LEAVE CONDITIONS

Definition

700. In these Orders :-

(a) the term 'salary' means basic salary.

(b) the term 'leave year' means a period of twelve months of resident Service according to the anniversary of the date on which the Officer joined the Service on or after 1.2.88 (for those joining the Service after the commencement of these Orders) or the anniversary of the date of resumption of duty after their last vacation/long service leave under the 1972 Leave Conditions, for Officers who joined the Service prior to 1.2.88-excluding any of the following periods of leave taken by the Officer:-

(i) Long service leave.
(ii) Training courses, attachments or visits of more than three months duration.
(iii) Maternity leave.
(iv) Sporting leave.
(v) Leave without pay.
(vi) Military leave without pay.
(vii) Vacation/Terminal leave.

Application

701. (a) The following leave conditions apply from 1 February 1988 and apply to every Officer other than :-
(i) Officers appointed under the agreement of service who will be governed by their terms of agreement.
(ii) Non-gazetted Ranks of the Fiji Police Force, Junior and Subordinate Officers of the Fiji Prisons Service, Forest Guards and any other Officer who is governed by terms of service otherwise laid down by Order, Regulation, or Letter of Appointment--the provisions of these should coincide with these Orders.
(iii) Temporary Relieving Officers.

(b) (i) No Officer shall be granted leave with salary within the first three
months of his appointment to the Service.
(ii) This provision shall not apply where an Officer has served continuously for at least three(3) months as Temporary Relieving Officer immediately prior to his appointment on permanent terms.

Authority for the Grant of Leave

702. Except where otherwise provided by these Orders the authority for the grant of annual and long service leave in accordance with these Orders is vested in :-

`(a) The President in relation to leave for the Chief Justice.
(b) The Secretary for the Public Service, after consultation with the appropriate Minister, in relation to leave for any Permanent Secretary or other Supervising Officer directly responsible to a Minister
(c) Each Head of Department or other Officer authorized by him for the purpose, in relation to leave for any Officer in his Department, in accordance with powers delegated by the Public Service Commission from time to time.

Leave, etc. to be Right

703. Leave and other conditions under these Orders shall be deemed to be the right of Officers.
(a) Leave on resignation etc; -

In the event of resignation, termination of appointment on any grounds or death of an Officer he or his legal representative shall be paid pro-rata compensation for:

(i) annual leave - due to the Officer up to the date of his resignation, termination or death.
(ii) leave allowance
(iv) passages under GO 708, if applicable; and long service leave earned in accordance with GO 706.

(b) Leave and Passages on Retirement:-
In the event of retirement from the Service whether at the officer's own request or at the instigation of Government, the Officer shall be granted:-

(i) Annual leave on pro-rata basis

(ii) Leave allowance on pro-rata basis. An officer who has completed 12 years or more continuous service shall be paid the full long service allowance due to him under General Order 707(a) or (b) provided he has not already taken it. Provided that the Officer has completed 20 years of continuous service and has completed a further one and a half leave years, he shall be granted the full amount of leave allowance.

(iii) An Officer who is entitled to Auckland Passages, in accordance with General Order 708 and has served continuously for 20 years and has completed more than one and a half leave years will, when proceeding on pre-retirement leave, be granted full Auckland passages.

(c) Leave and Passage Before Due date:-

In the event of an Officer being authorized to proceed on leave before the due date on medical grounds if recommended by a Medical Board, or on grounds of urgent private affairs or if the Officer is required by Government to proceed on leave, he may be granted:-
(i) annual leave on a pro-rata basis
(ii) Long service leave on/after becoming eligible
(iii) Leave allowance or, if entitled Auckland passage calculated on pro-rata basis
(iv) If the officer is required by government to proceed on leave before the due date on which he will become entitled to leave allowance under General Order 708, then the Officer will qualify for full leave allowance under General Order 707 or full passages in accordance with General Order 708.

(c) For the purpose of this Order, the calculation of leave and leave allowance on a pro-rata basis, shall be on the completed months served in the leave year and leave allowance or passage earning period respectively.

Categories of Officers

704. For the purposes of these Orders Officers will be divided into four categories as follows:-

Category A: Officers in grades with salary maxima up to and including the RE07 maximum.
Category B: Officers in grades with salary maxima above the RE07 maximum and up to and including the RE04 maximum.
Category C: Officers in grades with salary maxima above the RE04 maximum and up to and
including the REOI maximum.
Category D: Officers in grades with salary maxima above the REOI maximum.

Annual Leave

705. (a) Annual leave shall be granted as follows :-
(i) Category A--18 working days.
(ii) Categories B, C & D-21 working days.

(b) Annual leave which has been earned may be taken by arrangement with the Permanent Secretary or Head of Department or an Officer authorized by him during the leave year
(c) Officers may be allowed to carry over up to a maximum of ten working days leave entitlement from one leave year to the next.
(d) Annual leave shall normally be taken when due. The Permanent Secretary or Head of Department shall ensure scheduling of leave to avoid bulging of leave entitlements at any time of the year. This will be done by leave entitlements being assessed and taken on becoming due in accordance with General Orders 700 (b).
(e) Any Officer who has his annual leave deferred either at his own request or by management for a period not to exceed six (6) months, shall not be granted any additional leave nor shall he forfeit any leave from his leave entitlement.

Long Service Leave

706. In addition to annual leave as prescribed above Officers shall be granted long service leave as follows:-

(a) Categories A-D
(i) On completion of 12 continuous years service - 30 consecutive days
(ii) On completion of 15 continuous years service - 42 consecutive days
(iii) On completion of 20 continuous years service--56 consecutive days
(iv) On completion of 25 continuous years service--84 consecutive days
(v) On completion of 30 continuous years service--112 consecutive days

(b) Long service leave shall normally be taken together with an Officer's annual leave due on completion of the Officer' s leave year. But in exceptional cases or in case of retirement it may be granted before the end of the Officer' s leave year. Long service leave should be regarded as non-leave earning for annual leave purposes.

(c) An Officer who has taken long service leave in his 12th, 15th, 20th or 25th year of service shall be entitled to be granted the difference between the long service leave he has already taken and the leave prescribed for completing 15, 20, 25 or 30 years service.

(d) Any unestablished service and/or the temporary relieving service of a person immediately prior to his appointment to the permanent establishment shall count as qualifying service for the purpose of computing his long service leave entitlement provided there was no break in the service and provided long service leave was not taken under the provisions of JIC Agreement.

Leave Allowance

707. Leave allowance is payable seven (7) days before the qualifying date provided a written request is made to the Permanent Secretary for Finance through the respective Permanent Secretary or Head of Department at least three (3) months immediately prior to the qualifying date as follows:-
(a) Category A
(i) $275 payable before proceeding on long service leave for the first instance in accordance with General Order 706.
(ii) $ 125 on the first anniversary date of the third leave year after qualifying
for long service leave and thereafter every third leave year.
(iii) If the first long service leave is taken with the third leave year annual
leave and the Officer qualifies for the leave allowance under (i) and (ii), then both allowances ($400) shall be payable.

(b) Category B
(i) $275 payable before proceeding on long service leave for the first instance in accordance with General Order 706.
(ii) $125 on the first anniversary date of the third leave year after qualifying
for long service leave and thereafter every third leave year.
(iii) If the first long service leave is taken with the third leave year annual leave and the Officer qualifies for the leave allowance under(i) and (ii), then both allowance ($550) shall be payable.

(e) Category C
$687 payable every third leave year.

(d) Category D
$826 payable every third leave year.
(e) Leave allowance for long service leave under Categories A and B shall be payable once only. No such allowance shall be payable when an Officer utilizes the balance of his long service leave under General order 706(c) provided that if the officer proceeds on long service leave before qualifying for leave allowance in accordance with General Order 707 (a) (ii) and 7070 (b) (ii), leave allowance shall be calculated on a pro-rata basis.
(f) Teachers will be paid their leave allowance on completion of every third leave year which shall be on completion of the equivalent of three academic years from the date of appointment to the service or since he last received leave allowance. Teachers' long service leave allowance under Categories A and B shall be payable once only upon completion of twelve continuous years of service.

(g) For the purpose of payment of leave allowance under GO 707 (a) (ii); (b) (ii); (c) and (d), any period under GO 700 (b) (i) to (vii) shall not count as qualifying service and leave allowance if eligible, to be calculated on pro-rata basis.

Overseas Passages
708. (a) An Officer who was eligible for overseas leave and passages under his pre- 1972 Leave Conditions and had opted for future Auckland Passages shall receive up to three adult economy class passages for himself, his spouse and children below the age of eighteen years to Auckland, New Zealand at the end of every sixth leave year on becoming entitled to long service leave under Category A and B and every third leave year when leave allowance is payable under Categories C and D. Further, any Officer under Category B who was eligible for Australasian passages every three years under his pre-1972 Conditions shall enjoy future Auckland, New Zealand passages as for Officers falling under Categories C and D.

(b) No compensation shall be payable to an Officer who elects to receive passages to Auckland as described in General Order 708 (a) if he does not qualify for the full three adult passages or does not take the passages.

(c) Passage entitlement referred to in (a) above shall not be used for travel within Fiji.

Leave for Temporary Officers

709. (a) Temporary Relieving Officers described in GO 701 (a) shall be entitled to leave in accordance with the provisions of the Employment Act.

(b) All other Temporary Officers appointed to establish other benefits under these Orders in the same manner as permanent Officers.

Sick Leave

710. (a) The procedure to be followed is laid down in General Order 1004. Sick leave on full salary shall only be granted if the sickness is not occasioned by the Officer's own neglect or misconduct and shall be in accordance with the provisions of the succeeding General Orders.

(b) Outpatient Sick Leave :-
(i) An Officer shall be entitled to outpatient sick leave up to 21 days in any one leave year of Service. This leave cannot be accumulated.
(ii) Outpatient sick leave shall be, supported by a medical certificate obtained from a registered Medical Practitioner. This requirement shall be waived for absences on grounds of illness of not more than one day at a time, such absence not to exceed an aggregate period of six days in any one leave year of Service.

(c) Inpatient Sick Leave :-
(i) An officer required to undergo treatment as an inpatient of a hospital or required by a registered Government Medical Practitioner to be confined to his home on grounds of illness shall, in addition to his outpatient sick leave, be entitled to a further period of up to 60 days sick leave on full salary in any one leave year of service. This leave cannot be accumulated.
(ii) On the recommendation of a medical board, inpatient sick leave on full salary may be extended up to a maximum of 180 days. Thereafter sick leave with or without full salary shall be at the discretion of the Secretary for the Public Service.

(d) The Secretary for the Public Service or a Head of Department may require an Officer who is absent on sick leave to be examined by a registered Medical Practitioner nominated by the Secretary for the Public Service or Head of Department.
Study Leave
711. (a) Training courses, attachments or visits of more than three (3) months shall not count as qualifying service for annual leave and leave allowance except for the purpose of qualifying for long service leave.

(c) If at the end of a training course, attachment or a visit of three to twelve months' duration, an Officer has no annual leave to his credit, he shall be granted five (5) working days leave on full salary before being required to resume duty. If the training course, attachment or visit is of more than twelve month's duration and the officer has no annual leave to his credit, he shall be granted ten (10) working days leave on full salary before being required to resume duty.

(d) days leave on full salary before being required to resume duty.

(c) An Officer sitting examinations in connection with a course approved by the Government will be granted duty leave for such examinations.

(d) An Officer who is granted study leave with salary shall be required to sign an undertaking to serve the Government for such period as specified in the rules governing bonding of recipients of in-service training.

Military Service

712. Officers released by the Public Service Commission for military service and for any military purpose other than military training shall have their leave and pay conditions governed by such administrative policy directives as may be issued by the Public Service Commission at the time of their release.

Military Training Leave

713. (a) An Officer released for short-term military training in Fiji (weekend territorial training and annual camps) will draw his military pay in addition to his civil pay. Release for extended military training in Fiji as preparation for service overseas or similar duties will be treated as leave without pay, and Officers so released will not be entitled to civilian pay in addition to military pay. However, in the event of military pay and allowances being less than the civil pay which the Officer was receiving at the time of his release for military training, Government will pay the difference.

(b) Any period of military training will not count against any leave due to an Officer.

Maternity leave

714. A female Officer shall not be permitted to return to work within a period of 42 days following her confinement

(a) On the first three such occasions, Officers, both permanent and temporary will be granted maternity leave on full salary up to a maximum absence of up to 84 days covering the period before and after confinement. In the event of the Officer being unfit to return to duty as a result of illness arising out of pregnancy or confinement at the end of this time, she may be granted by the Permanent Secretary or Head of Department leave of absence without salary for a further period of up to 60 days. No further extension of leave may be granted without the prior approval of the Secretary for the Public Service.

(b) (i) After the first three occasions as in (a) above, Officers, both permanent and temporary, will be granted leave without salary up to a maximum absence of up to 84 days before and after confinement. During the period of leave without salary the Officer will receive an allowance of $5.00 per day including Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays. In the event of the Officer being unfit to return to duty as a result of illness arising out of pregnancy or confinement at the end of this period, she may be granted by the Permanent Secretary or Head of Department leave of absence without salary for a further period of up to 60 days. No allowance will be paid during this period. No further extension of leave may be granted without the prior approval of the Secretary for the Public Service.

(ii) An Officer who has been granted maternity leave without salary in accordance with (b) (i) above may be allowed to resume duty after at least 30 days post-confinement on production of certificate from a registered Medical Practitioner that she is medically fit to resume duty and with the prior approval of the Secretary for the Public Service

(c) An Officer who has re-joined the Service and had maternity leave on at least three
occasions during her previous service, will be subject to the provisions of (b) above. If she had such leave on less than three occasions she will be subject to provisions of (a) above, in respect of the appropriate number of such occasions before she is subject to the provisions of (b) above.

(d) In the case of a school teacher, where the number of days maternity leave coincides with school holidays she will receive full salary for the holidays even if she is subject to the provisions of (b) above.

(e) Any leave arising out of pregnancy or a miscarriage before the Officer takes her maternity leave will be counted against sick leave for which the Officer may be eligible. It will be counted against maternity leave only if the Officer has taken all sick leave for which she may be eligible.

(f) Where the allowance referred in (b) above is payable, payment will be made in one lump sum in advance.

(g) Any annual leave due to the Officer before the commencement of the maternity leave shall not be absorbed in the maternity leave.

(h) An Officer taking maternity leave shall be granted annual leave on a pro-rata basis for the number of months service from the date of resumption of duty after maternity leave to the end of the Officer' s leave year.

(i) An Officer who is granted maternity leave without salary as in (b)(i) above, may on application utilise all or part of annual leave earned against her maternity leave.

Leave for Sporting Tour

715. An Officer who is selected to be an official or a member of a Fiji National Sporting team shall be granted leave on full salary up to 60 days in any one year, such period to include local and overseas training sessions. Leave in excess of 60 days shall be on leave without salary.

Leave Without Salary

716. Leave without salary shall only be granted by the Public Service Commission in very special circumstances.

Leave without salary in the Public Interest

717. (a) The Commission may in its discretion grant an Officer leave without salary in the public interest.

(b) Without limiting the generality of the Commission's discretion, the following situations are deemed to be in the public interest.
(i) an Officer granted leave without salary for duty with a recognized international or regional organization.
(ii) an Officer granted leave without salary for duty with a statutory body an as defined in section 2 of the Public Service Decree 1990.
(iii) Officer granted leave without salary to undertake a course of instruction deemed to be of value to him in his work.
(iii) an Officer granted leave without salary to accompany a spouse posted overseas in the service of Fiji.
(v) an Officer granted leave without salary to accompany a spouse undertaking a Government sponsored course of instruction, attachment or visit on full salary whether in Fiji or overseas.
(vi) an Officer granted leave without salary to accompany a spouse granted leave under items (i) and (iii).

(c) Leave granted under this General Order shall be deemed to be on the grounds of public policy for the purposes of Regulation 13 of the Second Schedule of the Pensions Act 1983, but shall not earn annual or long service leave or any other leave, or court as merit increase earning period.

(d) An Officer granted leave under this General Order for a period which is to exceed twelve months shall be transferred to a supernumerary post on a Reserve List Leave whereupon his post will become vacant. Upon resumption of duty the Officer will be considered for transfer to a suitable vacancy in his substantive or lower grade.

Leave Without Salary-- not in Public Interest

718. (a) The Commission may grant an Officer leave without salary not in the public interest, for a period not exceeding twelve months.

(b) Leave granted under this General Order shall not count as service for any purpose.

Bereavement Leave

719. Permanent Secretaries or Heads of Departments may grant an Officer bereavement leave of up to three days in any one leave year on application. This leave shall be additional to any other leave to which an Officer is entitled under these General Orders.

Unexpired Leave

720. (a) Whenever possible Officers should be allowed to enjoy the full leave earned by them prior to resuming duties.

(b) An Officer who is requested to resume duty before the expiry of his leave shall if he so desires be paid appropriate compensation for the total of his unutilised leave at the time of resumption of duty or enjoy his unutilised leave no later than at the end of his leave year immediately following his recall.

Extension of Leave

721. (a) Extension of leave may be granted with the prior approval of the Secretary for the Public Service and shall be on any of the following grounds :-
(i) on full salary on grounds of ill health in accordance with GO 710.
(ii) on grounds of public interest which, unless otherwise directed shall be on full salary.
(b) Extension of leave granted on any grounds other than those set out above shall be without salary unless decided otherwise by the Secretary for the Public Service.

Leave for Teachers

722. (a) The term "teachers leave year" means the equivalent of one academic year (41school weeks) of resident service.
(b) These Orders shall apply to all teachers except that they will enjoy their school holidays instead of annual leave and long service leave.
(c) Teachers in Government boarding schools who are required to be on duty during
school holidays shall be granted a period of leave equivalent to the normal school holidays in a year. No compensation shall be payable for being on duty for any period during the school holidays.
(f) Principals in Government boarding schools will be entitled to leave under General Orders 700 to 708.
(e) Temporary teachers excluding those on special conditions, shall enjoy the normal school holidays.
(f) Temporary teachers, excluding those on special conditions, who are subsequently appointed to the permanent establishment will be allowed to count their temporary service for the purpose of Leave Allowance provided the service is continuous.
(g) The teaching service of Officers who are regraded may be taken into account for the grant of long service leave.
(h) Teachers may be granted bereavement leave for up to three (3) days in any one leave year on application. This leave shall be additional to any other leave to which a teacher is entitled under these General Orders.

Application for Long Service Leave

723. (a) All applications for long service shall be submitted thirty (30) days in advance
in triplicate on the prescribed form. Permanent Secretaries and Heads of Officers who
Departments shall ensure that particulars set out therein are correct in every respect.
(b) When an Officer's long service leave has been approved, one copy of the application shall be retained by the Department, one copy shall be forwarded to the Officer and the original to the Permanent Secretary for Finance.

Leave Rosters

724 Permanent Secretaries and Heads of Departments shall maintain leave rosters in respect of their staff so that leave may be granted with minimum disruption to the Services provided.

Leave Schedules

725. A leave schedule in the prescribed form shall be kept in respect of every Officer included in the Officer' s leave file. On the leave schedule will be entered records of all leave granted to the Officer commencing from the date he first joined the Service. This leave schedule shall be produced upon demand for inspection by staff of the Public Service Commission, the Auditor General's Office or the Ministry of Finance.

Leave in respect of Public Holidays for Shift Workers

726. (a) A shift worker who is required to work a normal shift on a public holiday, shall be granted a day off in lieu of the public holiday in addition to the payment at the standard hourly rate of pay for the day in question.

(b) A shift worker, who does not work on a public holiday because it is his rostered off duty day, shall be granted a day off in lieu of the public holiday.

(c) A shift worker who on a rostered day off is recalled to duty on a public holiday, and not
rostered for an additional off-duty day to compensate, shall be granted a day off in lieu of the public holiday in addition to payment at Rate II, if eligible for overtime.

(d) The days granted in lieu of the public holidays shall be in addition to the Office annual leave entitlement.

Saving Provisions for Officers Serving on Pre-1972 Leave and Passage Conditions

727. The provisions of GOs 741 to 746 of the 1972 Leave Conditions of. the 1981 Edition of General Orders shall continue to apply to any Officer who has not exhausted the rights conferred upon him under those Orders.

Officers who are Suspended/lnterdicted from Duties

728. (a) If Officer is suspended/interdicted from duties, the period of suspension/interdiction shall be non-leaving earning.

(b) However, if the Officer is acquitted of the charges and reinstated without any penalty, the period of suspension/interdiction shall be leave earnings

Applications to Travel Overseas

729. (a) All Officers wishing to leave Fiji for reasons other than official duties are required under Regulations 36(k) of the PSC (Constitution) Regulations 1990 to obtain written approval of the Secretary for the Public Service.

(b) (i) Applications must he submitted through the Officers Permanent Secretary
or Head of Department whose comments and recommendations, plus all necessary documentation, should reach the Commission at least 21 days before the proposed date of departure.

(ii) All applications must state the reason(s) for travelling abroad.

(iii) Permanent Secretaries or Heads of Departments are to confirm whether an applicant is serving a bond or is a guarantor, whether the applicant has any loan obligations to Government, provide details of any debts the applicant owes Government and explain how the duties of. the post will be carried out.