Handbook of Operating Procedures > Series 400 Budget, Finance and Operations > 4.18.17 Resident/Fellow Vacation and Leave

4.18.17 Resident/Fellow Vacation and Leave

A. Purpose

This policy outlines Residents’ (where "Residents" refers to both residents and fellows participating in the University of Texas at Tyler (UTT) Graduate Medical Education [GME] programs) eligibility towards time off and provides an overview of UTT guidelines and procedures on paid leave and leave of absences, and to inform the effect any leave may have on the completion of the GME program and the impact of the leave on the learner’s eligibility for board certification.

B. Persons Affected

This policy applies to all Residents of UTT.

C. Definitions

When used in this document with an initial capital letter(s), the following words have the meaning set forth below unless a different meaning is required by the context.

Child – a biological child, stepchild, adoptive or foster child, a legal ward, or a child of a person standing in loco parentis who is either under 18 years of age or, if older, incapable of self-care due to mental or physical disability.

Dependent – a person who relies on another for support as defined by IRS regulations.

Immediate Family Member – spouse, parent, or child (This does not include the parent of resident’s spouse)

Spouse – a husband or wife as defined or recognized in the state where the individual was married and included individuals in common law or same-sex marriage

D. Policy and Procedures

Background

This policy is to establish guidelines for leaves of absence (“LOA”) in accordance with the federal law, state law, and institutional policies. This policy is also consistent with ACGME Institutional Requirements IV.H.1. Each UTT GME program may supplement this policy with written procedures regarding application and use of LOA.

Resident/Fellow Leave Policies

Approved Leave may include the following categories: vacation, floating holiday, sick, specialty meetings and seminars (including paper/publication presentations), holiday comp, jury duty, military reserves, board and licensure exams, standard and elective away rotations outside of UTT, and bereavement leave. All scheduled types of leave listed below, and seminars/meetings must be approved by the Program Director.  Please refer to your Programs policies.

Leave Accrual

Resident accrues vacation and sick leave at the beginning of the month based on their percent time of appointment as long as they are on duty. If a resident is not on duty at the beginning of a month(s), the resident will not accrue time until they return to work. At that time accrual for the full month(s) the Resident was out will be added to the appropriate leave balances. If a Resident terminates without returning to duty, they will not receive the leave accrual for any full month(s) the Resident was not on duty. A Resident on Leave Without Pay ("LWOP") or Leave of Absence ("LOA") at the beginning of a month will not accrue leave until he/she return to duty. A Resident on LWOP or LOA for a full calendar month does not accrue vacation or sick leave for that month.

 
Vacation Leave

Residents, as University employees, appointed twenty (20) hours per week or more and for four (4) and one-half (1/2) months or more earn vacation beginning on the first day of eligible employment, regardless of whether they are paid on a salary or hourly basis. For more information regarding vacation leave, visit the Handbook of Operating Procedures (HOP) 4.18.3, Vacation Leave.

Sick Leave

Residents will accrue sick leave as outlined in the HOP 4.18.4, Sick Leave. Sick leave must be cleared with the program director, or designee, and must be notified via the leave form when the Resident is on sick leave. Unused days of sick leave may be carried over into the following academic year.  Residents cannot utilize sick leave days to depart early from their program and will not be paid for unused sick days.

Holiday Leave

1. Resident required to work on a legal holiday is entitled to holiday time off on a one-to-one ratio of time worked to holiday time allotted (maximum of eight [8] hours). This time must be taken within twelve (12) months of accrual on such days mutually agreed upon by the resident and their program director (or designee). 
2. Floating holidays are available after the first day a resident works in the new fiscal year. Residents who are off (paid or unpaid), may not use new fiscal year floating holidays until they return to work.

Leave of Absence (LOA)

For the purposes of this Policy, we will define Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) LOA as an LOA coinciding within existing FMLA law, which may be paid or unpaid depending upon circumstances. We will define Non-FMLA LOA as LOA in which LOA may be taken with or without pay depending upon circumstances in which the Resident have not met the federally required 12 months of paid employment and at least 1,250 hours of service during the 12-month period immediately preceding the leave, as defined by the US Department of Labor. Whether FMLA LOA or Non-FMLA LOA, paid or non-paid, the Resident must meet the specified requirements and follow the same prescribed processes as outlined for FMLA described below. Leave of absence (LOA) is generally requested when a Resident exhausts all other accrued leave to include the one-time paid LOA for parental, medical, or caregiver purposes during their training. The Office of Graduate Medical Education must be notified in writing of any Resident who will be utilizing LOA.The type of LOA (personal, medical, parental, or caregiver) must be specified.  Resident with approved medical, dental, parental or caregiver LOA are eligible to receive a total of 6 weeks (continuous or intermittently in week blocks) of paid time off (vacation + sick + LOA) one time during their training program plus one additional week of vacation leave to be used in the same academic year.  Time beyond a total of 6 weeks paid or subsequent request for LOA in the same program for LOA will be unpaid LOA after vacation and sick leave are exhausted. 

Residents must follow the procedure/guidelines of their training program in requesting and scheduling LOA. Failure to follow departmental and program policies may result in the request being rejected. Each Resident must submit a leave request in writing to their Program Director. Program Directors, or their designees, have the final authority to approve LOA requests. The total time allowed away from a GME program in any given year or for the duration of the GME program will be determined by the requirements of the applicable specialty board and will be tracked by each program. Board requirements override UTT GME permitted LOA with the exception of federally protected time.

LOA in excess of board allowance will cause training period to be extended.  Extension of training is at the discretion of the Program Director and subject to availability of funding and space in the program. Residents are encouraged to refer to the specialty board for specific details. 
No payment for unused leave days will be made upon a Resident voluntarily or involuntarily leaving the program during the contract period.  

The ACGME has set minimum requirements for paid leave of absences during training. However, the program will provide its residents with accurate information regarding the impact of an extended leave of absence upon the criteria for satisfactory completion of the program and upon a resident's eligibility to participate in examinations by the relevant certifying board(s).

Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA)

Residents may be eligible for family leave provisions as outlined in the HOP 4.18.5, Authorized Leave, Section D, #6, Family Medical Leave (FMLA). The US Department of Labor Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides up to twelve weeks of unpaid job-protected leave to eligible Residents for certain family and medical reasons. Federal eligibility requirements state that an employee must have worked for an employer for at least 12 months and worked at least 1,250 hours during the previous 12 months. The FMLA provides leave to care for:

1. Birth of son/daughter and care after such birth;
2. Placement of son/daughter for adoption or foster care;
3. Serious health condition of employee, spouse, child or parent of employee; or 
4. Serious health condition of employee (unable to perform job). 
5. Leave for birth or placement for adoption can be taken prior to the actual birth or adoption. 
6. For a qualifying event:
   1. Related to a family member's call to active duty in the National Guard or reserves; or
   2. To a serious injury or illness arising out of the military service of a spouse, son, daughter, parent, or next of kin.

Residents are expected to utilize available vacation/sick leave in conjunction with FMLA coverage. Once leave has been exhausted, the Resident may receive paid LOA for a total of six weeks, one-time, during training for approved medical, parental, or caregiver purposes if they have not previously used paid non-FMLA LOA during their first year in the training program. Thereafter, they will be placed on LOA without pay unless they decide to use their one additional week paid leave at the end of the six weeks. Residents may not return to work until they have reported to the Office of Human Resources, provided a physician's return to work clearance and received approval to return to duty. To inquire about going on a leave of absence or to apply, email hr.leaves@uttyler.edu.. 

Non-FMLA LOA

1. Non-FMLA LOA is a category of leave in the first twelve months of employment or when a Resident member does not otherwise qualify for FMLA. Non-FMLA LOA may be utilized for circumstances as prescribed by FMLA and definitions (see above). Residents are expected to utilize available vacation/sick leave in conjunction with Non-FMLA LOA coverage, as appropriate. Once leave has been exhausted, the Resident may continue to receive pay during LOA for a total of six weeks one-time during training for approved medical, parental, or caregiver purposes. After that, they will be placed on LWOP (leave without pay) unless they decide to use their one additional week of ACGME required paid leave at the end of the six weeks. After the first use of FMLA LOA (paid or unpaid) the Resident may use FMLA again, if applicable, but it can only be non-paid for any time in excess of the sick and vacation leave available to them at that point in time. Additional LOA may require extension in training- program/specialty specific. The appropriate medical certification form must be provided to the Office of Human Resources within the described federal deadlines.

   
   Resident may not return to work until they have provided a physician's clearance form to the Office of Human Resources and have received their approval to return to duty. To inquire about going on a leave of absence or to apply, email hr.leaves@uttyler.edu. During LOA, the Resident will have benefits continued to assure adequate health care. If on an unpaid status, the Resident is responsible to pay premiums at the beginning of the month in which they go unpaid.

   Parental/Medical/Caregiver Leave of Absence

   Over the course of an entire residency, Residents are provided the opportunity, beginning the first day they are required to report, to one six-week term of paid LOA (FMLA or non-FMLA described above) for approved parental, medical, or caregiver purposes. Resident, Parental, Medical, and Caregiver LOA is further outlined in the Definitions, FMLA section, and the HOP 4.18.5, Authorized Leave, Section D, #6, UTT Family Medical Leave (FMLA).

   Personal Leave of Absence
   

   Requests for Personal LOA must be submitted to the Office of Human Resources as soon as practicable but not later than when the Resident begins the leave. Requests must follow the process outlined under the LOA section above. Personal LOA is generally unpaid LOA and sick, floating holiday, and vacation leave must be exhausted first.

   
   Seminars/Meetings
   

   A Resident Leave Request Form for attending seminars/meetings must be approved by the program director, or their designee, in accordance with program practices and policies at least thirty (30) days in advance of the seminar/meeting. The leave form must include the type and location of the meeting. Leave for Seminars/Meetings may be deducted from the Resident vacation/floating holiday leave accrual, refer to the program policies.

   
   Other Leave
   

   Other Leave includes leave not included in the previous leave sections. This may include leave for licensure exams, board exam, jury duty, military reserve duty, etc. The Resident Leave Form must be approved by the program director, or their designee, at least thirty (30) days before leave. A jury summons must be attached to a request for jury duty leave. A copy of the military orders must be attached to military reserve leave requests. Refer to the program policies for licensure and board exam leave. Other authorized leaves can be found under the HOP 4.18.5, Authorized Leave. Please note: "Other Leave" cannot be utilized for training or post-training job interviews.   Interviewing for positions at other institutions must utilize their available vacation/floating holiday leave time.

   E. Review

   This policy shall be reviewed by the Office of Human Resources every five years or as legislation changes.