Time Off

Section: U502

Date: October, 2016

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PURPOSE:

It is vital to the University for all employees to have reliable attendance. Absenteeism and tardiness negatively impact our ability to effectively provide University services. The purpose of this policy is to establish the requirements for reporting absences, to provide guidelines for the handling of tardiness, early departures, and unscheduled absences, and to outline employees’ need to adhere to established work schedules to maintain efficient, effective operations throughout the University.

DEFINTIONS:

Term	Definition
No call/no show	An unscheduled absence without proper notification to the employee’s supervisor or department.
Pattern Absences	Unscheduled absences the day before or after a scheduled holiday, vacation, or personal day; on a desirable day off, a specific day of the week, or a weekend; a specific or unique work day; or as sick leave or other paid time off is accrued.
Scheduled Absence	A scheduled absence occurs when an employee requests and is approved to take time off in accordance with department and University policies and applicable union contract. Some examples of scheduled absences include approved vacation, personal holidays, jury duty, military related, bereavement leave, FMLA leave, and Short-Term Disability leave.
Tardy	Failure to report to an employee’s assigned work area and be prepared to start work at his or her scheduled start time, including returning from breaks and meal periods.
Unscheduled Absence	Failure to report to work on a scheduled workday or working less than half of a scheduled workday due to tardiness or leaving early without a written and approved time off request. Absences on consecutive workdays for the same reason will count as one unscheduled absence under this policy. Some examples of unscheduled absences include absences due to car trouble, caring for a family member who has the flu, and home emergency.
Unscheduled Early Departure	Failure to work a complete workday due to an early departure without a written and approved time off request.  Please refer to Unscheduled Absence above when an early departure results in working less than half of a scheduled workday.

POLICY:

Staff employees must arrive and be prepared to commence work at their scheduled start time. Employees are responsible for notifying supervision of absences, late arrivals, or early departures each day of the absence, tardiness, or early departure, in accordance with their unit’s call-in procedure, which typically requires employees to advise supervision when they will report to work. Unscheduled absences, tardiness, and unscheduled early departures (whether excused or unexcused), failure to provide appropriate notification, or abuse of sick leave or other paid time off may result in corrective action up to and including termination of employment. (See Policy U208-Termination of Employment) Absences,  tardiness, and early departures due to approved FMLA leave, Short-Term Disability leave, military leave, jury duty, workers’ compensation, other approved leave, or reasonable accommodation as required by law will not be counted as occurrences. These guidelines apply to all staff employees whose departments do not have more specific guidelines, or when department attendance guidelines do not address certain areas covered by this policy.

PROCEDURES:

1. Departments should communicate to staff employees the importance of timely and regular attendance and develop a written unit guideline that outlines a call-in procedure. The call-in procedure should define when and whom an employee should call if he/she is going to be absent or tardy. It should also address a time frame when an employee who will be delayed is required to notify supervision.

2. Time approvers are responsible for reviewing and approving time before each time approval deadline. It is the responsibility of the time approver to ensure the time submission is accurate.

3. Notification of any unscheduled absence, tardiness, or unscheduled early departure must be made as far in advance as possible. An employee who will be unable to report to work as scheduled, tardy, or leaving early must contact his/her supervisor or the department’s designated call-in number as far in advance as possible and at the latest prior to the start of the shift or the departure. Notification and acknowledgment of tardiness, unscheduled early departure, or unscheduled absence will not excuse it.

4. Employees must record attendance and absences in UChicago Time or in the applicable attendance tracking records used by the Department. Immediate supervisors are responsible for reviewing and verifying attendance records (at least monthly) and recording occurrences, if applicable, to ensure the accuracy of the records and consistent application of department attendance guidelines and University policy.

5. An unscheduled absence will be recorded as one (1) occurrence. Each tardy or unscheduled early departure will be recorded as one-half (1/2) an occurrence. No occurrences will be recorded for scheduled absences or use of accrued sick leave as provided under University and department policy and union contract, if applicable. However, pattern usage, failure to provide timely notification, or failure to comply with the Sick Leave Policy may result in absences being counted as unscheduled absences.

6. Occurrences will be tracked by each department based on a rolling twelve (12) month period.

7. Supervisors of employees should follow the corrective action guidelines described below to address unscheduled absences, tardiness, and unscheduled early departures.  Upon four occurrences, each two occurrences thereafter will advance the corrective action process, up to and including termination of employment.  However, depending on the situation, corrective action may be accelerated, repeated, or taken out of sequence, and the University reserves the right to effect immediate termination should it be warranted.

• Verbal warning upon four (4) occurrences.
• Written warning upon six (6) occurrences.
• Final warning or suspension upon eight (8) occurrences.
• Termination of employment upon ten (10) occurrences.

Employees will be subject to immediate corrective action for no call/no show.   Two (2) or more consecutive workdays of no call/no show will be considered job abandonment and result in termination of employment.

Supervisors should be observant and identify pattern absences.  Employees will be subject to immediate corrective action for pattern unscheduled absences.  An employee should receive written notice of a pattern unscheduled absence including a description of the pattern from the employee’s supervisor or the Human Resource Administrator for the department.

8. Typically, employees who work for six (6) months without an occurrence since the last occurrence resulting in corrective action will not have the corrective action process progress to the next level. For example, if an employee receives a written warning due to the sixth occurrence on October 1st and receives two additional occurrences in the following June, the employee should receive another written warning.

9. Bi-weekly employees will not be compensated for time lost due to tardiness. However, an employee who is late six minutes or less is considered tardy but will be paid for the time. Tardiness of more than six (6) minutes will be unpaid. Meal periods and breaks may not be used to cover for absences or tardiness. An employee may not extend the normal workday or work beyond his/her scheduled shift to make up for being tardy without the prior approval of the employee’s supervisor.

10. An unscheduled absence typically is unpaid unless an employee’s supervisor approves the use of accrued vacation, sick leave, or personal holiday time in accordance with University policy and appropriate union contract, if applicable. Acceptable means of verifying the reason for the unscheduled absence may be required. An employee will not be compensated for unscheduled absences that extend beyond his/her accrual balances.

11. Requests for scheduled absences, including jury duty, emergency time off (vacationor personal holiday), bereavement, military leave, medical leave, and personal leave must be requested as far in advance as possible consistent with University and department policy and applicable union contract and law. It is the employee’s responsibility to request leave or excused time off and to submit appropriate documentation. Employees, who will be unable to report to work as scheduled (except for a University preapproved block of leave time) or using intermittent FMLA leave or other leave are required to contact their supervisor or the department each day unless otherwise instructed by their supervisor. Denied leave or other requested time off, failure to return to work after an approved leave, or failure to comply with these guidelines or other applicable University policy may result in the treatment of time away from work as an unscheduled absence,  tardiness, or unscheduled early departure under this policy.

12. Employees absent three (3) or more consecutive days due to illness or who are suspected of abuse of sick leave may be required to submit a proof of illness certificate issued by a health care provider and identifying when the employee was seen and treated. Failure to submit such proof upon request shall automatically disqualify the employee for sick leave pay and will result in the absences being counted as unscheduled absences.

13. Employees who are eligible to use paid sick leave may use accrued sick time for routine doctor’s appointments. The employee must notify the supervisor in advance of the appointment, and may be required to submit proof that the time taken was used for the appointment. When possible, such appointments should be scheduled at the beginning or the end of the shift.

14. Due to the nature of the services that employees provide we are rarely able to close our operations. With that in mind, employees are expected to report for work on severe weather days and to plan ahead to anticipate any difficulties that might be encountered. If an employee will be late or unable to report to work, the employee must notify his or her supervisor as soon as possible. The departments will decide whether employees will receive occurrences for tardiness or unscheduled absences on severe weather days.

Employees represented by a union may be governed by the appropriate bargaining unit agreement.

Section: U504

Date: May 17, 2004

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PURPOSE:

To permit staff employees to meet their civic obligations to serve as jurors, when called.

POLICY:

The University will grant time off to staff employees who are called for jury duty.

GUIDELINES:

1. A staff employee is responsible for notifying his/her supervisor immediately after receiving a summons to appear for jury duty. A copy of the notice should be given to the supervisor for the department’s files.
2. If the jury does not convene on a staff employee’s regularly scheduled workday, the employee is expected to report to work.
3. The department is responsible for entering the leave as a paid absence for jury duty on the Biweekly Time Card or Monthly Absence Report. This absence does not count as hours worked when computing overtime.
4. A staff employee may keep the court’s compensation and reimbursements for travel expenses.

 

Employees represented by a bargaining unit may be governed by the appropriate bargaining unit agreement.

Section: U505

Date: April 1, 2004

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PURPOSE:

To permit staff employees to exercise their right and responsibility to vote in national, state or municipal elections.

POLICY:

Staff employees are expected to vote during their non-working hours. In those situations when a staff employee is unable to vote during non-working hours and also works the regular scheduled hours, up to two (2) hours off with pay may be allowed to vote.

GUIDELINES:

1. Permission for paid time off to vote should be requested by a staff employee early enough to permit adjustment in the work schedule, in no case later than two (2) days prior to election day.
2. A staff employee may be required to show evidence of eligibility to vote, (a current voter registration card) when requesting time off for this purpose.
3. Time off without pay may be granted to a staff employee wishing to serve as judge, clerk or official watcher, provided that the request is made at least two (2) weeks in advance and is verifiable.

Employees represented by a bargaining unit may be governed by the appropriate bargaining unit agreement.

Section: U506

Date: October, 2016

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PURPOSE:

To provide benefits-eligible staff employees with time off from work when death occurs in their immediate and extended families.

POLICY:

In the event of the death of certain members of staff employees’ families, and upon request, it is the University’s policy to grant paid time off and/or unpaid leave; this paid time off is not to be deducted from employees’ allotment of vacation days or personal holidays.

PROCEDURES:

1. This policy applies to any benefits-eligible staff employee who has completed three (3) consecutive months of service directly preceding a request for bereavement leave.
2. A staff employee should communicate the need for bereavement leave as soon as is practicable.
3. In the event of the death of a staff employee’s parent or foster parent, sister, brother, spouse, University-approved domestic partner, child, step-child, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, father-in-law, mother-in-law, step-parent, grandparent, grandchild, father or mother of the employee’s University-approved domestic partner:
   • The employee is allowed three (3) consecutive days of leave immediately following the death, if requested. The employee will be paid only for those days that fall on his/her regularly scheduled work days.
   • The employee is allowed one additional day of paid leave (for a total of four (4) days paid leave) if travel more than 500 miles each way is involved.
4. A staff employee may request approval for additional time off to be charged against accrued vacation or personal time. If no accrued vacation or personal time is available for requested additional time off, the supervisor may grant leave without pay. The supervisor may contact Human Resources (HR) to discuss other options.
5. Supervisor consideration will be given on an individual basis to requests for bereavement leave in the event of the death of a person not bearing a relationship to the staff employee, as stated above.
6. A staff employee may be requested to verify the relationship, death, and distance traveled before the University pays bereavement leave.
7. Bereavement leave is paid on a regular, straight-time basis and is not counted as time worked when computing overtime.

Employees represented by a union may be governed by the appropriate bargaining unit agreement.

Section: U508

Date: October, 2016

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PURPOSE:

To provide a means for the University of Chicago to offer employees an approved leave without pay when circumstances (such as education, research, or family needs) necessitate.

DEFINITIONS:

Term	Definition
HR Partner	Department/division personnel who serves as the representative for the department in all human resource issues and processes staff transactions in campus HR systems (i.e. Workday and UChicago Jobs) on behalf of their department/division.
University HR	The central human resources body for the university made up of Centers for Expertise (COE).
HR-Talent Acquisition	The COE responsible for oversight of the university’s staff talent acquisition policy and processes.
Hiring Unit	Campus unit to which a new or vacant position reports.
Hiring Manager	The individual requesting the new or vacant position be filled.  Generally, the position being filled will report to the hiring manager.
HR-Leave Administration	Area of University HR responsible for monitoring faculty and staff leaves of absence.

POLICY:

After one year of continuous active employment with the University regular employees may apply for an unpaid Personal Leave of Absence for one to twelve consecutive months. The decision whether to grant a personal leave of absence is at the discretion of Leave Administration – University of Chicago (leaveadministration@uchicago.edu).

PROCEDURES:

1. An employee must submit a personal leave of absence request form to the employee’s supervisor and the department’s Human Resource Partner (HRP). The personal leave of absence request form must specify the reason for the request and duration and be submitted at least three months in advance unless an emergency situation arises. The HRP should submit the completed form and supporting documentation to Leave Administration. Leave Administration will review the request and will provide final approval based on consultation with the appropriate individuals.

2. Approval of the leave request does not guarantee job reinstatement and indeed the employee’s position may be filled, modified or eliminated during Personal Leave of Absence. If the employee is not reinstated, he or she may apply for vacant positions on the University’s online employment site, UChicago Jobs.

3. In deciding whether to grant a Personal Leave of Absence request, the department’s and the University’s operational and staffing needs, the availability of replacements, the reason for the employee’s request, and the employee’s job performance and attendance should be considered.

4. Vacation and personal holiday accrual will be paid in a lump sum as soon as practical after the commencement of the Personal Leave of Absence.

5. During a Personal Leave of Absence, employees are expected to be reasonably responsive and communicative with their supervisor and department.

6. Reinstatement after a leave is at the discretion of the department.

7. Prior to reinstatement, an employee may be subject to a reference or background check based upon the department’s policies and procedures or other legitimate reason.

8. If the employee is reinstated, the employee’s service will be bridged to the original hire date.

9. An employee on an approved personal leave of less than 12 consecutive months may request an extension of the leave for up to a total of 12 consecutive months by submitting a completed Personal Leave of Absence form detailing the reason for extension.

10. If an employee is not reinstate or does not return to work when the Personal Leave of Absence ends and has not been approved for other reasonable accommodation as required by law, employment will be terminated as of the last day of the approved leave of absence. A Personal Leave of Absence should not be used as an alternative to a resignation or other termination of employment.

11. There may be instances of University departments that reduce or suspend operations at the end of an academic term or year. Employees in these departments may be placed on a Personal Leave of Absence during the period of reduced or suspended operations. Affected employees may use their vacation and personal holiday accrual balances until they have been exhausted.  Individuals in this situation may elect to continue medical, vision and dental insurance as follows: the first three months will be at the employee’s current rate, and the remaining 15 months will be at the full COBRA rate.

Benefits

1. An employee on a Personal Leave of Absence may elect to continue medical and dental insurance at COMBRA rates for up to 18 months. .

2. Life, and personal accident insurance may be maintained at the employee’s option.

3. During an approved Personal Leave of Absence, an employee participating in the Retirement Income Plan for Employees (ERIP) will not continue to contribute, but the previously credited income will not be affected.

4. Employees cannot participate in a Flexible Spending Account or the University’s Educational Assistance Plan while on a Personal Leave of Absence.

5. Paid time-off accruals cease while on a Personal Leave of Absence; accrued sick leave remains intact.

Employees represented by a bargaining unit may be governed by the appropriate bargaining unit agreement.

Section: U509

Date: October, 2016

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PURPOSE:

To provide eligible staff employees with paid vacation time and to establish guidelines for vacation time accrual and use.

POLICY:

Benefits-eligible staff employees begin accruing vacation time at their most recent date of benefits eligibility.

It is intended that eligible staff employees take the annual vacation to which they are entitled each year.

DEFINITIONS:

Term	Definition
HR Partner	Department/division personnel who serves as the representative for the department in all human resource issues and processes staff transactions in campus HR systems (i.e. Workday and UChicago Jobs) on behalf of their department/division.
University HR	The central human resource body for the university made up of Centers for Expertise (COE).
HR-Talent Acquisition	The COE responsible for oversight of the university’s staff talent acquisition policy and processes.
Hiring Unit	Campus unit to which a new or vacant position reports.
Hiring Manager	The individual requesting the new or vacant position be filled. Generally, the position being filled will report to the hiring manager.
Regular Staff Position	A position that is classified as staff and does not serve in a temporary or seasonal capacity.
Benefits Eligible Position	A regular staff position that is scheduled to work an average of 20 hours or more per week and is therefore eligible for benefits.
Non-benefits Eligible Position	Positions that are expected to continue for at least twelve consecutive months at 19.5 hours or less per week.
Time Approver	Individual responsible for approving submitted employee time in the University’s time and attendance system.

PROCEDURES:

A.  General Vacation Guidelines

1. A benefits-eligible staff employee begins accruing vacation time at his/her most recent date of benefits eligibility.
2. Each unit is responsible for maintaining and communicating to each eligible employee his/her record of accrued and used vacation time. Each unit should establish and communicate to employees the guidelines for requesting vacation time. All vacation leave is subject to supervisory approval.
3. An eligible staff employee should request vacation leave in advance, following unit guidelines for requesting vacation time. An eligible, exempt staff employee (monthly-paid employee) must record vacation time taken on his/her monthly absence report. An eligible, non-exempt staff employee (bi-weekly-paid employee) must record vacation time taken on his/her timecard.For units that use the University’s time and attendance system, UChicago Time, vacation accruals and usage for employees are maintained within the system. UChicago Time allows non-exempt employees to report time worked and absences, and to track their accruals. UChicago Time allows exempt employees to report absences and to track their accruals. An employee’s supervisor will review and approve vacation time usage through the system.Non-exempt employees are expected to report time worked and/or to record and submit absences daily via UChicago Time. Non-exempt employees who fail to report time worked and/or to record and submit absences daily could forfeit an accrual award when the employee is either close to or at the allowable vacation maximum.

   Exempt employees are expected to record and submit absences on the last working day of each month via UChicago Time. Exempt employees who fail to submit their absences on the last working day of the month could forfeit an accrual award when the employee is either close to or at the allowable vacation maximum.

B.  Accruing Vacation

1. An eligible employee accrues three (3) standard workweeks of vacation per year for the first eight (8) years of continuous service.
2. Upon completion of eight (8) years of continuous service, an additional standard workweek of vacation will be added to the employee’s vacation balance and vacation is accrued, thereafter, at the rate of four (4) standard workweeks per year through the twentieth (20th) year of continuous service.
3. Upon completion of twenty (20) years of continuous service, an additional standard workweek of vacation will be added to the employee’s vacation balance and vacation is accrued, thereafter, at the rate of five (5) standard workweeks per year.
4. An eligible employee is credited with accrued vacation time after each completed month of service to the University.
5. Vacation is accrued monthly at the rate of one-twelfth (1/12) the employee’s annual accrual. Monthly vacation accruals for an eligible full-time and part-time staff employee are calculated by multiplying the number of the employee’s standard workweek hours by the number of annual accrued standard workweeks of vacation and then dividing by twelve (12).For example, an eligible staff employee with a standard workweek of 37.5 hours per week accrues three (3) standard workweeks of vacation per year: 37.5 hours per week x 3 weeks per year ÷ 12 months per year = 9:23 hours per month.The most common vacation accruals for eligible employees are as follows:
   

   Years of Service	Standard Workweek (Hours per Week)	Monthly Accrual (Hours/Minutes)
   1-8	20	5:00
   1-8	25	6:15
   1-8	30	7:30
   1-8	37.5	9:23
   1-8	40	10:00
   After 8	20	6:40
   After 8	25	8:20
   After 8	30	10:00
   After 8	37.5	12:30
   After 8	40	13:20
   After 20	20	8:20
   After 20	25	10:25
   After 20	30	12:30
   After 20	37.5	15:37
   After 20	40	16:40

6. An eligible employee scheduled to work irregular hours each week will accrue at a rate based on the average weekly hours scheduled per month.
7. An eligible staff employee cannot accrue more than one and one-half (1.5) times his/her annual vacation accrual. For example, an employee with a standard workweek of 37.5 hours accrues three (3) standard workweeks of vacation per year; he/she cannot maintain an accrual balance of more than 168.5 hours of vacation, the equivalent of four and one-half (4.5) standard workweeks.The following table indicates the maximum vacation accrual balances for eligible employees:
   

   Years of Service	Standard Workweek (Hours per Week)	Maximum Accrual (Hours/Minutes)
   1-8	20	90:00
   1-8	25	112:30
   1-8	30	135:00
   1-8	37.5	168:45
   1-8	40	180:00
   After 8	20	120:00
   After 8	25	150:00
   After 8	30	180:00
   After 8	37.5	225:00
   After 8	40	240:00
   After 20	20	150:00
   After 20	25	187:30
   After 20	30	225:00
   After 20	37.5	281:15
   After 20	40	300:00

8. An eligible employee will not accrue vacation during any month for which he/she is in an out-of-pay status (i.e., on leave of absence including FMLA), on sick leave, on Workers’ Compensation or on Short-Term/Long-Term disability for more than one-half (1/2) the standard working hours for that month. [See U512 Sick Leave, U513 Short-Term Disability, U514 Long-Term Disability, U522 FMLA]
9. An employee may take no more vacation at any one time than is earned in one year, even if the number of vacation hours accrued exceeds this amount.
10. An eligible employee who is newly hired or terminated but works at least one-half (1/2) the standard working hours during his/her first or last month of service will accrue vacation time for that month. An eligible employee who is newly hired or terminated but works less than one-half (1/2) the standard working hours during his/her first or last month of service will not accrue vacation time for that month.
11. Pay for vacation time shall be at the eligible employee’s regular base rate of pay when vacation time is used. Bonuses and other variable compensation are not included in calculating vacation pay. Vacation hours are not considered “hours worked” in calculating overtime.
12. Vacation accrual records for an eligible, exempt employee may be maintained in hourly increments. Vacation usage for an eligible, exempt employee is based on the employee’s average scheduled hours per day. An eligible, exempt employee who takes a full-day absence will have accruals deducted at a rate equal to the employee’s average scheduled hours per day for each day of vacation taken.Example #1: An eligible, exempt employee who works a five-day, 37.5-hour standard workweek will have 7:30 hours deducted from his/her vacation accrual balance for each day of vacation taken. To calculate: 37.5 hours per week ÷ 5 days per week = 7:30 hours per vacation day.Example #2: An eligible, exempt employee who works a four-day, 20-hour standard workweek will have 5.0 hours deducted from his/her vacation accrual balance for each day of vacation taken. To calculate: 20 hours per week ÷ 4 days per week = 5.0 hours per vacation day.

C.  Utilizing Accrued Vacation

1. For an eligible, exempt staff employee, absences of less than one full day are neither to be charged to accumulated vacation time, nor deducted from pay. An eligible, non-exempt (hourly paid) employee will have accruals deducted in hourly increments.
2. Accrued paid time off cannot be used for time off of less than 30 minutes.
3. If an authorized University holiday falls within an employee’s vacation period, and the employee is eligible for paid holiday allowance for that particular day, it shall be counted as a holiday rather than a vacation day.
4. It is intended that each eligible employee take the annual vacation to which he/she is entitled each year. An employee may be reimbursed in lieu of vacation time if the unit requests the employee to forego all or any part of his/her accrued vacation and the employee has requested vacation time according to unit rules and procedures. An eligible employee’s vacation accrual balances must be reduced by the amount of vacation accruals paid out. The payment request must be submitted during the pay period the vacation was cancelled.
5. At an eligible employee’s request, and upon the exhaustion of all sick leave, absence due to non-work-related illness or injury may be taken as vacation time. [See U512 Sick Leave]
6. Units may grant paid or unpaid time-off as part of a newly hired employee’s job offer. This time-off can only be for a one-time arrangement within the first year of employment (for example, if the employee has predetermined travel plans prior to accepting the position), it cannot be made into an on-going arrangement, and it may be recorded as an excused absence in lieu of vacation time.
7. Otherwise, when an eligible employee is absent due to personal reasons and vacation accruals are exhausted, the employee is in out-of-pay status unless he/she elects to use accrued personal holiday time and has received supervisory approval to do so. [See 508 Personal Leave of Absence]
8. Paid vacation must not be used as compensatory time off in lieu of overtime pay. [See U304 Compensable Time and Compliance with Fair Labor Standards Act (Overtime)]
9. When an eligible employee transfers between University departments, his/her vacation accrual dollars must be transferred using Comptroller Form 60, Journal Voucher. The form should be forwarded to the Payroll Department for processing.
10. Vacation accrual balances for employee transfers from the University of Chicago Hospitals are governed by Personnel Policy U209 Staff Employee Hires to the University of Chicago from the University of Chicago Hospitals.
11. When a reduction of work hours, the vacation accrual rate and corresponding balance will be reduced to align with the new scheduled weekly hours. Any vacation time that exceeds the new balance, plus two full months’ worth of accruals (based on the new accrual rate) will be paid out to the employee upon reduction of hours. Upon termination of employment, an eligible employee is to be paid for any accrued and unused vacation.

Employees represented by a union may be governed by the appropriate bargaining unit agreement.

Section: U510

Date: October, 2016

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PURPOSE:

To provide University-recognized paid holidays for benefits-eligible staff employees.

POLICY:

The University recognizes eight (8) days during the year as paid holidays for its regular, benefits-eligible staff employees. Those holidays are New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, the day after Thanksgiving, and Christmas Day.

PROCEDURES:

1. A staff employee who is scheduled to work twenty (20) or more hours per week is eligible for University holiday pay.
2. University holiday pay is the regular, straight-time rate for the number of hours in an average workday. If a staff employee’s schedule is irregular or part-time, holiday pay will be equal to one-fifth (1/5) the number of regularly scheduled hours in the workweek.
3. A staff employee must be in pay status on the day before and the day following the holiday to be eligible for University holiday pay.
4. When a regular holiday falls on Saturday, the preceding Friday will be considered the University holiday. When the regular holiday falls on Sunday, the following Monday will be considered the University holiday.
5. A staff employee is not allowed holiday pay while in an out-of-pay status, such as leave of absence, layoff or while receiving Short-Term disability payments.
6. A benefits-eligible, biweekly staff employee who may be required to work on a University holiday, will be paid at one and one-half (1.5) times his/her regular rate. A benefits-eligible monthly staff employee who is required to work on a University holiday will be paid his/her regular salary and is entitled to another day off.
7. A biweekly staff employee who is required to work on a University holiday that falls on his/her regularly scheduled day off, will be paid at twice his/her regular rate and will also receive another day off with pay, either thirty (30) days before or after the holiday.
8. When a holiday falls on a staff employee’s day off in conjunction with a flexible work option, the employee is to be given another day off with pay either thirty (30) days before or after the holiday.
9. Holiday pay is not to be considered hours worked in the computation of overtime.
10. A staff employee covered by a negotiated agreement will receive paid time-off for holidays in accordance with that agreement.

Employees represented by a bargaining unit may be governed by the appropriate bargaining unit agreement.

Section: U511

Date: October, 2016

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PURPOSE:

To provide eligible staff employees with paid time off (personal holidays) and to establish guidelines for personal holiday accrual and use.

POLICY:

Benefits-eligible staff employees begin accruing personal holidays at their most recent date of benefits-eligibility. It is intended that eligible staff employees take the annual personal holidays to which they are entitled each year. All usage of personal holiday time is subject to supervisory approval.

PROCEDURES:

1. A benefits-eligible staff employee begins accruing personal holidays at his/her most recent date of benefits-eligibility.
2. An eligible staff employee accrues personal holiday time (as defined in Guideline #4 below) as follows:
   • January 1st – 2 days;
   • April 1st – 1 day;
   • July 1st – 1 day; and
   • September 1st – 1 day
3. Personal holiday accruals are recorded in the University’s time and attendance system, UChicago Time.
4. An eligible staff employee is credited with personal holidays on each of the accrual dates listed above (See Guideline #2). Personal holidays accrue at a rate equivalent to one-fifth (1/5) the employee’s average scheduled workweek.Example #1: An eligible employee with a standard workweek of 37.5 hours per week will accrue 7:30 hours for each credited personal holiday. To calculate: 37.5 hours per week x 1/5 = 7:30 hours per personal holiday.Example #2: An eligible employee with a standard workweek of 30 hours will accrue 6.0 hours for each credited personal holiday. To calculate: 30 hours per week x 1/5 = 6 hours per personal holiday.

   Example #3: An eligible employee with a standard workweek of 20 hours will accrue 4.0 hours for each credited personal holiday. To calculate: 20 hours per week x 1/5 = 4 hours per personal holiday.

5. Personal holiday time should be scheduled and approved in advance by the staff employee’s supervisor.
6. Exempt staff employees (monthly paid) may only use personal holiday time in full day increments, which are calculated based on the employee’s average scheduled hours per day.   Absences of less than a full day may not be charged to the accrued personal holiday time or deducted from the pay of exempt staff employees (monthly paid).Example #1: An eligible employee who works a five-day, 37.5-hour standard workweek will have 7:30 hours deducted from his/her personal holiday accrual balance for each personal holiday taken. To calculate: 37.5 hours per week  / 5 days per week = 7:30 hours per personal holiday.Example #2: An eligible employee who works a four-day, 30-hour standard workweek will have 7:30 hours deducted from his/her personal holiday accrual balance for each personal holiday taken. To calculate: 30 hours per week·/ 4 days per week = 7:30 hours per personal holiday.

   Example #3: An eligible employee who works a four-day, 20-hour standard workweek will have 5.0 hours deducted from his/her personal holiday accrual balance for each personal holiday taken. To calculate: 20 hours per week / 4 days per week = 5.0 hours per personal holiday.

7. Non-exempt (hourly paid) employees may use personal holiday time for time off for durations of 30 minutes or more.
8. An eligible staff employee’s accrued personal holiday balance expires each calendar year. An eligible employee who fails to request accrued personal holidays during the calendar year following unit guidelines is not entitled to “carry-over” personal holidays into the next calendar year.
9. An eligible employee will not accrue personal holidays while he/she is in an out-of-pay status (i.e., on leave of absence), on workers’ compensation, or on Short-Term/Long-Term Disability.
10. It is intended that each eligible staff employee take the annual personal holidays to which he/she is entitled each year. An employee may be reimbursed in lieu of taking personal holidays if the unit requests the employee to forgo all or any part of his/her personal holidays and the employee has previously requested to take a personal holiday according to unit guidelines.
11. Pay for personal holidays will be at the eligible employee’s regular base rate of pay when personal holiday time is used. Bonuses and other variable compensation are not included in calculating personal holiday pay. Personal holiday hours are not considered “hours worked” in calculating overtime.
12. At an eligible employee’s request, and upon the exhaustion of all sick leave, absence due to non-work-related illness or injury may be taken as a personal holiday. (See Policy U512 Sick Leave)
13. When an eligible staff employee is absent due to personal reasons and personal holiday accruals are exhausted, the employee is in out-of-pay status unless he/she elects to use accrued vacation time and has received supervisory approval to do so.
14. Paid time off (personal holidays) must not be used as compensatory time off in lieu of overtime pay. (See U304 Compensable Time Off and Compliance with Fair Labor Standards Act (Overtime))
15. Upon termination of employment, an eligible staff employee is to be paid for any unused personal holidays accrued within the calendar year.

Employees represented by a bargaining unit may be governed by the appropriate bargaining unit agreement.

Section: U511

Date: October, 2016

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PURPOSE:

To provide eligible staff employees with paid time off (personal holidays) and to establish guidelines for personal holiday accrual and use.

POLICY:

Benefits-eligible staff employees begin accruing personal holidays at their most recent date of benefits-eligibility. It is intended that eligible staff employees take the annual personal holidays to which they are entitled each year. All usage of personal holiday time is subject to supervisory approval.

PROCEDURES:

1. A benefits-eligible staff employee begins accruing personal holidays at his/her most recent date of benefits-eligibility.
2. An eligible staff employee accrues personal holiday time (as defined in Guideline #4 below) as follows:
   • January 1st – 2 days;
   • April 1st – 1 day;
   • July 1st – 1 day; and
   • September 1st – 1 day
3. Personal holiday accruals are recorded in the University’s time and attendance system, UChicago Time.
4. An eligible staff employee is credited with personal holidays on each of the accrual dates listed above (See Guideline #2). Personal holidays accrue at a rate equivalent to one-fifth (1/5) the employee’s average scheduled workweek.Example #1: An eligible employee with a standard workweek of 37.5 hours per week will accrue 7:30 hours for each credited personal holiday. To calculate: 37.5 hours per week x 1/5 = 7:30 hours per personal holiday.Example #2: An eligible employee with a standard workweek of 30 hours will accrue 6.0 hours for each credited personal holiday. To calculate: 30 hours per week x 1/5 = 6 hours per personal holiday.

   Example #3: An eligible employee with a standard workweek of 20 hours will accrue 4.0 hours for each credited personal holiday. To calculate: 20 hours per week x 1/5 = 4 hours per personal holiday.

5. Personal holiday time should be scheduled and approved in advance by the staff employee’s supervisor.
6. Exempt staff employees (monthly paid) may only use personal holiday time in full day increments, which are calculated based on the employee’s average scheduled hours per day.   Absences of less than a full day may not be charged to the accrued personal holiday time or deducted from the pay of exempt staff employees (monthly paid).Example #1: An eligible employee who works a five-day, 37.5-hour standard workweek will have 7:30 hours deducted from his/her personal holiday accrual balance for each personal holiday taken. To calculate: 37.5 hours per week  / 5 days per week = 7:30 hours per personal holiday.Example #2: An eligible employee who works a four-day, 30-hour standard workweek will have 7:30 hours deducted from his/her personal holiday accrual balance for each personal holiday taken. To calculate: 30 hours per week·/ 4 days per week = 7:30 hours per personal holiday.

   Example #3: An eligible employee who works a four-day, 20-hour standard workweek will have 5.0 hours deducted from his/her personal holiday accrual balance for each personal holiday taken. To calculate: 20 hours per week / 4 days per week = 5.0 hours per personal holiday.

7. Non-exempt (hourly paid) employees may use personal holiday time for time off for durations of 30 minutes or more.
8. An eligible staff employee’s accrued personal holiday balance expires each calendar year. An eligible employee who fails to request accrued personal holidays during the calendar year following unit guidelines is not entitled to “carry-over” personal holidays into the next calendar year.
9. An eligible employee will not accrue personal holidays while he/she is in an out-of-pay status (i.e., on leave of absence), on workers’ compensation, or on Short-Term/Long-Term Disability.
10. It is intended that each eligible staff employee take the annual personal holidays to which he/she is entitled each year. An employee may be reimbursed in lieu of taking personal holidays if the unit requests the employee to forgo all or any part of his/her personal holidays and the employee has previously requested to take a personal holiday according to unit guidelines.
11. Pay for personal holidays will be at the eligible employee’s regular base rate of pay when personal holiday time is used. Bonuses and other variable compensation are not included in calculating personal holiday pay. Personal holiday hours are not considered “hours worked” in calculating overtime.
12. At an eligible employee’s request, and upon the exhaustion of all sick leave, absence due to non-work-related illness or injury may be taken as a personal holiday. (See Policy U512 Sick Leave)
13. When an eligible staff employee is absent due to personal reasons and personal holiday accruals are exhausted, the employee is in out-of-pay status unless he/she elects to use accrued vacation time and has received supervisory approval to do so.
14. Paid time off (personal holidays) must not be used as compensatory time off in lieu of overtime pay. (See U304 Compensable Time Off and Compliance with Fair Labor Standards Act (Overtime))
15. Upon termination of employment, an eligible staff employee is to be paid for any unused personal holidays accrued within the calendar year.

Employees represented by a bargaining unit may be governed by the appropriate bargaining unit agreement.

Section: U512

Date: May 11, 2005

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PURPOSE:

To provide eligible staff employees with paid sick leave, and to establish guidelines for sick leave accrual and usage.

POLICY:

Benefits-eligible staff employees begin accruing sick leave at their most recent date of benefits-eligibility and can use sick leave after three (3) months of employment for absences due to the employee’s own illness.

GUIDELINES:

1. A benefits-eligible employee begins accruing sick leave at his/her most recent date of benefits- eligibility and can use sick leave after three (3) months of employment for absences due to the employee’s own illness.
2. Each unit is responsible for maintaining an eligible staff employee’s record of accrued and used sick leave, which should commence after the third (3rd) month of employment. Each unit should establish and communicate guidelines for requesting sick leave.
3. An eligible, exempt staff employee must record sick leave taken on his/her Monthly Absence Report. An eligible, non-exempt staff employee must record sick leave taken on his/her timecard.
4. An eligible staff employee accrues two (2) standard workweeks of sick leave per year.
5. An eligible staff employee is credited with earned sick leave after each completed month of service to the University. Sick leave is accrued monthly at the rate of one-twelfth (1/12) the employee’s annual accrual. Monthly sick leave accruals for a regular full-time or part-time staff employee are calculated by multiplying the number of the employee’s standard workweek hours by the number of annual accrued standard workweeks of sick leave and then dividing by twelve (12).For example, an eligible staff employee with a standard workweek of 37.5 hours per week accrues two (2) standard workweeks of sick leave per year at a monthly accrual rate of 6:15 hours per month. To calculate: 37.5 hours per week x 2 weeks per year ÷ 12 months per year = 6:15 hours per month.The most common sick leave accrual rates are as follows:
   

   Hours Worked per Week	Monthly Accrual (Hours/Minutes)
   20	3:20
   25	4:10
   30	5:00
   37.5	6:15
   40	6:40

6. An eligible staff employee scheduled to work irregular hours each week will accrue at a rate based on the average weekly hours scheduled per month.
7. Sick leave accrual records for an eligible, exempt staff employee (monthly paid) may be maintained in hourly increments. Sick leave use for an eligible exempt employee is based on the employee’s average scheduled hours per day. An eligible, exempt staff employee who takes a full-day absence will have accruals deducted at a rate equal to the employee’s average scheduled hours per day for each day of sick leave taken.
   • Example #1: An eligible, exempt staff employee who works a five (5) day, 37.5 hour standard workweek will have 7:30 hours deducted from his/her sick leave accrual balance for each day of sick leave taken. To calculate: 37.5 hours per week ÷ 5 days per week = 7:30 hours per sick day.
   • Example #2: An eligible, exempt staff employee who works a four-day, 20-hour standard workweek will have 5.0 hours deducted from his/her sick leave accrual balance for each day of sick leave taken. To calculate: 20 hours per week ÷ 4 days per week = 5.0 hours per sick day.
8. An eligible staff employee who has been granted time off under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) for his/her own health condition can use sick leave to be paid. An eligible employee who has been granted time off under FMLA for the health condition of his/her spouse, child, parent, or University-registered domestic partner cannot use sick leave to be paid. (See Policy U522 Family and Medical Leave of Absence)
9. For an eligible, exempt staff employee, absences of less than one full day are neither to be charged to accumulated sick leave time, nor are they to be deducted from pay. Eligible, exempt staff employees who use sick leave to be paid while granted time off under FMLA may have sick leave accruals deducted on an hour-for-hour basis.
10. An eligible, non-exempt (hourly paid) staff employee will have accruals deducted on an hour-for-hour basis.
11. When an eligible staff employee is absent due to his/her own illness, and sick leave accrual is exhausted, the employee is in out-of-pay status unless he/she elects to use accrued vacation and/or personal holiday time and has received supervisory approval to do so. (See Policy U509 Vacation and U511 Personal Holidays)
12. An eligible staff employee will not accrue sick leave during any month in which he/she is in an out-of-pay status (i.e., on leave of absence), on sick leave, on Workers’ Compensation, or on Short-Term/Long-Term Disability, for more than one-half (1/2) the standard working hours. (See Policy U513 Short-Term Disability and U514 Long-Term Disability)
13. An eligible staff employee who is absent and who is compensated under the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act or the Illinois Occupational Diseases Act will not have sick leave accruals deducted. In these cases, an eligible staff employee can use sick leave accruals to supplement the difference between Workers’ Compensation payments and the employee’s regular salary.
14. Pay for sick leave will be at the eligible staff employee’s regular base rate of pay when sick leave is used. Bonuses and other variable compensation are not included in calculating sick leave pay. Sick leave hours are not considered “hours worked” in calculating overtime.
15. An eligible staff employee’s accrued sick leave balance expires upon termination of employment, unless the employee is rehired within thirty (30) days or recalled from layoff status.
16. An employee eligible for sick leave allowances may use accrued sick leave for purposes of routine physician appointments if the time has been approved in advance by the employee’s supervisor.
17. Except as provided in Guideline 16, accrued paid time off cannot be used for time off of less than 30 minutes.
18. During Short-Term illnesses, an eligible employee should notify the unit daily of his/her condition and anticipated return following unit guidelines. An employee who fails to follow unit guidelines may result in having an unpaid unexcused absence.
19. A supervisor should, on a periodic basis, review employee attendance records to determine if there has been an excessive use of sick leave.
20. An eligible staff employee may be requested to present a certified statement from a health care provider regarding the illness. Failure to present such a document on request can disqualify the employee for sick leave allowances and may result in corrective action. (See Policy U703 Progressive Corrective Action )

Employees represented by a union may be governed by the appropriate bargaining unit.

Section: U513

Date: August 1, 2011

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PURPOSE:

To provide guidance regarding an employee’s status and compensation when a non-work related injury or illness renders the employee unable to work.

POLICY:

A benefits eligible employee, who has completed six months of continuous and active employment, is eligible to apply for Short Term Disability (STD) when he or she is unable to perform the duties of his or her job due to a non-work-related injury or illness (including a pregnancy-related disability). STD pays 60% of an employee’s regular salary minus all regular deductions. STD payments begin once an employee is totally disabled for a continuous period of fourteen (14) days or an employee’s accrued sick leave is exhausted, whichever is longer. STD ends after 13 weeks of disability.

GUIDELINES:

1. To apply for STD, an eligible employee must submit the Short Term Disability Leave Request form to the employee’s supervisor and the department/unit’s Human Resource Administrator (HRA) for signature as soon as the employee becomes aware of the need for leave. Upon receipt of the supervisor’s and the HRA’s signature, the employee must submit the completed Short Term Disability Leave Request Form to Leave Administration.

2. The employee also must submit directly to Leave Administration  a completed Short Term Disability – Health Care Provider’s statement describing the reason for the leave, diagnosis, and anticipated date of return.

3. STD leave will be counted toward the twelve (12) week allotment of Family and Medical Leave. For guidelines on Family and Medical Leave of Absence, see 522-Family and Medical Leave of Absence.

4. Following the first day of absence, there is a waiting period of fourteen (14) calendar days before STD payments begin. If an employee does not have accrued sick leave to use during the waiting period, then accrued personal holidays and vacation must be used as provided under University policy or collective bargaining agreement, if applicable. Otherwise, the waiting period is unpaid. Employees may reserve a total of five (5) days of vacation and personal holiday to use at another time.

5. An eligible employee may receive STD payments beginning fourteen (14) days after the first day of absence and the exhaustion of sick leave, whichever is longer, through the thirteenth week of disability, i.e. a maximum of eleven (11) weeks of STD paid benefits. The following are examples:

• An employee is approved for 6 weeks STD leave for a new disability and has 10 weeks accrued sick leave. The employee will use 6 weeks of sick leave and will not receive STD payments because the employee has enough sick leave accruals to cover the duration of the absence.

• An employee is approved for 13 weeks of STD leave for her own disability and has 3 days accrued sick leave. The employee must use 3 days of accrued sick leave and other accrued paid time off during the fourteen day waiting period and thereafter will receive 11 weeks of STD payments.

6. Unless there are medical complications, six (6) weeks after the birth of a child is the approved timeframe for STD payments. However, a cesarean delivery will be approved for eight (8) weeks.

7. Leave Administration  is responsible for approval or denial of STD payments. If approved, payments begin after accrued sick leave has been exhausted or after the fourteen (14) day waiting period, whichever is longer. The University reserves the right to require a medical examination of any employee applying for STD at any time by a health care provider selected by the University. The cost of such examination shall be borne by the employee’s department.

8. In addition to receiving STD payments, an employee:

• maintains all benefits for which s/he is enrolled, provided s/he continues to pay the employee’s share of the premiums, subject to applicable policies and plans;

• maintains his or her original benefits-eligible (service) date; and

• maintains previously-earned personal holiday and vacation accrual balances.

9. An employee receiving STD payments is NOT permitted to:

• accrue sick leave, vacation or personal holidays;

• apply for STD payments within two weeks following a return to work from STD;

• receive University holiday pay; or

• supplement STD payments with vacation or personal holidays.

10. Employees on STD leave are expected to reasonably communicate with and be responsive to their supervisors and department during their leave and regarding their return to work.

11. An employee on STD leave must contact Leave Administration  immediately upon learning of the need for an extension. An employee on a STD leave who has a medical release to return to work earlier than expected should contact Leave Administration  and his/her supervisor immediately.

12. Before returning to work from STD leave, an employee must provide his or her supervisor and the HRA with a release to return to work by a health care provider indicating that he/she is able to perform the essential functions of the job with or without reasonable accommodation. The supervisor or HRA will forward the original release to return to work to Leave Administration . An employee who fails to provide a release to return to work as of the first scheduled workday after a medical or other approved leave will not be allowed to return to work and subsequent absences will be deemed unexcused or unscheduled, which may result in termination of employment.

13. An employee who returns to work and suffers a relapse of the same disability may apply for and use his or her remaining STD benefits without satisfying another fourteen (14) day period so long as the employee has not exhausted his or her STD allotment.

14. To be eligible for STD payments for a different disability or a new medical condition, an employee must return to work following the receipt of STD payments and work continuously for at least two weeks. The employee also is subject to a new fourteen (14) day waiting period.

15. An employee remains financially responsible for payroll deductions such as taxes, insurance, credit union and other deductions. These deductions are made against STD payments in accordance with payroll schedules.

16. If an employee has not returned to work when the STD leave expires and has not applied for Long Term Disability or been approved for an additional leave of absence or other reasonable accommodation as required by law, employment will be terminated effective on the first scheduled workday that is missed following the expiration of the STD leave.

Employees represented by a bargaining unit may be governed by the appropriate bargaining unit agreement.

Section: U514

Date: August 2, 2011

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PURPOSE:

To provide guidance regarding Long Term Disability (LTD) status, eligibility, departmental staffing, and cost considerations.

POLICY:

LTD benefits are not available until three months after the onset of disability. Therefore, between the onset of disability and the determination of whether the application for LTD is approved, a disabled employee must use accrued sick, vacation, and personal holiday time as well as short-term disability (STD)[see U513 Short-Term Disability], and if necessary, go on an unpaid medical leave of absence to bridge benefits and/or pay until the insurance company approves or denies the application.

LTD is a form of insurance that provides income replacement to qualified individuals in the event of long term disability. It is not a leave of absence or provide job protection. The University treats an individual who is receiving long-term disability income payments from the insurance company as an active employee for benefit plan purposes only, as provided below.

GUIDELINES:

1.  The Long-Term Disability Summary Plan Description (SPD) provides information about the University’s LTD program, including rules about eligibility and enrollment, benefit options, limitations on benefits, and specific coverage. Copies of the SPD are available online or at the Benefits Office.

2.  An individual receiving LTD disability income payments is treated as an active employee for benefit plan purposes only as follows and subject to change from time to time:

• Medical, Dental and Vision. Coverage for medical, dental and vision insurance that is in effect immediately before the LTD effective date may be continued at the employee rate as long as the individual is on LTD. The individual is responsible for paying the individual’s portion of insurance premiums and will be billed directly for his/her share of the premium for continued benefit coverage. When premium rates change, the new rate must be paid. During the annual Open Enrollment period, an individual on LTD may change medical, dental and vision plans and/or add or drop dependents.
• Life Insurance. Certain life insurance benefits may be continued for up to twenty-four (24) months after the first day of absence/disability by payment of the applicable premium unless subject to any waiver of premium provision in the insurance contract. While on LTD, coverage may not be increased, but may be decreased at any time.
• Participation in CRP or ERIP continues while on LTD (subject to plan documents and law). If an individual on LTD was a participant in CRP or ERIP at the time of disability and receipt of benefits under the LTD plan, the University will fund the individual’s required contribution as well as continue to fund the University’s contribution.
• Education Assistance Benefits. An individual on LTD remains eligible for education benefits to which he/she was eligible at the onset of disability as provided in the Educational Assistance Plan.
• Flexible Spending Accounts and the Supplemental Retirement Program.An individual on LTD cannot make pre-tax contributions to a Flexible Spending Account (FSA) or to a Supplemental Retirement Program (SRP).

3.  While on LTD, the individual’s portion of premiums for health, dental, vision and life insurance will be billed directly. Failure to pay premiums as required will result in termination of benefits coverage.  An individual on LTD does not pay a premium for LTD coverage once he/she is receiving benefits under the LTD plan.

4. If an individual on LTD becomes employed outside the University (including self-employment), the individual must immediately notify the University. The individual’s employment with the University for benefits purposes will end, and the individual will no longer be eligible to continue any University benefit, except as required by applicable law.

5.  If an individual is released to return to work after a period of disability and collecting LTD he/she may apply for vacant positions on the University’s online employment site, UChicago Jobs.  The University does not hold the position of an individual while on LTD, subject to applicable law, and the individual is not entitled to reinstatement to his/her position when no longer eligible for LTD.  During any period of LTD the individual remains employed for the sole purpose of benefit continuation as provided for in this policy and related plan documents, which are subject to change from time to time.

Employees represented by a bargaining unit may be governed by the appropriate bargaining unit agreement.

Section: U515

Date: January 15, 2013

________________________________________________________________________

Purpose:

To provide a means for departments to offer employees medical leave when they are unable to work due to a serious health condition and are not eligible for leave under Short Term Disability (STD) and the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) or have exhausted STD and FMLA and need a bridge between Short Term and Long Term Disability (LTD).

Policy:

Employees may apply for an unpaid medical leave for up to three (3) months; however, employees are only eligible for medical leave under this policy as follows:

• They are ineligible for STD or FMLA (e.g., they have worked for the University for fewer than 6 continuous months or work less than 19.5 hours per week); or
• They have exhausted STD or FMLA, have applied for LTD, and have not received an approval or denial from the LTD insurance carrier.

The decision whether to grant a medical leave is at the discretion of the University. Any leave or absences without an approved medical or other leave may be considered unexcused or unscheduled as provided under University and department policy and result in corrective action up to and including termination of employment.

Guidelines:

1. To request a leave, an employee must submit a completed Medical Leave Request Form to the employee’s supervisor and the department/unit’s Human Resource Administrator (HRA). When an employee has advance notice of the need for a leave, the employee must submit a completed Medical Leave Request Form to the employee’s supervisor and the HRA thirty (30) days before the leave is requested to begin. If an employee cannot provide thirty (30) days notice, the employee must submit the completed request form as soon as feasible under the circumstances. After the employee’s supervisor and HRA signs the request form, the employee must submit it to the Benefits Analyst – Leave Programs.
2. An employee also must submit a fully completed health care provider’s certification demonstrating the need for the leave directly to Leave Administration. The certification should be submitted at least thirty (30) days before the commencement of the medical leave or as soon as feasible. In the case of an emergency situation, the medical certification must be submitted within five (5) days of the start of the leave. Failure to provide a complete and timely medical certification may result in the denial of medical leave, absences deemed unexcused or unscheduled, and termination of employment.
3. The decision whether to grant a medical leave is at the discretion of the University. Thus, among other things, the department’s operational and staffing needs, the availability of replacements, the reason for the employee’s request, and the employee’s job performance and attendance should be considered.
4. If an employee applies for LTD before the end of STD or other approved leave, the employee may apply for a medical leave so the employee can remain employed in an unpaid leave status pending a determination on the LTD application.
5. Accrued sick leave, vacation, and personal holidays also must be used during any medical leave before the leave becomes unpaid. Employees do not accrue sick leave, vacation, and personal holidays during medical leave.
6. During medical leave, the University will maintain benefits on the same conditions as if the employee is working subject to applicable plan documents and law. An employee must continue to pay the employee’s portion of insurance benefit premiums if the employee wishes coverage to continue during the leave.
7. Employees on a medical leave are expected to be reasonably responsive to and communicate with their supervisor and department during the leave.
8. Before returning from medical leave, the employee must provide the employee’s supervisor and HRA a health care provider’s release to return to work indicating that he/she is able to perform the essential functions of the job with or without reasonable accommodation. The HRA will provide Leave Administration with the release to return to work. If an employee fails to provide a release to return to work as of the first scheduled workday after a medical or other approved leave, he/she will not be allowed to return to work and absences will be deemed unexcused or unscheduled, which may result in termination of employment.
9. Approval of the leave request does not guarantee job reinstatement. Reinstatement after a leave is at the discretion of the department; however, the University may make an effort to reinstate the employee to the same or a comparable job if available.  If the employee is not reinstated, he or she may apply for vacant positions on the University’s online employment site, UChicago Jobs.
10. If an employee does not return to work when the medical leave ends and has not been approved for an additional leave of absence or other reasonable accommodation as required by law, employment will be terminated as of the last day of the approved leave of absence.

Employees represented by a bargaining unit may be governed by the appropriate bargaining unit agreement.

Section: U517

Date: February 19, 2003

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PURPOSE:

To define the University’s policy on the handling of military reservist employees who are called to active military duty. This policy, with respect to leaves of absence for employees being called up for active military service, applies to all benefits-eligible University employees, both academic and non-academic.

POLICY:

Employees in the Reserve who are called up for active duty will continue to receive their regular pay from the University for the first month on such military leave. In addition, employees will not have the amount of their military pay deducted from the amount paid to them by the University during this time period. After this one-month period ends, all University compensation will cease. However, the employee may utilize accrued vacation and personal days to maintain full salary for a period beyond one month.

GUIDELINES:

1. Provided the employee continues on active military duty beyond a one-month timeframe, the employee then will go on unpaid leave of absence status. During that leave of absence, the employee may continue participation in the following benefits, without coverage modifications, for up to twenty-four (24) months:
   • Group Life Insurance
   • Long-Term Disability Insurance
   • Tuition Remission

   Employees will be required to continue to make the same monthly employee contributions as other employees in these plans by remitting the required payments monthly to the University.

2. Employees who are called to military duty and who are currently covered under a University health plan may continue coverage for themselves and their dependents while on military leave. Employees will be required to pay the monthly employee contribution for the first three months of the leave, and the full cost (the University and the employee cost) monthly thereafter.
3. Two benefits will immediately stop when an employee goes on military leave:
   • Personal Accident Insurance
   • Business Travel Accident Insurance
4. Time spent in the military will be credited toward vesting requirements in the defined benefit portion of the Retirement Income Plan for Employees (ERIP), provided the employee returns to University employment following completion of active military service. ERIP participants will also be credited with months of participation under the defined benefit formula for time spent in the military, provided the employee returns to University employment following completion of active military service.
5. Participants in the Contributory Retirement Plan (CRP) and the Supplemental Retirement Program (SRP) are fully vested at all times.
6. Both University and employee contributions to retirement plans will stop after the paid leave is exhausted. Upon their return to active University employment, employees will be given an opportunity to make the pre-tax contributions they would have made if they had not been on military leave. If they make these contributions, the University will also contribute the amount it would have contributed on their behalf.
7. Federal law provides that employees returning from active military leave be reinstated to the job they left, as if they had been continuously employed, as long as the employee applies within 90 days after release from active duty.
8. For further information about this policy, staff employees should contact the Office of Employee/Labor Relations. Academic employees should contact their Dean’s office. Administrators will be immediately informed if any change is made to this policy.

Employees represented by a bargaining unit may be governed by the appropriate bargaining unit agreement.

Section: U518

Date: July 16, 2004

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PURPOSE:

To provide guidelines for compensating employees in connection with their reservist and guard obligations.

POLICY:

Regular full-time or part-time staff employees who are in military reserve training are eligible to receive up to fifteen (15) days of University base pay as Paid Military Leave for participating in required military service training, provided that they turn in their military pay, excluding allowances.

GUIDELINES

1. A staff employee-reservist who is required to be absent from work must give his or her supervisor as much advance notice as possible. Failure to provide adequate notice may render the employee ineligible for Paid Military Leave.
2. A staff employee-reservist should furnish his/her supervisor with a copy of his/her military orders.
3. The University should make reasonable accommodations to permit leaves for military training duty, with due regard to the acute needs of the University.
4. Any staff employee-reservist whose training period extends beyond three (3) consecutive workweeks, should be placed on unpaid Leave of Absence for any time not covered by vacation, personal holiday time or Paid Military Leave.
5. A staff employee-reservist’s particular job must be held for his/her return from military training.
6. A staff employee-reservist who is eligible to use vacation or personal holiday may elect to use accrued vacation to cover military leave time and retain his/her military pay.
7. To receive University base pay for the first fifteen (15) days of service, a staff employee-reservist should, upon return from training, present to his/her department a statement of reserve earnings for the training period. The employee should submit a check or money order payable to the University of Chicago for the equivalent of his/her military pay, excluding allowances.
8. Inquiries from the Office of Veterans Re-employment Rights should be referred to HR-Employee/Labor Relations.

Employees represented by a bargaining unit may be governed by the appropriate bargaining unit agreement.

Section: U519

Date: October, 2016

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PURPOSE:

To establish procedures for the reporting of absences of exempt (monthly paid) staff employees.

POLICY:

Units are required to maintain a record of exempt staff employees’ absences in the events of vacation, personal holidays, sick leave, bereavement leave, jury duty, etc.

PROCEDURES:

1. Absences for exempt staff employees should be reported using the “Monthly Absence Report” through the university’s time and attendance system. The exempt staff employee will report full-day absences and the corresponding absence code for each absence as it occurs. If there were no absences, the employee should submit with no absences. Regardless of whether absences were submitted, the designated time approver is required to review and approve the monthly absence report submitted for the employee at the end of each month.
2. Vacation, sick leave, and personal holiday accrual records for an exempt staff employee may be maintained in hourly increments. Absences of less than one full day, however, are neither to be charged to accumulated time, nor are they to be deducted from pay.
3. If the employee’s pay is to be reduced, the unit must submit a copy of the Monthly Absence Report to Payroll via upload to the worker’s profile in Workday using the document category of “Monthly Absence Report”.
4. The employee can access his/her leave balances through the time and attendance system, in accordance with the vacation, personal holidays, and sick leave policies.

Employees represented by a union may be governed by the appropriate bargaining unit.

Section: U521

Date: November 28, 2005

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PURPOSE:

To establish guidelines for staff employees to attend their children’s school conferences and activities in compliance with the Illinois School Visitation Rights Act.

POLICY:

The University encourages staff employees’ involvement in their children’s school-related activities. Staff employees who have children in primary and/or secondary school may receive an additional eight (8) hours of unpaid school visitation time per school year after accrued vacation and personal holiday leave time have been exhausted.

GUIDELINES:

1. In general, benefits-eligible employees may elect to use accrued vacation or personal holiday time for school visitation at any time, following University policies U509 Vacation and U511 Personal Holidays. However, after six (6) months of employment, employees can use an additional eight (8) hours of unpaid leave for school visitation after their accrued vacation and personal holiday leave time have been exhausted.
2. Additional unpaid time off will be given in increments of no more than four (4) hours. A staff employee is not required to make up time lost . However, supervisors should make a good faith effort to permit (non-exempt) employees to make up this time.
3. An employee must consult with his/her supervisor to schedule the leave so as not to disrupt the operations of the unit unduly. Requests for time off for school visitation purposes must be made in writing at least seven (7) days in advance. In case of emergencies, up to 24-hours advance notice should be given.
4. A staff employee may be required to provide documentation for the requested time off to his/her supervisor. Failure to submit a verification statement from the school may be considered an unexcused absence and may result in disciplinary action.
5. A non-exempt staff employee should indicate any unpaid school visitation time taken on his/her timecard. While an exempt staff employee will not receive a salary deduction in less than full-day increments under the Fair Labor Standards Act, he/she should indicate school visitation time taken on the Monthly Absence Report.

Employees represented by a union may be governed by the appropriate bargaining unit agreement.

Section: U522

Date: June 2014

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PURPOSE

The University is committed to compliance with the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (the “FMLA”). The purpose of this policy is to provide employees with a basic understanding of their rights and obligations under the FMLA.

POLICY OVERVIEW

The University will grant eligible employees leave under the FMLA (“Family Medical Leave” or “FML”) for up to 12 workweeks during any 12-month period. An employee who has been employed at the University for at least 12 months and has worked at least 1,250 hours during the 12-month period preceding the request for leave is eligible for FML. Paid absences (including Workers’ Compensation, Temporary Seasonal Shutdown, Short Term Disability, and other paid or unpaid time off) prior to taking FML, are not included in the 1,250 work hours referenced above.

BASIC LEAVE ENTITLEMENT

An eligible employee is entitled to take up to 12 weeks of job-protected FML for the following reasons:

• Because they are unable to perform their job due to pregnancy, prenatal medical care or child birth;

• To care for the employee’s child after birth, or placement for adoption or foster care;

• To care for the employee’s spouse, son, daughter or parent, who has a serious health condition; or

• For a serious health condition that makes the employee unable to perform the employee’s job.

DEFINITION OF A SERIOUS HEALTH CONDITION

A serious health condition is an illness, injury, impairment, or physical or mental condition that involves either an overnight stay in a medical care facility, or continuing treatment by a health care provider for a condition that either prevents the employee from performing the functions of the employee’s job, or prevents the qualified family member from participating in school or other daily activities. Subject to certain conditions, the continuing treatment requirement may be met by a period of incapacity (inability to work) of more than 3 consecutive calendar days combined with at least two visits to a health care provider or one visit and a regimen of continuing treatment, or incapacity due to pregnancy, or incapacity due to a chronic condition. Other conditions may meet the definition of continuing treatment.

MILITARY FAMILY LEAVE ENTITLEMENTS

Eligible employees whose spouse, son, daughter or parent is on covered active duty or call to covered active duty status may use their 12-week leave entitlement to address certain “qualifying exigencies.” Qualifying exigencies may include attending certain military events, arranging for alternative childcare, addressing certain financial and legal arrangements, attending certain counseling sessions, and attending post-deployment reintegration briefings. The FMLA also includes a special leave entitlement that permits eligible employees to take up to 26 weeks of leave to care for a covered servicemember during a single 12-month period. A covered servicemember is:

(1) a current member of the Armed Forces, including a member of the National Guard or Reserves, who is undergoing medical treatment, recuperation or therapy, is otherwise in outpatient status, or is otherwise on the temporary disability retired list, for a serious injury or illness; or

(2) a veteran who was discharged or released under conditions other than dishonorable at any time during the five-year period prior to the first date the eligible employee takes FML to care for the covered veteran, and who is undergoing medical treatment, recuperation, or therapy for a serious injury or illness. (Note, the FMLA definitions of “serious injury or illness” for current service members and veterans are distinct from the FMLA definition of serious health condition).

EMPLOYEE BENEFITS DURING FML AND JOB RESTORATION AFTER FML

Health Insurance: During an employee’s FML, the University will maintain health insurance and other group health benefits on the same conditions as if the employee was working subject to applicable plan documents and law. If the employee wants benefits to continue during FML, he/she must continue to pay the share of the premiums for those benefits at the same contribution rate as if he/she were an active employee. If any portion of FML is paid, the employee’s share of the benefit premiums will be paid through automatic payroll deductions. For unpaid FML, the employee will be billed and must make payments for his or her share of the premiums on a monthly basis. The University’s obligations to maintain health benefits cease if an employee fails to pay his/her share of premiums for which he/she is billed.

Accrual of Vacation, Personal and Sick Leave during FML: Consistent with the University’s policy for all types of leave, employees will not accrue vacation or other benefits while on unpaid FML.

Holidays during FML: Employees will not be paid for holidays that fall during FML unless the holiday falls on a day covered by accruals (i.e., vacation leave, sick leave or a personal day).

Job Restoration: Most employees will be restored to their original or equivalent positions with equivalent pay, benefits, and other employment terms after FML.

Benefits Accrued Before FML: Use of FML will not result in the loss of any employment benefit that accrued prior to the start of the leave.

Retirement Plans: FML will be treated as continuous service (i.e., no break in service) for purposes of vesting and eligibility to participate in the University’s retirement plans.

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

Employees are eligible for FML if they have worked for the University for at least 12 months and have worked at least 1,250 hours during the 12-month period before a request for FML.

FML “LEAVE YEAR”

For the purposes of this policy, the University will use a “rolling” 12-month period measured backward from the date an employee uses any FMLA leave. Available leave is determined by subtracting the number of weeks of FMLA leave taken during this 12-month “look back” period from the 12-week total allowed.

USE OF LEAVE

An employee does not need to use FML in one block. Leave can be taken intermittently or on a reduced leave schedule when medically necessary. Employees must make reasonable efforts to schedule leave for planned medical treatment so as not to unduly disrupt the University’s operations. Employees may also take leave due to “qualifying exigencies” (defined above) or “bonding leave” (leave to bond with a newborn child or newly-adopted child) on an intermittent basis.

PAY DURING FML

Under the FMLA, Family Medical Leave generally is unpaid. However, the University has made provisions for employees to receive pay during FML under certain circumstances, described below.

Sick Leave: An employee must use his/her accrued sick leave concurrently with FML for his/her own serious health condition. Sick leave may not be used during FML taken for reasons other than an employee’s own serious health condition. Refer to the chart below and U512 Sick Leave for rules regarding the use of sick leave during FML.

Vacation and Personal Leave: An employee must use accrued vacation and personal days concurrently with FML. However, an employee may choose to keep a total of five combined vacation and personal days to use at another time. [Refer to Personnel Policy U509 Vacation and U511 Personal Holidays.]

Short Term Disability (STD): An employee may be eligible for STD payments during FML. Refer to the chart below and U513 Short-Term Disability for rules regarding the use of STD during FML.

Workers Compensation “Lost Time”: FML runs concurrently with Workers’ Compensation Lost Time if the basis for the Lost Time also meets the definition of a serious health condition under the FMLA.

The following is a breakdown of the types of paid leave that apply during FML.

HOW TO REQUEST LEAVE

An employee must provide 30 days advance notice to his or her manager of the need to take FML when the need for leave is foreseeable.

When 30 days’ notice is not possible, the employee must provide notice to his or her manager as soon as practicable and must comply with the University’s normal call-in procedures.

Employees requesting FML will also be required to complete the FML Request Form and return it to their unit HR Professional.

The unit HR Professional and/or HR-Leave Administration will inform employees of additional obligations, including the need for a medical certification supporting the need for FML.

Generally, when requesting FML, employees must be prepared to provide sufficient information for the University to determine if the leave is covered by the FMLA and the anticipated timing and duration of the leave. Sufficient information may include the following: whether the employee is unable to perform job functions; whether the employee’s family member is unable to perform daily activities, the need for hospitalization or continuing treatment by a health care provider, whether the leave is for a reason for which the employee previously took FML; the circumstances supporting the need for military family leave.

THE UNIVERSITY’S RESPONSIBILITIES

The University will inform an employee requesting FML whether he or she is eligible under FMLA.

If he or she is eligible, the University will notify the employee of any additional information required as well as the employee’s rights and responsibilities.

If the University determines that the leave is not FMLA-protected, it will notify the employee and provide a reason for ineligibility.

The University will also inform an employee if leave will be designated as FMLA-protected and the amount of leave counted against the employee’s FML entitlement.

THE EMPLOYEE’S RESPONSIBILITIES

Consistent with the University’s policy regarding all types of leave, the following conduct is strictly prohibited in relation to FMLA leave:

• Engaging in fraud, misrepresentation or providing false information to the University or any health care provider.

• Having other employment during the leave, without prior written approval from the University.

• Failure to comply with the employee’s obligations under this policy.

• Failure to timely return from the leave.

Employees who engage in conduct described above will be subject to loss of benefits, denial or termination of leave, and corrective action, up to and including termination.

THE UNIVERSITY’S COMMITMENT

The University will not interfere with, restrain, or deny the exercise of any right provided by the FMLA, nor will it discharge or discriminate against any individual for opposing any practice or involvement in any proceeding relating to the FMLA. The University recognizes the co-existence of state and/or local laws regarding family and medical leave. Where such laws apply and provide greater family and medical leave rights than the FMLA, the University will comply with those laws.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

The following resources from the U.S. Department of Labor provide additional information about employees’ rights and responsibilities under the FMLA:

FMLA Employee Guide: http://www.dol.gov/whd/fmla/employeeguide.htm 

FMLA Employee Rights And Responsibilities Poster: http://www.dol.gov/whd/regs/compliance/posters/fmlaen.pdf

 

Section: U523

Date: July 16, 2004

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PURPOSE:

To permit staff employees to meet their civic obligations to make court appearances.

POLICY:

The University will grant time off for staff employees who are obligated to make court appearances. Staff employees may use vacation and/or personal holidays to receive pay for time lost from work or may use unpaid time to appear in court.

GUIDELINES:

1. If a staff employee is subpoenaed to make a court appearance for a matter unrelated to his/her University employment, the employee is expected to use his/her own vacation and/or personal holiday time or unpaid time off.
2. If a staff employee is subpoenaed to make a court appearance on behalf of the University, the employee is paid his/her regular pay.
3. If a staff employee is subpoenaed to make a court appearance on behalf of another University employee, the subpoenaed employee is expected to use his/her own vacation and/or personal holiday time or unpaid time off.
4. A staff employee is responsible for notifying his/her supervisor immediately after receiving a subpoena to appear at court during scheduled work hours. A supervisor may request a copy of this notice for the department’s files.

Employees represented by a bargaining unit may be governed by the appropriate bargaining unit agreement.

Section: U524

Date: October 13, 2004

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PURPOSE:

To establish notice and pay procedures for both unscheduled University-wide and non-University-wide instances when unusual conditions such as extreme weather, power outages, and equipment failures make it impracticable to operate the workplace.

POLICY:

Certain conditions that affect the safety and well-being of employees may be reason to close an operation.

GUIDELINES:

1. In the event of a University-wide condition, procedures can be found in the University’s Emergency Management Plan.
2. In the event of a site-specific condition, the unit administrator at the site is responsible for making a decision with respect to the operation of the site. Factors to consider are the safety of employees, departmental property, and the critical need for the operation.
3. Some emergency conditions may result in assigning alternative duties or work space to staff employees to avoid loss of work, pay, or accruals. If an assigned staff employee has not received any required safety and performance training, the employee should receive it before beginning alternative duties. Such duties should be as consistent as possible, under the circumstances, with the staff employee’s current job duties. In the event that a staff employee’s work space at the University is unavailable and an alternative work space is unavailable, a staff employee should be excused with pay.
4. In the event a site-specific condition occurs before a staff employee reports to work and alternative work or work space is unavailable, a unit may excuse the employee and provide regular pay for the full day. (Note: in such cases, union employees are not paid when advised in advance, unless they use personal or vacation time.)
5. In the event of a site-specific condition, a unit should enact emergency notification procedures (i.e., phone trees) to advise staff employees where or whether to report for work.
6. A unit administrator may contact the Employee/Labor Relations Office of Human Resources (702-4411) regarding pay or notification issues, and the Safety and Environmental Affairs Office (702-9999) regarding questions concerning safety processes.
7. In the event of extraordinary weather conditions, reasonable tardiness should be excused.

Employees represented by a bargaining unit may be governed by the appropriate bargaining unit agreement.

Section: U525

Date: November 22, 2011

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PURPOSE:

To provide guidelines for Workers’ Compensation required insurance payments to employees for injury or illness which arises out of and in the course of employment.

POLICY:

The University will provide compensation for lost wages when an employee is found to have suffered a compensable injury or illness which arises out of and in the course of employment. Reimbursement for associated medical bills and services for treatment and recovery is included.

GUIDELINES:

1. If an injury or illness is severe, immediate medical care should be sought through the University Occupational Medicine Clinic or a local Emergency Room.
2.  A University employee is required to notify a supervisor or administrator of an accident and submit a written statement of the injury or illness as soon as it occurs (and no later than 45 days later than the date of occurrence) and complete the Employee Statement of Injury or Illness.
3. A supervisor or administrator will be required to complete the Supervisor’s First Report of the accident.
4. The report of the injury or illness will be sent to the University Safety and Environmental Office for investigation. The SEO may provide plans to correct any defects or problems found, if so warranted.
5. An employee who has a compensable injury or illness and is unable to report to work in order to recover and receive treatment, will be eligible to receive compensation for lost wages based upon a rate of 66-2/3% of his/her Average Weekly Wage established by the State of Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission, up to a maximum amount set by the Commission. (See http://www.iwcc.il.gov/benefits.htm.) Payments are made independent of payroll and are not taxed.
6. Compensation payments begin on the fourth day of lost time, unless lost time is 14 days or more, at which time the first three days will be compensated retroactively.
7. Related medical and rehabilitation expenses including medications, therapy, supportive devices, and doctors’ appointments will be paid directly by the University or an employee with a compensable injury or illness will receive reimbursement if expenses were paid.
8. An employee may, but is not required to, use any accrued sick leave, vacation or personal holiday to supplement Workers’ Compensation payments.
9. FMLA leave will run concurrently with Workers’ Compensation Lost Time.
10. Prior to returning to work, an employee will be required to provide a release to return to work from the treating physician if there was any lost time from work.
11. The University prohibits retaliation against any employee who, in good faith, seeks Workers’ Compensation benefits.

Employees represented by a union may be governed by the appropriate bargaining unit agreement.

Section: U526

Date: April 6, 2012

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PURPOSE:

To provide guidelines when employees need time off due to domestic or sexual violence.

POLICY:

The University will grant employees who are victims of domestic or sexual violence or who have a family or household member who is a victim of domestic or sexual violence unpaid leave under the Victims’ Economic Security and Safety Act (VESSA) for up to 12 weeks during any rolling 12-month period to address issues arising from domestic or sexual violence. The University will protect the confidentiality of information provided as part of a VESSA leave.

GUIDELINES:

1. All employees of the University are eligible to take VESSA leave.
2. Employees may request VESSA leave for absences for the following reasons related to domestic or sexual violence:
   • Medical treatment;
   • Victim services;
   • Counseling;
   • Safety planning including temporary or permanent relocation or other actions to increase the safety of the victim;
   • Court proceedings; or
   • Legal or other assistance.
3. To request a leave, an employee must submit a completed VESSA Leave Request Form and related documents to the employee’s supervisor, the department’s Human Resource Administrator (HRA), or the Benefits Analyst – Leave Programs (leaveadministration@uchicago.edu). Employees should submit the request at least 48 hours prior to the need for leave. If an employee cannot provide advance notice, the employee must submit the request as soon as feasible under the circumstances.
4. In addition to the completed request form, an employee must submit the following documentation to Leave Administration (leaveadministration@uchicago.edu):
   • Documentation from a victim services organization, attorney, health care provider, or other professional from whom assistance has been sought;
   • A police record; or
   • Other corroborating written evidence of the need for leave.
5. If a department/unit acquires knowledge that an employee’s absence may be for a VESSA-qualifying reason, the employee’s supervisor or HRA should contact Leave Administration immediately. The leave tentatively may be designated as VESSA leave pending the employee’s completion of the application process and notification from Leave Administration.
6. VESSA leave may be taken in a block of time, on an intermittent basis, or in the form of a reduced work schedule.
7. Employees on VESSA leave are expected to be reasonably responsive to and communicate with their supervisor and department during the leave. Employees may be required to provide certification for absences. Employees also must follow attendance guidelines and call-in procedures for reporting an absence. Otherwise, the absence may be deemed unexcused or unscheduled.
8. An employee may use his/her accrued sick leave during VESSA leave for his/her own illness. Accrued vacation and personal holidays also may be used during any VESSA leave for the employee or an employee’s family or household member. [Refer to Personnel Policy U509 Vacation and U511 Personal Holidays.] An employee may be eligible for Short-Term Disability payments for VESSA leave for his/her own illness. [Refer to U513 Short-Term Disabilityand U512 Sick Leave for guidelines regarding the use of accrued sick leave and STD as part of VESSA and/or FMLA leave.]
9. If the VESSA leave also qualifies for FMLA leave, the leaves will run concurrently.
10. During VESSA leave, the University will maintain benefits on the same conditions as if the employee is working subject to applicable plan documents and law. During VESSA leave, an employee must continue to pay the employee’s portion of insurance benefit premiums if the employee wishes coverage to continue during the leave.
11. An employee returning from a VESSA leave of up to twelve (12) weeks will be reinstated to his/her former or an equivalent position with the same pay, benefits, and conditions of employment unless the employee is unable to perform the essential functions of his/her former job with or without reasonable accommodation as required by law.
12. If an employee does not return to work when the VESSA leave expires and has not been approved for an additional leave of absence or other reasonable accommodation as required by law, employment will be terminated effective on the first scheduled workday that is missed following the expiration of the VESSA leave.
13. If this policy conflicts with applicable law, the law governs.

Employees represented by a union may be governed by the appropriate bargaining unit agreement.