ETA
ETA is an electronic time and attendance system used by staff to report their time worked, request time off and report overtime worked. The information is submitted through the supervisor and is submitted to the payroll system at the end of each pay period.
Leave
Time off from work is an important part of making sure you take care of yourself and your family. Take a look at the types of paid and unpaid leave available to Department of Corrections employees.
Leave Outlook
My Leave Outlook, located inside ETA and for ETA users only, displays annual leave and sick leave balance predictions for future pay periods.
Sick Leave
Team Members who are employed on a full-time basis in positions of a continuing or permanent nature earn sick leave. Full-time team members receive five hours of sick leave each pay period for each semi-month of service in which they are in pay status for 80 or more hours.
Team Members can accumulate sick leave without limit. Sick leave can be converted to retirement credit upon retirement. A team member who separates from state service, but returns within five years will have their sick leave balance restored.
Sick leave is also prorated for team members in eligible positions who are in pay status for a minimum of 40 hours in a pay period. Sick leave is granted and approved by the agency appointing authority, or their designee.
More information can be found in department procedure D2-8.3.
Wellness Leave
Employees are permitted to use 1 hour of accrued sick leave per month to participate in personal wellness activities. This leave must be taken in a 1 hour increment and employees must have a sick leave balance. Sick leave cannot be used prior to time that is credited to the employee. Leave for personal wellness activities shall only be used for a program or activity directly related to health promotion or disease prevention for the individual employee. Qualifying activities include, but are not limited to: attending a gym or fitness class; taking a walk, jogging, bicycling, or other exercise; attending a class, seminar, or webinars on diet, exercise, or wellness-related topics; participating in an event or activity facilitated by a department wellness team; or participating in a tobacco cessation, weight management, stress management, or other related disease management session.
More information can be found in department procedure D2-8.3.
Annual Leave
Team Members in full-time positions of a continuing or permanent nature shall be entitled to accumulate annual leave as follows:
- Team Members with less than ten years of total state service earn 5 hours of annual leave each pay period with a maximum annual leave balance of 240 hours.
- Team Members who have completed ten years of total state service earn 6 hours of annual leave each pay period with a maximum annual leave balance of 288 hours.
- Team Members who have completed fifteen years of total state service earn 7 hours of annual leave each pay period with a maximum annual leave balance of 336 hours.
Team Members may accumulate more annual leave than their allowed maximum until October 31 of any year. After October 31, any excess annual leave over a team member's maximum balance is reduced to the maximum, at which time the team member can begin accumulating above the maximum.
A team member entitled to annual leave who has resigned or otherwise separated from the service shall be entitled to receive reimbursement for the amount of this accrued leave which does not exceed the maximum allowable accumulation.
Annual leave is prorated for part-time team members in eligible positions who are in pay status for a minimum of 40 hours in a pay period. Annual leave is granted and approved by the agency appointing authority, or their designee.
More information can be found in department procedure D2-8.2.
Overtime
According to the Fair Labor Standards Act, certain categories of workers are designated as “non-exempt” and entitled to be compensated at the rate of time and a half for any hours worked in excess of 40 hours within a work week. The state developed three overtime pay category codes:
0 - Exempt from FLSA: top level supervisory, managerial and administrative staff and persons employed in very responsible professional, technical or consultative capacities who do not normally receive overtime compensation except in unusual circumstances as determined by appointing authorities.
1 - Exempt from FLSA: Other supervisory, professional, technical and related positions that are compensated for overtime at a straight time rate
2 - Non-exempt from FLSA: Other categories of team members who are compensated for overtime at the rate of time and a half.
Non-exempt team members (or Code 2) who work over forty (40) hours within a workweek will be compensated for their time at the rate of time and one-half, either in payment or compensatory time off from work. For most team members, compensatory time is maintained which can then be used as time off or is paid at a later date.
Employees who refuse to work mandated overtime may be subject to disciplinary action. All voluntary overtime must be approved prior to being worked.
The State of Missouri issues pay checks on a semimonthly basis (2 checks per month), as follows:
- Time worked the 1st through the 15th of the month: The check will be dated the last working day of the month.
- Time worked the 16th through the end of the month: The check will be dated the 15th of the month. PLEASE NOTE: If the 15th is a Saturday, the check will be issued the previous working day. If the 15th is a Sunday, the check will be issued the following workday.
Depending on your start date, it might take as long as 2-4 weeks to issue your first paycheck.
Overtime worked during a split work week (week that falls within 2 different pay periods) will not be credited to the appropriate compensatory time balance until the following pay period has processed.
ShareLeave
When employees suffer a catastrophic illness or injury and have exhausted all paid leave, they may qualify for ShareLeave to utilize paid leave that has been donated by fellow employees. Department Procedure D2-8.12 ShareLeave provides information about how to donate leave and request the use of ShareLeave.
Administrative Leave
Bereavement
Administrative leave of up to 40 hours for bereavement leave to grieve and/or to attend the funeral may be granted with supporting documentation, due to a death in the employee’s immediate family or household, unless the employee is currently on a leave of absence covered by administrative leave.
More information can be found in departmental procedure D2-8.5.
Military Leave
The department complies with all regulations under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA). USERRA is designed to protect the rights of persons who are absent from employment because of military service.
Employees who are members of the Armed Forces of the United States or the National Guard who are performing military duties on a voluntary or involuntary basis are entitled to military leave of absence. While serving under military orders, employees will be entitled to the protection and benefits of USERRA. Employees serving in the military under eligible criteria will not be subjected to any negative impact on their career with the department, to include seniority, benefit entitlement or performance rating. The department provides 120 hours of paid military leave (not including days off or holidays) in any federal fiscal year (October 1-September 30).
Parental Leave
Executive Order 17-09 allows every employee of the departments and agencies of the executive branch of Missouri state government to take paid parental leave for the birth or adoption of a child. Primary caregivers may take up to 6 weeks of paid parental leave. Secondary caregivers may take up to 3 weeks of paid parental leave. More information about parental leave can be found in department procedure D2-8.14 Parental Leave.
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)
Leave Entitlements: FMLA provides to eligible employees unpaid, job-protected leave for certain family and medical reasons. Eligible employees who work for a covered employer can take up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave in a 12-month period for the following reasons:
- The birth of a child or placement of a child for adoption or foster care;
- To bond with a child (leave must be taken within one year of the child’s birth or placement);
- To care for the employee’s spouse, child, or parent who has a qualifying serious health condition;
- For the employee’s own qualifying serious health condition that makes the employee unable to perform the employee’s job;
- For qualifying exigencies related to the foreign deployment of a military member who is the employee’s spouse, child, or parent.
An eligible employee who is a covered servicemember’s spouse, child, parent, or next of kin may also take up to 26 weeks of FMLA leave in a single 12-month period to care for the servicemember with a service-related serious injury or illness.
An employee does not need to use leave in one block. When it is medically necessary or otherwise permitted, employees may take leave intermittently or on a reduced schedule.
Absences covered under FMLA run concurrently with accrued paid and unpaid leave. This means that the department requires employees to use accrued sick, annual, holiday, and state compensatory leave while taking FMLA leave. After all accrued leave balances are exhausted, the employee may use unpaid leave for absences covered under FMLA. Regardless of the type of leave used for the absence, the employee must comply with the employer’s normal time and attendance reporting policies.
Benefits and Protections: While employees are on FMLA leave, employers must continue health insurance coverage as if the employees were not on leave.
Upon return from FMLA leave, most employees must be restored to the same job or one nearly identical to it with equivalent pay, benefits, and other employment terms and conditions.
An employer may not interfere with an individual’s FMLA rights or retaliate against someone for using or trying to use FMLA leave, opposing any practice made unlawful by FMLA, or being involved in any proceeding under or related to FMLA.
Eligibility Requirements: An employee who works for a covered employer must meet three criteria in order to be eligible for FMLA leave. The employee must:
- Have worked for the employer for at least 12 months;
- Have at least 1,250 hours of service in the 12 months before taking leave; and
- Work at a location where the employer has at least 50 employees within 75 miles of the employee’s worksite.
Requesting Leave: Generally, employees must give 30-days’ advance notice of the need for FMLA leave. If it is not possible to give 30-days’ notice, an employee must notify the employer as soon as possible and, generally, follow the employer’s usual procedures.
Employees do not have to share a medical diagnosis but must provide enough information for the employer to determine whether the leave qualifies for FMLA protection. Sufficient information could include informing an employer that the employee is or will be unable to perform his or her job functions; that a family member cannot perform daily activities; or that hospitalization or continuing medical treatment is necessary. Employees must inform the employer if the need for leave is for a reason for which FMLA leave was previously taken or certified.
Employers can require a certification or periodic recertification supporting the need for leave. If the employer determines that the certification is incomplete, it must provide a written notice indicating what additional information is required.
Employer Responsibilities: Once an employer becomes aware that an employee’s need for leave is for a reason that may qualify under FMLA, the employer must notify the employee if he or she is eligible for FMLA leave and, if eligible, must also provide a notice of rights and responsibilities under FMLA. If the employee is not eligible, the employer must provide a reason for ineligibility.
Employers must notify its employees if leave will be designated as FMLA leave, and if so, how much leave will be designated as FMLA leave.
Enforcement: Employees may file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division, or may bring a private lawsuit against an employer.
FMLA does not affect any federal or state law prohibiting discrimination or supersede any state or local law or collective bargaining agreement that provides greater family or medical leave rights.
Employees should consult department procedure D2-8.13 Family Medical Leave or D2-8.15 Military Family Leave for a complete explanation of the process for requesting family medical leave.
Holiday List
Pursuant to state law, state employees receive 13 paid holidays per year, plus any additional holidays as designated by the governor or the president. Employees who work on holidays earn compensatory time, which they can use at a later date or take in the form of a compensatory time payout. Please refer to Department Procedure D2- 8.10 Holiday for more information.
HOLWK – used when the employee works the holiday that is a normal work day for the employee. The max allowed is 8 hours, if the employee works more than 8 hours, the additional hours are coded as ADDHR.
1HRDO – used when the holiday falls on the employees RDO. If the employee also works on this day, the hours physically worked should be coded as ADDHR.
Work Schedule
All employees are expected to arrive to work on time, work all assigned posts and scheduled shifts as directed, work all mandatory overtime, and comply with all leave procedures when requesting time off of work. Frequent tardiness and absences from work and failure to comply with department attendance procedures negatively affect the safety and security of department facilities, are discourteous and disrespectful to coworkers, and are unprofessional. More about work schedules>>