Family Friendly Policies and Resources for Faculty

Dorothea Adams Associate Vice President February 14, 2008

Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost

I.

II.

Leave policies and procedures Non-leave policies and procedures III. Impact of policies on tenure clock IV. Campus programs and services

I. Leave Policies

     Family and medical leave (FML) Sick leave Sick leave pool Parental leave Foster parent leave General Information for Faculty Employees on Sick Leave, Parental Leave and Related Policies http://www.utexas.edu/provost/policies/leave/sick_leave.html

Sick Leave and Family Medical Leave 

Who is eligible to accrue?



How much do they accrue?



Who is eligible to use?



How do they report use?

• Sick Leave: who accrues and how much?

 Who? All benefits eligible employees (i.e., appointed half time or more for 4 1/2 mo. or longer)  How much? Full-time employees: 8 hours/mo.

 How much? Part time: on a proportionate basis

Sick Leave: when can it be used?

 Employee must be on payroll at the time the condition necessitating such leave occurs.

 May be taken when sickness, injury, or confinement due to pregnancy prevent the employee’s performance of duty or when the employee is needed to care for and assist a member of his or her immediate family who is ill.

Sick Leave: notification and reporting  Faculty member notifies chair (dean in non-departmentalized college/school) when there is a need to be absent for reasons related to sick leave use  Department chair reports use through a monthly report sent to the provost’s office (see http://www.utexas.edu/provost/policies/leave/index.html

)  Department/employee is responsible for requesting FML form from Human Resources-Employee and Management Services if employee and event qualify -- more to follow on FML  Licensed practitioner’s certification may be required for extended leave period and for return to work

• Family Medical Leave: what is it?

 Up to 12 weeks of job-protected leave during any 12-month period.



Premium sharing

continues during an approved FML event even when the employee is on leave without pay.

Family Medical Leave: who is eligible?

 Employees who have a total of 12 months of state service; and  Have worked at least 1,250 hours during the 12-mo period immediately preceding the commencement of the leave (60% of the year)

Family Medical Leave: uses  Serious health condition of the employee  Birth and care of employee’s child  Placement of a child for adoption or foster care with the employee  Care of the employee’s spouse, child, or parent with a serious health condition

Family Medical Leave: how to apply  Whenever the department or the employee feels the need for FML may exist, they should contact Human Resource Services Employee and Management Services

immediately

.

 HRS-EMS will provisionally designate the event as FML and send the employee the required paperwork.

 Employee has 15 business days to return FML paperwork to HRS-EMS.

 For FML forms see: http://www.utexas.edu/hr/PDF/index.html#fml

Family Medical Leave: what else?

 Employees must apply any accrued sick leave entitlement to such leave unless receiving disability benefits through Workers’ Compensation Insurance.

 FML may be taken intermittently (i.e., in blocks of time).

 The University is responsible for designating leave as qualifying for FML.

 Certification from a licensed practitioner is required.

•

Sick Leave Pool

 Employee or immediate family member must be suffering from a catastrophic illness or injury (see http://www.utexas.edu/hr/lm/slp.html

for definition)  Serves employees who have exhausted

all

earned leave balances and whose condition, therefore, will result in a loss of compensation from the state  Award is for up to 720 hours (18 weeks) from the sick leave pool per condition

Sick Leave Pool (cont’d)  Employee continues to receive a paycheck and benefits throughout the period approved for coverage from the SLP  Use of time from SLP is reported either through weekly time reports (staff) or monthly reports (faculty)

Sick Leave Pool: donating hours  All benefits eligible employees may make annual contributions to the SLP of 8, 16, or 24 hours so long as their own balance does not drop below 50 hours of sick leave  Employees terminating or retiring may donate their entire accrued sick leave balance to the SLP  For SLP forms see: http://www.utexas.edu/hr/PDF/index.html

•

Parental Leave: what is it?

 Up to 12 weeks of unpaid parental leave for employees who are ineligible for family and medical leave coverage for the birth of a natural child or for the adoption or foster care placement of children under 3 years of age.

Parental Leave: who is eligible?

 Employees with less than 12 months of state service or 1,250 hours of work in the 12 months immediately preceding the start of leave.

 Employees are required to use all accrued and available annual leave, floating holiday, and sick leave when applicable, while taking parental leave.

Parental Leave: employer premium sharing 

The University will continue to contribute its share of premiums for an employee’s insurance during the time that an employee is using available and appropriate leave accruals.

•

Foster Parent Leave

 Paid administrative leave for a foster parent to a child under the Department of Protective and Regulatory Services conservatorship to attend meetings in accordance with state law.

 Applies to regular employees appointed half-time or greater for 4 1/2 months or longer.

•

Additional Leave Policies

 Assistance Dog Training  Emergency Leave  Jury Duty  Time Off for Blood, Organ, or Bone Marrow Donation  Volunteer Emergency Responder Leave  Witness Service

II. Non-leave Policies



Extension of the Probationary Period



Modified Instructional Duties

•

Extension of Probationary Period

 Applies to tenure-track faculty members who determine that certain personal circumstances may impede progress toward achieving demonstration of eligibility for recommendation of the award of tenure  Personal circumstances may include: childbirth or status of faculty member as caregiver of a preschool child, disabled, elderly, or ill member of the family of the faculty member

Extension of probationary period: requests 

Automatic

for childbirth and/or adoption and upon formal written notification of the condition and specification of the year of the extension to department chair (dean in non-departmentalized college/school), dean and provost.  Extensions are automatically granted on the basis of one per child birth event up to a maximum of two extensions, except in cases where the year of automatic extension is a faculty member’s sixth year of full time probationary service (“up/out year”).

Extension of Probationary Period: requests  In all other instances, the faculty member is responsible for providing appropriate documentation substantiating why circumstance placed an unreasonable burden upon the ability of faculty member to meet progress expectations.

 Extensions are limited to one academic year; in exceptional circumstances, two, which is total maximum allowable for all reasons.

Extension of Probationary Period: requests Application Deadline  Apply when circumstance justifying extension becomes clear  Requests normally should be made in advance of the academic year or semester in which the extension is justified  Deadline to apply: no later than May 31 preceding “up/out” year

• Modified Instructional Duties: what are they?

 A modification of classroom instructional responsibilities to allow for equivalent academic service when certain personal circumstances prevent a faculty member from being able to perform these, and when such modifications are found to be in the best interest of the University’s instructional programs  MIDs are for a period of one long session semester

Modified Instructional Duties: who is eligible?

 All members of the faculty appointed full-time on the instructional budget in a long session semester  Faculty who are caregivers of a healthy pre-school child (or children), or who are required to care for or assist a member or members of their immediate family, who although not ill or disabled, needs the help and attention of the faculty member

Modified Instructional Duties: requests  The written request is submitted to the department chair (dean in non-departmentalized college/school), dean and provost for approval  Requests should be submitted prior to the semester in which the duties modification is needed  Request should explain the need for MID and describe the work assignments to be done in place of the normal classroom responsibilities, including a work product

• Unbalanced Teaching Loads  All faculty paid full-time from Faculty Salaries may maximize time devoted to quality teaching and time devoted to research and scholarly efforts within an academic year by requesting an adjusted teaching load across two semesters so that one is light and other heavier  Requests are submitted to the department chair (dean in a non-departmentalized college/school)

III. Impact on Probationary Clock



Leave without pay

probationary clock stops the tenure track 

Release time from the instructional budget

administered by UT Austin) probationary clock) does

not

stop (funding the  An approved

extension of the probationary period

defers the up/out review for one year (two, if a second extension is granted)  SUMMARY OF FACULTY LEAVE and RELATED POLICIES chart at http://www.utexas.edu/provost/faculty/index.html

III. Programs and Services-UT Campus

 Faculty recruitment and retention Child Development Center slots  To assist in faculty recruitment and retention in which child care is an issue  10 spaces/year set aside  Vice Provost Neal Armstrong is the Coordinating Administrator: 232-3305 or [email protected]

 For the following fall, decisions must be made by May 1st preceding spring of the  If recruit declines offer, department assumes financial responsibility for tuition until another child is enrolled or period NTE 6 months

Programs and Services (cont’d)  Relocation Services  Human Resource Services-Staffing and Career Management Services has initiated a 3rd party relocation service to serve select recruits and final candidates for faculty and staff positions.    The service includes acquainting/orienting candidates with the Austin metropolitan area, assistance with housing availability, school districts, health facilities, moving and other services that might assist the candidates with a smooth transition to Austin.

The relocation service is free, will provide information packets and, where applicable, cross-cultural assistance.

Contact HRS-SCMS Relocations Services Coordinator Carmen Guerra at 232-5531or

[email protected]

Programs and Services

(cont’d)  UT Child Development Center  Provides renowned child care services to University students, faculty and staff  Offers a developmental early childhood program for children 6 mo to 5 yrs of age  Convenient hours and locations, making it easy for parents to be a part of their child’s experience at the center. Early application strongly advised.

http://www.utexas.edu/childcenter/

Programs and Services (cont’d)  Priscilla Pond Flawn Child & Family Laboratory  A traditional pre-school experience (not a daycare program) for children between the ages of 18 mo - 6 yrs  An enrichment program that meets the needs of young children in the areas of social, cognitive, emotional, and physical development http://www.he.utexas.edu/clf/index.php

Programs and services (cont’d)  Work/Life Services (Employee Assistance Program)  Services include confidential counseling for personal and work-related concerns  Services offered at no charge to faculty and staff  Contact information: 471-3366; http://www.utexas.edu/hr/eap/

Programs and Services (cont’d)  The Faculty Ombudsperson provides faculty with a neutral, confidential, prompt and professional way to resolve University-related questions, concerns, or complaints beyond turning to their supervisors Contact Stan Roux Phone: 471-5866 e-mail: [email protected]

Programs and Services (cont’d)  Hire a Longhorn Job Bank  Available to students and employers 24/7  Employers may post part-time, seasonal, and summer jobs of all kinds.

 Child care and nanny positions may be posted on the job bank at http://www.hirealonghorn.org/jobbank/index.html.

Programs and Services (cont’d)  Employee discount program HRS Web site ( http://www.utexas.edu/hr/edp/ ) dedicated to listing discounts offered by participating vendors for a wide variety of products and services in the following categories:          Automotive Clothing Entertainment Food & Restaurants Health & Beauty Home & Garden Sporting Events Travel Other

Programs and Resources (cont’d)  UT Summer Camps--Sampling           Summer Academy in Architecture Theatre Arts Workshop Accounting Career Awareness Program Careers in Engineering for Women Cinema/Television Summer Camp First Bytes Introductory Computer Sciences Summer Camp for Girls KVR’S Kid Camp Longhorn Music Camp Longhorn Sports Camp Etc.

Programs and Resources (cont’d)  Campus Events and Venues--Sampling            Explore UT Blanton Museum Texas Memorial Museum Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center Performing Arts Center Moonlight Prowl Intercollegiate Athletics Texas Union Informal Classes Frank Erwin Center Shakespeare at Winedale Recreational Sports

Questions?

Contact Renee Wallace 232-3320 [email protected]