Medical Leaves

Sick Leave is an accrued benefit, which may be used to care for yourself, an ill or injured immediate family member, or for extended bereavement following the death of a family member, in accordance with the applicable collective bargaining agreement. To be entitled to use Sick Leave, an employee must be in active employment status. Sick Leave is earned at the rate of eight hours (one day) for each full-time qualifying pay period of service. Part-time employees earn sick leave on a pro-rata basis.

A qualifying pay period consists of 11 days or more of pay in a pay period for full-time and part-time employees. There is no limit to the amount of Sick Leave you can accumulate. The amount of Sick Leave used for family members may be controlled by your collective bargaining agreement.

Medical Leave Certification

All university employees are insured under workers' compensation law for a work-related injury or illness. The CSU arranges and pays for all reasonable charges incurred for medical services in connection with such injury/illness. State employees who are active members of CalPERS or the State Teachers Retirement System are eligible to receive Industrial Disability Leave in lieu of Temporary Disability. Claims management is contracted out to a third-party administrator, Sedgwick CMS. Employees must report a work-related injury or illness to their immediate supervisor or Human Resources within 24 hours of the injury. Human Resources will assist you in accessing and understanding your workers' compensation benefits.

Refer to Work-related Injury or Incident Procedures or call UP (ext.3389) for assistance.

This benefit is provided to reduce the financial impact for an employee who suffers a wage loss as a result of their own non-industrial disability. This is a separate benefit in lieu of State Disability Insurance as state employees. This requires a different form that is only available through CSUMB.

Other important information:

• Forms can be obtained following leave advising with a CSUMB leaves staff member, and by emailing a request to leaves@csumb.edu. If immediate assistance is needed, call Human Resources at (831) 582-3389.
• NDI pay is processed by Payroll Services in coordination with an Employment Development Department (EDD) approval notice. The weekly NDI payment amount as determined by collective bargaining contracts and employee category. Other pay provisions:
  
  • Sick leave credits must be exhausted before NDI payments are allowed for payment processing.
  • If vacation leave credits are used, these must also be exhausted prior to NDI payment processing.
  • If catastrophic leave solicitation is approved, donations may supplement the NDI payment amounts in accordance with catastrophic leave donation program provisions.
  • NDI pay will be received through the normal pay process within your monthly pay.
  • Questions about pay should be directed to payroll@csumb.edu.
• Employee categories such as who are appointed half-time or more for one year of service or one academic year, and who are members of PERS or STRS, are eligible for benefits when disabled due to illness or injury that is not work-related.
• The application is provided during a leave consultation with a CSUMB leaves specialist and is unique to CSU employees. Other information:
  
  • Mail pages A, B, and C of the application to the EDD. The address is on the cover page of the packet provided to you.
  • You will be notified of a decision by US mail. Human Resources also receives a copy of this notice for payroll processing.
  • Extension forms are included in the EDD approval notice. You are to obtain the medical providers’ certification and mail this back to the EDD at the address they have provided.
  • Prompt completion and submission of these forms assists with timely pay processing and avoids undesirable delays.

CSU Family Medical Leave is job protection in accordance with state and federal laws which grant up to 12 weeks of paid or unpaid leave during a 12-month period to care for yourself, a child, spouse, parent or other qualified member with a serious health condition. This benefit as well as pay are determined by employee category and collective bargaining contracts.

Important information:

• Pay option information and questions about FML/leave reporting can be provided during leave advising with a leaves specialist or by emailing leaves@csumb.edu.
• Leave is pro-rated if work hours are less than 40 hours per week. FML is calculated and tracked on a rolling 12-month period of time. Medical certification is required.
• While on unpaid leave, the employee may request CSUMB to continue providing benefits coverage either through payroll deductions or direct pay if there is no longer enough pay to cover the employee's cost of benefits while on leave.
• The CSU Family and Medical Leave (FML) provides the right of reinstatement to the same or another position with equivalent benefits, pay and conditions of employment upon the employee's return to work at the end of the FML.
• The Leave of Absence Request and Physician's Medical Certification forms are required for the employee’s own FML covered absences.
• The Leave of Absence Request and Family Medical Leave Medical Certification form is required for the employee to take leave for a qualified family member’s medical needs.
• Family leave pay administered by the EDD is an entirely separate insurance program, separate from the CSU parental leave paid 30 days of leave. Your CSU employment does not pay into the EDD SDI or Family Leave insurance program in lieu of our own NDI and paid parental leave programs.
• Other than for pregnancy disability where Pregnancy Disability Leave job protection is applicable for medical disability related to pregnancy and/or birth for up to four months, FML runs concurrently with other types of leaves.
• FML is applicable to both exempt and non-exempt employees per the CSU FML Policy.
• If no FML leave is taken, please write a "0" on the FML row in the far right column.
• Intermittent or partial FML leave is tracked monthly on the FML tracking form, signed by you and your manager.

Intermittent FML use reporting - please follow these instructions for completion of the Family Medical Leave (FML) tracking form:

• All hours for absences for the payroll period must be entered on the form and indicate the type of pay used.
• If no FML leave is taken, please write a "0" on the FML row in the far right column.
• The absences entered on the form need to match what is reported on CMS at the department's level.
• All leave absences (FML) must also be carried down to the FML row at the bottom of the form.
• All rows are totaled in the right-hand column.

Resources

• FML Certification
• FML-FAQs
• Request for Formal Leave of Absence
• Video instructions for monthly FML leave reporting

Catastrophic Leave is a benefit available to all faculty and staff who accrue sick, and vacation leave. Eligible employees or the qualified relative for which the employee is caring must be totally incapacitated in order to receive leave credits donated by other employees on the same campus. For one's own medical condition, employees may donate both vacation and sick leave credits up to the maximum allowed per year. For the care of one's qualified family member, only vacation leave credits may be donated. The various collective bargaining agreements limit the number of leave credits that may be donated. Represented employees in units 2 - 9, administrators, confidential employees, and Union of American Physicians and Dentists can donate up to 40 hours per fiscal year. The leave donation limitation applies to all leave credits donated per fiscal year, regardless of the number of solicitations. Leave credits may only be donated in hour increments. The purpose of donated leave is to ease the financial burden of employees who have exhausted all their own leave for personal or family illnesses. Medical certification is required.

Employees may initially request donated time for up to three months with an additional three-month period may be approved in exceptional cases. Depending upon the amount of time received, an employee will continue to receive a pay warrant (not to exceed their normal full pay), which will keep all health, dental, and vision benefits in active status. While receiving donated time, employees will continue to receive vacation, sick leave, seniority, and service credits.

The Catastrophic Leave Request must be completed and submitted to Human Resources with a Physician's Medical Certification. The medical certification form for your own illness or for the care of a qualified family member can also be obtained from the Leaves Analyst at ext. 3584.

• Catastrophic Leave Request
• Medical Leave Certification

If a female employee is disabled by pregnancy, childbirth or a related medical condition, she is entitled under California Government Code Section 12945 (b) (2) to take pregnancy disability leave.

• Up to four months (88 workdays for a full-time employee) disability leave.
• If more than four months of leave is provided for other types of temporary disabilities, the same leave must be made available to women who are disabled due to pregnancy, childbirth, or a related medical condition.
• Only when actually disabled (includes time off needed for prenatal care, severe morning sickness, doctor-ordered bed rest, childbirth, recovery from childbirth, and related medical conditions as certified by a doctor).
• This leave is without pay, but the employee may use vacation, personal holiday, CTO, non-industrial disability insurance pay, and sick leave.
• PDL runs consecutively (not concurrently) with Family Medical Leave (FML).

Under the Pregnancy Disability Leave Act, a female employee disabled by pregnancy or childbirth may request a reasonable accommodation for the duration of the pregnancy.

A leave analyst is available to meet with you. Email leaves@csumb.edu to request a leave advising meeting to coordinate pay options, leave documents, and answers to your questions. If urgent assistance is required, please call (831) 582-3389 for immediate assistance.

Submit a Leave of Absence Request to your appropriate administrator for any paid or unpaid leaves and all medical absences beyond 5 work days. Any change in the length of the leave must be approved. This form is available on the Human Resources (HR) forms page.

Employees are encouraged to contact HR for leave advising prior to submitting their request. Medical certification is required, with different forms required for your own medical condition, work restrictions and accommodation requests, or the care of a qualified family member. Any changes to an approved leave require additional approvals. Where possible, leaves should be approved and in place one month prior to the start date. A formal medical release is required prior to returning from a medical leave.

Other options may include flex time, a reduced work schedule, partial paid and unpaid leaves, and job accommodations to help CSUMB staff and faculty successfully return to work and/or navigate life events. The Chancellor's Office leave policy technical letters details guidelines on a full range of leave benefits, specific to each CBA. Some leaves of absences impact benefits so leave advising before designing a leave plan can ensure benefits continue uninterrupted.

• Catastrophic Leave Request
• Request for Formal Leave of Absence

Lactation rooms are available on campus in the Library and the OSU on a first come, first serve basis. Accommodations are provided to employees who are nursing mothers to express breast milk for their nursing child for up to one year after the child’s birth.

Such accommodations include:

• reasonable break time as often as the nursing mother requires and
• access to a place, other than a bathroom, that is shielded from view and free from intrusion from coworkers and the public, which may be used to express breast milk.

Questions regarding lactation support should be directed to Linda Schaedle in Human Resources at ext. 3584.

The CSU will continue your salary while on jury duty, regardless of length of jury service. You are entitled to keep any travel expenses (i.e., mileage) associated with jury duty service.

What to do when you receive a jury summons:

• Notify your supervisor of your jury summons.
• For each day served you must submit a Certificate of Jury Service also known as a proof of service to Human Resources. This is provided to you by the court as you are a California State employee. Email to leaves@csumb.edu
• Enter your absences into Absence Management as Jury Duty so you are paid.
• State courts: as a state employee, you are prohibited from receiving the daily juror stipend because you are paid by the CSU for service.
• Federal courts: your daily juror stipend must be made payable to the CSU and turned into the CSUMB Accounting Office.
• Travel expenses: mileage associated with jury service may be paid directly to you by the court. If not, submit a travel expense claim form to your manager for processing.
• More information is available through the Guide to Jury Service.
• For more information, email leaves@csumb.edu or if immediate assistance is required, call Human Resources at (831) 582-3389.

• FML FAQ
• Medical Leave Certification
• Request for Formal Leave of Absence

Leave Forms

• FML Certification
• Catastrophic Leave Request
• Request for Formal Leave of Absence
• Medical Leave Certification
• Work Schedule Form