REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

1961

House Bill No.

Introduced by MAGDALO Party-List Representative
HON. MANUEL DG. CABOCHAN III

EXPLANATORY NOTE

‘A government employee is entitled for vacation and sick leaves he/she earned. In cases where
a government employee experiences a serious illness or injury, he/she, however, is sometimes
forced to exhaust all his/her leave credits and continue to be on leave without compensation.
This is an unfortunate event for an employee.

This bill, thus, is intended to alleviate the hardship caused to an employee and to his/her
family experiencing the aforesaid situation. It seeks to create a "Sick Leave Bank" for
government employees. As used in this bill, Sick Leave Bank refers to a pool of sick days
which will be established by employees who will make a one-time donation of their
accumulated local sick days. Depending on the participant's donation, he/she may use sick
leaves in the sick leave bank of his/her agency if he/she has exhausted his/her accrued
vacation time, personal days, sick leave and compensatory lime due to serious illness or
injury.

In view of the foregoing, immediate approval of this bill is eamestly sought.

Magdalo Para'%a Pilipino Party-List


REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

House Bill No, _ 1961

Introduced by MAGDALO Party-List Representative
___HON. MANUEL DG. CABOCHAN IIL

AN ACT
CREATING THE SICK LEAVE BANK FOR GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES

Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines in
Congress assembled:

SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the "Sick Leave Bank Act."

SEC. 2. Definition of Terms.- As used in this Act, unless the context otherwise
requires, the following terms shall mean:

a) "Commission" means the Civil Service Commission;

b) "Agency" means any branch, department, board, committee or commission of the
government;

c

"Sick leave bank" means a depository into which participating employees may donate
or deposit accrued sick leave time for allocation to other participating employees;

d

"Participating employee" means a permanent full or part-time employee who has
beenemployed by a government agency for a period of six (6) months or more who
voluntarily enrolls in the sick leave bank by depositing at least three (3) full days of
accrued sick leave in that bank; and

©

"Catastrophic illness or injury" shall mean those illnesses and injuries which will be
classified as such by the Commission.

SEC. 3. Sick Leave Bank.- The Commission shall establish a system or scheme
allowing participatingemployces in cach agency to deposit a designated number or portion of
their accrued sick leave into a sick leave bank, to be used by any participating employee in
the agency who has exhausted his or her accrued vacation leave, personal days, sick leave
and other compensated time off.

The Commission shall promulgate the rules governing the operation of the system or
schemesubject, however, to the following restrictions and limitations:

a) Participation in the sick leave bank shall, at a// times, be voluntary on the part of any
employee.


bd)

A participating employee may deposit into the sick leave bank as much accrued sick
leave as desired; provided, that the participating employee shall retain in his or her
‘own account at least five (5) sick days.

c) A government employee cannot avail of the benefits of the sick leave bank unless he
becomes a member of that bank by depositing at three (3) full days of accrued sick
leave with that bank.

10 d) Any sick leave in the sick leave bank used by a participating employee shall be only
1 for purpose of that employee's personal catastrophic illness orinjury.

2

3 e) A participating employee cannot avail the benefits of the sick leave bank by reason of
4 any injury or illness caused by or as a result of an elective surgery;Provided, That the
15 injury or illness has not culminated into a catastrophic illness or injury defined under
16 this Act.

7

18 f) A participating employee shall not use sick leave deposited and accumulated in the
19 sick leave bank until all of his or her accrued vacation leave, personal days, sick leave
20 and other compensatory time have been used.

2

22 g) A participating employee shall not be allowed to receive any benefits from the sick
23 leave bank during any period the member is receiving disability benefits from social
24 security, or worker's compensation benefits for the job or service related injury or
25 illness that is subject to the same grant from which the employee has applied.

26

27 h) Participating employees who transfer from one agency to another may transfer their
28 Participation in the sick leave bank.

29

30 i) An employee who cancels his or her participation in the sick leave bank shall not be
31 eligible to withdraw the sick leave time he or she has contributed to the pool.

32

33 i) Provisions for the appeal of adverse decisions affecting a participating employee's use
34 of the sick leave bank shall be included in rules to be adopted by the Commission.

35

36 k) Accumulation of sick leave in the sick leave bank shall be on an agency to agency
37 basis but the procedures prescribed in the rules for the operation of the sick leave
38 bank shall be uniform among all agencies.

39

40 1) Upon termination, retirement, or death, neither a participating employee nor the
41 participating employee's estate shall be entitled to payment for unused sick leave
42 acquired from the sick leave bank

43

44 SEC. 4. Penal Provision.- Any abuse of the use of the sick leave bank shall be

45 investigated by the agency and the Commission and, upon a finding of wrongdoing on the
46 part of a participating employee, that employee shall repay all sick leave days he has drawn
47 — from the sick leave bank, and shall be subjected to other disciplinary action.


SEC. 5. Repealing Clause. - All laws, presidential decrees, executive orders and
other issuances, and rules and regulations, or part thereof, contrary to or inconsistent with any
provision of this Act, are hereby repealed, modified or amended accordingly.

SEC. 6. Implementing Rules and Reguations. -The Commission, in consultation
with the duly recognized associations and/or unions of government employees, shall
promulgate the rules and regulations for the proper implementation of this Act within sixty
(60) days from the effectivity thereof.

SEC. 7. Separability Clause.- Should any provision of this Act be found
unconstitutional by a court oflaw, such provision shall be severed from the other provisions,
and the same shall not affect the enforceability and effectivity of the remaining provisions of
this Act.

SEC. 8. Effectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its
completepublication in any two (2) national newspapers of general circulation.

Approved,