ARTICLE 6: Leaves of Absence

6.08 Maternity/Adoptive/Parental Leave

1. Maternity and Parental/Adoptive Leaves shall be granted in accordance with The Employment Standards Code (Manitoba), which shall prevail if there is an inconsistency between the Code and this Article.

 

2. In addition, the Board shall, upon written request, grant further maternity/adoptive/parental leave up to an additional eighteen (18) months provided that the termination of such leaves coincides with either the first day of the Fall Term, the first day of school after January 1^st, the first day of school after Spring break,or in the case of a teacher returning to a secondary school, the first day of the second semester.

 

3. The conditions of the maternity/adoptive/parental leave shall be determined by the teacher and the Board to their mutual satisfaction.

 

4. The Board shall provide the teacher and the Association with a copy of the agreement reached in 5) above prior to the commencement of maternity/adoptive/parental leave.

 

5. Maternity/Adoptive/Parental  Leave shall not  constitute  a  break in  employment  for teachers under Teacher-General contracts or teachers under Limited Teacher-General contracts offered continued employment by the Division.

 

6. Upon expiry of the maternity/adoptive/parental leave, the teacher shall be reinstated in the position occupied by them at the time such leave commenced or in a comparable position prior to maternity/adoptive/parental leave.

 

7. Top-Up Benefits

Effective July 1, 2015 a teacher taking Maternity Leave and/or Parental/Adoptive Leave pursuant to this Article shall be entitled to receive pay equivalent to ninety percent (90%) of the teacher's gross salary at the time the leave commenced plus any subsequently negotiated salary adjustments for up to one hundred  and thirty-five (135) teaching days, which pay will include any employment insurance benefits  received in accordance with  this Article. Effective July 1, 2015 the Division shall pay a teacher on Maternity Leave and/or Parental/Adoptive Leave:

1. if the teacher's two (2) week or ten (10) day waiting period  falls entirely on teaching days, ninety percent (90%) of the teacher's gross salary plus up to seventy-five  (75) 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. if the teacher's two  (2) week or ten (10) 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;

3. up to fifty (50) 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;

2. eighty-five (85) teaching days of pay and/or top-up benefits if the teacher only takes Maternity Leave;

3. fifty (5O) 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.

 

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.