Current through all regulations passed and filed through September 16, 2024
(A) All non-exempt staff employees are
required to request and have approved by their supervisor all absences from
campus for each instance involving vacation, sick leave, death of a member of
the immediate family, leave without pay, military leave, and/or court leave.
Each department is responsible for using the university of
Akron approval process for such requests and approvals consistently with all
departmental exempt and non-exempt staff employees. Provisions in collective
bargaining agreements that refer to the request, use and approval of specific
types of leave must be followed for employees covered by such an agreement. All
approved absences must be reported on the employee's official time
record.
Documentation may be required for certain types of
absences.
(B) Holiday
schedule.
(1) The university of Akron
observes
eleven holidays annually:
|
Christmas day |
Memorial day |
|
Columbus day |
New Year's day |
|
Independence day |
Presidents' day |
|
Juneteenth |
Thanksgiving day |
|
Labor day |
Veteran's day |
|
Martin Luther King day | |
(2)
The dates on which these holidays are to be observed will be announced
annually.
(3) If a holiday falls on
Sunday, it will be observed on the following Monday; if a holiday falls on
Saturday, it will be observed on the preceding Friday.
(4) If a holiday occurs during a period of
active pay status - which includes approved sick leave, leave with pay, or
vacation - the employee will be paid for the holiday. In order to qualify for
holiday pay, an employee must be in an active pay status on regularly-scheduled
work days both prior and subsequent to the holiday.
(5) If it is essential that university
offices remain open on a day designated as a holiday (ex: Veterans day):
(a) Any full- or part-time classified or
unclassified non-exempt employee required to work on a designated holiday will
be entitled to one and one-half times the regular rate of pay - either in the
form of actual pay or compensatory time for the hours actually worked; such
overtime will be in addition to the employee's normal pay for the
holiday.
(b) Any full- or part-time
exempt staff employee required to work on a designated holiday will be entitled
to time off equal to the number of hours actually worked; such time off will be
in addition to the normal pay for the holiday and is to be taken at the
approval of the supervisor.
(6) If the university is officially closed at
five p.m. on the day prior to a board of trustees' approved holiday (ex:
Wednesday prior to Thanksgiving):
(a) For
employees whose normally scheduled work day falls all or in part after five
p.m., an effort may be made by the supervisor and employee to reschedule those
hours within the same work week. Otherwise, the employee will be expected to
work the normal schedule. If the hours are not worked or rescheduled, the
employee may utilize vacation leave in order to be paid.
(b) Part time employees are entitled to
holiday pay for that portion of any holiday for which the employee would
normally have been scheduled to work.
(C) Family and medical leave.
(1) Under the Family and Medical Leave Act of
1993 ("FMLA"), up to twelve weeks of leave without pay during any twelve-month
period are provided to eligible employees for certain family and medical
reasons. Employees are eligible if they have been employed by the university
for at least twelve months, this twelve-month period need not be consecutive,
and worked at least one thousand two hundred fifty hours (0.6 FTE) over the
twelve-month period preceding the leave. FMLA leave without pay will be granted
for any of the following reasons:
(a) The
birth of a child, the care of a newborn child, or placement of a child with the
employee for adoption or foster care;
(b) A serious health condition of the
employee that renders him or her unable to perform his/her job functions;
or
(c) In order to care for an
employee's child, spouse, or parent who has a serious health
condition.
(d) A "qualifying
exigency" arising out of the fact that the employee's spouse, child or parent
is called to covered active duty (or notified of an impending call or order to
active duty) with the armed forces, including the national guard and reserves.
Covered active duty means duty during deployment of the armed forces member to
a foreign country. A qualified exigency may include short-notice deployment,
attending military events, arranging for alternative childcare, addressing
financial and legal arrangements, seeking counseling, attending post-deployment
activities, and other similar circumstances.
(e) Leave related to a child's birth or
placement for adoption or foster care must be completed within the twelve-month
period beginning on the date of the birth or placement.
(2) A leave of absence of up to twenty-six
weeks in any single twelve-month period (rolling forward) will be granted to
eligible employees for the following purposes:
(a) To care for a covered family member or
next-of-kin (nearest blood relative) who has a serious injury or illness
incurred by the service member in the line of duty on active duty in the armed
forces (or existed before the active duty began and was aggravated in the line
of active duty in the armed forces) and that may render the service member
medically unfit to perform his/her duties. The service member must be:
(i) undergoing medical treatment,
recuperation or therapy;
(ii) in
outpatient status; or
(iii) on the
temporary disability retired list for the serious illness, or injury.
(b) To care for a veteran who is a
covered family member or next-of-kin (nearest blood relative) who has a
qualifying serious injury or illness incurred by the member in the line of duty
on active duty in the armed forces (or existed before the member's active duty
began and was aggravated by service in the line of active duty in the armed
forces) and that manifested itself before or after the member became a veteran.
The veteran must be undergoing medical treatment, recuperation, or therapy for
the serious injury or illness and have been a member of the armed forces during
the five years preceding the date on which the veteran underwent the medical
treatment, recuperation, or therapy.
(c) Leave to care for an injured or ill
service member, when combined with other FMLA-qualifying leave, may not exceed
twenty-six weeks in any single twelve-month period.
(3) Subject to the provisions of the
applicable policies, paid vacation leave or paid sick leave may, at the
employee's option, be substituted for leave without pay while on FMLA
leave.
(4) If the employee fails to
provide at least thirty days' advance notice when the leave is clearly
foreseeable leave may be delayed until at least thirty days after the date the
employee provides notice to the employer. If the employee fails to provide a
medical or other certification to support a request for leave, leave may be
delayed until certification is provided. If the employee never produces
certification then the leave is not FMLA leave. The university may, at its own
expense, request a second and/or third opinion. If the employee or employee's
family member fails to authorize his/her health care provider to release all
relevant medical information pertaining to the health condition at issue, as
requested by the health care provider for the second/third opinion, the
university may deny the taking of FMLA leave. However, if the university
requests a second and/or third opinion, and the employee authorizes his/her
health care provider to release the relevant medical information, the employee
is provisionally entitled to the FMLA leave pending the employer's receipt of
the relevant medical information.
(5) Group health benefits will be continued
for the duration of an FMLA leave. Upon return, an employee will be restored to
his or her original or an equivalent position with equivalent pay, benefits and
other employment terms.
(6) A
"rolling" twelve-month period measured retrospectively from the date an
employee uses any FMLA leave shall be used to determine the "twelve-month
period" in which the twelve weeks of FMLA leave entitlement occurs.
(7) Family and medical leave may be used on a
continuous basis. It may also be used on an intermittent basis, or as a reduced
work schedule as provided by law. Application for FMLA is made to human
resources, and approval of the request made by human resources.
(8) When intermittent or reduced work
schedule leave is foreseeable due to planned medical treatment, the employee
must make reasonable efforts to schedule the treatment so as not to unduly
disrupt the university's operation, and the university may temporarily transfer
the employee to an alternative position for which the employee is qualified, if
it better accommodates these recurring periods of leave.
(9) Nothing in this section shall be deemed
to create any additional benefits, rights, or entitlements to employees beyond
those provided by the provisions of the FMLA or applicable law of the state of
Ohio. For the purpose of implementing this FMLA policy, the definitions and
provisions of the FMLA in effect at that time shall be followed when necessary
to ensure compliance with the law.
(D) An employee may be granted approved leave
of absence without pay for military service, parental leave, convalescence (if
sick leave is not applicable or exhausted), certain personal reasons, and/or
training. The leave of absence must be approved in advance by the supervisor
and must be accompanied by acceptable written justification. Such request shall
state the reason for and the dates of the leave. Length of leave of absence can
vary for different reasons, but normally extends to no more than six
months.
(E) If it is determined
that an approved leave of absence is not being used for the purpose for which
it was granted, the university may require the employee to return to work or be
subject to appropriate discipline as specified in Ohio Revised Code.
(F) Reduced workweek policy.
Staff employees who wish to work a reduced work week during the
summer sessions or at other times of the year may request leave without pay.
Reduction in working hours will require the permission of the employee's
supervisor. Staff privileges and benefits will remain in effect for eligible
full-time employees.
(G)
Sick leave for non-exempt employees.
(1) Sick
leave is defined as the authorized absence from duties for the following
reasons:
(a) Personal illness, pregnancy, or
injury,
(b) Exposure to contagious
disease which could be communicated to other members of the university
family,
(c) Illness, injury or
death (to a maximum of five days) in the employee's immediate family,
or
(d) Medical, psychological,
dental, or optical examination or treatment of the employee or a member of the
immediate family.
Definition of immediate family: the employee's immediate family
is limited to the employee's spouse, parents, children, grandparents, siblings,
grandchildren, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, daughter-in-law, son-in-law,
mother-in-law, father-in-law, or a legal guardian or other person who under
Ohio law is legally recognized to stand in the place of a parent.
Where sick leave is required to care for a member of the
immediate family, the department of benefits administration will require a
physician's certificate to the effect that the presence of the employee is
necessary to care for the ill person.
(2) The university reserves the right to
require a physician's certification or other verification in all instances of
paid leave. When such certification or verification is required, it shall be
collected by the department of benefits administration for audit and retention.
The absence from duties must be approved by the administrator
to whom the individual on sick leave is responsible.
(3) Unexcused absence or failure to give
proper notification may result in the absence being charged to leave without
pay and may also be cause for disciplinary action. Falsification of either a
written, signed statement or a physician's certificate shall be grounds for
disciplinary action including dismissal. Except in instances due to extended
illness or injury, monthly or annual absences greater than the number of hours
or days accrued may be considered excessive.
(4) Sick leave is accrued at the rate of 4.6
hours per eighty hours of active pay status. Only accrued sick leave hours can
be requested for authorized paid absences. Sick leave will be charged only for
the non-overtime hours an employee is regularly scheduled to work but absent.
Employees are not permitted to change a sick leave request once a work day has
started (i.e. sick leave to vacation).
(5) A non-exempt employee who is unable to
report for work, and who is not on previously approved vacation, sick leave, or
leave of absence, shall be responsible for notifying the immediate supervisor,
or other individual designated by the supervisor, that the employee will be
unable to report to work on that day and each appropriate day thereafter. This
notification must be made within one-half hour after the time the employee is
scheduled to report for work, unless emergency conditions prevent such
notification.
(6) When an
employee's duties are part of a function which operates twenty-four hours a
day, seven days per week - i.e., police, etc. - and such employee is unable to
report for work, the employee shall notify the immediate supervisor at least
two hours prior to the scheduled work time.
(7) In the case of any absence for illness or
injury, the university may require a physician's statement specifying the
employee's inability to report to work and the anticipated date of recovery.
The employee shall be responsible for notifying the immediate supervisor, or
other designated individual, whenever the employee is placed under a
physician's care and not released to work or hospitalized, unless such
condition precludes notification. The employee shall be responsible for
notifying the immediate supervisor, or other designated individual, regarding
the anticipated date of recovery and return to work.
(8) In all cases of leave for illness or
injury, the university may require written certification by a physician
attesting to an employee's fitness to return to work.
(H) The university shall provide a voluntary
leave bank program for full-time, non-bargaining unit employees who wish to
participate in the program. The program shall be administered by the office of
human resources, pursuant to policy terms and conditions developed by that
office, as may be amended.
(I)
Maternity leave. Upon delivery, an employee who is on active pay status shall,
in the ordinary course of recovering from either a vaginal birth without
complication, be entitled to use up to six weeks of accrued sick leave, or if a
vaginal birth with complication as verified by a physician or cesarean birth,
be entitled to use up to eight weeks of accrued sick leave, as long as the
employee has accrued the requisite amount of leave, and if less, then shall be
entitled, to use such lesser amount. In any event, the use of such accrued sick
leave shall be at the employee's option to use however much time as the
employee deems appropriate. If, upon delivery of the child, the employee is not
in active pay status, but becomes in active pay status within six weeks, in the
case of a vaginal birth without complication, or eight weeks, in the case of a
vaginal birth with complication as verified by a physician or cesarean birth,
the employee shall be entitled to use accrued sick leave upon being in active
pay status for the remainder of the six- or eight-week period, as applicable.
In any event, after using (or not using) such accrued sick leave, a full-time
employee is granted twenty working days of paid maternity leave not taken from
accrued sick leave. In addition to the paid maternity leave for full-time
employees, an eligible employee who thereafter is physically unable to perform
her duties may elect paid sick leave on the same terms that sick leave is
available for any other illness, injury, or disability. In addition, the
employee is entitled to FMLA leave if a pre- or post-delivery employee wishes
to be absent from work for a period of time longer than the period of actual
physical disability (see family and medical leave in paragraph (C) of this
rule). Use of maternity leave shall count as part of the twelve-week FMLA
leave.
(J) Paternity leave. A
full-time employee who is on active pay status upon a pregnant spouse's
delivery is granted, within one-hundred and eighty days of the delivery, twenty
working days of paid paternity leave which will not be taken from accrued sick
leave, but counted as part of FMLA leave.
(K) Adoptive and foster parent leave. Upon
the adoption of a child or arrival of a foster child, a full-time employee who
is on active pay status is entitled to twenty working days of paid leave which
will not be taken from accrued sick leave, but counted as part of FMLA
leave.
(L) Tardiness. An employee
is expected to report for work at the scheduled starting time. Unreported,
unexcused, and/or excessive tardiness may result in disciplinary
action.
(M) Vacation.
(1) Non-exempt employees (full-time).
(a) A non-exempt, full-time university
employee shall, after service of one year with the state, or any political
subdivision of the state, have earned and will be due upon attainment of the
first year of employment, and annually thereafter, eighty hours of vacation
leave with full pay. One year of service shall be computed on the basis of
twenty-six biweekly pay periods.
(b) The amount of annual vacation to which a
full-time employee is entitled is determined by the number of accumulated years
of service according to the following guidelines:
(i) Less than one year of service - no
vacation,
(ii) One year, but less
than eight years of service - eighty work hours,
(iii) Eight years, but less than fifteen
years of service - one hundred twenty work hours,
(iv) Fifteen years, but less than twenty-five
years of service - one hundred sixty work hours, and
(v) Twenty-five years of service - two
hundred work hours.
(2) Non-exempt employees (part-time
classified) - accrual commences effective January 1, 1999.
(a) A non-exempt, part-time classified
university employee shall, after service of one year with the state, or any
political subdivision of the state, have earned and will be due upon attainment
of the first year of employment, and annually thereafter, pro-rated vacation
leave with full pay. One year of service shall be computed on the basis of
twenty-six biweekly pay periods.
(b) Formula for calculation (multiplying
years of service times calculation factor):
|
Years of service |
Calculation factor |
|
0 - 7 |
.03875 x hours paid |
|
8 -14 |
.05750 x hours paid |
|
15 - 24 |
.07750 x hours paid |
|
25 or more |
.09625 x hours paid |
(3) Vacation credit.
(a) An employee earns vacation credit as
follows:
(i) 3.1 hours per biweekly pay period
for those entitled to eighty hours per year,
(ii) 4.6 hours per biweekly pay period for
those entitled to one hundred twenty hours per year,
(iii) 6.2 hours per biweekly pay period for
those entitled to one hundred sixty hours per year,
(iv) 7.7 hours per biweekly pay period for
those entitled to two hundred hours per year.
(b) Vacation credit can be accumulated to a
maximum of that earned in three years of service. Any vacation accrued over the
amount earned in a three-year period will be forfeited.
(c) Upon separation from employment payment
for accrued and unused vacation leave shall be made upon separation of service
from the university of Akron, upon death of the employee, or if the employee
moves to part-time. Such payment will be made in a lump sum based on the rate
of compensation at separation for any accrued but unused vacation leave,
subject to a maximum of that earned in three years of service.
(4) The office of human resources
shall establish a reporting system which shall provide for annual reporting by
the dean or administrative director covering vacation accumulation and usage of
each employee under the dean or director's supervision.
(5) Vacation leave may not be converted to
sick leave unless the employee is admitted to or treated in a hospital or is
under the treatment of a licensed physician and is not released to work.
Written verification is required. Only those hours/days certified above may be
converted to sick leave.
