[MCOH-EH] Discretionary LOAs and Sabbaticals

[Jenkins, Maribeth]

Our policy is below for your reference. Also handled through HR- not employee health.

Maribeth Jenkins, MSN, RN, LMT, CWC
Employee Wellness Manager
Hendrick Medical Center
1900 Pine Street
Abilene, TX 79601
Phone: (325) 670-3010
Fax: (325) 670-3051
mjenkins at hendrickhealth.org<mailto:mbunn at hendrickhealth.org>
www.ehendrick.org



XV. Personal Leave of Absence (LOA)
Purpose: Hendrick may provide time away from work for a personal leave of absence.
A. A personal leave of absence does not cover military service commitments. Refer to the
Military Leave section of this policy.
B. Personal leave will not be granted for Family and Medical Leave purposes as long as
the employee is eligible and has FMLA leave time remaining. Refer to the Family Medical
Leave section of this policy.
C. A request for personal leave should be submitted in writing to the appropriate manager at
least thirty (30) days prior to the effective date of the leave to the extent advance notice is
practical.
D. Full-time employees who have completed ninety (90) days of service are eligible for a
personal leave.
E. A personal leave of absence is defined as an approved absence from work for a specified
length of time. A personal leave of absence may be approved in 30 day increments, not to
exceed three (3) months.
F. Employees requesting a personal leave of absence must take any applicable accrued benefit
days (Paid Time Off or Extended Illness Bank).
G. An employee who fails to return to work after applicable approved benefit days have
been exhausted and a personal leave has not been approved will be considered to have
voluntarily resigned his/her employment.
H. An employee who wishes to retain health insurance coverage may continue the
coverage during personal leave by paying the applicable premium. If the premium is not
paid, coverage will cease in accordance with the terms of the plan document.
I. An employee on personal leave may not work for any other employer during the period of
the leave. An employee violating this rule will be deemed to have resigned.
J. Employees who are granted personal leave under this policy will not be
guaranteed reinstatement upon return. If their previous position or another appropriate
position is not available when the employee is able to return to work, the employee will be
given a period of thirty (30) calendar days to secure another position with the Hendrick
system. If the employee is unable to secure a position, employment will be terminated and
the employee will be considered to have resigned in good standing.
K. An employee on personal leave is required to communicate periodically, at least once per
month, with the appropriate manager. An employee who intends to return to work
following personal leave should notify the appropriate manager at least two (2) weeks in
advance of return date.
L. An employee will be deemed to have resigned if he or she fails to return to work
as scheduled when a personal leave has expired.
M. An employee may be required to provide a fitness for duty statement from his/her health
care provider or to take a physical examination upon return to work to verify he or she is
able to resume duties required by their position.
N. An employee who intentionally misrepresents or omits facts, or otherwise fraudulently
requests or obtains leave, will be subject to discipline up to and including discharge.

From: MCOH-EH [mailto:mcoh-eh-bounces at mylist.net] On Behalf Of Sampson, Deborah
Sent: Tuesday, May 10, 2016 1:32 PM
To: MCOH/EH
Subject: Re: [MCOH-EH] Discretionary LOAs and Sabbaticals

Our HR department would handle this kind of request in conjunction with the employee’s department director. This is not something we would be involved with  in EHS.
Deb Sampson


From: MCOH-EH [mailto:mcoh-eh-bounces at mylist.net] On Behalf Of Angeli Mancuso
Sent: Tuesday, May 10, 2016 1:28 PM
To: MCOH/EH
Subject: [MCOH-EH] Discretionary LOAs and Sabbaticals

Does anyone have a Discretionary LOA policy and/or Sabbatical policy for their hospital employees? We have requests for time off for lengths of time longer than usual PTO—longer than 2-3 weeks—for reasons not covered by any federal or state LOA law (like medical).

How do you all handle this? If you have a policy, would you mind sharing?

Recent requests have been:

1)      1 month to travel to the Maldives with family

2)      9 months for an assignment with Doctors without Borders

3)      6 weeks to complete a Women’s Empowerment Certification

4)      4 months to focus on writing a Masters’ thesis


Be well,
Angeli

Angeli Mancuso, RN, COHN-S/CM
Employee Health & Safety Manager
Ph: 805.569.7866/Internal Ext. 57866
Fax: 805.569.8271
a1mancus at sbch.org<mailto:a1mancus at sbch.org>
www.cottagehealthsystem.org<http://cp.mcafee.com/d/avndz8Qd6Qm74PhPtZdxYTsSztV5VAsesvdETuhup7fnsdETuhup73D73qdTAQm7PhOM-rl4vwlB2wa9_12cH5ivWvcDM04Sj-24pmaA_Q-pfw09IQsCzAQsFFIzD-LNEVKVtDHTbFIEIYyYUUe7sJt6OaaJNOvaxVZicHs3jq9J4TsTsS02JmsZ8-j_jVAW5GjZnw0e6RECq7nd7bbP5DDvuelJkCnYCn8lrxrW0FkIvaA-1FJcQsI9FCMnWhEwdboS91wbBNEbCBQQg1QGmzYVlxIiNEw2Eo4a6y3o86y0oQwgSsHqvgSMYrK1dTNmaC>
[Description: EMAIL SIG- CH]


________________________________

CH Disclaimer: This electronic mail message is intended exclusively for the individual or entity to which it is addressed. This message, together with any attachment, may contain confidential and privileged information. Any views, opinions or conclusions expressed in this message are those of the individual sender and do not necessarily reflect the views of Cottage Health, its subsidiaries or affiliates. This document may also contain information covered under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA, PL 104-191) and implementing regulations and must be protected in accordance with those provisions. Re-disclosure without patient consent or as otherwise permitted by law is prohibited. Any unauthorized review, retransmission, use, printing, copying, retention, disclosure, distribution or the taking of any action in reliance upon this information by persons or entities other than the intended recipient is strictly prohibited and may be unlawful. If you have received this message in error, please immediately advise the sender by reply email message to the sender and delete all copies of this message from your system without copying.

________________________________
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://mylist.net/archives/mcoh-eh/attachments/20160510/300e9fd4/attachment.html>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: image001.jpg
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 3582 bytes
Desc: image001.jpg
URL: <http://mylist.net/archives/mcoh-eh/attachments/20160510/300e9fd4/attachment.jpg>