The Division may at its discretion grant leave of absence for any purpose.
A teacher having completed seven (7) or more years of service under contract with the Division shall, upon written request, be granted a leave of absence without salary of one school year provided that not more than 2% of the teaching staff in any school year (based on the prior school year's full-time equivalent complement as a measurement) are entitled to such leave as a right. In the event that more than that number request leave, then length of teaching service under contract with the Division shall prevail. A leave of absence of less than one school year may be granted.
Where leave of absence is granted under (a) or (b) herein, a teacher, obtaining such leave, shall not be able to avail himself/herself of any of the terms of this Collective Agreement and hereby waives all provisions of the Collective Agreement excepting the Lay-off and the Group Insurance articles of the Agreement. In addition, such leave shall not constitute a break in tenure or loss of sick leave accumulated to date of commencement of leave. There shall be no credit for experience for increment purposes or further accumulation of sick leave for the period of the leave of absence.
A teacher, having first become eligible for leave, and having taken such leave, shall again become eligible for leave following completion of seven (7) or more additional years of service under contract with the Division.