Annual leave (paid time off)*

Employees who work 30 hours or more per week, both introductory and regular, accrue leave from their anniversary date based on the following schedule. Annual leave accrual is capped at 40 (forty) days. Leave accrual stops until an employee uses leave to fall below the 40-day limit.

Months of Service and Accrual Rates

• Zero to 24 months: 15 days per year (4.60 hours per pay period)
• 25 to 60 months: 20 days per year (6.14 hours per pay period)
• 61 to 144 months: 25 days per year (7.67 hours per pay period)
• 145 months or more: 30 days per year (9.21 hours per pay period)

Sick time*

Employees who work 30 hours or more per week, both introductory and regular, accrue sick leave at the rate of one day per month. Sick leave may be carried over from one year to the next without limit.

*Part-time employees with benefits (at least 30 hours/week worked) earn this schedule on a pro-rated basis.

Medical coverage begins the first of the month following date of hire. CSPI currently purchases medical insurance via DC’s online insurance marketplace called DC Health Link (DCHL). Employees may enroll in any medical insurance plan offered by Carefirst via DCHL. CSPI pays 90% of the employee premium and 60% of the dependent premium, based the cost of the Reference Plan. Payroll deductions will be made on a pre-tax basis for the portion of the employee and dependent coverage premiums paid by the employee.

The HRA is an employer-sponsored plan that is used to reimburse a portion of an employee’s, and eligible family member’s, out-of-pocket medical deductible expenses. It is not an insurance program, but a financial reimbursement plan funded by CSPI. CSPI’s HRA is linked to high deductible medical plans offered by Carefirst via DCHL, we designate a specific dollar amount to the HRA account annually, and the money contributed by CSPI is tax-free to employees. CSPI currently pays up to $2,000 of the individual deductible and $4,000 for two or more covered medical plan participants.

Dental coverage begins the first of the month following date of hire. Employees are required to pay a portion of the premium for their coverage (20%). CSPI pays 50 percent of the premium cost for dependent coverage. Payroll deductions will be made on a pre-tax basis for the portion of the employee and dependent coverage premiums paid by the employee. (Guardian)

Vision coverage begins the first of the month following date of hire. Employees are required to pay a portion of the premium for their coverage (20%). CSPI pays 50 percent of the premium cost for dependent coverage. Payroll deductions will be made on a pre-tax basis for the portion of the employee and dependent coverage premiums paid by the employee. (Guardian-VSP)

CSPI employees have access to an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) called WorkLifeMatters. Professional counselors are available to assist staff with family and personal issues they might be facing or have questions about. Support is provided on a range of issues like parenting, legal, financial, dependent care and care giving. (Guardian-WorkLifeMatters)

CSPI provides life and accidental death and dismemberment insurance coverage to employees who work a minimum of 30 hours per week. Coverage begins the first of the month following employment, and the cost of coverage is paid in full by CSPI. The amount of coverage is equal to 100% of annual earnings, rounded to the nearest $500, if not already a multiple thereof, to a maximum of $200,000, but not less than $10,000. (Guardian)

CSPI provides long-term disability insurance coverage to employees who work a minimum of 30 hours per week. Coverage begins the first of the month following employment, and the cost of coverage is paid in full by CSPI. This benefit replaces 60% of an employee’s base pay, up to a maximum monthly benefit of $9,500, if an employee is unable to work due to illness or injury. Benefit payments begin after an employee has been unable to work for 90 days. (Guardian)

Employees who work 30 hours or more per week receive eight (8) workweeks of paid parental leave on the first day of the month following date of hire.  Employees may use up to eight (8) workweeks of paid parental leave immediately before or following the birth, adoption or placement of a child with an employee, and may be taken intermittently.

Full-time employees, both regular and introductory, are entitled to 11 holidays recognized by the federal government (12 including Presidential Inauguration Day), as well as a half-day on Christmas Eve. CSPI also provides an annual Winter Holiday by closing the office the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day. The actual dates of the closure are determined by CSPI, and in general, the dates will be in accordance with the day of the week upon which the Christmas holiday falls.  A part-time employee is not entitled to a holiday which falls on a day the employee is not normally scheduled to work.

All employees may participate in the CSPI 403b retirement plan and may begin to contribute immediately upon starting work at CSPI. CSPI provides a dollar-for-dollar match on all funds contributed by employees up to 3 percent of the employee’s gross earnings. To be eligible for the matching contributions, an employee must have been employed by CSPI for one full year and must have worked at least 1,000 hours during that year of employment. CSPI may also, at its option, make an additional contribution (discretionary), to an eligible employee’s retirement account after the end of the plan year.  (Fidelity Investments and Lincoln Financial are CSPI-approved vendors.)

Employees who commute to work may set aside pre-tax wages to pay for eligible commuting expenses up to the annual limit set by the Internal Revenue Service. This includes payments for the use of mass transportation and for parking.

Employees become eligible to participate in this plan the first of the month following employment.  Employees use this plan to pay the premium for qualified employee and dependent medical and dental insurance coverage on a pre-tax basis. Employees also can designate an amount to be withheld from their pay for various medical, dental, and vision expenses that are not reimbursed by an insured plan. The plan also allows employees to set up payroll deductions for dependent care expenses. Enrollment in this plan is voluntary and may be renewed or declined annually. (CBIZ)