Procedure 18-12

Responsible Service:
Human Resources

Date and Instance of Approval:
March 13, 2023 - Vice-President, Finance and Administration
July 14, 2023 - Vice-President, Finance and Administration

1. PURPOSE
   1. This procedure sets out the current practices and procedures for the administration of leave other than sick leave for regular non-unionized administrative support staff in the Confidential (NC) and Management (NM) categories under Policy 9.
2. DEFINITIONS
   1. The following words and expressions have the same meaning for the purposes of interpreting this procedure and Policy 9.
      
      Adjusted service date: Date of continuous service for the accumulation of annual leave and administration of pay, benefits and pension plan, i.e., the start date in a regular or contractual position, adjusted for any interruption in employment or non-statutory leave exceeding three months, not including long-term disability.
      
      Parent: Includes a person with whom a child is placed for adoption and a person who is in a relatively permanent relationship with a parent of a child and who intends to treat the child as their own. The term “child” has a corresponding meaning.
      
      Spouse: Means:
      1. spouse as defined in section 1 of the Family Law Act; or
      2. either of two persons who live together in a conjugal relationship outside marriage.
         
         Temporary assignment: Temporary appointment of staff members from their substantive position to another position as outlined in Procedure 18-9 (associated with Policy 3 - Salary Administration for Regular Non-Unionized Support Staff).
3. SCOPE AND APPLICATION
   1. This procedure applies to regular non-unionized administrative and support staff in the NC and NM categories.
   2. This procedure is to be read and applied in conjunction with Policy 9 - Administration of Leave for Regular Non-Unionized Administrative and Support Staff.
4. ROLES
   
   Associate Vice-President, Human Resources: When necessary, recommends changes to the policy or procedure.
   
   Vice-President, Finance and Administration: Approves proposed changes to the procedure.
   
   Manager: Manages staff leave requests in accordance with this procedure and Policy 9.
   
   Human Resources: Administers the leave system and ensures that the rules and legislation applicable to the various types of leave are applied uniformly and consistently.
    
5. VACATION (ANNUAL LEAVE)
   1. Accumulation of vacation leave is determined by category (NC or NM), based on the period of continuous service arrived
      at by using the adjusted service date as set out in Appendix A below. Vacation leave is accumulated from January to December and is spread out over each pay period at a rate of 1/24th of the staff member’s annual accumulation.
   2. In the event of a temporary assignment, vacation leave is accumulated based on the employment category of the temporary assignment position.
   3. Annual leave can be taken as it is accumulated during the year.
   4. Up to ten (10) days of non-accumulated vacation leave may be borrowed except in the case of staff members on probation.
   5. Every faculty and service must establish a procedure for the organization of annual leave (deadline for choosing vacation dates, periods when annual leave is limited, maximum number of consecutive days, etc.). The University also must ensure that staff members take the minimum amount of annual leave required by the ESA. If conflict arises among staff within a unit regarding the annual leave schedule and staff members cannot come to an agreement on who should have priority, the staff member with the earlier adjusted service date has priority.
   6. Staff members can defer up to ten (10) days of annual leave in excess of their annual vacation entitlement to the following year. Any accumulated and unused annual leave in excess of that number is automatically forfeited as of December 31 of the current year.
   7. Should a death, as set out in section 7 below, occur during a period of annual leave, the staff member can convert the annual leave into bereavement leave.
   8. Staff members on unpaid non-statutory leave or on unauthorized leave for more than ten (10) consecutive working days do not accumulate any vacation time during that leave.
       
6. STATUTORY AND OTHER HOLIDAYS RECOGNIZED AT THE UNIVERSITY AND HOLIDAY SEASON LEAVE
   1. Staff members are entitled to the following paid holidays and to any other day prescribed as a statutory holiday under the ESA:
      • New Year’s Day
      • Family Day
      • Good Friday
      • Victoria Day    
      • Canada Day
      • Labour Day
      • Thanksgiving Day
      • Christmas Day
      • Boxing Day
   2. The University also offers staff members the following paid days of leave:
      1. Easter Monday
      2. First Monday in August
      3. Holiday season period beginning December 22 at 5 p.m. (or at the hour determined in the work schedule) and ending on January 3 at 8:45 a.m. (or the staff member’s normal work start time).
         1. If January 1 falls on a Saturday, staff members return to work on Tuesday, January 4.
         2. If January 3 falls on a Saturday or a Sunday, staff members return to work the following Monday.
         3. If December 23 or December 24 falls on a Saturday or Sunday, additional days of leave are added to the vacation bank in the following calendar year, subject to the following conditions:
            • The staff member must be employed at the University on December 31.
            • An additional day is granted for December 23.
            • An additional half-day is granted for December 24.
   3. Under the ESA, staff members asked to work on a statutory holiday listed above are paid at a rate of one and a half (1½) times the regular hourly rate, in addition to their base salary, or receive the equivalent in time off work.
       
   4. Staff members asked to work on a paid day of leave listed in section 6.2 have the choice of receiving equivalent paid time off work or being paid at the regular hourly rate in addition to their base salary.
7. BEREAVEMENT LEAVE
   1. A staff member is entitled to paid leave of five (5) working days in the event of the death of one of the following persons:
      1. The staff member’s spouse
      2. The child of the staff member or the staff member’s spouse, or a foster child of the staff member or the staff member’s spouse
      3. The grandchild of the staff member or the staff member’s spouse
      4. The parent of the staff member or the staff member’s spouse, or the foster parent of the staff member or the staff member’s spouse  
      5. The staff member’s sibling
   2. Staff members are entitled to one (1) paid day of leave in the event of the death of a sister-in-law, brother-in-law, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, grandparent, uncle, aunt, nephew or niece of the staff member or the staff member’s spouse.
   3. Should the funeral (or equivalent) take place more than 320 kilometres (200 miles) from Ottawa, the staff member must be granted one (1) additional paid day.
   4. The University may require that any staff member taking bereavement leave under this procedure provide proof of entitlement to that leave.
8. LEAVE FOR A WEDDING
   1. Staff members are entitled to five (5) working days paid leave for their own wedding once during their employment with the University.
      1. The leave must be taken in the week prior to or following the date of the wedding.
      2. The request for leave must be submitted at least four (4) weeks in advance.
9. BIRTH OR ADOPTION LEAVE
   1. A staff member who is not the birth mother is entitled to three (3) days’ paid birth or adoption leave. This leave must be taken within five (5) calendar days following the birth or adoption of the child.
10. SPECIAL LEAVE
    1. Staff members can be granted paid special leave, up to an annual maximum of five (5) working days, by a dean or service director in any other exceptional circumstance, excluding those listed above, for which a predetermined leave duration is prescribed in previous sections. 
    2. Exceptional circumstances can include emergencies or family obligations such as the temporary care of a family member who is sick, a doctor’s or dentist’s appointment for a family dependent who is unable to travel alone or an appointment with school authorities. Certain other requests for leave such as moving, a mandatory religious service and/or Indigenous spiritual ceremonies may be considered as part of the five (5) paid days.
    3. Staff members must make every reasonable effort to minimize this type of absence.
11. COURT LEAVE
    1. Paid leave is granted to any staff member who is called upon for jury duty or summoned to appear as a witness in a court of law or before any statutory or legal body in Canada that has the power to demand the presence of witnesses in proceedings where they are not one of the parties concerned.
    2. Staff members must inform their manager in writing as soon as possible and justify the court appearance with an appropriate document.
    3. Staff members called upon for jury duty or summoned to appear as a witness are excused from their duties for the required period of time.
    4. Pay received during the court leave is reduced by any amount paid by the court for appearing in response to the summons.
    5. Court leave does not apply to any staff member who is serving a prison sentence.
    6. Staff members called before a civil or criminal court or administrative tribunal in a case to which they are a party are eligible for leave without pay, or they may use days of annual leave in order to attend.
12. MATERNITY (PREGNANCY) AND PARENTAL LEAVE
    1. The ESA sets out the applicable rules for maternity and parental leave in Ontario. See Your Guide to the Employment Standards Act.
    2. Staff members who are entitled to the additional compensation set out in section 12.7 below must (if applicable) maintain their participation in the group insurance plan and/or the pension plan and must pay their share of contributions on 100% of the base salary of their substantive position.
    3. Should they fail to notify Human Resources to interrupt their participation, staff members not entitled to the additional compensation set out in section 12.7 below continue (if applicable) their participation in the University’s group insurance plan and/or the pension plan, and must pay their share of contributions on 100% of the base salary of their substantive position. This also applies to any part of leave not eligible for additional compensation.
    4. In the instances described in sections 12.2 and 12.3, the University will continue to pay the employer’s share for that same salary.
    5. Staff members on maternity or parental leave continue to accumulate years of service and vacation leave as if they were at work.
    6. Unless the staff member is entitled to a leave under the ESA, any staff member on maternity or parental leave is not eligible for the leave set out in Policy 9 and its procedures.
    7. Supplementary compensation
       1. To be entitled to the supplementary compensation set out in sections 12.7.2 and 12.7.3 below, staff members must have held a regular position at the University for at least twelve (12) continuous months, have worked a minimum of six hundred (600) hours at the University and provide proof of eligibility for benefits from a government program.
       2. Staff members on maternity leave are entitled to supplementary compensation equal to the difference between ninety-five percent (95%) of the base salary of their substantive position and the maximum applicable amount from the government program available to any person whose salary corresponds to the salary of the staff member, for a maximum period of seventeen (17) weeks.
       3. Staff members on parental leave are entitled to supplementary remuneration equal to the difference between ninety-five percent (95%) of the base salary of their substantive position and the maximum amount from the applicable government program available to any person whose salary corresponds to the salary of the staff member, for a maximum period of six (6) weeks.
       4. If the University determines that any or all of the supplementary compensation should not have been paid or was overpaid, the excess is withheld from subsequent supplementary compensation payments or from any other amount payable by the University.
       5. The ninety-five percent (95%) cap for the maternity or parental leave also applies if there is a salary increase during the said leave.
       6. Any amount to be repaid as a result of limits imposed by any applicable legislation is the responsibility of the staff member.
       7. Supplementary benefits are not payable in any of the following circumstances:
          1. The staff member receives a notice of termination before advising the University of the birth or adoption of a child
          2. The staff member formally resigns before advising the University of the birth or adoption of a child
          3. If the employment is seasonal, during the planned period of absence
13. UNPAID LEAVE
    1. Unpaid leave with job protection
       1. A staff member may request unpaid leave with job protection for a maximum period of one year. In such cases, the dean or service director must recommend approval of the leave to Human Resources, which will make the final decision.
       2. The recommendation by the dean or service director and the decision by Human Resources must take the following criteria into account:
          1. The reason for the leave
          2. The duration of the leave
          3. The staff member’s seniority
          4. The projected length of service after the return to work
          5. The possibility of finding a competent replacement on a temporary basis, and
          6. The staff member’s performance.
       3. Such leave cannot be granted for the purpose of working for
          another employer unless the work is unpaid.
       4. During such leave, staff members keep their position, even if another person holds the position temporarily during the staff member’s absence.
       5. Staff members who are granted such leave can continue to participate in the group insurance plan and/or pension plan, subject to the following conditions:
          1. They can maintain their group insurance coverage for the entire period of leave, provided they notify Human Resources in writing at least 30 days prior to the start of the leave. The usual distribution of costs will apply for the first three (3) months, and the member must pay the costs in their entirety for the remainder of the leave (employer’s share and member’s share).
          2. Staff members may continue to participate in the University’s pension plan, provided they notify Human Resources in writing at least thirty (30) days prior to the start of the leave and pay both the employer’s share (including the provision for adverse deviation, if applicable) and their own share for the entire period of leave.
    2. Unpaid leave without job protection
       1. A staff member can request unpaid leave without job protection. In such cases, the dean or service director must recommend approval of the leave to Human Resources, which makes the final decision.
       2. The recommendation by the dean or service director and the decision by Human Resources must take the following criteria into account:
          1. The reason for the leave
          2. The duration of the leave
          3. The staff member’s seniority
          4. The projected length of service after the return to work
          5. The possibility of finding a competent replacement on a temporary basis, and
          6. The staff member’s performance.
       3. The maximum duration of unpaid leave without job protection is normally one year, or a maximum of two years in exceptional circumstances only.
       4. Staff members can maintain their group insurance coverage provided they notify Human Resources in writing at least thirty (30) days prior to the start of the leave and agree to pay the cost in full (the employer’s share and the member’s share) for the entire period of leave.
       5. Staff members can continue to participate in the University’s pension plan provided they notify Human Resources in writing at least thirty (30) days before the start of the leave and pay both the employer’s share (including the provision for adverse deviation, if applicable) and their share for the entire period of leave.
       6. Access to tuition fee financial support for spouses and dependents (Policy 22) is not available during this type of leave.    
       7. For members unable to find another position prior to the end of the leave, their employment at the University automatically terminates.
    3. Eligibility for other types of leave during unpaid leave
       1. Unless the staff member is entitled to a leave under the ESA, a staff member on unpaid leave with or without job protection is not eligible for the leave set out in Policy 9 and its procedures.
14. OTHER LEAVE UNDER THE ESA
    1. Staff members are entitled to all other unpaid leave as set out in the ESA.
    2. The various types of leave provided for in this procedure include those set out in the ESA, the objective being not to grant leave over and above the various types of leave provided for in the act. If the ESA provides for a greater right or benefit than the rights and benefits described in this procedure, the University applies the ESA.

Appendix A

Vacation accumulation for regular non-unionized administrative and support staff

NC category

NM category