Sick and Safe Leave

For Yourself                                                                                                                                                                            

If illness necessitates your absence from work, you will continue to receive full pay for up to five consecutive days. Employees unable to return to work after 3 consecutive days of their own personal illness should notify their supervisor and contact the Office of People and Culture to discuss leave and other options.

Sick leave may mental or physical illness, treatment or preventive care. Sick leave may be used for visits to the dentist, physician, optometrist, mental health provider, or other medically related appointments for yourself, but you must inform your supervisor in advance of such appointments.

Sick leave is provided as a type of insurance protection in times of illness. Except during hospitalization or lengthy convalescence, you should inform your supervisor daily of your progress and expected date of return to work.

Fifteen sick days to a maximum of 120 hours are accrued at the beginning of the first pay period for each year. Benefits eligible employees hired after the first pay period of the year earn sick days on a prorated basis. Benefits eligible employees who work less than 40 hours per week, 12 months per year, receive sick leave on a prorated basis. Leave not used by the end of the last pay period of the same year is forfeited. Employees must report sick leave usage on their Time and Leave Reports.

When Caring for Relatives

You may also utilize sick leave for the mental or physical illness, treatment or preventive care of your family member. Family Members include a minor child, step child, foster child, adult child, legal ward, child for whom the employee is legal guardian or child to whom the employee stands or stood in loco parentis (in place of a parent), spouse, sibling, stepsibling, foster sibling, parent, step-parent, foster parent, a person who stood in loco parentis (in place of a parent) when the employee was a minor child, mother-in-law, father-in-law, grandparent, step grandpartent, grandchild, step-grandchild, foster grandchild, child of a sibling, child-in-law, sibling-in-law, sibling of the parents of the employee, any family member of the employees spouse, any other individual related by blood or whose close association with the employee is the equivalent of a family relationship, and up to one individual annually designated by the employee for up to five days per occurrence.

Sick leave may be used for scheduled visits to the dentist, physician, optometrist, mental health provider, or other medically related appointments for the above-mentioned individuals, but you must inform your supervisor in advance of such appointments.

Infecting Others

Sick and Safe time may be use when determined by a health authority or health care professional that an employee or their family member is at risk of infecting others with a communicable disease.

Safe Leave

Safe leave can be used for absence due to domestic abuse, sexual assault or stalking of an employee or their family member. It is a leave that is taken for the purpose of providing or receiving assistance due to sexual assault, domestic abuse, or stalking. Safe leave may be used for you personally or if you need to care for or assist an family member who needs assistance because of sexual assault, domestic abuse, or stalking.

Closure of Employee's Workplace or Family Member's School or Care Facility

Sick and Safe leave may be used for the closure of an employee’s workplace due to weather or public emergency or closure of their family member’s school or care facility due to weather or public emergency.

Funeral Arrangements

Sick and Safe leave may be used for making funeral arrangements, attending a funeral service or memorial or addressing financial or legal matters that arise after the death of a family member.

Limitations

The abuse and misuse of sick leave is prohibited. Employees using excessive sick leave of more than 120 hours per calendar year (or maximum based on position) will be required to use their accrued paid leave (vacation, holiday and/or personal leave) for the remaining months in the calendar year. This amount will be prorated for employees working less than 40 hours per week, 12 months per year, and for new employees based on hire date. Short-term disability is excluded from this limit. 

Earned Sick and Safe Time per Employee Group

Student Employees, Temporary Employees and Part Time Coaches earn their sick and safe time as they work, 1 hour per 30 hours worked with a max accrual of 80 hours.

Staff Employees have their hours front loaded at the start of each calendar year, 120 hours for full time staff employees, part time employees sick and safe time is prorated.

Full Time Faculty, Cabinet, and Coaches have sick and safe time to use when they require it.

Adjunct Faculty earn their sick and safe time as they work. For every 30 hours worked, adjuncts will accrue 1 hour of sick and safe time with a maximum accrual of 80 hours. Time worked is calculated based on an average of 2.5 hours worked per week.