A. Until July 1, 2001, employees of the Authority shall be considered employees of the Commonwealth. Employees of the Authority shall be employed on such terms and conditions as established by the Authority. The Board of Directors of the Authority shall develop and adopt policies and procedures that will afford its employees grievance rights, ensure that employment decisions shall be based upon the merit and fitness of applicants and shall prohibit discrimination because of race, religion, color, sex or national origin. Any grievance procedure adopted by the Board other than that contained in § 2.2-1202.1 shall take effect no earlier than July 1, 1997; however, such grievance procedure shall not take effect unless the Authority delivers copies of such grievance procedure to the chairmen of the House Committee on Appropriations and the Senate Committee on Finance on or before January 1, 1997.
B. The Authority shall issue a written notice to all persons whose employment will be transferred to the Authority. The date upon which such written notice is issued shall be referred to herein as the “Option Date.” Each person whose employment will be transferred to the Authority may, by written request made within 180 days of the Option Date, elect not to become employed by the Authority. Any employee of the Medical College of Virginia Hospitals who (i) elects not to become employed by the Authority and who is not reemployed by any department, institution, board, commission or agency of the Commonwealth; (ii) is not offered the opportunity to transfer to employment by the Authority; or (iii) is not offered a position with the Authority for which the employee is qualified or is offered a position that requires relocation or a reduction in salary, shall be eligible for the severance benefits conferred by the provisions of the Workforce Transition Act (§ 2.2-3200 et seq.). Any employee who accepts employment with the Authority shall not be considered to be involuntarily separated from state employment and shall not be eligible for the severance benefits conferred by the provisions of the Workforce Transition Act.
C. Without limiting its power generally with respect to employees, the Authority may employ any person employed by the University in the operation of the hospital facilities and may assume obligations under any employment agreement for such person and the University may assign any such contract to the Authority.
D. The Authority and the University may also enter into agreements providing for the purchase of services of employees of the University utilized in the operation of the hospital facilities by payment of such amounts as may be agreed upon to cover all or part of the salaries and other costs of such employees.
E. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, any person whose employment is transferred to the Authority as a result of this chapter and who is a member of any plan for providing health insurance coverage pursuant to Chapter 28 (§ 2.2-2800 et seq.) of Title 2.2, shall continue to be a member of such health insurance plan under the same terms and conditions as if no transfer had occurred. Notwithstanding subsection A of § 2.2-2818, the costs of providing health insurance coverage to such employees who elect to continue to be members of the state employees’ health insurance plan shall be paid by the Authority. Alternatively, an employee may elect to become a member of any health insurance plan established by the Authority. The Authority is authorized to (i) establish a health insurance plan for the benefit of its employees, residents and interns and (ii) enter into agreements with the Department of Human Resource Management providing for the coverage of its employees, interns and residents under the state employees’ health insurance plan, provided that such agreement shall require the Authority to pay the costs of providing health insurance coverage under such plan.
F. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, any person whose employment is transferred to the Authority as a result of this chapter and who is a member of the Virginia Retirement System, or other retirement plan as authorized by Article 4 (§ 51.1-125 et seq.) of Chapter 1 of Title 51.1, shall continue to be a member of the Virginia Retirement System or other such authorized retirement plan under the same terms and conditions as if no transfer had occurred. Alternatively, such employee (and any employee employed by the Authority between July 1, 1997, and June 30, 1998, who elected to be covered by the Virginia Retirement System) may elect, during an open enrollment period from April 1, 2001, through April 30, 2001, to become a member of the retirement program established by the Authority for the benefit of its employees pursuant to § 23-50.16:24.1 by transferring assets equal to the actuarially determined present value of the accrued basic benefit as of the transfer date. The Authority shall reimburse the Virginia Retirement System for the actual cost of actuarial services necessary to determine the present value of the accrued basic benefit of employees who elect to transfer to the Authority’s retirement plan. The following rules shall apply:
1. With respect to any transferred employee who elects to remain a member of the Virginia Retirement System or other such authorized retirement plan, the Authority shall collect and pay all employee and employer contributions to the Virginia Retirement System or other such authorized retirement plan for retirement in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 1 (§ 51.1-124.1 et seq.) of Title 51.1 for such transferred employees.
2. Transferred employees who elect to become members of the retirement program established by the Authority for the benefit of its employees shall be given full credit for their creditable service as defined in § 51.1-124.3, vesting and benefit accrual under the retirement program established by the Authority. For any such employee, employment with the Authority shall be treated as employment with any nonparticipating employer for purposes of the Virginia Retirement System or other retirement plan as authorized by Article 4 of Chapter 1 of Title 51.1.
3. For transferred employees who elect to become members of the retirement program established by the Authority, the Virginia Retirement System or other such authorized plan shall transfer to the retirement plan established by the Authority assets equal to the actuarially determined present value of the accrued basic benefit as of the transfer date. For purposes hereof, the basic benefits shall be the benefit accrued under the Virginia Retirement System or other such authorized retirement plan, based on creditable service and average final compensation as defined in § 51.1-124.3 and determined as of the transfer date. The actuarial present value shall be determined on the same basis, using the same actuarial factors and assumptions used in determining the funding needs of the Virginia Retirement System or other such authorized retirement plan, so that the transfer of assets to the retirement plan established by the Authority will have no effect on the funded status and financial stability of the Virginia Retirement System or other such authorized retirement plan.
History
1996, cc. 905, 1046; 1998, c. 449; 2000, cc. 66, 657; 2012, cc. 803, 835.
