• Bereavement Leave
  
• Family and Medical Leave Act
  
• Holidays
  
• Jury Duty
  
• Maternity Leave
  
• Military Leave
  
• Other Leaves of Absence
  
• Sick Leave
  
• Vacation
  
• Voting Time
  
• Workers' Compensation

Bereavement Leave

In the event of a death in a staff member's immediate family (spouse, children, parents, sisters, brothers, legal guardians, mother-in-law, father-in-law, grandparent, grandchildren, or any other relative living in the family household), arrangements may be made with the staff member's supervisor for a bereavement leave of up to three days with pay. The bereavement leave will be based on the regularly scheduled hours worked per pay period. This pay is based on the staff member's "base hourly rate" exclusive of overtime. A staff member may take additional vacation time or an unpaid leave of absence if necessary and approved by the immediate supervisor.

Family and Medical Leave Act

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) is a law that was passed in 1993 to allow eligible employees up to 12 workweeks of job-protected leave per 12-month period.

The primary categories that qualify under FMLA are as follows:

When both spouses are employed by the University, the total amount of combined leave that may be taken for a birth, foster care, adoption or a serious health condition of a parent is 12 weeks. All leave for a birth, foster care or adoption must be taken within 12 months of the date of birth or placement. On the
employee's return from leave, he or she will be reinstated to the same or an equivalent job with the same pay, benefits, terms and conditions of employment.

Eligibility

To be eligible for leave under this policy, an employee must have been employed for at least 52 weeks in total and must have worked at least 1,250 hours during the 12-month period immediately preceding the commencement of the leave.

Scheduling FMLA Leave

Eligible employees may take requested FMLA leave consecutively, intermittently or on a reduced leave schedule. Intermittent leave is leave taken during separate blocks of time due to a single qualifying event, whereas reduced leave reduces an employee's usual number of working hours per workday or workweek. An employee may be transferred temporarily to an available alternative position with equivalent pay and benefits that better accommodates the employee's need for intermittent or reduced leave.

Leave taken for a serious health condition of the employee or a covered family member may be taken intermittently or on a reduced leave schedule when medically necessary, provided that the employee gives appropriate notice and submits the required medical certification from a health care provider. Employees requesting intermittent or reduced leave should make a reasonable effort to consult with their supervisors to schedule treatment at a time that does not unduly disrupt the operations of their departments. Intermittent or reduced leave for the birth or adoption of a child may be approved at the discretion of the appropriate department head.

Paid Leave

Saint Louis University requires employees to substitute accrued paid leave during an FMLA leave in accordance with University leave policies. Sick leave and caregiver leave will be exhausted first, if appropriate, vacation accruals will be exhausted second, and banked holidays will be exhausted last before an employee begins an unpaid leave portion of an FMLA leave.

With the supervisor's approval, a full-time staff member may elect to extend his/her paid status during an FMLA leave. The employee may exhaust paid leave at a rate of at least 64 hours per bi-weekly pay period in order to maintain status as a full-time employee, thus remaining eligible for University benefits. If the employee elects to exhaust paid leave at a reduced rate, vacation accruals and personal leave must be exhausted before returning to work (see also maternity leave and leave of absence).

Benefits

The University will pay its usual cost to continue the employee's medical insurance and the base level of benefits provided under the life, accidental death and dismemberment and long-term disability insurance programs during any paid or unpaid FMLA-qualifying leave. After 30 days of unpaid leave, employees must make arrangement for payment of premiums with the University's benefits office to continue dependent medical and optional benefits coverage. Staff members will have a minimum 30-day grace period in which to make payments for dependent medical and optional benefits coverage. If payment is not timely, dependent medical and optional benefits coverage may be canceled. Employees will be notified in writing at least 15 days before the date that the dependent health coverage lapses.

If an employee does not return to work for a minimum of 30 calendar days after FMLA leave entitlement has been exhausted or has expired, the employee will be required to reimburse the University for any health care premiums paid to continue the employee's health insurance coverage during the unpaid leave
portion of the FMLA leave. Reimbursement will not be required if the employee is unable to return to work due to a serious health condition of the employee, son or daughter, spouse or parent, or because of unforeseen circumstances beyond the employee's control. The University may require certification within 30 calendar days of its request to substantiate that the employee is unable to return to work because of a serious health condition.

Employee's Obligations

It is the employee's obligation to provide timely notice and adequate information to allow the human resources representative to determine whether the time requested qualifies as FMLA leave, including any medical certification or recertification. If the employee fails to satisfy these requirements, leave may be delayed and any lost work time will not be counted as protected FMLA leave but will be processed in accordance with other applicable policies including but not limited to vacation, sick leave, attendance, and corrective counseling.

Notification

If the leave is foreseeable, the employee is required to formally request FMLA leave by submitting a request for family and medical leave form 30 calendar days prior to the commencement of the leave. Examples of foreseeable events include planned medical treatment or a child's birth. If the leave is not foreseeable, the employee is required to provide verbal notification within one or two workdays of when the need for leave becomes known to the employee except in extraordinary circumstances where such notice is not feasible. Examples of unforeseen events are accidental injuries causing serious health conditions or sudden changes in health.


Medical Certification

An employee may be required to submit medical certification issued by a health care provider to support a request for leave due to the serious health condition of the employee or a covered family member. A second or third opinion may be required at the
University's expense if there is reason to question the validity of a medical certification. Recertification of medical conditions may also be required at the employee's expense. For foreseeable events the employee should provide certification when notice is given but no later than commencement of leave. For unforeseeable events certification should be provided within two business days of learning of leave but no later than 15 calendar days after the employee's request or as soon as reasonably possible under the circumstances.

An employee returning from a leave due to his/her own serious health condition may be required to submit a return-to-work release. Restoration of employment may be denied or delayed if the release is not received prior to the start of the employee's regularly scheduled work shift.

Supervisor's Obligations

In all circumstances, it is either the supervisor's or human resource's responsibility to obtain sufficient information to designate a leave as FMLA-qualifying. The supervisor or human resources must notify the employee within two business days that the leave is designated FMLA-qualifying. An oral notice to the employee must be confirmed in writing no later than the following payday.

The supervisor's or human resource's designation decision must be based only on information received from the employee or the employee's spokesperson at the time of the request. An employee giving notice of the need for an FMLA leave does not need to expressly assert rights under the act or even mention the FMLA to meet his or her obligation to provide notice.

Holidays

The University recognizes 13 holidays each fiscal year. Holidays falling on a Saturday normally are observed on the preceding Friday. Holidays falling on Sunday are normally observed on the following Monday. Pay for a holiday is not considered hours worked for the purpose of computing overtime.

The University usually provides paid time off to full-time and leave eligible part-time regular staff members on the following holidays::

The day before Thanksgiving and New Year's Eve Day may be rescheduled if required by University operations.

SLUCare and other business units of the University must set hours of operation that are productive and serve their customers. Offices that support these business units must be aware of these schedules, and be available to provide service, when they extend beyond what is typical for most University departments. (These units include: libraries; the recreation center; residence halls; facilities services; public safety; etc.) Eligible employees of any unit, required to work all or part of a designated holiday, will be allowed to "bank" the holiday hours for use in a future pay period. Accrued holiday hours will be lost if not used prior to the end of the fiscal year (June 30); therefore, these hours should be exhausted before using vacation hours.

Employees are eligible for holiday pay whether or not the holiday falls on a day they are scheduled to work; however, they are required to be in a paid status the scheduled workday preceding and the scheduled workday following the holiday. In accordance with University policy, an approved vacation day or an absence due to illness (acknowledged by a doctor's statement) is considered "paid status" for purposes of holiday pay eligibility. Employees in flex positions, not scheduled to work on the day a holiday is observed, are permitted to bank the day for future use within that fiscal year. Part-time staff members, budgeted for at least 20 hours per week (non-exempt) or .5 FTE (exempt), are eligible to receive prorated holiday pay. Temporary employees are not eligible for holiday pay.

Salaried staff, required to work all or part of a designated holiday, may bank unused holiday hours for use at a later date. If the time can not be taken within the same pay period (month), the department time-keeper should complete and submit a time reporting change form to the payroll department to arrange for the hours to be banked.

5 Day Work Week

Hourly paid staff will be compensated on a prorated basis for the holiday based on 20 percent of the number of hours they are budgeted to work in a workweek.

Example:
20 hours/week X 20 percent = 4.0 hours holiday pay (.5 FTE)
32 hours/week X 20 percent = 6.4 hours holiday pay (.8 FTE)
40 hours/week x 20 percent = 8.0 hours holiday pay (1.0 FTE)

Example: employee budgeted to work 40 hours per week, 8 hours per day.

A holiday occurs on Thursday; however, the employee worked 5.0 hours on the observed holiday. In this instance, the employee should report 5.0 hours worked (regular); 3.0 hours of holiday pay (holiday pay); and 5.0 hours of banked holiday time (holiday-worked/accrued).

4 Day Work Week

Modified work weeks and flexible schedules, are becoming common in many areas of the University. Employees are working more hours per day, but fewer days per week. Hourly paid staff working these flexible schedules should be paid or allowed to bank the actual number of hours that constitute their work day. They should not be required to use vacation hours to supplement their regular wages for a week in which a holiday occurs.

Examples: employees working modified work week schedules

4 days@5 hours/day = 5 hours holiday pay

4 days@8 hours/day = 8 hours holiday pay

4 days@10hours/day = 10 hours holiday pay

Examples: employee budgeted to work 40 hours per week, 10 hours per day.

Jury Duty

Special consideration will be given to staff members for jury duty. If staff members are properly summoned for jury duty in the city or county in which they reside, they will be eligible for jury duty pay from Saint Louis University upon advance notice to their department supervisors. Staff members will receive their normal base rate compensation for validated jury duty days. Staff members are able to collect and keep any payment received from the court system for performing jury duty.

Maternity Leave

Saint Louis University regards disability caused by or contributed to by pregnancy, childbirth and recovery from childbirth as a temporary disability. Therefore, a woman on leave for any of these reasons is eligible to utilize sick pay for the period of time in which she is temporarily disabled and unable to work. It is presumed that a woman will be temporarily disabled and unable to work for six weeks after the delivery of the child unless a doctor's certification states otherwise. See FMLA policy.

Military Leave

In accordance with the Uniformed Services Employment and Re-employment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA) and state law where applicable, Saint Louis University honors and respects the rights and obligations of its staff members to serve in the U.S. armed forces and will allow excused time off for regular employees to serve in that capacity. Military service includes active duty, active duty for training, initial act of duty for training, inactive duty training, full-time National Guard duty and absence from work to determine fitness for any of the above types of duty.

An employee or appropriate officer from the branch of the military in which the employee will be serving must give the employee's supervisor or human resources written notice in advance of military service unless military necessity prevents the giving of notice or notice is otherwise impossible or unreasonable.

Re-employment is based on the period of military service and other conditions as listed in the military absence policy.

Paid leave for duties as outlined in the policy will be paid by the University for up to 10 workdays in a 12 month period and only for days that the employee otherwise would have been scheduled to work. Employees are not required to use accrued vacation during absences due to military service requirements but may do so upon request. Employees who follow the procedures outlined in the policy will accumulate seniority for the period of service in the armed forces and retain previously accumulated benefits subject to rules and regulations that might be imposed in those plans underwritten by insurance companies. During any period of paid leave the University will continue normal contributions toward the cost of benefits. When military service is unpaid the employee will pay the cost of benefits. In addition, the employee will be eligible for any general increases in pay or any approved benefits that occur during his/her absence.

An employee may elect to continue his or her University health care benefits during the period military service is performed. In accordance with USERRA, those employees performing service of less than 31 days will pay no more than their current employee premium. Employees performing military service of 31 days or more will pay no more than 102 percent of the full employee premium. The maximum coverage of an employee and the employee's dependents is the lesser of either 18 months from the day the absence begins or the day after the date on which the employee fails to apply for or return to a position of employment. An employee who is performing military service may elect to make employee contributions or elective deferrals to the University's pension plan to the extent allowed by law.

For more information, please refer to the military absence policy on the human resources Web pages, or contact the human resources office at 977-2360.

Other Leaves of Absence

If an employee has exhausted family and medical leave, does not qualify for family and medical leave, or is seeking a non-medical leave, a leave of absence may be requested.

An unpaid leave of absence may be granted at the University's discretion in the event of physical or mental disability, pregnancy, adoption, education or other extenuating circumstances provided that the leave does not cause an undue burden on the University's operations. Leaves of absence should be requested in writing to the immediate supervisor. The supervisor will review the request in conjunction with human resources. Vacation accruals and sick leave, if appropriate, must be exhausted before an employee applies for a leave of absence without pay.

Benefit coverage remains intact for employees on full-time vacation or sick leave. Employees on a leave of absence without pay must contact the benefits office to continue their benefits. In many cases, an employee must make additional payments to continue benefits.

An unpaid personal leave of absence for a period of up to 30 days may be requested by full-time regular and part-time regular employees who have completed one year of employment. Employees must request personal leaves in writing at least two weeks prior to the time they wish such leave to commence. If the personal leave is necessitated by an emergency, the employee or a member of his/her immediate family must notify the supervisor as soon as it is practical; this should be followed up with a written explanation of the nature of the leave and the expected length of absence. In such an emergency situation the written explanation must normally be submitted within three days of the beginning of the leave.

All medical requests must be accompanied by appropriate medical certification from a physician indicating the condition necessitating the leave request, the desired beginning date of absence and the projected date of return to work. If the leave request is for medical reasons, the employee may be required to provide the University with additional physician's statements attesting to the continued disability and inability to work and/or ability to return to work. The employee also may be required to provide the University access to his/her medical records or to submit to an examination by a physician designated by the University at its discretion. All University benefits that operate on an accrual basis (vacation, holidays and paid sick days) stop accruing during the leave of absence.

A leave of absence can be canceled for business need. If a leave of absence is canceled, the employee will receive a written notice to return to work. Failure to come to the human resources office by the specified date will be considered a resignation without proper notice. If a reduction in force occurs while an employee is on leave, he/she may be laid off or terminated along with all similarly affected employees.

Unless applicable state or local law requires otherwise, reinstatement cannot be guaranteed to any employee returning from personal leave. Employees are notified by human resources regarding any such right to reinstatement prior to the commencement of their leave. The University endeavors, however, to place employees returning from leave in their former positions or positions comparable in status and pay subject to budgetary restrictions, the University's need to fill vacancies and the ability of the University to find qualified temporary replacements.

Sick Leave

The University recognizes that an inability to work because of illness or injury may cause economic hardship. For this reason, the University provides paid sick days to full-time regular and part-time regular staff members.

Full-time regular staff members accrue sick days at the rate of 13 days per year. Part-time regular staff members who work 40 hours per pay period or more or are .5 FTE or higher accrue sick days prorated on the number of hours worked in a pay period. The rate is .05 hours of sick time for each hour worked. Sick days may be carried over from one year to the next to a maximum of 130 days (1,040 hours) to ensure that such days are available in the event of a long-term illness. However, no staff member is paid for accrued unused sick days at the time of termination. Sick pay is paid for scheduled workdays. Sick pay does not cover absences due to weather conditions or personal business.

A doctor's statement and release to return to work may be required after one day of absence due to illness regardless of the amount of accrued sick leave.

The University recognizes the need to be off work at times to provide care for family members. For this reason up to five of the thirteen sick days accrued per year may be taken as personal caregiver days (also see FMLA policy).

Many departments have a more defined absenteeism policy.

Staff members covered by a collective bargaining agreement should refer to their contract for information on sick leave.

For further information, contact the human resources office. To check your leave balances, visit Banner Self Service at https://fsselfserv.slu.edu

Vacation

The University provides paid vacation time to be used by the employee provided that the following requirements are met:

1. the employee is eligible for vacation and has accrued the time;
2. the employee has completed the six-month orientation period; and
3. supervisory approval is obtained.

Approval for vacation day(s) will be given by the employee's supervisor for days mutually convenient to the department and the employee.

Vacation balances are available for department managers online in WebFocus. Employees may view vacation balances in Banner Self Service at https://fsselfserv.slu.edu.

Rates used to accrue vacation times are determined by the employee's employment status, employee class code, budgeted hours, hours worked or full-time equivalent (FTE) percentage and service date.

Part-time regular staff members accrue vacation on schedules proportionate to the rates used for full-time regular staff members, based upon the number of hours worked in a pay period. Temporary employees or employees who are budgeted for less than 20 hours per week or .5 FTE do not accrue vacation.

Annual Vacation Days Accrued - All Divisions
Based on 40 hours worked per week for 52 weeks.

Staff members are encouraged to take vacations in units of five days. Staff members must submit a vacation request to their supervisor prior to the beginning of the vacation for review and approval.

The balance of an eligible staff member's accrued vacation, up to a maximum of 40 hours, will be paid in the event of separation from the University. The balance, as it appears in human resources information system, will be verified by the department head before payment is made.

Accrued vacation cannot be used in lieu of notice unless approved by management.

Employees covered by a collective bargaining agreement should refer to their contract for information on vacation.

Voting Time

Missouri residents who are registered to vote are permitted time off with pay to vote in local, state and national elections provided that their supervisors are notified the day before the election. Missouri law allows pay for the portion of three hours either at the beginning or end of the workday when the normal work schedule is concurrent with the first or last three hours the polls are open. For example, if the polls open at 6 a.m. and close at 7 p.m., and the employee's normal work schedule is from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., a half hour off in the morning or an hour off in the evening may be allowed.

Illinois residents who are registered to vote are permitted time off with pay to vote in local, state, and national elections provided that their supervisor is notified the day before the election. Illinois law allows pay for that portion of two hours at the beginning or end of the workday when the normal work schedule is concurrent with the first two hours that the polls are open. For example, if the polls open at 6 a.m. and close at 7 p.m. and the employee's normal work schedule is from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., no time off would be allowed.

Workers’ Compensation

Employee safety is very important to the University. Therefore, a concerted effort is made in the planning, management and performance of all operations to prevent accidents and to provide a safe healthy work environment.

What Should I Do If an Injury Occurs?

If an employee sustains an on-the-job injury/illness, his/her supervisor should be notified immediately and an employee's report of injury form completed. The form should be signed by the employee and the employee's supervisor.

The completed employee's report of injury form should be submitted to the health care provider. For serious injuries, the supervisor or co-workers should complete and submit the form to the health care provider. If this is not possible, the form should be completed as soon as possible and submitted to the department of risk management, Salus Center, 6th floor.

Where Do I Seek Treatment?

If medical treatment is required, the employee must be treated at one of the facilities listed below. For serious injuries (see emergencies/security) an ambulance will be called and the injured employee will be transported to the Saint Louis University Hospital emergency department.

During Business Hours
Wohl Memorial Institute
1221 South Grand Blvd.
1st Floor

Evening/Weekend Hours
Saint Louis University Hospital Emergency Department
3635 Vista at Grand Boulevard
577-8000

Public Safety 977-3000

Under Missouri Workers' Compensation law, the employer is afforded the right to select the medical care provider(s) for an employee's work-related injury. However, the employee ultimately maintains the right to use the provider of his/her choice, with any expenses associated with that use borne solely by the employee.

If medical treatment is not required the completed employee's report of injury form should be forwarded to the risk management department, Salus Center, 6th floor.

It is the policy of the University that all work-related injuries or illnesses be reported immediately. Failure to report within the statutory limits (30 days in Missouri) may result in the employee being denied workers' compensation benefits.

What is covered by Workers' Compensation?

Subject to all provisions of the Missouri Workers' Compensation law, an injury is considered compensable if it is caused by an accident and has arisen out of and in the course and scope of employment. Occupational illnesses also may be compensable under the law.

The law may hold injuries occurring from some specific situations not to be compensable under the law. These situations include, but are not limited to: injuries that arise from within the individual, acts of nature, assaults involving private quarrels, horseplay, injuries arising from personal business or personal acts, rule violations, going to and from work, voluntary recreational activities, intentionally self-inflicted injuries and mental injury resulting from work-related stress.

The Missouri Division of Workers' Compensation has established the following regulations regarding drug and/or alcohol use in the workplace and its relation to a work-related injury:

If an employee willfully fails to use a required safety device, the employee's workers' compensation benefits may be reduced by 15 percent.

What Should I Do If the Physician Takes Me Off Work?

If an employee is unable to return to work due to a work-related injury/illness, the physician will provide a certificate of fitness stating that the employee is unable to work. The employee should provide the supervisor with the certificate as soon as possible. In addition, the employee should immediately notify the office of risk management (977-2228) to receive payment for lost wages.

How Am I Paid?

If the treating physician authorizes the employee to be off work for more than three scheduled workdays and no work is available to meet temporary work restrictions, the employee will receive two-thirds of his/her average weekly wage up to a state maximum. This is called Temporary Total Disability (TTD) and a check will be issued from the Workers' Compensation Claims Administrator. In addition to the state-prescribed benefit, an employee may elect to receive 100 percent of his/her regular wages by recording 2.75 hours of vacation and / or sick time for each day off work. (This vacation/sick time option is not available to union employees.) If restricted duty can be found within the work restrictions given by the physician, the employee will receive 100 percent of his/her regular wages and will not be required to use vacation or sick accruals.

If the injury is severe and causes permanent disability, the Missouri Division of Workers Compensation may award a lump sum benefit for the disability.

How do I report my time when I have a medical appointment resulting from a work-related injury?

You should make every attempt to schedule medical visits before or after your normal work schedule. If your visit falls within your regular work hours, report your time as regular pay. In either case, do not use sick or vacation time for work-related injuries.

How Are My Other University Benefits Affected?

If an employee is unable to work due to a compensable work injury, all regular University employee benefits may continue as long as the injured person remains an employee of the University,

However, if the state-prescribed wage benefit is elected in lieu of taking vacation or sick time, the employee's portion of the cost for those benefits cannot automatically be deducted from the employee's payroll check. Therefore, the employee is responsible for making separate payment arrangements with the University benefits office in order for any benefits that are normally payroll-deducted to be continued beyond 30 days. Time off work due to a work-related injury also constitutes a serious health condition under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Therefore, days off work under workers' compensation will be charged against an employee's FMLA entitlement (see family and medical leave).

What Should I Do If the Physician Places Me on Restricted Duty?

If the employee is unable to return to all of his/her regular duties, the physician will provide a certificate of fitness defining the employee's restrictions. The employee should immediately take the certificate to his/her supervisor. With assistance from human resources the supervisor will make every effort to return the employee to "restricted duty" based on the physician's restrictions. If "restricted duty" cannot be provided the employee will be eligible to receive workers' compensation wage benefits. If "restricted duty" is provided for the employee and the employee refuses, workers' compensation wage benefits will be denied.

What Could Happen If I Do Not Follow the Policy?

An employee must report all work-related injuries or illnesses to his/her supervisor immediately.

An employee with a compensable work injury must follow any and all instructions of the treating physician. This compliance includes, but is not limited to: prescription use, therapy, following activity restriction and returning for follow-up visits. Compliance with medical instructions is mandatory on and off the job.

An employee who fails to return to work after receiving a release from his/her treating physician to do so will be considered absent from his/her job without authorization. The University considers three days of unauthorized absence without notice to be a voluntary resignation.

Employees are expected to comply with these policies and procedures as a condition of employment. Failure to comply may result in University discipline up to and including discharge.
In accordance with Missouri state law, any employee who submits a fraudulent workers' compensation claim and/or misrepresents facts can be found guilty of a Class A misdemeanor, and may be subject to substantial criminal fines, as well as University discipline, up to and including discharge.

For additional information on Workers' Compensation, contact the office of risk management at 977-3952.