(A)
Policy statement
and purpose
As part of its efforts to foster a
workplace in which professional success can be achieved while maintaining a
quality personal and family life, the university supports employees and their
families with leave opportunities for new parents. The purpose of parental
leave is to promote work-life balance by providing time for parents to care for
and bond with their newborn, newly-adopted, or newly-fostered
child.
All requests for leave under this
policy must follow the procedures outlined in this policy. The university will
make appropriate arrangements to cover the duties of the employee while the
employee is on parental leave.
(B)
Policy
scope
This policy applies to full time,
benefit-eligible employees of BGSU who have at least twelve months of
continuous service with BGSU before the birth, adoption, or foster care
placement for which parental leave is requested.
(C)
Definitions
(1)
Benefit-eligible
An employee is benefit-eligible if they
are eligible to enroll in a BGSU health insurance plan.
(2)
Qualifying
event
The term "qualifying event" means the
birth of a child or the adoption or foster care placement of a child who is
less than six years of age. Adoption of a stepchild is not a qualifying
event.
(D)
Policy
(1)
Parental leave benefit
Bowling Green state university provides
full time benefit-eligible employees with up to twenty-five consecutive
business days of paid parental leave to be used immediately following a
qualifying event.
The parental leave will commence on the
day of the qualifying event if that day is a business day. If not, the parental
leave will commence on the first business day after the qualifying
event.
Parental leave does not reduce the
employee's accrued time under any other University paid leave program (such as
sick, vacation, personal, or compensatory time). An employee on parental leave
will continue to accrue sick, vacation, and personal leave at their regular
rate.
Any holiday occurring during parental
leave period shall be counted as part of the parental leave and paid as
such.
Parental leave will run concurrently
with the employee's available family medical leave (also known as FMLA leave)
and maternity leave. At the end of the parental leave, the employee may choose
to use some or all of their remaining family medical leave and maternity
leave.
If both parents are eligible for
parental leave under this policy, they may choose to take the parental leave
concurrently or consecutively.
No more than two parental leaves may be
granted during employment.
(2)
Procedure
An employee should make their request
for parental leave as soon as practicable to enable the university to make
arrangements to cover their duties. In any event, it is the employee's
responsibility to make the request at least four weeks before the first day of
the parental leave. Parental leave may be denied, in sole discretion of the
chief human resources officer or designee, if the request is made after that
deadline.
The employee should request leave in
writing, using the parental leave form available on the office of human
resources website, and submit it to the office of human resources after
consultation with their supervisor.
(E)
Early start to
parental leave
Parental leave may begin before the
qualifying event if it is deemed medically necessary by a certified physician
or is required to fulfill the requirements of the adoption or foster care
placement. The office of human resources will require an employee requesting an
early start to parental leave to submit appropriate supporting documentation.
The decision whether to allow parental leave to begin early will be made in the
sole discretion of the chief human resources officer or designee. Early
parental leave is subject to paragraph (D) of this
policy.
Notes
Ohio Admin. Code
3341-5-40
Effective:
2/21/2020
Promulgated Under:
111.15
Statutory
Authority: 3345
Rule Amplifies:
3345