PEMBINA TRAILS TEACHERS' ASSOCIATION

EFFECTIVE PERIOD: 2018/07/01 - 2022/06/30

ARTICLE 6: LEAVES OF ABSENCE

6.1 Contract Reductions in Full Time Equivalency

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  2. Where a teacher requests that his/her full-time equivalency be reduced for a school year or less, that request shall be subject to the approval of the Superintendent and, where approved, the reduced portion shall be treated as an unpaid leave of absence. Immediately upon conclusion of that leave of absence, the teacher's full-time equivalency shall revert to the full-time equivalency which existed prior to the commencement of the leave of absence. With the approval of the Superintendent, the teacher may extend that leave of absence past the original date and establish a new date at which the reduction in full time equivalency will revert to the original full-time equivalency.

 

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  2. Where a teacher requests that his/her contract be permanently reduced, that reduction shall be subject to the approval of the Board and where approved, the reduced portion shall be deemed to be a contract reduction of a permanent nature.

 

6.2 Leave Without Pay

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  2. Upon completion of three (3) years of employment in a teaching position with the Division, a teacher shall be eligible for a leave of absence without pay of up to two (2) years in length for study or other purpose. The Superintendent shall have full authority to deny any such request or modify any such request with the consent of the employee and the denial of a request shall not be subject to the Settlement of Differences article.

 

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  2. Teachers with less than three (3) years of service may not apply for leave under this article.

 

  1. Without limiting the generality of the following, leaves may be granted for the following:

extended parenting leave;

illness within the teacher's family; educational reasons;

travel;

teacher exchange;

to engage in work other than as a teacher in a public or private school,

teach in another country,

other purposes acceptable to the Superintendent.

 

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  2. Such leave shall not result in loss of accumulated sick leave nor benefits accrued to the date leave without pay commences and shall not count as experience for increment purposes. Where benefits are allowed to continue the teacher on leave must pre-pay, on a timely basis, both the teacher and employer portion and be subject to any and all provisions of the applicable master plans which may apply. Teachers shall not accumulate sick leave while on leave without pay.

 

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  2. A teacher returning from leave under this article within the first year will be placed in a position at the same level but not necessarily the same position. For a teacher who has been on leave for more than one (1) year, placement on return will be to any position. A teacher will return from leave only at the start of the applicable term or semester. Under no circumstances will leave in excess of two (2) years be granted under this article.

 

  1. A teacher on leave will be subject to the Layoff article should that teacher have been covered by that article had that teacher not been on leave.

 

  1. Applications for a leave of absence under this article to be taken during any school year are to be received by April 1st of the preceding school year.

6.3 Leave Of Absence For Executive Duties

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  2. A teacher, being a member of the Manitoba Teachers' Society Executive Committee, or of the Executive Committee of any branch thereof, or of any special Committee of the Society, or being appointed an official representative or delegate of the Society, or branch thereof, and being authorized by the Executive Committee of the Society to attend a meeting of the Committee of which that employee is a member, or to act as a representative or delegate of the Society or of any branch of the Society in a matter of Society business requiring absence from school, shall have the right to attend such meeting or to act as such representative or delegate and shall be excused from school duties for either purpose, provided that the cost of the substitute is assumed by the Society and shall not be charged upon the Board concerned. No additional leave of absence beyond five (5) days in a school year shall be taken for the purpose mentioned above or the purpose set out in Article 6.4, without the consent and approval of the Board except for the position(s) set out in Article 6.4. Except as otherwise provided in this subparagraph or subparagraph (b), the maximum days allowed the Association in combined total under this article and Article 6.4 shall not exceed one hundred twenty (120) days in a school year. No additional leave of absence beyond one hundred twenty (120) days in a school year shall be taken for the purpose mentioned above except with the consent and approval of the Board.

 

  1. Notwithstanding paragraph (a), where a teacher has been elected to the Provincial Executive of the Manitoba Teachers' Society, that teacher shall, in a school year, for the sole purpose of fulfilling duties as members of the Provincial Executive, have the right to a leave of absence for a maximum of forty (40) days which days shall not be counted as part of the one hundred twenty (120) day allowable collective maximum provided in sub-paragraph (a). For each day's leave of absence taken pursuant to this sub-paragraph, the Society shall reimburse the Division the cost of the substitute.

6.4 Leave Of Absence For Association Duties

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  2. The Association, upon giving written notice request on or before May 16th of each year shall be entitled to a maximum full time equivalent two positions for the following school year to attend to Association business. There shall be no loss of wages or benefits for the teachers on leave for Association business and the Association shall reimburse the Board for the full cost of such wages and benefits and any other costs associated with the leave. The details of the leaves requested are subject to the approval of the Superintendent prior to such leaves being taken.

 

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  2. At the end of the scheduled term of leave as established pursuant to paragraph (a), each teacher shall return to a teaching position as designated by the Superintendent without less than the same wages and benefits as existed prior to the commencement of the leave for Association duties.

 

  1. Notwithstanding the limitations placed on the absence of individual teachers and the Association collectively, which are set out in Article 6.3, absence from duties to attend joint meetings with representatives of the Board for the purposes of negotiation, conciliation, arbitration or mediation-arbitration shall not be deducted from the individual employee maximum nor the Association collective maximum

6.5 Sick Leave

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  2. It is agreed by the parties that sick leave entitlement shall only be granted by the Division where a teacher is unable to be at work and perform his/her regular duties as a result of illness or injury.

 

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  2. The provision of twenty (20) sick days in any year shall be prorated in the following circumstances:
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    2. where a teacher commences employment at a time other than the commencement of the fall term;
    3. where a teacher returns from a leave at a time other than the commencement of the fall term;
    4. where a teacher terminates employment during the school year for reasons other than sickness;
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    2. where a teacher commences an unpaid leave of absence for reasons other than sickness.

 

For purposes of the above, prorating of the twenty (20) sick days provided in any year shall be calculated as set out below:

No. of days of actual teaching service

          (including paid sick days)                                               X          20

Total number of teaching days in the school year

 

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  2. The Board shall provide full sick leave entitlement to a pregnant teacher who, as a result of her condition either before or after delivery, is unable to be at work and perform her regular duties for a valid health-related reason(s). The pregnant teacher shall follow current proof of claim procedures for sick leave entitlement as may be required by the Board.

 

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  2. Where a teacher is ill, he/she shall be entitled to sick leave during his/her illness and to be paid his/her salary during sick leave, but subject toe), theleave shall not exceed twenty (20) teaching days in any school year.

 

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  2. Where the employment of a teacher is continued for more than one (1) year, the unused portion of the sick leave in any year(s) shall be carried forward and accumulated from year to year to a maximum of:

40 days in the second year

60 days in the third year

80 days in the fourth year

100 days in the fifth year

120 days in the sixth year

125 days in the seventh and subsequent years.

Commencing on and from May 1, 2015, the maximum number of days in the seventh and subsequent years shall be 130 days.

 

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  2. Should the Division become eligible for a reduction in premiums under The Employment Insurance Act, the teachers' five-twelfth (5/12) share of the premium reduction will be remitted annually by July 15th in each school year to the Treasurer of the Association.

 

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  2. When a teacher suffers an on-job injury and is absent from work as a result of that injury, the Board shall continue to pay the salary of that teacher during such absence limited to the extent of the accumulated sick leave balance at the time of suffering the on-job injury. The period of time absent from work as a consequence of the on-job injury shall not be charged against the accumulated sick leave balance.

6.6 Family Medical Leave

  1. Teachers shall be entitled to use up to an overall maximum of five (5) days of accumulated sick leave per school year to attend to the illness or injury of that teacher’s spouse, common-law partner, children, parents, brother, sister, grandchildren or grandparents whether the family member is natural, in-law, step or foster.  Where such cases occur, entitlement under this article may not be accessed concurrently by both caregivers who are teachers within the scope of this Agreement. 

6.7 Bereavement Leave

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  2. A teacher shall be granted up to five (5) regularly scheduled work days leave without loss of salary or wages in the case of death or life-threatening illness in the immediate family, defined as spouse, child, mother, father, brother, sister, grandmother, grandfather, grandchild whether the family member is natural, in­ law, step or foster, court appointed ward, court appointed guardian.

 

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  2. A teacher shall be granted up to one (1) regularly scheduled work day leave of absence without loss of salary or wages in the case of death or serious illness of an aunt, uncle, niece, or nephew.

 

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  2. A teacher shall be granted up to one (1) regularly scheduled work day leave of absence without loss of salary or wages to act as a pallbearer at a funeral.

 

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  2. Short term absences on compassionate grounds, either with or without loss of pay, may be granted at the discretion of the Superintendent.

6.8 Maternity/Parental/Adoptive Leave

  1. Every teacher shall be entitled to maternity and/or parental and/or adoptive leave and any teacher, who has satisfied a seven (7) consecutive months of employment as a teacher with Pembina Trails School Division qualifying requirement, shall be entitled to the Supplementary Employment Benefits.
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  2. Except as otherwise provided herein, the provisions of the Employment Standards Code will apply.
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  2. The teacher and the Board may mutually agree to extend the length of the leave if the employee so desires. Any such arrangements shall be confirmed in writing by the Board. The Employment Standards Code shall apply, however, a period of maternity leave longer than contemplated in the Employment Standards Code may be agreed between the teacher and the Board to their mutual satisfaction and may include a determination that when the maternity leave expires during a school term, the teacher may return to work at the commencement of the term immediately following the expiration of the leave. For the purpose of this section "term" means either the months of September to December or January to June, or the commencement of a semester, as the case may be.
  1. A teacher taking maternity leave pursuant to this article shall be entitled to receive pay for the period of the leave up to seventeen weeks in the amount of 90% of the salary being received at the time leave was taken, this pay to include any benefits received from Employment Insurance pursuant to a Supplementary Employment Benefits Plan. The implementation of this clause is subject to the successful arrangement of a Supplementary Employment Benefits Plan with Human Resources Development Canada.
  1. The Division shall pay a teacher on Maternity Leave and/or Parental/ Adoptive Leave:
    1. if the teacher's one (1) week or five (S) day waiting period falls entirely on teaching days, ninety percent (90%) of the teacher's gross salary plus up to eighty (80) teaching days of Maternity Leave Top-Up calculated at the difference between the teacher's employment insurance benefit and ninety percent (90%) of the teacher's gross salary provided the teacher remains on either maternity or parental leave and continues to receive employment insurance benefits;
    1. if the teacher's one (1) week or five (5) day waiting period falls partially or entirely within a non-teaching period, ninety percent {90%) of the teacher's gross salary for any teaching days and up to eighty-five (85) teaching days of maternity leave top-up calculated at the difference between the teacher's employment insurance benefit and ninety percent (90%) of the teacher's gross salary provided the teacher remains on either maternity or parental leave and continues to receive employment insurance benefits;
    2. up to fifty (SO) teaching days of parental/adoptive leave top-up calculated at the difference between the teacher's employment insurance benefit and ninety percent {90%) of the teacher's gross salary provided the teacher remains on parental/adoptive leave and continues to receive employment insurance benefits.

 

For greater certainty, a teacher who is receiving employment insurance benefits shall be entitled to:

  1. One hundred and thirty-five (135) teaching days of pay and/or top-up benefits if the teacher takes both maternity leave and parental/adoptive leave;
  1. Eighty-five (85) teaching days of pay and/or top-up benefits if the teacher only takes maternity leave;
  1. Fifty (SO) teaching days of pay and/or top-up benefits if the teacher only takes parental/adoptive leave;

 

Unless the teacher takes a shorter period of maternity leave or parental/adoptive leave in which case, the pay and/or top-up will be pro-rated to reflect the actual number of teaching days taken. The parties acknowledge that the top-up payments made by the Division for maternity leave may extend into the period of time that the teacher is on parental leave but the payment is intended to be a top-up of maternity leave benefits.

  1. Non-Application

This article shall not apply to any teacher who is employed on a term contract during the teacher's first year of employment. All other teachers shall be eligible to receive the top-up benefits once they have been employed for a period of seven (7) months by the Division.

  1. Effective April 1, 2021, any teacher receiving top-up benefits from the Division, as outlined above, must enter into a written agreement with the Division providing that:
  1. subject to extenuating personal circumstances, they will return to work and remain in the employ of the Division for at least the equivalent of one full school year (10 consecutive teaching months) following their return to work; and
  1. should they fail to return to work as provided above, they are, subject to extenuating personal circumstances, indebted to the Division for the full amount received from the Division as a top-up during the entire period of leave; or
  1. should they return to work as provided above, but fail to complete their work commitment, they are, subject to extenuating personal circumstances. indebted to the Division for a pro-rated amount based on the number of teaching days they have remaining on their return to work commitment.

6.9 Paternity Leave

Upon the occasion of a teacher's spouse giving birth to a child, that employee shall be granted one day's absence with pay for the actual occasion of birth and two further day's leave of absence with pay. It shall be understood that leave of absence with pay shall be provided when the day of birth or the additional day falls on a regular school day.

6.10 Compassionate Care Leave

The Compassionate Care Leave provisions of The Manitoba Employment Standards Code shall apply.

6.11 Personal Leave

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  2. Leave of up to two (2) days without loss of salary to attend to personal business may be granted at the discretion of the Superintendent.

 

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  2. Where during a school year a teacher takes fewer than two (2) personal leave days, one (1) personal leave day shall be carried over into the next school year. The maximum number of personal leave days carried over into another school year is one (1) day and the carried over days are not cumulative. The maximum number of personal leave days which a teacher may take in any school year is three (3) days. Any days carried over from one school year to a second school year may not be carried over into a third school year.

6.12 Religious Holy Leave

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  2. A teacher under contract shall be given leave of absence up to a maximum of three (3) days per school year without loss of pay for major religious holy days observed by the employee and designated as a day of obligation by the teacher's religion. Teachers shall not absent themselves from duty for reasons of religious holy days without first notifying the Superintendent or designate.

 

The following notification period shall apply:

  1. Teachers on staff requiring religious holy leave days during the school year shall provide notice in writing on the prescribed form as soon as possible after the start of the school year, however, not later than September 30th
  1. In instances where religious holy leave days are required prior to September 30th in the school year, notice shall be given within ten (10) working days after the start of the school year, unless the holy day falls within the first ten (10) working days of the school year where the notice shall not be less than five (5) working days;
  1. Where the appropriate notice has not been given, religious holy days leave will be provided, and the teacher's regular salary will be deducted the substitute teacher rate in the teacher's salary classification.

6.13 Jury and Witness Duty

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  2. All teachers under contract shall be granted leave without deduction of salary for court appearances if the employee is:
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  2. subpoenaed to be a witness in a court action excepting those actions arising from the employee's personal affairs; or
  3. summoned for jury duty.

 

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  2. The teacher shall remit to the Division any remuneration which the teacher may receive because of an appearance in court as a witness or juror.

 

  1. A teacher subpoenaed as a witness in a Court of Law must notify his/her Principal/Supervisor as soon as the notice is received.

 

  1. All information regarding the known times and length of absences should be made known to the teacher's Principal/Supervisor as soon as possible.

 

  1. The teacher shall make herself/himself available at her/his school when not required at court.

6.14 Deferred Salary Leave Plan

Teachers returning from Deferred Salary Leaves shall be reinstated in the same position or in a comparable position to the one held at the commencement of the leave with not less than the same wages and benefits.

6.15 Educational Leaves

A teacher will have the right to one-half day of paid leave for the purpose of writing a university examination or defending a thesis or dissertation during the school day to a maximum of two examinations or defenses during any school year or for the purpose of attending the teacher's own convocation during the school day.