King County’s leave donation programs allow you to help colleagues affected by catastrophic health conditions or injuries, or those who are caring for family members, by donating sick or vacation hours.

The Emergency Medical Leave Fund allows you to donate accrued leave to a central fund that can be distributed to other employees who have a qualifying need. You can donate up to 80 hours of accrued vacation and 25 hours of accrued sick leave each calendar year.

The Employee-to-Employee Medical Leave Donation Program allows you to donate any amount of your accrued vacation time directly to another employee, and up to 25 hours of your sick leave per year, as long as you have 100 hours or more of sick leave remaining.

Donated leave can only be used for a qualifying family or medical reason—such as your own serious health condition or the serious health condition of an eligible family member, or to bond with a new child—and can only be used after you’ve exhausted all of your own accrued leaves.

For more information, including forms and an FAQ, go to the Taking leave webpage. If you have questions about donating leave, contact the Benefits Team 206-684-1556 or KC Benefits.