Health and Dental benefits are provided through the Local Government Health Insurance Plan. All employees scheduled to work at least 30 hours per week must be enrolled in this plan unless proof of other insurance is provided. BlueCross/Blue Shield of Alabama is the provider for our group health and dental insurance program. An employee is eligible for coverage effective the first day of the second full calendar month of employment.

Plans are available for employees on an optional basis. Benefits are offered on both pre and after tax basis. Examples of available plans are: additional life insurance, short-term disability, cancer coverage, specific incident, etc.

The Center provides each employee with long term disability insurance and a life insurance policy (term life) equal to 2½ times the employee’s annual salary at no cost to the employee. This coverage is available to all full-time and regular part-time employees who work a fixed percentage of at least 75% or 30 hours per week.

The Center will match up to 5% of the employee’s salary provided that the employee contributes an equal amount (voluntary participation). This policy is with Principal Financial Group and is managed by the employee. New staff are eligible to participate after completion of a six month probationary period and must be at least 21 years of age.

There are nine official center holidays. They are: New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, and day after Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, and Christmas Day. All full-time employees are eligible for holiday leave. Regular part-time employees are eligible only if they do not have an opportunity to work their prescribed percentage of the workweek.

• Sick Leave is credited at the rate of 8 hours per month for full time staff and on a pro rata basis for regular part time staff. Sick leave is accrued on when you are in an active pay status which includes normal work hours, annual leave, paid sick leave and paid jury duty. Employees may accumulate a maximum of 90 days (720 hour) of sick leave. Per policy employees must keep a minimum balance of 80 hours of sick leave before any paid sick leave time can be utilized.
• Annual Leave is earned by all regular full time staff and regular part time staff on a pro rata basis. Part time employees and contract employees do not earn annual leave. Annual leave is earned based on the following levels of service (please note there are 26 payroll periods/year):
  • 0-2 years of service = 2 weeks (80 hours) per fiscal year, 3.08 hrs per payroll
  • 2-10 years of service = 3.5 weeks (140 hours) per fiscal year, 5.39 hrs per payroll
  • 10 + years of service = 4.0 weeks (160 hours) per fiscal year, 6.16 hrs per payroll