Employee Handbook – Section 302 Sick Leave

---

302 Sick Leave

302.1 Definition

Sick Leave provides employees with an authorized paid absence from work for medical care, personal illness or injury, or the care of an ill member of the employee’s immediate family. Immediate family members are the employee’s spouse, parents, parents-in-law, grandparents, brothers, sisters, and children.

302.2 Eligibility

All regular, full-time employees and regular, part-time employees scheduled to work at least 50% of the regularly scheduled workweek are eligible upon hire to accrue and use Sick Leave in accordance with the provisions of this policy.

302.3 Accrual

Eligible employees accrue Sick Leave for each full month of service completed at Boston University. Accruals are credited to employees on the first day of the month following each full month of completed service.

The following accrual rates are based on a regular full-time workweek and twelve-month assignment duration. They apply on a pro-rata basis to regular, part-time employees.

1. Regular, full-time, non-exempt employees (paid weekly) accrue Sick Leave, upon hire, at the rate of one (1) day for each full month of service cumulative to 130 workdays (6 calendar months).
2. Regular, full-time exempt employees (paid monthly) in Salary Grades 51 and 52 and 71 and 72 accrue Sick Leave, upon hire, at the rate of one (1) day for each full month of service cumulative to 130 workdays (6 calendar months).
3. Regular, full-time exempt employees (paid monthly) in Salary Grades 53 through 60, and 73 and above, are granted 22 workdays (1 calendar month) of Sick Leave, upon hire, and accrue Sick Leave at the rate of 1.75 workdays for each full month of service cumulative to 130 workdays (6 calendar months). Employees who are promoted into Salary Grades 53 through 60, and 73 and above, who have less than 22 days of accrued sick leave will have their sick leave balance supplemented up to a maximum of 22 days. Employees who are promoted into these salary grades and who have 22 days or more of accrued sick leave will not be supplemented any additional days.
4. Regular, part-time employees scheduled to work at least 50 percent of the regularly scheduled work week accrue Sick Leave as their full-time counterparts (see above) but on a pro-rata basis.

Eligible employees hired on or before the fifteenth (15th) of the month will be credited with a full month of service on the first day of the following month. Employees hired on or after the sixteenth (16th) of the month are not credited with a full month of service for that month.

Employees maintain their accrued Sick Leave when they transfer from one position within the University to another.

No department or supervisor may authorize sick leave accrual beyond the amount allowed under this section.

302.4 Additional Sick Leave Awards

All employees, except those in Salary Grades 53 through 60, and 73 and above, who are eligible to accrue Sick Leave are also eligible to earn additional hours of Sick Leave by sufficiently conserving their Sick Leave usage over a complete calendar year. Additional hours earned over a complete calendar year will be credited to the employee’s Sick Leave accrual on January 1 of the following calendar year.

The additional hours of Sick Leave that will be awarded to eligible employees based on their Sick Leave usage over a complete calendar year are listed below. The figures are based on a regular, full-time workweek for a twelve-month calendar year and apply on a pro-rata basis to regular, part-time employees.

 

Number of Sick Leave Days Taken in Calendar Year	Additional Sick Leave Hours Awarded
None	14 hours
1 day	10 hours
2 days	7 hours
3 days	5 hours
4 days	3 hours
5 days	1 hour
6 days or more	0 hours

 

Employees may accrue a maximum of 130 workdays of Sick Leave. This represents the combined total of both the employee’s regular monthly accruals and any additional hours of Sick Leave that may be awarded based upon the employee’s Sick Leave usage.

302.5 Medical Evidence of Illness

At any time, the University has the right to require an employee to submit objective medical evidence that either establishes illness or establishes its expected duration and/or require a medical examination by a physician chosen by the University.

302.6 Usage

Employees are eligible to use their accrued Sick Leave after completing three (3) months of continuous service. During an employee’s first three (3) months of service, time off that would normally be taken as Sick Leave will be taken as Unpaid Time Off. Non-exempt employees eligible for Personal Day absences may convert up to two (2) days of accrued Sick Leave to Personal Days each calendar year.

Employees are entitled to use Sick Leave up to the number of Sick Leave days that they have accrued. For non-exempt employees, Sick Leave converted to Personal Days will be counted as Sick Leave used. Employees who exhaust their accrued Sick Leave may request that additional absences that would normally be taken as Sick Leave be charged to their accrued Vacation Leave, available Personal Days or available Compensatory Time Off. Employees who exhaust their accrued Sick Leave, Vacation Leave, available Personal Days, and available Compensatory Time Off may request Unpaid Time Off or a leave of absence for additional absences that would normally be taken as Sick Leave.

302.7 Compensation and Benefits

Employees maintain their regular pay and benefits while absent from work on approved paid Sick Leave.

Employees are not compensated for unused Sick Leave at the time their employment with Boston University terminates.

Employees who are absent from work due to illness or injury sustained in the course of employment are subject to and paid in accordance with the provisions of the Massachusetts Worker’s Compensation Law. Employee absences during statutory waiting periods for Worker’s Compensation may be charged to an employee’s accrued Sick Leave.

Employees will be paid under the Massachusetts Worker’s Compensation Law for absences that occur after the statutory waiting periods have been satisfied. Employees may elect to use accrued Sick Leave to supplement their weekly Worker’s Compensation benefits to the extent that the employee’s total compensation does not exceed their regular pay.

Non-exempt employees and exempt employees in salary grades 51, 52, 71, and 72 who remain medically incapacitated beyond 60 calendar days, and have exhausted their accrued Sick Leave, should consult Boston University’s Short-Term Disability Plan to determine their eligibility under the plan.

302.8 Requests and Approval

Employees who are unable to report to work due to illness must personally notify their immediate supervisor as soon as possible not less than one-half (1/2) hour after the start of the workday. Employees who are absent for more than one (1) day must notify their supervisor on each day or at intervals requested by the supervisor.

Employees must request time off for scheduled medical or dental appointments, in writing, from their immediate supervisor at least three (3) workdays in advance of the desired time off. Time off for medical or dental appointments shall be charged to the employee’s accrued Sick Leave. The three-day requirement may be shortened in emergency situations. Employees
are generally expected to schedule medical and dental appointments for nonwork hours. Supervisors are authorized to approve these requests and are responsible for communicating their decisions in writing to the employees.

302.9 Other Provisions

Supervisors are responsible for maintaining complete and accurate records of the Sick Leave accruals and usage for each employee under his or her supervision. Supervisors are also responsible for accurately reporting Sick Leave usage on all documents submitted to the Payroll Office. Upon request, employees are entitled to a written statement of their Sick Leave accrual and usage. Such requests should be made to the employee’s immediate supervisor, who is responsible for responding to such requests.

302.10 Related Policies

301   Vacation Leave
303   Personal Days
309   Compensatory Time Off
312   Family and Medical Leave (FMLA)
313   Unpaid Time Off
314   Leave of Absence—Medical (unpaid)

---

THIS POLICY STATEMENT IS PART OF THE EMPLOYEE HANDBOOK, AND SHOULD BE READ IN CONJUNCTION WITH ALL OF THE POLICIES THAT COMPRISE THE HANDBOOK. THE PROVISIONS OF THE EMPLOYEE HANDBOOK DO NOT CONSTITUTE AN EMPLOYMENT CONTRACT AND DO NOT ALTER THE AT-WILL STATUS OF AN EMPLOYEE.

---