H. B. 503
(By Mr. Speaker, Mr. Kiss, and Delegate Trump)
[By Request of the Executive]
[Introduced November 13, 2005.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §23-2C-14 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to employees employed by the
Workers' Compensation Commission on the thirty-first day of
December, two thousand five, that irrevocably surrender
accrued sick leave in exchange for one hour of pay for each
hour of accrued sick leave.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §23-2C-14 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted, to read as follows.
ARTICLE 2C. EMPLOYERS' MUTUAL INSURANCE COMPANY.
§23-2C-14. Certain benefits provided to commission employees.
(a) If a domestic mutual insurance company is created pursuant
to this article and becomes operational as a private carrier, then
the company shall pay the full actuarial cost to purchase years of
credit for not more than five years of service under the state's public employee retirement system to those individuals who retire
upon termination of the commission or who become employed by the
company upon termination of the commission. The amount purchased
per employee shall be calculated by allowing six months of credit
to be purchased for each year of service with the commission or its
predecessors, including the bureau of employment programs, and
shall be paid out of the mutualization transition fund. If upon
said purchase, an employee does not vest in the public employee
retirement plan, the employee can receive his or her contribution
from the retirement plan and an amount equal to the employer's
contribution to be payable out of the mutualization transition
fund.
(b) The public employees' retirement system shall take such
action as is necessary to carry out the provisions of subsection
(a).
(c) All employees employed by the commission on the
thirty-first day of December, two thousand four, who are employed
by the company immediately upon termination of the commission shall
have the following options related to their accrued sick leave:
(1) Freeze said accrued sick leave at the balance that existed as
of thirty-first day of December, two thousand four and use said
sick leave at the time of retirement to purchase insurance through
the public employee insurance agency
with any related charges
shall
be paid payable from the old fund;
or (2) have their accrued sick leave irrevocably surrendered in exchange for one hour of pay for
each hour of accrued sick leave surrendered to be payable from the
mutualization transition fund:
Provided, That if an employees opts
for the exchange provided for in subdivision two of this
subsection, the maximum amount payable shall be twenty-five
thousand dollars: Provided, however, That any employee who has
accrued sick leave remaining after attaining the maximum amount
payable under subdivision two of this subsection may use such
excess sick leave to purchase insurance through the public employee
insurance agency with any related charges payable from the old
fund.
(d) The executive director may select former bureau of
employment program employees who are, upon the termination of the
commission, employees of the office of information services and
communication and who enter into an employment contract with the
company before the first day of December, two thousand five, to
become employees of the company and said employees shall be
afforded the benefits of this section.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to set a maximum amount
payable to employees of the Workers' Compensation Commission ("the
Commission") employed by the West Virginia Employers' Mutual
Insurance Company ("the Company") immediately upon termination of
the Commission in exchange for their irrevocable surrender of
accrued sick leave.