Purpose of the Sick Leave Bank
In 1988, the Tennessee General Assembly enacted legislation to form the Employee Sick Leave Bank (SLB). The SLB provides sick leave to qualifying member employees who are unable to work as a result of a personal illness, injury, disability, medical condition, or quarantine. This additional benefit offers peace of mind to State employees by providing paid leave when it is most needed. There are approximately 18,000 active members in the Sick Leave Bank.
Eligibility and Enrollment
Open enrollment for the Sick Leave Bank begins each year on August 1 and runs through October 31. To become a member, employees must:
- Be entitled to accrue sick leave according to TCA 8-50-802
- Be full-time state employees for twelve (12) consecutive months
- Have at least six (6) days of sick leave by October 31 of the enrollment year
New members must donate four (4) days of sick leave at the time of enrollment. To maintain membership, one (1) day of sick leave is assessed annually. Members may receive a maximum of ninety (90) days from the Sick Leave Bank as a result of a personal illness, injury, disability, medical condition, or quarantine.
To enroll:
Employees may apply for membership via Edison by following this path:
- Navigator > HCM > Self Service > Time Reporting > Sick Leave Bank
To download Sick Leave Open Enrollment instructions, click here.
Applying for Sick Leave Bank Grants
Members must complete a Withdrawal Request Application no earlier than two (2) weeks prior to, but no later than thirty (30) workdays after the expiration of all personal sick, compensatory, and annual leave. The initial request must include a Sick Leave Bank Medical Certification form completed and signed by a medical doctor/surgeon, submitted directly to the Sick Leave Bank.
To apply for grants:
Submit via Edison:
- Navigator > HCM > Self Service > Time Reporting > Sick Leave Bank > Request Withdraw > Start a New Request
For more details on the process and to access forms, visit Sick Leave Bank Guidelines.
Current Board of Trustees
The Sick Leave Bank is administered by a Board of Trustees as established in T.C.A 8-50-903. The Board comprises the commissioners of human resources and of finance and administration, the state treasurer, the executive director of the fiscal review committee, or their designees, and three (3) members selected by TSEA at the annual Representative Assembly. Each term is three years, with elections held during the Representative Assembly (RA). The current trustees are:
West Tennessee Representative: Tracy McClain
- Elected: 2024
- Term ends: 2027
Middle Tennessee Representative: LaRissa Karuranga
- Elected: 2023
- Term ends: 2026
East Tennessee Representative: Dr. Alisa Cade
- Elected: 2022
- Term ends: 2025
For more information, contact the TSEA office at 615-256-4533.
