Leaves of Absence

     
  • Bereavement Leave 
  • Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) 
  • Holidays 
  • Holy Days 
  You are entitled to up to three (3) workdays of leave upon the death of immediate family members, as defined below.  These workdays must be successive but may be interrupted by a weekend, holiday, or day off.  The period of time off must encompass the day of the funeral.  For purposes of administering this policy, your “immediate family” includes one of the following current relationships: spouse, children, parents, brothers, sisters, grandparents, and grandchildren of yours or your spouse.  Up to one day may be granted for the purpose of attending a funeral of family members other than those classified as “immediate family”.  Should additional time off in excess of the time provided for in this policy be necessary, you may take benefit time (vacation, sick, personal) if available.  Such request should be coordinated with your supervisor. 
  Wagner College will grant up to twelve (12) weeks of unpaid leave per year to employees who have completed at least twelve (12) months of service and have worked at least 1,250 hours, in the last 12 months, to qualify for this leave without pay.  As is permitted by law, Wagner College’s policy that you must exhaust all available paid leave – including, without limitation, accrued vacation, personal and sick days – as part of your FMLA leave.  After such paid leave has been exhausted any remaining FMLA leave shall be unpaid.  Leave may be taken for the following reasons: 
  • To care for your child in connection with the birth, adoption or foster care placement.
  • To care for your spouse, child or parent who has a serious health condition.
  • For your own serious health condition that makes you unable to perform your job.
A serious health condition means an illness, injury, impairment, or physical or mental condition that involves inpatient care in a hospital, hospice, or residential health care facility, or continuing treatment or supervision by a health care provider.  You must notify the Human Resources Office of the need for leave as soon as you know that leave time will be required.  If the leave is to be taken because of the birth, adoption or foster care placement of a child, or for foreseeable medical treatment, at least 30 days notice is required whenever possible.  The College will require certification of the need for leave.  When leave is due to a serious health condition, the doctor providing medical attention to the patient must provide the certification.  The certification must include: 
  • the date the condition commenced
  • probable duration of the condition
  • appropriate medical facts regarding the condition
  • statement that you are needed to provide care for the family member and the amount of time that you will be needed to provide care.
  • statement that you are unable to perform the essential functions of your job and an estimate of the duration of the condition that prevents you from working, when appropriate.
Wagner College reserves the right to have the employee examined by an independent medical practitioner.  When leave has been taken because of your personal illness which prevented you from performing the functions of your job you must present a “release to work” from the attending physician to the Human Resources Office before you will be allowed to work.  All benefits will be discontinued during your unpaid leave except for participation in the College’s health insurance plan.  Group health plan benefits will continue on the same basis as coverage would have been provided if you had been continuously employed during the FMLA period.  During paid leave your portion of health insurance premiums will be paid through salary reduction and the College will continue to pay its share of your health care premium. If the FMLA leave is unpaid, your portion of the monthly premium should be made to Wagner College.  Payments should be sent to the Office of Human Resources the first week of every month.   Health care coverage will cease if your premium is more than 30 days late.  If you do not return to work after the FMLA leave, you will be required to pay back to the College any health insurance premiums the College paid on your behalf.  Whenever possible employees who return at the end of the approved leave time will be restored to the position they held when leave began.  If the same position is not available you will be restored to an equivalent position, unless your position has been eliminated due to reasons unrelated to the leave.  The College may deny reinstatement to those salaried employees who are among the 10% most highly compensated if it determines that reinstatement will cause substantial and grievous economic injury to its operations.  Posting of the employee rights under the Family Medical Leave Act of 1993 can be found outside of the Human Resources Office.  Any employee requiring explanation of the law, additional information regarding the procedures for obtaining FMLA leave, including any additional documents or forms that may be required, should contact the Human Resources Office. 
  Wagner College normally observes the following official holidays: 
  • New Year’s Day
  • Martin Luther King Day
  • Presidents’ Day
  • Good Friday
  • Memorial Day
  • Independence Day
  • Labor Day
  • Columbus Day
  • Thanksgiving (Thursday and Friday)
  • Christmas Day
Additional days off are at the discretion of the President and are announced in advance.  If you are a non-exempt employee, and it is required that the office you work in be open and staffed on an official holiday (as listed above) your supervisor may arrange for a substitute holiday(s) at a later date.  If no substitute holiday is to be taken, you will be paid for the holiday plus overtime at the rate of 1½ times your base hourly pay.  If a holiday occurs when you are on a paid vacation, it will not be counted as a vacation day.  An extra vacation day will be granted which will be added to your vacation or taken at a later date, at the discretion of your supervisor.  If you are on an approved leave of absence when a holiday occurs, you will not receive credit for the holiday.  If you are an exempt employee required to work on a holiday, you may take the holiday at a later date. 
  It is important for supervisors to be sensitive to individual employee’s religious obligations regarding holiday observances.

 

 

     
  • Jury Duty 
  • Leave Without Pay 
  • Maternity Leave 
  • Military Leave 
  • Personal Time 
  • Sick Leave 
  • Vacation 
    •  
  Jury Duty leave with pay shall be approved immediately upon your submitting to your department head an authentic summons, subpoena, or notice for such duty upon receipt of such notice. Pay for each day of jury duty will be made at your current rate of pay for a regularly scheduled workday.  This pay will be made for the entire period of jury duty served.  If you are on jury duty and are scheduled for work on night shifts the same workday shall be protected from loss of pay for the entire 24-hour period. If you are subpoenaed to appear in court as a witness you will not suffer loss of pay for performing any such duty. Proof of appearance as a witness or proof of jury duty service must be presented to the Human Resources Office upon return to work.    
  A leave of absence, which may be granted by the College at its sole discretion, is a formally authorized period away from employment.  A department supervisor with the approval of the Human Resources Office may grant you a leave of absence without salary for a period of up to six (6) months.  A leave of absence generally will be for the purpose of study, travel, or otherwise engaging in professional growth or development.  To be eligible, you must have completed at least one year of continuous employment prior to the beginning of the leave.  If you wish to take a leave of absence you should inform the College’s Human Resources Office in writing as far in advance as possible, normally at least one month prior to the start of the working leave.  The request must state the reason for the leave and the expected duration.  The following will be taken into account when the College considers whether or not to approve your request for leave of absence: your workload, past performance, attendance record, length of service, reason for leave, and recommendation of your supervisor.  You will be notified in writing if the leave has been granted.  If you are on an approved leave of absence without pay you may continue coverage of health insurance benefits by requesting continuation of benefits under COBRA (see section on COBRA).  The College will make no contribution to the pension plan on your behalf, as this benefit is a function of salary earned.  Disability insurance coverage will not continue during your leave, nor will vacation or sick leave benefits be accrued.  Failure to return at the end of an approved leave of absence constitutes job abandonment and will result in termination.    
  Periods of disability related to pregnancy and/or childbirth are treated like any other disability.  Generally, if you give birth without complications you would be eligible for six weeks of paid disability leave with benefits under New York State’s Short-term Disability.  Once you notify the College of your pregnancy, we will request an indication of when you expect to go on disability in order to plan staffing during your leave.  You would need to complete both the Short-term Disability and the FMLA leave forms.  Should medical complications arise before or after the birth, you would be eligible for additional paid disability leave under the Short-term Disability Policy for reasons of medical necessity as determined by a medical physician, not to exceed six consecutive months.  For the purpose of both Short-term Disability and the FMLA, in determining disability due to pregnancy and/or childbirth, your doctor’s medical opinion will govern the length of your covered leave, before and after delivery.  If you are a Faculty member who anticipates disability due to pregnancy, you should promptly notify the Provost and Department Chair of the anticipated disability date and consult with them to work out a plan for covering courses during the affected semester.  If you are an Administrators or Staff you should notify your immediate supervisor.  All employees need to contact the Office of Human Resources in order to obtain the necessary Short-term Disability and FMLA forms.  Should you opt to use the childcare leave benefits of the Family Medical Leave Act after your paid six weeks of Short-term Disability, you could be out for an additional six weeks. Whether you receive any compensation for those additional six weeks, depends on whether or not you have accumulated accrued time benefits (vacation, sick, personal days) available.  Since the FMLA leave and Short-term Disability Leave run concurrently, you would be expected to return to work no later than 12 weeks after the birth of your child.  As a Faculty member, you would be expected to return and carry out administrative duties if returning to the classroom is not considered advisable.    
  The College observes all federal and state laws regulating absence from work for military service.  An unpaid leave of absence is granted to any employee fulfilling reserve training, National Guard duties, or active duty service requirements.  If at all possible, absences should be planned to avoid interruption in regular work schedules or duties.  You must present a copy of your military orders to the Human Resources Office as soon as possible after call-up.  The leave is granted without pay, although you may draw upon benefit time to cover the period of absence.  An approved absence without pay not longer than two (2) weeks is granted without interruption of benefits.  If an unpaid absence is longer than two (2) weeks, then the policy on leave without pay governs eligibility for and payment of benefits.  All requests for military leaves of absence should be directed to the Office of Human Resources.    
  As an exempt or non-exempt full time employee on a 12-month appointment, you are entitled to three (3) personal days per calendar.  These are accrued at the rate of one (1) personal day for every four months worked.  Administrative exempt employees on a 9-month or 10 month appointment will be entitled to two (2) personal days per calendar year.  The rules governing use of personal days for all categories are as follows: 
  • The days must be used during the calendar year and may not be carried over.  Unused days will expire on December 31 of each year.
  • An employee may not be paid for unused days under any circumstance.
  • The days may be used for any purpose and must be scheduled in advance with your immediate supervisor, subject to the next provision.
  • In case of an emergency and a day off is necessary, a personal day may be used.
Faculty employees do not receive personal time benefits.    
  Sick leave is a form of insurance provided to ensure continuation of salary payments in the event of your absence due to illness. As a full-time administrative personnel you receive 4 weeks (20 working days) of annual paid sick leave. Unused sick leave may be carried forward from year-to-year.  Maximum accrual of unused sick leave is sixty (60) working days. As a new administrator you can begin accruing sick leave, after three months of continuous employment, at the rate of 1.66 days per month.  Any use of sick leave is subject to medical proof of justification for sick leave.  Use of sick leave for purposes other than medical disability is an offense subject to disciplinary action including termination. Unused accumulated sick leave is at no time convertible to paid time and will not be paid upon termination (i.e. resignation, termination or retirement) of employment.  As a full-time staff employee you accrue sick leave at the rate of one (1) day per month.  If your effective date of hire is after the 15th day of the month you will not start accruing sick time until the following month.  Unused sick leave may be carried forward from year-to-year.  Maximum accrual of unused sick leave is sixty (60) working days.  If you are carrying over sixty (60) days you will receive twelve (12) days at the beginning of the year.  If you do not use any or all of the twelve days, you will be allowed to carry over no more than sixty for the following year.  If you are unable to report to work due to illness you must notify your immediate supervisor or department head at the earliest practicable time.  An estimate of how long you expect to be absent should also be provided.  Your immediate supervisor or department head may request a certification of illness or disability from your physician after the third consecutive work day of absence, and upon return to work. The College, at its discretion, will grant sick leave in advance of its being earned if such request is submitted to the Office of Human Resources.  It is understood that should your employment with the College terminate, sick leave taken in excess of that earned will be deducted from your final pay check.  If you are out sick more than seven days you are required to apply for New York State Disability Benefits.  Any and all accrued time will be counted towards the sick leave.  If you are absent and on New York State Disability, you may be replaced at any time if the work of the department requires that your position be filled.  The replacement will be temporary for a period not to exceed six (6) months.  At the end of the sixth month period, if you have not returned to work, a permanent replacement will be sought. 
Revised October 2018
  Wagner College provides liberal paid vacation time for its employees.  Vacation leave is accrued over the calendar year, and any unused leave may not be carried over into the next calendar year.  As full-time administrative personnel you earn and accrue 4 weeks of vacation per calendar year.  As a full-time staff employee you earn and accrue your vacation time as follows: 
  1. During the first (1st) through fifth (5th) year of continuous employment, you will accrue one (1) day per month of employment not to exceed ten (10) working days per year.
  2. During the sixth (6th) through tenth (10th) year of continuous employment you will accrue one and one half (1 & 1/2) days per month not to exceed 15 working days per year.
  3. During the eleventh (11th) and all future years of continuous employment you will accrue two (2) days per month not to exceed twenty (20) days per year.
You are encouraged to take your vacation leave during the summer months, when fall and spring semester classes are not in session.  Commencement week and the two week period prior to the start of the fall semester is also a no-vacation period.  Requests for exemptions should be made in writing to the supervisor and the Director of Human Resources, explaining the special circumstances.  Generally, if your job responsibilities require direct contact with students you must take your vacation leave during the summer months.  Consideration will be given to all requests and your preference will be respected wherever practical.  However, the College reserves the right to deny requests if the absence would place an undue hardship on the operation of the department.   Therefore, you are expected to plan your vacations in consultation with your supervisor, early in the year, to ensure that the vacation does not interfere with the work of the department.  As a full-time staff employee you may carry up to thirty (35) hours of vacation leave into the next calendar year only under special circumstances and with the approval of your Department Supervisor and the Office of Human Resources.  Such carry-over may not be done on a year-to-year basis.  If a holiday falls during the vacation period, equivalent time off will be given.  If you are ill during vacation leave, such time will be changed to sick leave, and the vacation leave may be rescheduled.  Upon termination of employment, you will be paid for any earned vacation leave not taken to date.  Any vacation leave taken before it was earned must be repaid to the College.  Vacation policy does not apply to Faculty or Administrators on a 9-month or a 10-month appointment. 
Revised October 2018