In
accordance with college policy 6Hx28:07-38, full-time and part-time employees of
Valencia Community College who have worked for the college for 12 months and
have worked 1,250 hours within the year preceding the leave, are entitled to up
to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected Family/Medical Leave within any
twelve-month period for the following reasons:
·
the birth of a
son or daughter to the employee;
·
the placement of
a son or daughter with the employee for adoption or foster care;
·
in order to care
for the spouse, son, or daughter, or parent of the employee, if such family
member has a serious health condition; or
·
because of a serious health condition which renders the
employee unable to perform the functions of the position of such employee.
The
employee is required to use all paid leave (if eligible), i.e., sick leave,
sick leave pool, personal leave, and vacation leave, prior to using unpaid
leave. Both paid and unpaid leave run concurrently
with the twelve-week Family/Medical Leave entitlement. The
employee will be reinstated to the same or equivalent job with the same pay,
benefits, and terms and conditions of employment upon their return from leave.
How to Apply...
Complete the appropriate paperwork
·
Application
for Family/Medical Leave -
Employees requesting Family/Medical Leave are to
complete an Application for Family/Medical Leave form and, along with any
written attachments, submit it to their supervisor for approval. The application shall include the starting
date of the leave, the reason for the leave, and the anticipated termination of
the leave (not to exceed 12 weeks maximum).
·
Certification
of Health Care Provider Form - In
the event that Family/Medical Leave is requested due to the employees own
illness or due to the illness of the employees family member, a Certification of
Health Care Provider form must be submitted.
Failure to provide medical certification within 15 days of the colleges
request may result in denial of the leave, until medical certification is
provided. This form is also required for
any period of incapacity due to pregnancy, or for prenatal care.
·
Certificate
of Absence Form - Full-time
employees applying for Family/Medical Leave must complete a Certificate of
Absence form estimating the number of hours to be deducted from the sick and
vacation leave banks. If the exact start
date of the leave is unknown, the employee may complete the form to the best of
their ability and ask their supervisor to complete the date of the first day of
absence. The Payroll Department can help
with leave coordination.
·
Sick Leave
Pool Health Care Provider Certification Form - Full-time employees who are members of the sick leave
pool must complete this form in order to use the benefits of the sick leave
pool as outlined in college policy 6Hx28:07-15.
Submit the appropriate paperwork
Send
all forms and paperwork to the Human Resources Department. Applications for Family/Medical Leave should
be made at least 30 days in advance where the leave is foreseeable. Where the leave is not foreseeable, the
request should be made as soon as practicable.
Human
Resources will review the leave request, approve the leave, and if appropriate,
include the request on the board agenda for final approval.
Stay in Touch During the
Leave
At
the beginning of the leave and every four weeks thereafter, employees are
required to provide written verification of their intent to return to
work. If the need for the leave is less
than originally set forth in the employee's request and medical certification,
employees are expected to return to work as soon as the need for leave
concludes. The employee must provide two
days notice of his/her intent to return to work if the return is prior to the
date originally anticipated. If the
leave was requested for an employee's own serious health condition, the
employee is required to provide medical certification that he/she is able to
resume work.
Insurance Coverage During
Leave..
·
Health Insurance - The college will continue to pay premiums for the employee's
health insurance while the employee is on Family/Medical Leave. The employee must pay the cost of dependent
health insurance.
·
Life Insurance - The college will continue to pay premiums for the employee's
basic life insurance while the employee is on leave. Premiums for supplemental life insurance must
be paid by the employee.
·
Other Insurance -The employee must
pay the cost of any other insurance maintained by the employee while on
Family/Medical Leave.
·
Flexible Benefits Plan - The
employee may continue to make deposits into his Health Care Reimbursement
account. None of these payments will be
made with pre-tax dollars because they are a result of direct payment by the
employee and not redirected salary.
When Leave Ends...
·
Return to work - If the leave was due
to the employee's own illness, the employee must obtain a doctor's statement
indicating that he/she is able to return to work.
-or-
·
Request an extension or another type of
leave - If the original leave request was for less than the allowed 12
weeks, the employee may request an extension in writing. The request must be accompanied by medical
certification of the need for an extension.
Requests for extensions must be submitted as soon as the need for the
extension is known and, if foreseeable, at least two weeks prior to the end of
the original leave period. If the
original request was for the full 12 weeks and the employee is unable to return
to work, a partial leave or leave of absence may be requested.
-or-
·
Choose to terminate employment - The
employee may continue health insurance coverage under COBRA.
Note: Failure to report to
work on the first regular business day following the end of the leave period
shall be deemed as abandonment of the employee's position.
For more information, please contact Mariann
Swenson at extension 8028.
HR
Notes #64
November
2006
Faculty & Staff
