salary adjustments according 
                to Rule 303(L).

        5.     A leave of absence without pay shall not be granted for the employee to engage in outside 
                employment.

        6.    A Division Head may appoint a temporary replacement or detail another employee to substitute 
                for an employee on leave of absence without pay until it is determined that the regular employee 
                will or will not return or that the leave may involve a lengthy or such other period of time that the 
                operation of the Division will be adversely impacted to an unacceptable degree. Due to 
                operational or work-related reasons, the Division Head may fill the position. Therefore, the 
                Court cannot guarantee the employee's return to the same job. However, if the job is not 
                available when the employee is ready to return, he/she may be offered an equal or lesser position, 
                if one is available, for which he/she is qualified to perform (at the pay rate of such position). If 
                there is no position available, the employee will be placed on a preferential recall list and may 
                be offered the first position for which he/she is qualified (at the pay rate of such position). If the 
                employee rejects an offered position, the division no longer has any obligation to such person. 
                An employee remains on the preferential recall list for up to 3 months.

        7.    An employee starting a leave of absence without pay who wishes to continue coverage under any 
                of the group insurance programs must contact the Benefits Division of the Mohave County 
                Personnel and Risk Management Department. The employee is expected to pay the full cost of 
                the premiums; that is, both employee's and employer's shares. Otherwise, insurance coverage 
                shall cease until the next open enrollment period (or upon return to active work status subject to 
                any pre-existing condition requirements of the insurance carrier).

        8.    Leave of absence without pay, when granted, must be continuous and may not be interspersed 
               with paid time.

        9.    Resignation during a leave of absence becomes effective two (2) weeks from date of notice, not 
               at the end of the leave of absence.