Bereavement Leave

Full-time employees, as defined in this handbook, are eligible for three (3) days leave with pay when a death occurs in the immediate family. The immediate family is considered to be an employee's spouse, domestic partner (as defined in this handbook), son, daughter, mother, father, sister, brother, half-sister, half-brother, step-father, step-mother, current father-in-law, and current mother-in-law, stepson or step-daughter.

A leave with pay of one (1) day is granted for the death of a near relative. Near relatives are considered to be an employee's aunt, uncle, grandparent, grandchild, niece, nephew, current brother-in-law, current sister-in-law, son-in-law and daughter-in-law. Vacation time or floating holidays may be used to supplement allowed days, with the manager's approval.

Day(s) Off Without Pay

Employees accrue generous leave, such as vacation, floating holidays, and sick time, to assist them while taking time off from work due to illness, personal business, or vacation. Employees are required to use all applicable accrued leave days prior to taking a day off work without pay. If a staff member will be off for non- illness reasons (vacation, personal business, extended funeral leave or other), vacation and floating holidays must be used. For personal illness or family related illness, sick days must be used.

Days off without pay must be scheduled in advance, with approval from your supervisor, department manager, and the Office of Human Resources, submitted in writing stating the reason and amount for needed days off without pay. Days off without pay should be avoided whenever possible. Department management should not approve leave requests for employees who do not have leave balances to support the time off unless working with Human Resources to approve days off without pay. Repetitive use or abuse of days off without pay or failing to follow the proper procedure for approval of days off without pay will result in disciplinary action up to and including termination.

Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) of 1993

Effective August 5, 1993, the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 provides eligibility for members of the faculty, administrative staff and supportive operating staff for up to twelve (12) weeks of unpaid leave during a twelve (12) month period for the following reasons:

• For the birth of a child and to care for the newborn son or daughter.
• To care for a son or daughter placed with the faculty/staff member for purposes of adoption or foster care.
• To care for a spouse, domestic partner, son, daughter or parent with a serious health condition.
• Because of a serious health condition that makes it impossible for the faculty/staff member to perform the functions of their job.

Faculty and staff members are eligible for FMLA twelve (12) months after their date of hire if they have also worked at least 1,250 hours during the twelve (12) months before leave is requested. Eligible members may not take more than a total of twelve (12) weeks-unpaid leave during any twelve (12) month period. Leave taken for the birth or placement of a child must be completed within twelve (12) months of that birth or placement. The university uses the "rolling method-counting backward" method to determine the twelve (12) month period during which employees are entitled to leave. Under this method, a faculty or staff member's entitlement to leave is determined by looking at the twelve (12) months prior to the time the leave is requested. The faculty or staff member is entitled to any balance of leave not taken during the twelve (12) month period. Thus a faculty or staff member who has not taken any leave in the last year is entitled to twelve (12) weeks; while a faculty or staff member who has taken three (3) weeks' leave in the last year is entitled to only nine (9) more weeks.

Important Note
Denison's policy is to allow leave under the FMLA to be coordinated with all other paid leave. Faculty/staff members must use all applicable accrued paid vacation time and /or sick time for which they are eligible before taking any unpaid leave. However, staff members do have the option to reserve one (1) week of vacation and one (1) week of sick leave. The remaining time up to twelve (12) weeks is unpaid leave. The total leave including paid and unpaid will not exceed twelve (12) weeks.

Certification
If the leave is for a serious health condition, faculty and staff members are required to provide a certification substantially in the form of Appendix I which includes: the date on which the serious health condition in question began for the faculty/staff member or family member; the probable duration of the condition; appropriate medical facts regarding the condition; a statement that the faculty/staff member is needed to care for a spouse, domestic partner, parent or child (along with an estimate of the time required) or that the faculty/staff member is unable to perform the functions of their job; and the dates and duration of treatments to be given. Denison may require a second medical opinion from a doctor selected by the university and at the university's expense. If the opinions differ, Denison will furnish a third and final opinion from a mutually acceptable doctor.

Benefits
During the leave, any health insurance benefits that faculty and staff members have elected will be continued in the same manner as before the leave. Participation in other insured programs may be continued as provided by the various staff benefit programs but must be fully paid by the employee (life and long-term disability insurance). Benefits, which are based on length of service and other employment benefits will not be accrued during the leave. Faculty and staff members will be responsible to reimburse Denison for health plan premiums if they fail to return from the leave; except reimbursement is not required if the faculty/staff member fails to return to work because of her/his own family member's serious health condition. 

Required Notice
Faculty and staff members must provide a thirty (30) day notice for foreseeable leaves for birth, adoption, or planned medical treatment. If planned medical treatment requires the leave to begin in less than thirty (30) days, as much notice as is practicable must be given.

Returning From Leave
Faculty and staff members return to the same or to an equivalent position upon returning from leave. Pay, benefits and other terms and condition of employment will be the same as prior to the leave; however, faculty/staff in the top 10% of the university's payrolls may be excluded from job restoration rights if reinstatement will cause substantial or grievous economic injury to the university.

Intermittent Leave
A leave for serious health condition, either of a family member or the faculty/staff member, may be taken intermittently for a total lost time of no more than the equivalent of twelve (12) weeks during any twelve month period.  However, intermittent leave arrangements for the birth or adoption of a child are not covered by FMLA and must be approved by the Provost's Office and/or Office of Human Resources and the relevant division head. Faculty/staff members may be required to transfer temporarily to another job for which they are qualified that better accommodates a revised work schedule.

Extended Personal and Family Medical Leave

The university may grant an extended leave of absence for reasons authorized under FMLA, to staff members who have been employed by the university for at least two (2) years. Leave is granted at the discretion of the department head and the Office of Human Resources and is subject to the need of the department, the ability to replace the staff member on a temporary basis and the overall impact on the operation of the department.

The timing and duration of the leave is determined by mutual agreement between the staff member and their supervisor but not to exceed one (1) year, including any leave authorized under FMLA. Salary is not continued but the employee may continue participation in group insurance programs with the payment of the employee share of the premium. All applicable paid vacation and/or sick time must be used before taking any unpaid time.

If the leave is for serious health condition, certification as required under FMLA applies.  Extended leave of absence may be granted to the faculty/staff member with three possible stipulations upon the end of the leave: guarantee of the same job, guarantee of a similar job, or no guarantee of a job. This will be determined at the time the leave is granted.

Failure to return to work at the end of an approved leave of absence is considered a voluntary resignation.

Family Illness

Denison allows employees to use accumulated sick leave to care for sick or injured members of their immediate family or to accompany them for eligible medical-related appointments. Immediate family members are considered to be an employee's parents, children, spouse, domestic partner and any dependent, as defined by the IRS living in the employee's household. Denison reserves the right to require a physician's statement to document the illness or injury if the employee will be off work for more than three (3) consecutive workdays. In addition to sick leave, full-time employees can use floating holidays for family illness. 

If you have any questions regarding leave or qualifying events under the FMLA, please contact the benefits team at Benefits@denison.edu.

Holidays

Denison University recognizes the following nine (9) paid holidays each year:

New Year's Day
Memorial Day
Juneteenth
Independence Day
Day combined w/ Independence Day (in lieu of Labor Day)
Thanksgiving Day
Friday after Thanksgiving
Christmas Eve Day
Christmas Day

Full-time and part-time employees are eligible for holiday pay. Part-time employees are eligible for holidays that fall on their regularly scheduled/ budgeted workdays. In the event the university elects to close operations during the week between the Christmas and New Year's holidays, employees are not required to use leave time to supplement their pay for this closure. Holidays falling on Sunday are normally recognized the following Monday. Holidays falling on Saturday are normally recognized on the preceding Friday. The only recognized holidays qualifying for holiday pay are those listed above.

Because of the unique nature of the academic calendar, Denison reserves the right to reschedule holidays to ensure continuation of essential services. In addition to the above, and, as reaffirmed by the Board of Trustees in 1992, Professional Librarians are eligible for one-half the vacation time enjoyed by teaching faculty during the academic year (specifically Fall Break, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Spring Break). Such days do not accrue beyond the academic year in which they are earned and they may not be carried over from one year to the next.

Floating Holiday

Both full and part-time employees are eligible for floating holidays, which is determined by whether the employee is full or part-time and their start date.
Full-Time:

• Full-time employees are eligible for three (3) floating holidays per year.
• New full-time employees placed on the payroll before July 1 are eligible for three (3) floating holidays.
• New full-time employees placed on the payroll after June 30 and prior to August 1 are eligible for two (2) floating holidays.
• New full-time employees placed on the payroll on August 1 or later are not eligible for a floating holiday until the start of the next year.

Part-Time:

• Part-time employees are eligible for one (1) floating holiday per year.
• Part-time employees placed on payroll from January 1 through July 31 are eligible for (1) floating holiday (based on budgeted hours).
• Part-time staff budgeted less than 700 hours per year are not eligible for a floating holiday.

Requests to take a floating holiday must be submitted to and approved by your supervisor in advance. Due to scheduling and work requirements, not all requests can be approved. However, employees do have the option of using floating holidays as a "snow day" or in other emergency situations. All floating holidays must be taken on or before the last day of the pay period of the first payroll paid in December of each year, referred to as the cutoff date. Floating holidays taken after this date will count against next year's balance.

Unused floating holidays are not paid upon termination.

Jury/Witness Duty

Denison recognizes the obligation of its employees to serve on jury duty or as a subpoenaed witness when called and will continue to pay an employee’s regular budgeted pay, for missed hours worked. Employees should report for their scheduled shift, for any hours not engaged in jury duty or as a subpoenaed witness.

Leave Donation Program

On the unfortunate occasion when a leave of absence, such as personal illness or illness of a parent, spouse or child, results in an employee being absent from work for a prolonged period of time, university policies outline procedures for the use of applicable paid time off and leaves of absence without pay.

The Leave Donation Program applies only to a leave of absence due to an employee's non-work related injury or illness. In the event that an employee exhausts all applicable paid time off and after a leave from work that exceeds 5 workdays, an employee can make a request for leave days through this donation program. Support staff can donate vacation or sick days and administrative staff can only donate vacation days. Only full-time and part-time support staff is eligible to receive a benefit under this program.

• An employee makes a request for consideration under this program by completing a Leave Donation Program Request Form.
• The Office of Human Resources will inform the community that a triggering event has occurred and ask if any employees are interested in donating accumulated vacation or sick time to the employee in need. The employee's name and nature of the serious illness will be kept confidential.
• Employees may donate a minimum of a 1/2 day or a maximum of (3) days of accumulated vacation or sick time per occurrence (as long as they don't go below the minimum level). The donating employee will complete a Leave Donor Form to authorize the donation of their vacation or sick leave. 
• Employees must maintain a minimum of 10 days of sick/vacation time in order to donate any leave. The minimum applies to the sick and vacation balances separately.
• The total number of donated vacation days an individual can receive per occurrence shall not exceed 30.
• Medical leave due to pregnancy is included in the donation policy.
• All employees making a donation will remain anonymous to avoid a sense of peer pressure in making a donation.
• The Office of Human Resources will be responsible for tracking how many leave days have been donated to and used by the absent employee.
• An employee must have at least three (3) months of service to be eligible for leave donation. 

Please contact the Office of Human Resources at HR@denison.edu, if you have questions. 

Leave of Absence Without Pay

A leave of absence without pay may be granted at the discretion of the division and department heads and the Office of Human Resources for other reasons such as education or travel to staff members who have been employed by the university for at least two (2) years. Such leaves are subject to the needs of the department, the ability to replace the staff member on a temporary basis and the overall impact on the operation of the department. Requests for leaves without pay must be submitted in writing to your department head and division head and the Office of Human Resources will review the request. Leaves of absence without pay are normally limited to (90) days or less. Failure to return to work at the conclusion of an initial leave of absence without pay is interpreted as a voluntary resignation. Under no condition will combined vacation, FMLA, Extended Personal & Family Medical Leave and leaves of absences without pay, exceed one (1) year.

All accumulated vacation time must be taken before a leave without pay is granted. No holiday pay is given for holidays falling within leave time. Vacation days do not accrue during such leaves. Each employee is advised to check with the Office of Human Resources for continuation of insured staff benefit programs prior to going on leave. A leave of absence without pay may be granted to the staff member with three possible stipulations upon the end of the leave: guarantee of the same job, guarantee of a similar job, or no guarantee of a job. This will be determined at the time the leave is granted.

Military Leave

The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 guarantees the employment rights of those employees who voluntarily or involuntarily leave Denison for service in the U.S. Armed Forces. The basic provisions and requirements of the Act apply: The employee must give notice that he or she was leaving the job for military service: the cumulative period must not exceed five (5) years; the employee must have not been released from service under dishonorable or other punitive conditions and the employee must have reported back to Denison in a timely manner for reemployment.

Extended Military Services
Employees entering the U.S. Armed Forces for service in excess of the two week temporary period are granted a leave of absence, without pay, until discharged. The employee is returned to a position of like status upon release from the military when:

• An application is made within ninety (90) days from the date of discharge.
• The employee is qualified to perform the duties of such a position.

An employee is reinstated with compensation at a level he/she would have attained had he/she not left for military service. All staff benefits accrue at the same level as if there had been no break in service.  For full-time employees only, Denison will pay the employee the difference between military pay (base pay and housing allowance) and regular, budgeted pay from Denison for a period not to exceed one year. Denison will comply with all applicable state and federal laws with respect to military leaves.

Short-Term Military Services
A military leave of absence is granted to faculty and staff, full-time or part-time, at any full-time equivalency (FTE), who are members of the National Guard or other branches of the Armed Services for limited field training. The length of field service is not to exceed the standards established by governmental agencies. Normally, such leave does not exceed fifteen (15) calendar days per year. For full-time employees only, Denison will pay the employee the difference between military pay and regular, budgeted pay from Denison.

Sick Leave

The sole purpose of paid sick leave is to provide continued income during periods of personal illness/injury or family illness. To accomplish this, Denison self funds a sick leave program according to the following schedule:

• Full-time:1 day per month granted for each month worked
• Part-time (less than 700 hours): 2 hours per month granted for each month worked 
• Part-time (700 hours or more): Accrue at the rate of half of full-time accrual by category

Sick leave will be stated as hours accrued per pay period on each employee's self-service record and will be computed based on the employee's adjusted date of hire. Employees working less than twelve (12) month schedules are not granted sick leave for the period they are not scheduled to work. Sick leave is not granted to employees when assigned to casual/temporary work.

Absence because of sickness must be reported to your supervisor no later than your normal starting time on the day of your illness. Failure to advise the university may result in loss of sick pay for that day and disciplinary action. Subject to the requirements of the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA), an excessive number of either absences or tardiness, as determined by the supervisor, will result in disciplinary action up to and including suspension and/or termination. Any absence from work regardless of cause or reason may be considered in determining excessive absenteeism. At the discretion of the supervisor, sick leave on the day before or the day following a holiday may require a physician's certificate indicating dates missed. 

Denison reserves the right to require a physician's statement for all absences. Employees reporting for work after a major illness or injury are required to submit a statement to the Office of Human Resources from their physician releasing them to active status and indicating any workplace restrictions. Please contact the benefits team at Benefits@denison.edu, for any questions regarding FMLA or medical leave. 

All employees are urged to allow sick leave to accumulate to offset a major illness or accident, should one occur. To encourage accumulation, there is no limit on the number of days that may be accumulated during the years of active employment.  Sick leave may be used for the employee's doctor's or dentist's appointments. Absences of less than a full day may be made up by working lunch periods or working prior to or after the regular scheduled workday with approval of the department head. Sick leave may be used in 1/2 hour increments.

Part-time employees moving to full-time status will carry forward all accumulated sick leave. Support staff moving to a faculty or administrative staff position will forfeit sick leave balance and any right to payment at retirement. Unused sick leave will not be paid upon termination of employment, except for retirement or death; please see the When You Leave Denison section for more information.

This policy provides minimum standards; to ensure the continuity of operations, university departments may impose stricter standards, to meet the needs of the university. 

Transitional Work Program

Denison University is committed to the safety and health of its employees and supporting employees with temporary physical restrictions, due to an occupational injury. According to the Bureau of Workers’ Compensation, if an employee is injured and unable to perform the original job tasks, the chance of returning to gainful employment decreases significantly the longer the employee stays off work. The purpose of this policy is to help facilitate a smooth and productive reintegration as employees continue to work to the maximum extent possible. 

All employees who have a work-related injury occurring on April 1, 2003 or after are eligible to participate in the Transitional Work Program (TWP). An employee coming back to work, under this program, with restrictions set by the physician will be paid at the normal rate of wages and will also be paid for the therapy time if on-site therapy is needed. The aim of the program is to offer injured workers the ability to return to work, even with extremely limited capabilities.

The aim of the program is NOT to provide long term limited duty positions for employees but to offer a progressive return to work strategy. For the program to remain effective we require an injured worker to be re-evaluated by their treating physician at least every 30 days. The duration of the program is sixty (60) days. A complete copy of the policy and procedures is available in the Office of Human Resources.

Procedures

1. Follow the proper procedures for injury report and medical treatment for work related injury. Visit Newark Valley Urgent Care for necessary medical care.
2. Once the employee comes back with restrictions set by his/her treating physician, proceed with the following steps:

• The supervisor and the TWP Coordinator will develop a transitional duty position that fits within the capabilities indicated by the treating physician.
• If necessary, TWP Coordinator will arrange for on-site therapy.
• The Transitional Work Committee will monitor the program until the employee returns to full duty.
• A Final Medical Release by the treating physician is required for the return to full duty. 

Newark Valley Urgent Care
1906 Tamarack Road
Newark, OH 43055
Phone: 740-522-0222
Hours: M-F, 9 a.m. - 9 p.m., Sat. and Sun. 9:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.
After hours: Licking Memorial Hospital

TWP Coordinator
Environmental Health and Safety Officer

Unexcused Absences

If any employee is absent from work without prior notification for three (3) days or more and, if in the opinion of the supervisor and the Office of Human Resources, the explanation for the absence is not satisfactory, the employee may be dismissed without further notice.

Vacation

Full-time and part-time employees are eligible to accrue vacation. Vacation time is accrued from the employee's adjusted date of hire. Full-time employees scheduled to work twelve months per year will accrue vacation at the following rates:

• 0 thru completion of 5 years - 10 days per year
• Over 5 thru completion of 10 years - 15 days per year
• Over 10 years - 20 days per year

Full-time employees working less than twelve (12) months or less than 1.0 full-time equivalent (FTE) will earn vacation on a prorated basis. For employees working less than twelve (12) months the effective period for taking vacation is the overall time frame the staff member is budgeted to work including any break periods during the academic year. In addition, these employees will accrue vacation on budgeted hours worked; they will not accrue vacation for working in casual/temporary jobs.

Part-time employees occupying a position budgeted for 700 hours or more will accrue vacation at the rate of one half the accrual of what full-time staff receive with 0 through completion of five (5) years of service or less, by category of employment.

Vacation accruals will be stated as hours earned per pay period on the employee's statement of earnings and will be computed based on the employee's adjusted date of hire. Vacation accruals will be prorated during any period where an employee is in an unpaid status.

Employees may not use vacation before it is accrued. An employee's total accrued vacation as of January 1 of each year may not exceed 200 percent of the annual vacation earned. Vacation days may not be transferred from one employee to another, except as allowed under the Leave Donation Policy. No compensatory pay for unused vacation is permitted, except as stated in the When You Leave Denison section of this handbook.

A reasonable effort will be made to give an employee the vacation period requested. The exact scheduling must be agreed to by the department manager or supervisor. 

Full and part-time supportive operating staff may take vacation days in one hour increments, one hour is the least amount of vacation that can be used. Vacation can be used in 15 minute increments beyond one hour. Part-time staff must take vacation equal to the number of hours they are normally scheduled/budgeted to work for a day. Employees are urged to take at least one extended period each year of at least one week. Exempt staff (salaried) can use vacation in 1/2 days or full days.