Temporary Disability Leave

Note: This is not a current version of the policy. View current version. »

Purpose
Temporary Disability Leave (TDL) is available for regular staff with a full-time equivalent (FTE) of 0.5 or greater. It is the intent of this policy to provide leave for staff who have an illness or injury which prevents them from performing their jobs on a temporary basis, or to care for eligible family members within the guidelines of this policy.

Definitions
For purposes of this policy the following definitions shall apply:
“Sponsored Adult Dependent”

• Shares primary residence with covered UK employee, and has lived with UK employee at least twelve months prior to effective date of coverage.
• Is at least the age of majority.
• Is not a relative.  Definition of relative for sponsored adult dependent: Parents, children, husbands, wives, brothers, sisters, brothers- and sisters-in law, mothers- and fathers-in law, uncles, aunts, cousins, nieces, great nieces, nephews, great nephews, grandmothers, grandfathers, great grandmothers, great grandfathers, sons- and daughters-in law and half- or step-relatives of the same relationships.

“Sponsored Child Dependent”

• Shares primary residence with UK-covered employee and sponsored adult dependent and has lived with UK employee at least twelve months prior to effective date of coverage.
• Is under the age of 26.
• Is the natural born or adopted child of sponsored adult dependent.
• Is not a relative of the covered UK employee (see the definition of relative for sponsored adult dependent above).

Policy

1. A written physician's statement, justifying the request for TDL may be required by the employee’s department or the Human Resources Office of Employee Relations (Employee Relations). An employee returning to work from TDL may be required to submit a physician’s statement indicating the employee is able to return to work on or before their actual return date.
2. Any absence which extends 10 working days beyond the exhaustion of all accrued leaves (TDL and vacation leave) shall be reported to the Human Resources Office of Compensation.
3. An employee who is absent on a regular basis or who has attendance patterns which interfere with his/her job may not  be entitled to the provisions of this policy.
   1. An employee with continuing health problems who is not able to work regularly may be separated from employment.
   2. It is recommended that excessive use of TDL be reviewed with Employee Relations.
4. An employee’s job shall be held available for the employee’s return from TDL without loss of benefits.
5. Accrued TDL or vacation leave shall be used during a period of temporary disability.
6. An employee may be in a leave without pay status when accrued TDL and vacation leave are exhausted. This unpaid leave must be approved by the Office of Employee Relations.
7. TDL accrues at the rate of one day per month for regular full-time employees who are paid on a monthly basis. TDL accrues at the rate of 0.46 days per pay period for regular full-time employees who are paid on a bi-weekly basis.
   1. An employee accrues TDL while in a paid status, excluding long term disability.
   2. An employee who is in a paid status for one-half or more of the pay period shall accrue TDL for that pay period.
   3. TDL accruals will be assessed and posted at the end of each pay period. Those leave hours will be available for use at the beginning of the next pay period.
   4. There is no maximum limit on the amount of TDL that can be accumulated.
   5. An employee transferring from one department to another as a regular staff employee will carry into the new department accrued TDL.
   6. Note: For the purposes of this policy, a day is defined as the minimum number of hours exempt employees are normally expected to work in a week (40) divided by five, not to exceed eight hours. For a non-exempt employee, a day is defined as the number of hours the employee normally works in a bi-weekly pay period divided by 10, not to exceed eight hours. For example: This is usually 75 divided by 10, not to exceed eight hours.
8. For regular staff employees with an assignment of less than 1.0 FTE, but at least 0.5 FTE, the accrual rate for TDL shall be based upon the FTE for the position. In cases where the scheduled work week is not consistent, the pro rata percentage to full-time shall be calculated on an annualized basis.
9. TDL may be used for time off for medical or dental appointments. The employee shall have prior approval of the supervisor to take TDL for this purpose.
10. TDL may be used for time off for personal well-being. Personal well-being time will be considered an authorized absence from work for the purpose of engaging in any activity that promotes the overall well-being of the employee.
    1. Up to a maximum of two accrued TDL days per fiscal year may be used for personal well-being.
    2. TDL for personal well-being must be used in full or half day increments.
    3. The employee shall have prior approval of the supervisor to take TDL for this purpose.
    4. Well-being days may not be utilized until an employee has successfully completed the new hire orientation period.
11. TDL for necessary time off due to an illness or injury of a family member may be used in accordance with this policy. For the purposes of this policy, a family member is defined as:
    1. Spouse,
    2. Sponsored adult dependent,
    3. Child,
    4. Sponsored child dependent,
    5. Grandchild,
    6. Mother/Father,
    7. Grandmother/Grandfather
       (Note: b. - g. include steps, halves and in-laws of the same relationship as well as relations created by sponsored adult dependent status)
    8. Brother/Sister
    9. Aunt/Uncle,
    10. Niece/Nephew,
        (Note: i. - j. include relationships created by marriage or sponsored adult dependent status)
    11. Legal dependent of the employee,
    12. Other persons with whom the employee has a "loco parentis" relationship.

Note: In cases where two family members work in the same department, use of TDL on the same day(s) for the purpose of caring for the same family member must be approved by the dean or director.
TDL for childbearing purposes shall be treated as any other temporary disability.

1. The employee may begin TDL related to the pregnancy:
   1. Intermittently for any pregnancy related absences
   2. At the time the physician advises the employee to stop working..

2. Up to a maximum of 12 weeks of accrued TDL may be used by the birth mother or father for the birth of a child and/or to bond with the child.
   Up to a maximum of 12 weeks of accrued TDL may be used by mother or father for placement of a child for adoption or foster care.
   Note: TDL may run concurrently with Family and Medical Leave, if applicable.

Process
The department head or designee is responsible for the administration of this policy. This information shall be retained in the University’s centralized resource information system.

1. A department head is authorized to establish departmental TDL policies and procedures which are consistent with this policy. These procedures shall be approved by the Vice President of Human Resources or Employee Relations and communicated to all employees.
2. Abuse of TDL may be cause for more restrictive reporting and certification requirements for use of TDL for an individual employee.
3. Employee Relations is responsible for advice regarding policy and procedure compliance.
4. Use of paid TDL for over six months must be approved by the Board of Trustees.
5. A department shall accurately record use of TDL, on a timely basis, in the University’s centralized information resource system.
6. An employee on vacation leave who becomes ill or injured while on vacation may substitute TDL for the period of temporary disability upon written certification of a physician. This certification shall be submitted as soon as possible upon return from leave.
7. The employee is responsible for notifying the supervisor of TDL absences and the anticipated duration of the absence.
8. TDL may be taken in no less than 15 minute increments.
9. These records shall be available for review by the employee, Human Resources, or other authorized personnel.

EMERGENCY PAID SICK LEAVE (EPSL)

Purpose
The U.S. President signed into law, a temporary bill aimed to assist employees affected by the novel Coronavirus (COVID-19). EPSL is effective April 1, 2020, and is scheduled to expire December 31, 2020 (or until no longer under a Public Health Crisis as declared by U.S. President).
 
Note: EPSL is not applicable to employees providing patient care or who are employed to provide diagnostic services, preventive services, treatment services, or other services that are integrated with and necessary to the provision of patient care, or UK Police Department employees.
 
Policy
For full-time employees, up to 80 hours of paid sick time will be extended to an employee if unable to work or telework due to COVID-19-related reasons (based on their FTE).  For part-time employees, the number of hours extended will be the employee’s average work hours over a two-week period. Part-time employees with an irregular schedule are entitled to be paid based on the average number of hours the employee worked for the six months prior to taking leave. If the employee has not worked six months, the reasonable expectation of the employee concerning the number of hours at the time of hire.
EPSL is in addition to any paid leave the University provides. EPSL generally must be taken in full-day increments.
EPSL may be used intermittently. 
Employees will not be required to first use Temporary Disability Leave (TDL) or Vacation Leave (VL) before EPSL. Additionally, an employee will not be required to find a replacement worker when using EPSL.
 
Eligibility
Sick leave under EPSL shall be available immediately to an employee regardless of how long they worked for the University in either a full-time and part-time status.

When an employee is sick:
For the reasons a. - c. listed below, an employee will receive EPSL at 100% of their regular rate

1. The employee is under a government quarantine or isolation order related to COVID-19.
2. The employee was advised by a health care provider to self-quarantine due to COVID-19 concerns.
3. The employee is experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 and seeking a medical diagnosis.

Other sick/similar conditions:
For the reasons d. - f. listed below, an employee will receive EPSL at 100% of their regular rate

4. The employee is caring for an individual who is subject to a. or b. above.
5. The employee is caring for a son or daughter (or child dependent) if the child’s school/childcare place is closed or unavailable due to COVID-19 precautions (EFMLEA).
6. The employee is experiencing any other substantially similar condition specified by the Secretary of Health and Human Services.

After the first day the employee receives EPSL, the employee should follow departmental call-in rules and procedures.

Process

How to request EPSL:
An employee shall be required to provide appropriate documentation identifying the reason for requesting leave, a statement that the employee is unable to work (including telework) for that reason, and the date(s) for which leave is requested.

1. Appropriate documentation includes:
   1. The source of any quarantine or isolation order and may include a copy of the Federal, State or local quarantine or isolation order related to COVID-19 applicable to the employee.
   2. The name of the health care provider who has advised the employee to self-quarantine, including, for example, written documentation by a health care provider advising the employee to self-quarantine due to concerns related to COVID-19.
2. If an employee takes EPSL to care for his or her child or sponsored child dependent whose school or place of care is closed due to COVID-19, employees again must provide appropriate documentation in support of leave. Examples include:
   1. A notice that has been posted on a government, school, or day care website, or published in a newspaper; or
   2. An email from an employee or official of the school, place of care, or child care provider

Employees requesting EPSL must complete and submit the EPSL application to Employee Relations. Please contact Employee Relations at (859) 257-8758 or fax at (859) 257-2493.
Emergency Paid Sick Leave request form >