Seton Hall University

Earned Sick Leave

Purpose

Seton Hall University recognizes that employees may need time off from work due to illness or other circumstances as described below. The University provides paid sick leave to employees to guard against loss of earnings. The purpose of this policy is to set forth the terms and procedures that govern the earning, availability and use of paid sick leave.

Scope

This is a University-wide policy.

Policy

I. Hours Earned

A.  Full-Time Faculty and All Administrators (Full and Part-Time)

  1. Faculty and all administrators shall earn one (1) hour of paid sick leave for every twenty (20) hours of service, equivalent to seven (7) hours per month.  For purposes of calculating earned sick leave under this policy, the service workweek shall be the same for full-time faculty and full-time administrators.  This accrual schedule does not amend the terms of faculty employment.
  2. Faculty and administrators are not eligible to take earned sick leave during the first 90 days of employment. 
  3. Earned sick leave may be accrued up to 84 hours per year and accrued earned sick leave may be carried forward into the next year.  Earned sick leave may be accumulated up to a maximum of 168 hours.  
  4. Faculty and administrators will not be paid for any unused  sick leave upon separation, for any reason, from the University.

B. Adjunct Faculty 

  1. Adjunct faculty will be advanced 40 hours of earned sick leave in a calendar year, credited upon the start of employment or October 29, 2018, whichever is later.  
  2. Adjunct faculty are not eligible to take earned sick leave during the first 120 days of employment, except as set forth in Section IV.3.
  3. Any unused earned sick leave will be carried forward into the next calendar year and shall be credited toward the 40 hours of earned sick leave to be advanced for that calendar year.
  4. Adjunct faculty will not be paid for any unused sick leave upon separation, for any reason, from the University.

C. Regular Full-Time Non-Bargaining Unit Staff Employees

  1. Regular full-time non-bargaining unit staff employees (“staff employees”) shall earn one (1) hour of paid sick leave for every twenty (20) hours of service, equivalent to seven (7) hours per month. 
  2. Staff employees are not eligible to take earned sick leave during the first 90 days of employment.  
  3. Any unused earned sick leave will be carried forward into the next calendar year.  Earned sick leave may be accumulated up to a maximum of 560 hours. 
  4. Staff employees will be paid for unused earned sick leave, not to exceed 210 hours, only upon retirement, and for no other reason.  “Retirement”  is defined as being age 55 or older and having at least 10 years of benefits eligible service with the University.

D. Employees covered by collective bargaining agreements 

Members of the Office & Professional Employees International Union, Local 153 AFL-CIO and International Union of Operating Engineers, Local Union 68-68A, are governed by their respective collective bargaining agreements regarding earned sick time entitlements and procedures.  Bargaining unit members may use earned sick leave for the reasons permitted under Section II.

E.  Student Workers

  1. Student workers shall earn one (1) hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked.  “Work” does not include holidays vacation, lunch hour, illness and similar reasons.
  2. Student workers are not eligible to take earned sick leave during the first 120 days of employment.
  3. Any unused earned sick leave will be carried forward into the next calendar year.  Earned sick leave may be accrued up to 40 hours per year.
  4. Student workers will not be paid for any unused sick leave upon separation, for any reason, from the University.  

G. Graduate Assistants

  1. Graduate Assistants shall earn one (1) hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours of service, based upon each individual employee’s scheduled service. 
  2. Graduate Assistants are not eligible to take earned sick leave during the first 120 days of employment.
  3.  Any unused earned sick leave will be carried forward into the next calendar year.  Earned sick leave may be accrued up to 40 hours per year.
  4. Graduate Assistants will not be paid for any unused sick leave upon separation, for any reason,  from the University.  

II. Permitted Uses of Sick Leave

Earned sick leave can be used for the following reasons:

  • Time needed for diagnosis, care, or treatment of, or recovery from, an employee’s mental or physical illness, injury or other adverse health condition, or for preventive medical care for the employee; 
  • Time needed for the employee to care for a family member of the employee during diagnosis, care, or treatment of, or recovery from, the family member’s mental or physical illness, injury, or other adverse health condition, or during preventive medical care for the family member;
  • Absence necessary due to circumstances resulting from the employee, or a family member of the employee, being a victim of domestic or sexual violence, if the leave is to allow the employee to obtain for the employee or the family member, medical attention needed to recover from physical or psychological injury or disability caused by domestic or sexual violence; services from a designated domestic violence agency or other victim services organization; psychological or other counseling; relocation; or legal services, including obtaining a restraining order or preparing for, or participating in, any civil or criminal proceeding related to the domestic or sexual violence; 
  • Time during which the employee is not able to work because of a closure of the employee’s workplace, or the school or place of care of a child of the employee, by order of a public official due to a public health emergency, or because of the issuance by a public health authority of a determination that the presence in the community of the employee, or a member of the employee’s family in need of care by the employee, would jeopardize the health of others; or
  • Time needed by the employee in connection with a child of the employee to attend a school-related conference, meeting, function, or other event requested or required by a school administrator, teacher, or other professional staff member responsible for the child’s education, or to attend a meeting regarding care provided to the child in connection with the child’s health condition or disability.
  1. “Child” is defined as a biological, adopted or foster child, stepchild or legal ward of an employee or child of a domestic partner or civil union partner of the employee.
  2. “Family member” is defined as a child, grandchild, sibling, spouse, domestic partner, civil union partner, parent or grandparent of an employee, or a spouse, domestic partner, or civil union partner of a parent or grandparent of the employee, or a sibling of a spouse, domestic partner, or civil union partner of the employee, or any other individual related by blood to the employee or whose close association with the employee is the equivalent of a family relationship.

III. Procedures for Using Earned Sick Leave

  1. Foreseeable use of earned sick leave.  Employees may be able to predict or know in advance that they will need to use earned sick leave for such reasons as a scheduled doctor’s visit, a regularly occurring medical treatment or regularly scheduled therapy appointment.  In the event of such foreseeable sick leave, employees are required to provide 7 days advanced notice, or notice as soon as practicable, and include the expected duration of the leave.  Employees should make a reasonable effort to schedule the use of earned sick leave in a manner that does not unduly disrupt the operations of the department.  A supervisor reserves the right to prohibit the employee from using earned sick leave during certain published blackout periods.  If unforeseeable sick leave is taken during those dates, the supervisor may require reasonable documentation establishing the necessity for the sick leave. 
  2. Unforeseeable use of earned sick leave.  Employees are required to (a) notify their supervisors as soon as practicable, but no later than the end of the first hour of the employee’s scheduled workday, or by a time set forth in department guidelines, to advise him/her of their absence and (b) keep the supervisor advised as to the probable date of return to work.  Members of Local 68/68A and Local 153 are required to follow the terms of their respective collective bargaining agreements.  Failure to timely notify a supervisor of an absence may result in disciplinary action unless the employee is prevented from doing so by reason of extreme emergency.
  3. Supervisors may require reasonable documentation when any sick leave of three (3) or more consecutive days is taken.
  4. Supervisors must notify the Department of Human Resources (“Human Resources”) as soon as they know that an employee will be on sick leave for more than seven (7) calendar days so that. Human Resources may communicate with the employee in connection with any applicable leave.
  5. Supervisors must ensure that faculty, administrators, staff, adjunct faculty, graduate assistants and student workers record sick time taken on their monthly or biweekly electronic timesheet.  If the employee has not returned to work when timesheets are required to be submitted, the supervisor shall complete and approve the timesheet in accordance with Human Resources guidelines.

IV. General

  1. Any employee who exhausts their accrued earned sick time will not be compensated for any day, or portion of a day, of sick leave taken that exceeds their accrued earned sick leave.
  2. Absences due to occupational illness or injury subject to workers’ compensation may be charged against accrued earned sick leave if the time out of work is not reimbursed by workers’ compensation insurance.
  3. If an employee returns to employment within six (6) months of separation from the University, all previously accrued earned sick leave shall be reinstated and any applicable waiting period will be adjusted based on length of prior employment, in accordance with state law.
  4. Employees who are ill while on a scheduled vacation may, with a supervisor’s approval, charge the time to earned sick leave.  The employee may be required to provide a written doctor’s statement substantiating the illness. 
  5. Any exceptions to this policy must have the advance written approval of Human Resources.

Additional Information:

  • Family and Medical Leave Act 
  • New Jersey Family Leave Act 
  • New Jersey Safe Act
  • Americans With Disabilities Act

Related Policies

Responsible Offices

  • Department of Human Resources

Approval

Approved

This policy was approved by Interim President Meehan, on the recommendation of the Executive Cabinet, on December 17, 2018.

Effective Date

October 29th, 2018