THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA AT ASHEVILLE FACULTY SENATE Senate Document Number 2495S Date of Senate Approval 3/9/95 ----------------------------------------------------------------- Statement of Faculty Senate Action: Policy on Extended Illness and Serious Disability for Faculty of the University of North Carolina at Asheville (FWDC #4) Rationale: Members of UNCA faculty entitled to benefits may apply under this policy to help them maintain pay status during the sixty-day waiting period for the short-term Disability Insurance Program provided by the State of North Carolina. While brief absences from faculty duties, including teaching, can usually be accommodated informally, those that involve prolonged illness and/or disability can result in significant burdens to colleagues, especially in small departments. Furthermore, the faculty person who must call upon that assistance may face uncertainties and discomforts concerning the employment situation at a time of great personal stress. Policy Statement: This policy is designed to overcome these difficulties in a manner consistent with The Code of The University of North Carolina and The Regulations on Academic Freedom, Tenure and Due Process of The University of North Carolina at Asheville. This leave is not allowable as terminal leave payment when the faculty members leaves the employment of the University. It may not be used to extend years of creditable state service for retirement benefits. However, it may be exhausted prior to participation in the Disability Income Plan, provided to state employees. I. Coverage This policy applies to persons holding regular faculty appointments (professor, associate/assistant professor, lecturer, instructor) who are also eligible for participation in either the Teachers' and State Employees' Retirement System for North Carolina State Retirement Program or the Optional Retirement Program. It does not apply to faculty members with twelve-month appointments annually; these persons are covered under a separate leave policy of the Board of Governors. It does not apply to persons with adjunct faculty appointments. II. Benefit A faculty member who has a medically verifiable extended illness or serious disability may request extended salary continuation. The leave period begins with the first day of the absence. More than one disability leave may be granted in an academic year. Approved, but not used, leave shall not accumulate nor be carried forward from academic year to academic year. This policy does not preclude requesting leaves for non-medical or serious disability reasons. III. Use of Leave The period of leave provided under this policy may be used for medically verifiable sickness or injury which prevents the faculty member from performing usual duties, including temporary disability connected with childbearing and recovery. A faculty member anticipating the need for temporary disability leave relating to maternity should notify the department chair/program director in writing as soon as possible. Female faculty shall not be penalized in their condition of employment because they require time away from work caused by or contributed to by pregnancy, miscarriage, abortion, childbirth, or recovery. Disabilities resulting from pregnancy shall be treated the same as any other temporary disability. The type and nature of the faculty member's duties during pregnancy shall be determined by the department chair/program director in consultation with the faculty member and upon advice she has received from her physician. A faculty member may seek leave needed as a consequence of a medically verifiable illness/disability of a member of the immediate family (defined as spouse, domestic partner, parents, children --including step relationships or other legal dependents). IV. Administration of Benefit It is the responsibility of the faculty member to request the use of leave provided by this policy as soon as possible upon learning of the need for the leave. This request will normally be made in a letter to the department head. The department head may request medical verification of the faculty member's illness or disability, including a physician's statement about the probable length of absence from normal duties. If the request is for the purpose of caring for a faculty member's family member, domestic partner or dependent, the department chair/program director may request medical verification of the illness or disability of that person and may also inquire about the circumstance which make it impossible or difficult for the faculty member to carry on with normal duties. To facilitate the gathering of necessary verification, the department chair/program director may request the assistance of the Human Resources Department. The department chair/program director will make a recommendation to the Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs concerning whether or not to grant the request for leave. When the request is the result of the faculty member's illness or disability, the department chair/program director will recommend leave if the need for leave is readily evident or if it is supported by medical information. When the request is to care for the faculty member's family member, domestic partner or dependent, the department chair/program director may base the recommendation on other factors, including the needs of the unit, timing within the academic year, effect on students, ability of the unit to compensate for the absence, etc. The Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs is responsible for making a decision on whether or not to approve leave after reviewing the department chair/program director's recommendation. The Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs will provide written notification of the decision to the department chair/program director with a copy to the faculty member. The Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs will provide a copy of the notice to the Office of the Chancellor and the Human Resources Department. Whenever the Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs approves leave under this policy, he/she is responsible for working out an arrangement with the department chair/program director for covering the duties of the person on leave. Leave may be granted for up to the period actually required by the disability or the end of the faculty member's contract period (academic year), whichever occurs first. Leave beyond this period is subject to approval by the Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs after consultation with the faculty member's department chair/program director. If illness or disability requires an absence from faculty duties beyond the approved salary continuation period, the faculty member may petition for a leave of absence without pay under procedures described in the Handbook for Faculty and in University policies implementing the Family and Medical Leave Act. The faculty member may also apply to the Human Resources Department for salary continuation through the Disability Income Plan or through other disability programs offered to University employees on an optional basis. V. Appeals The Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs' decision not to grant a request for leave under this policy may be appealed to the Chancellor. VI. Confidentiality Communications concerning leave requested or granted under this policy are subject to the same confidentiality requirements as other personnel records. VII. Record-Keeping Because this policy provides an important financial benefit, accurate records on its invocation must be maintained. The Office of the Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs will maintain the official records and, every three years from the date of approval or sooner if necessary, will make general reports on its use to other University administrators and to the Faculty Senate. VIII.Coordination with Other Policies The Regulations on Academic Freedom, Tenure and Due Process provide that "[T]ime spent on leave of absence shall not count as probationary service unless the faculty member and the institution agree to the contrary at the time leave is granted." The terms of this policy pertain only to a leave with full pay for a specified period because of illness or disability. This policy has no effect on provisions for leave without pay as described in the Handbook for Faculty. The leave with full pay provided for under this policy shall have no effect on the faculty member's other employment benefits. 2/9/95