The vacation is based on the employee's normal work schedule. DCF must maintain a list of employees who are eligible for the extra vacation and must certify that they have completed a full year as foster parents to each employee's agency. Presumably, this means one month after someone has been employed and provided foster care for a year. It is not clear what these expected time commitments are. OPM must approve any decision to grant time off and its decisions may not be appealed.
State regulations governing the use of vacation time apply to the extra vacation the bill grants.
The bill prohibits employees from using work time to perform their foster parent tasks, and it states that any such activities must be outside the scope of their jobs. The bill allows state employee collective bargaining representatives to agree to have their members participate in this program. This can begin once the representative and the state, acting through the Office of Labor Relations, execute an agreement that indicates the representative's acceptance of the program's terms and conditions. No variation of these terms and conditions can occur without legislative approval, and this matter is not subject to grievance and arbitration or interest arbitration. The terms for their receiving the extra week are virtually the same as those in this bill.