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MORRIS SCHOOL DISTRICT
Morristown, New Jersey 07960
Policy |
| File Code: |
4151.10 |
| Monitored: |
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| Mandated: |
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| Other Reasons |
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Parental Leave
The Board of Education believes there is a need for promoting the economic security of its
employees' families by safeguarding to the extent possible the jobs of those employees who
choose to take a period of leave to give birth to, adopt and/or care for a new child. The Board of
Education, therefore, declares that its employees shall be entitled to such parental leave,
pursuant to the terms of this policy, without risk of termination or retaliation for taking such leave.
Pregnancy-Related Disability Leave
- Presumptive period of disability
- Every female employee who anticipates giving birth shall be entitled to request and be
granted the use of sick leave during the presumptive period of disability resulting from her
pregnancy.
- The presumptive period of disability shall encompass the 20 working days preceding the
expected delivery date, the period between the expected delivery date and the actual
delivery date, and the 20 working days following the actual delivery date. The Board of
Education shall require certifications from duly licensed health care providers stating
the anticipated and actual delivery dates in order to substantiate these presumptive
periods.
- Should it appear that an employee's pregnancy has become a disabling condition prior to her
request for any parental leave, the Board of Education may require a physician's certificate
attesting to the employee's continued ability to perform her duties. If the employee fails to
produce such a certificate within the reasonable time period established by the
Superintendent or his/her designee, she shall be ineligible for further service and shall be
granted sick leave until such time as she provides the Board of Education with a physician's
certificate attesting to her ability to perform her duties.
- Extension of an employee's period of disability beyond the beginning or ending dates of the
presumptive period shall only be granted by the Board of Education upon the employee's
presentation of a physician's certificate attesting to the actual existence of such added
disability and the beginning and anticipated ending dates of such added disability.
- In every instance, an employee's entitlement to disability leave resulting from a pregnancy
shall be limited to the amount of sick leave which that employee has accumulated as of the
initial date of disability.
- In no instance shall the entitlement to disability leave established in this policy extend to any
employee parent who does not suffer actual pregnancy-related disability.
Non-Disability Parental Leave
- Every employee who has one or more years of continuous service in the Morris School
District, working no less than 1000 hours of service in the year preceding the request, shall
be entitled to 12 weeks leave of absence in any 24 month period for the birth, adoption
and/or care of children.
- Non-disability child rearing leave may commence at any time within one year after the child's
date of birth or placement for adoption by the employee.
- In any case, where the need of child-rearing leave is foreseeable, the employee shall
present the Board of Education with a prior written request for such leave no less than
60 days prior to the date on which the employee wishes the leave to begin. A written
request submitted to the Board of Education on less than 60 days notice shall be granted
provided the employee establishes that the need for such leave was not foreseeable,
and/or that providing 60 days prior written request was not practicable for the employee.
- Each employee on child-rearing leave shall notify the Board of Education in writing on the
date of his/her intended return to work no later than March 30th of the school year
preceding the school year in which re-employment is expected to commence.
- In all cases, the Board of Education shall attempt to set beginning and/or ending dates
for the employee's leave which are as close to those requested by the employee as is
practicable and which do not unreasonably disrupt district operations.
- Employee shall not receive his/her salary for the time that he/she is on child-rearing leave.
- Pursuant to the requirements of law, the Board of Education shall, during the first 12 weeks of an employee's
child-rearing leave, maintain the employee's coverage under any group health insurance
policy, group subscriber contract or health care plan at the level and under the conditions
coverage would have been provided if the employee had not taken any leave of absence. If
the employee's coverage would have expired on a date occurring within this 12 week period
had the employee not been on leave, the continuation of said coverage during the leave shall
expire on that date as well.
An employee shall be entitled to the coverage described in this policy once in every 24 month
period.
Except as provided for in this policy, no employee on non-disability parental leave (including
all family and/or dependents) shall be covered by any insurance benefit or plan to which the
employee would have been entitled had he/she not taken leave.
Any employee on leave who is not covered by any insurance plan or benefit pursuant to this
policy may, to the extent allowable under the terms of any irrelevant insurance contracts,
continue to be covered by any insurance plan(s) or benefit(s) under which he/she would be
entitled to coverage if he/she was not on leave, provided he/she pays to the Board of
Education the amount(s) or any premium(s) incurred as a result of his/her continued
coverage.
- Return to employment from any disability or non-disability leave.
- The employee shall be restored to:
- The position he/she held when the leave commenced,
- An equivalent position of like seniority, status, benefits, salary and other terms and
conditions of employment for which he/she is qualified.
- The issue of the employee's seniority accrual, or accumulation of service toward tenure
acquisition, during his/her leave shall be decided pursuant to law.
- The employee's employment status as affected by any abolishment of position or
reduction in force occurring during the employee's leave shall be the same as if
the employee had not taken leave.
- If the employee would have lost his/her position had he/she not been on leave,
he/she shall not be entitled to reinstatement to the former or an equivalent position
upon termination of his/her leave.
- The employee shall not suffer the loss of any preferred eligibility or other recall rights
as a result of his/her taking leave pursuant to the policy.
Date: February 12, 2001
June 10, 2002, First Reading
July 29, 2002, Approved
Legal References:
N.J.S.A. 18A:6-6 No sex discrimination
N.J.S.A. 18A:11-1 General mandatory powers and duties
N.J.S.A. 18A:16-2 Physical examinations; requirement
N.J.S.A. 18A:30-1 Definition of sick leave
N.J.S.A. 18A:30-2 Sick leave allowable
N.J.S.A. 18A:30-6 Prolonged absence beyond sick leave period
Ramsey Teachers Association v. Ramsey Board of Education, 1979 S.L.D. 862, St. Bd. rev'g 1978 S.L.D. 518, aff'd App. Div. 1980 S.L.D. 1528
Marion Cole and Nancy Minneci v. Board of Education of the Essex County
Vocational School District, Essex County, 1986 S.L.D. 1855
Cross References:
4150 Leaves
4151 Attendance patterns
Key Words
Leaves, Leaves of Absence, Unauthorized Leaves of Absence, Authorized Leaves of Absence
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