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Article 19 - Leaves

A. 1. Upon timely written request of a unit member, the chief administrative officer or his/her designee may
grant a leave without pay for a period not to exceed one (1)year. Such leaves may be requested for personal reasons including, but not limited to leave for the purpose of further education or leave on the occasion of the birth of a child to a unit member or the adoption of a child by a unit member. Such leave may be extended by the chief administrative officer or his/her designee upon timely written request of the unit member for up to two (2) successive one-year periods. Upon return the salary of the unit member shall be adjusted to reflect all non-discretionary increases distributed during the period of leave. The University shall provide that retirement and appropriate insurance coverage for periods of leave without pay will be available to the unit member at his or her expense. While on leave without pay, the employee shall retain accumulated sick leave and annual leave, but shall not earn sick leave or annual leave. Time spent on leave without pay shall not be credited toward completion of probationary periods.

2. Leaves, without pay, granted under this provision for educational purposes, may be to acquire or complete an academic degree, to gain practical experience in one's field, or to participate in an educational opportunity valuable to the individual, the department or the campus. While on a leave without pay for educational purposes, the University shall contribute its proportionate share to retirement and appropriate insurance programs if the unit member chooses to participate in those programs. Upon return, the salary of the unit members shall be adjusted to reflect all non-discretionary increases distributed during the period of leave. While on leave, the unit member shall retain accumulated sick leave and annual leave. Time spent on educational leave without pay may be credited toward completion of probationary periods if agreed to in writing by the unit member and the chief administrative officer or his/her designee.

B. 1. Full-time regular unit members shall earn one and two-thirds (1%) days of disability leave for each monthly period, or major portion thereof, of employment within the unit member's work year. Part-time regular employees shall earn disability leave on a pro-rata basis.

2. Unit members may accumulate disability leave up to a maximum of one-hundred eighty (180) days.

3. The University shall provide each unit member with a quarterly statement showing disability days earned, utilized and accumulated.

4. a. A unit member who is unable to perform duties because of a disability may use any and all accrued
leave credits. A "disability" shall be defined as any physical or mental impairment of health, including an impairment resulting from pregnancy, which disables a unit member from the full and proper performance of duty.

b. A unit member must take disability leave for those days during which, due to disability, the unit member is unable to be on campus or other appropriate job site for assigned activities. A continuous period of disability leave commences with the first day of absence and includes all subsequent days until the unit member returns to work. For this purpose, Saturdays, Sundays, official holidays observed by the University shall not be counted unless the unit member is regularly scheduled to work on such days.

c. A unit member may use up to a total of twenty (20) days accumulated disability leave during each fiscal year for absences resulting from illness or injury of a member of the unit member's immediate family or household or the adoption of a child which requires the presence of the unit member. Proper notice and, upon request, appropriate documentation shall be provided by the unit member to the chief administrative officer or designee or, where authorized, the unit member's appropriate supervisor. With supervisory approval additional disability leave may be used for such absences.

d. If a unit member's absence due to disability exceeds three (3) months, the unit member may be required to apply for long-term disability benefits. Such requests shall be in writing. The unit member shall have thirty (30) days to comply with the request.

5. a. A unit member may be granted up to five (5) days of bereavement leave in the event of a death of a member of the unit member's immediate family or household in order to attend the funeral and/or matters related to the death. Proper notice of the unit member's absence for this purpose shall be provided by the unit member to the unit member's appropriate supervisor. For the purpose of this paragraph only, if additional time away from work is needed, a unit member may use up to five (5) days disability leave. With supervisory approval, additional disability leave may be used.

b. For the purpose of this Article "immediate family" is defined as spouse, children, parents, grandparents, grandchildren, sisters, brothers, step children, step parents, half-brothers, half-sisters, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, father-in-law, mother-in-law, brother-in-law and sister-in-law, and significant other in the household.

c. A unit member may be granted paid funeral leave to a maximum of one (1) work day to permit an employee's attendance at the funeral of any of the unit member's aunts, uncles, nieces, or nephews.

6. If a unit member's absence due to disability or other use of disability leave exceeds five (5) consecutive days or becomes habitual, the University may by submitting a request in writing require the unit member to furnish verification of the disability in the form of a written statement from the attending physician or the equivalent evidence to substantiate use of disability leave for family illness, injury or death. The unit member shall have ten (10) days to comply with the request.

7. If the chief administrative officer believes that a unit member is unable to perform assigned duties due to illness or injury, the chief administrative officer may remove the unit member from the assigned duties and require the unit member to submit to a medical examination by a physician chosen and paid by the University or, if the unit member desires, by a physician chosen and paid by the unit member who is acceptable to the University and who shall submit a report to the University. If the medical examination confirms that the unit member is unable to perform assigned duties, the chief administrative officer shall place the unit member on compulsory disability leave at which time the unit member shall be notified in writing of the conditions under which the unit member may return to work. A unit member who is placed on compulsory disability leave shall be required to exhaust all leave credits prior to being placed on leave without pay. Application for total disability benefits must be made if the medical prognosis indicates a disability of qualifying duration.

8. In the event the unit member is placed on leave without pay due to disability, he or she may make a written request to the appropriate supervisor for an advance of disability leave, provided all other accumulated leave has been used. The supervisor shall forward the request with his/her recommendation to the campus president or designee. The president or designee may receive other recommendations regarding the request from such individuals determined to be appropriate. The president or designee shall have the sole discretion to accept or reject the request, and his/her decision shall be final and shall not be grievable. Upon the unit member's return to work, the amount of sick leave advanced shall be repaid on a monthly basis at the rate of one-half (1/2) of any future amounts accumulated until such time as the advance has been repaid. Any outstanding balance shall be repaid by the unit member at the time of termination.

9. If the unit member is unable to return to work at the end of a compulsory leave period or after exhausting accumulated disability or vacation leave, based on a current medical certification obtained as described in Section B, paragraph 6, of this Article, the chief administrative officer may after consultation with the unit member:

a. extend the leave without pay pending determination of eligibility for total disability benefits;
or

b. extend the leave without pay for up to one year if the University deems such leave to be justified and not detrimental to the operation of the University and medical evidence indicates the possibility of a return to employment at that time.

When either of the above conditions has been met and the unit member is still unable to return to work the chief administrative officer may:

a. request the unit member's resignation; or

b. terminate the unit member's employment.

10. In the event that eligibility for total disability benefits has not been determined by the first day of the month following six (6) consecutive months of total disability, a unit member may continue to use accumulated disability leave days until disability leave has been exhausted or the unit member has been determined to be eligible for total disability benefits, whichever occurs sooner. If a unit member receives both disability benefits and disability leave pay for the same period of time, the unit member shall repay the disability leave pay to the University. The unit member and the University may agree to a repayment schedule to avoid extreme personal hardship.

C. 1. A unit member who is summoned as a member of a jury panel or subpoenaed as a witness, in a case not
involving the unit member's personal litigation, shall be granted leave with pay and any jury or witness fees shall be retained by the unit member. No unit member shall be given leave with pay for the purpose of appearing as an expert witness when the unit member receives professional compensation for an appearance except that annual leave may be used for this purpose.

2. To be eligible for the benefits of this section of the Agreement, evidence in the form of a subpoena or other available written notification shall be presented to the unit member's immediate supervisor as soon as possible.

D. 1. Full-time regular unit members shall earn annual leave at the rate of one and two-thirds (1 2/3) days per
month, or major portion thereof of employment within the unit member's work year for the first fifteen (15) years of service. In subsequent years, full-time unit members shall earn annual leave at the rate of two (2) days per month, or major portion thereof, of employment within the unit member's work year. Part-time regular unit members shall earn annual leave on a prorated basis. Up to forty (40) days of annual leave may be carried forward from year to year. This annual carry forward will be applied on August 31 of each year. A unit member may request a waiver to carry forward days in excess of forty (40) with the recommendation of the unit member's immediate supervisor and the approval of the System Office of Human Resources. Such requests shall not be unreasonably denied.

2. All requests for annual leave shall be submitted by the unit member to the immediate supervisor as far in advance as possible and appropriate. Approval of the dates on which a unit member wishes to take annual leave shall be subject to the consideration of departmental and organizational scheduling but shall not be unreasonably withheld by a supervisor. If a supervisor has been found to have unreasonably withheld approval, the unit member may accumulate the number of days he/she was denied, Section D.1 above notwithstanding.

3. a. When the employment relationship is severed, the campus shall pay the unit member for up to forty
(40) days of unused annual leave (plus any received as a result of Section D.2 above) provided that the unit member makes a reasonable effort to reduce the unused annual leave balance between notifying the University of his/her termination and the effective date of the termination. Any accrued annual leave in excess of forty (40) days shall be forfeited by the unit member on the effective date of termination.

b. Unit members who transfer from the professional bargaining unit to the Clerical, Office, Laboratory and Technical (C.O.L.T.) bargaining unit may carry forward up to the maximum amount unused annual leave which is permitted to be carried forward from year to year under Article 21, Section C of that Agreement. The University shall pay the unit member for any annual leave over said amount provided that the unit member makes a reasonable effort to reduce the unused annual leave balance between notification of the transfer and the effective day of the transfer.

c. Unit members who transfer from the professional bargaining unit to the faculty bargaining unit on an academic year appointment shall be paid for any unused annual leave provided that the unit member makes a reasonable effort to reduce the unused annual leave balance between notification of the transfer and the effective date of the transfer.

4. Part-time and full-time unit members with appointments of less than twelve (12) months shall receive annual leave on a pro-rated basis except that unit members whose appointments do not require work during periods when the campus student population is absent shall not receive annual leave and holiday benefits.

5. The University shall provide each unit member with an annual statement on or about May 30th showing annual leave balances. The statement shall remind unit members of the carry forward date of August 31st and encourage unit members to utilize annual leave as provided in Sections D.1. and D.2. of this article.

E. The holidays for unit members during periods of employment except as otherwise specified shall be:

New Year's Day Labor Day
Martin Luther King, Jr. Birthday Columbus Day
Washington's Birthday Veteran's Day
Patriot's Day Thanksgiving Day
Memorial Day Day after Thanksgiving Day
Independence Day Christmas Day

The date of the observance of the holidays shall be communicated to the Association by the University prior to the start of the fiscal year in which the holidays occur. Holidays which fall on days when a unit member is required to perform assigned responsibilities shall be taken at a time mutually agreeable to the unit member and the appropriate supervisor. However, a unit member shall receive 1½ hours of time off to be taken at a time mutually agreeable to the unit member and the appropriate supervisor, for each hour the unit member is required to work on the following holidays: New Year's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, Day after Thanksgiving, and Christmas.