2.3 Other Personal Leaves

List of 18 items.

• Bereavement Leave

  Should a death occur in an employee’s family, employees will be compensated for time lost from their regular work schedule as follows:

  • Up to five work days with pay in the event of the death of a spouse/partner, child, parent, sibling, grandparent, father-in-law, mother-in-law, daughter-in-law or son-in-law.
  • In the event of the death of a relative not stated above or a close friend, employees will be paid for one work day’s leave of absence.

  
  Requests for bereavement leave must be made by the employee to their immediate Supervisor or Division Head. When possible, at least two days’ notice in advance of the leave is required.

• Birth or Adoption Leave

  The School recognizes the importance of family time surrounding the birth or adoption of a baby. In support of this, Crescent School provides the employee/parent who is not on maternity/parental leave, a paid leave of up to three (3) days within the week of the birth or adoption of a baby or child. The employee/parent may also take an additional three (3) days paid leave, within the first six (6) months of the birth or adoption of a baby, defined as a child fewer than 12 months old.
  
  

  Leave days may not be used to extend a break or holiday, except in the case where the birth or adoption falls at the end of a holiday or break period. For example, March break ends on a Friday and the child arrives the day before, on Thursday. The employee may take two (2) days; Monday and Tuesday as Birth or Adoption Leave.
  
  

  Any unused personal days may be used to extend the period of the leave up to two more days for a total of up to five (5) days. This leave is intended for partners who are not taking maternity or parental leave immediately following the birth or adoption of a baby or child.

• Child Death Leave

  Pursuant to the ESA, all employees who have been employed with Crescent School for at least six (6) consecutive months are entitled to up to 104 weeks of unpaid job-protected leave if an employee’s child dies. Employees may take their leave only during the 105-week period that begins in the week the child dies. For the purpose of this leave, a child includes a child, step-child, foster child, or child who is under the legal guardianship of the employee and is under eighteen (18) years of age.
  
  

  An employee is not entitled to this leave of absence if the employee is charged with a crime in relation to the death or if it is probable that the child was a party to a crime in relation to their death. “Crime” means an offence under the Criminal Code of Canada, other than an offence prescribed by the regulations made under paragraph 209.4 (f) of the Canada Labour Code.

  Process

  Employees must give notice in writing to Crescent School prior to the start of a child death leave. The employee must also provide a written plan that indicates the weeks in which they will take the leave.
  
  

  If an employee must begin a child death leave prior to notifying the School due to an emergency situation, the employee must notify the School in writing about the leave as soon as possible after beginning it and provide a written plan that indicates the weeks in which they will take the leave.
  
  

  During child death leave, benefits will continue, pursuant to the ESA. The portion of benefits premiums that is paid by the employee will be billed to the employee on a monthly basis.
  
  

  Employment Insurance: EI is not available for child death leave.

• Crime-Related Child Disappearance Leave

  Pursuant to the ESA, as amended from time to time, all employees who have been employed with Crescent School for at least six (6) consecutive months are entitled to up to 104 weeks of unpaid job-protected leave if an employee’s child disappears and it is probable, considering the circumstances, that the child disappeared as the result of a crime. For the purpose of this leave, a child includes a child, step-child or foster child or child who is under the legal guardianship of the employee, and who is under eighteen (18) years of age.
  
  

  Generally, an employee who takes a crime-related child disappearance leave must take the leave in a single time period. An employee may take a leave under this section only during the 105-week period that begins in the week the child disappears.
  
  

  If an employee’s child is found alive while the employee is on a crime-related disappearance leave, the employee is entitled to stay on leave for an additional 14 days. If an employee’s child is found dead, the employee’s entitlement to be on this leave ends at the end of the week in which the child is found.
  
  

  If it becomes probable after an employee begins a leave of absence, considering the circumstances, that the disappearance of an employee’s child is not the result of a crime; the leave must end on the day in which it no longer seems probable.
  
  

  An employee is not entitled to this leave of absence if the employee is charged with the crime or if it is probable that the child was party to the crime.

  Process

  Employees are required to give notice in writing to the School prior to the start of a crime-related child disappearance leave. The employee must also provide a written plan that indicates the weeks in which they will take the leave.
  
  

  If an employee must begin a crime-related child disappearance leave prior to notifying the School due to an emergency situation, the employee must notify the School in writing about the leave as soon as possible after beginning it and provide a written plan that indicates the weeks in which they will take the leave.
  
  

  The School may ask an employee to provide reasonable evidence to support the employee’s entitlement to a crime-related child disappearance leave.
  
  

  During the crime-related child disappearance leave, benefits will continue, pursuant to the ESA. The portion of benefits premiums that is paid by the employee will be billed to the employee on a monthly basis.
  
  

  Employment Insurance: EI is not available for crime-related child disappearance leave.

• Critical Illness Leave

  Pursuant to the ESA, all employees who have been employed with Crescent School for at least six (6) consecutive months are entitled to apply for an unpaid, job-protected critical illness leave to provide care or support to a critically ill child or a critically ill adult family member.
  
  

  An employee may be eligible to take critical illness leave to care for a minor child (under 18 years of age) for a period of up to 37 weeks in a 52-week period. Critical illness leave taken to care for an adult can be up to 17 weeks in a 52-week period. If the minor child or adult remains critically ill after the end of the 52-week period, the employee may be eligible for additional leaves of up to 17 or 37 weeks in subsequent 52-week periods.
  
  

  The critical illness leave must be supported by a certificate from a qualified health practitioner (a physician, registered nurse or psychologist), stating that the minor child or adult is critically ill and requires the care or support of one or more family members. In addition, the certificate must set out the period during which the minor child or adult requires care or support. “Critically ill” means a minor child or adult whose baseline state of health has significantly changed and whose life is at risk as a result of an illness or injury.

  If the qualified health practitioner sets out a period of less than the prescribed weeks of leave, the employee is entitled to take the leave only for the number of weeks in the period specified in the medical certificate. If the qualified health practitioner sets out a period of 52 weeks or longer, the employee’s leave must end no later than the last day of the 52-week period. If a critically ill minor child or adult dies while an employee is on leave, the employee’s entitlement to be on critical illness leave ends at the end of the week in which the minor child or adult dies.
  
  

  A family member includes any of the following:

  • the employee’s spouse
  • a parent, step-parent or foster parent of the employee or the employee’s spouse
  • a child, step-child or foster child of the employee or the employee’s spouse
  • a child who is under legal guardianship of the employee or the employee’s spouse
  • a brother, step-brother, sister, or step-sister of the employee
  • a grandparent or step-grandparent of the employee or of the employee’s spouse
  • a grandchild or step-grandchild of the employee or of the employee’s spouse
  • a brother-in-law, step-brother-in-law, sister-in-law or step-sister-in-law of the employee
  • a son-in-law or daughter-in-law of the employee or of the employee’s spouse
  • an uncle or aunt of the employee or of the employee’s spouse
  • a nephew or niece of the employee or of the employee’s spouse
  • the spouse of the employee’s grandchild, uncle, aunt, nephew or niece
  • critical illness leave may also be taken for a person who considers the employee to be like a family member (requires a Compassionate Care Benefits Attestation form)

  Process

  The employee is required to give notice in writing to Crescent School prior to the start of a critical illness leave. This must be accompanied by the medical certificate from a qualified health practitioner indicating that the ill individual is critically ill and requires the care or support of one or more family members and it must also set out the time period during which the ill individual requires the care or support of the employee. If an employee must begin a critical illness leave prior to notifying the School due to an emergency situation, the employee must notify the School in writing about the leave as soon as possible after its start. The employee must also provide a written plan that indicates the weeks in which they will take the leave.
  
  

  The specified family members do not have to live in Ontario for the employee to be eligible for critical illness leave. During critical illness leave, benefits will continue, pursuant to the ESA. The portion of benefits premiums that is paid by the employee will be billed to the employee on a monthly basis.
  
  

  Employment Insurance: Critical illness leave may be supported by Employment Insurance benefits, provided by the Government of Canada, called Family Caregiver Benefits, providing up to 35 weeks for a critically ill child or up to 15 weeks for a critically ill adult.

• Domestic or Sexual Violence Leave

  Pursuant to the ESA, an employee who has been employed at Crescent for at least 13 consecutive weeks is entitled to a leave of absence where that employee or the employee’s child experiences domestic or sexual violence or the threat of sexual or domestic violence. The leave must be taken for one of the following purposes:

  • to seek medical attention for a physical or psychological injury or disability caused by domestic or sexual violence
  • to obtain services from a victim services organization
  • to obtain psychological or other professional counselling
  • to relocate temporarily or permanently
  • to seek legal or law enforcement assistance, or
  • any other prescribed purposes.

  An employee may take up to 10 days (to be taken as individual days) and/or 15 weeks (to be taken as full weeks) of leave within a calendar year for the defined purposes. If the employee takes part of a day it will be counted as a full day for the purposes of the entitlement to leave, and if the employee takes part of a week, it will be counted as a full week for the purposes of the entitlement to leave.
  
  

  The first five days of the leave taken within a calendar year will be paid, and the rest of the leave will be unpaid.
  
  

  Crescent will ensure mechanisms are in place to protect the confidentiality of records given to or produced by Crescent that relate to an employee taking domestic or sexual violence leave.
  
  

  An employee is not entitled to this leave of absence if the domestic or sexual violence is committed by the employee.

  Process

  An employee is required to give notice in writing to Crescent prior to the start of a domestic or sexual violence leave. The School may require the employee to furnish reasonable evidence that they are eligible to take domestic or sexual violence leave.
  
  

  If an employee must begin a domestic or sexual violence leave prior to notifying Crescent due to an emergency situation, the employee must notify Crescent in writing about the leave as soon as possible after beginning it.
  
  

  During the domestic or sexual violence leave, benefits will continue, pursuant to the ESA. The portion of benefits premiums that is paid by the employee will be billed to the employee on a monthly basis

• Family Caregiver Leave

  All employees may be entitled to Family Caregiver Leave, pursuant to the ESA. Family caregiver leave is an unpaid, job-protected leave of up to 8 weeks per calendar year to provide care or support to certain family members with a serious medical condition which may include a condition that is chronic or episodic. This must be supported by

  a certificate from a qualified health practitioner who is caring for the ill individual (such as a physician, registered nurse or psychologist) that states that the ill individual has a serious medical condition.
  
  

  The eight weeks can be taken consecutively or separately. The employee may take leave for periods less than a full week (for example, single days, at the beginning, middle or end of a week), but if they do, they are considered to have used up one week of their eight-week entitlement.
  
  

  Care or support includes, but is not limited to: providing psychological or emotional support; arranging for care by a third-party provider; or directly providing or participating in the care of the family member. The specified family members for whom a family caregiver leave may be taken are:

  • the employee’s spouse
  • a parent, step-parent or foster parent of the employee or the employee’s spouse
  • a child, step-child or foster child of the employee or the employee’s spouse
  • a grandparent or step-grandparent of the employee or the employee’s spouse
  • a grandchild or step-grandchild of the employee or the employee’s spouse
  • a spouse of a child of the employee
  • a brother or sister of the employee
  • a relative of the employee who is dependent on the employee for care or assistance

  The specified family members do not have to live in Ontario for the employee to be eligible for family caregiver leave. During family caregiver leave, benefits will continue, pursuant to the ESA. The portion of benefits premiums that is paid by the employee will be billed to the employee on a monthly basis.

  Process

  The employee is required to give notice in writing to Crescent School prior to the start of a family caregiver leave. This must be accompanied by the medical certificate from a qualified health practitioner indicating that the ill individual has a serious medical condition. If an employee must begin a family caregiver leave prior to notifying Crescent due to an emergency situation, the employee must notify Crescent in writing about the leave as soon as possible after its start.
  
  

  One of the main differences between family caregiver leave and family medical leave is that an employee is only eligible for the latter if the family member who has a serious medical condition has a significant risk of death occurring within a period of 26 weeks.
  
  

  Employment Insurance: EI is not available for family caregiver leave.

• Family Medical Leave

  Pursuant to the ESA, Family Medical Leave is an unpaid, job-protected leave of up to 28 weeks in a 52-week period to provide an employee with time off work to provide care or support to a family member (or a person who is like family). The ill individual must have a serious medical condition with a significant risk of death occurring within 26 weeks.
  
  

  The 28 weeks can be taken consecutively or separately. The employee may take leave for periods less than a full week (for example, single days, at the beginning, middle or end of a week), but if they do, they are considered to have used up one week of their 28-week entitlement.
  
  

  If two (2) or more employees qualify to take the leave in order to provide care for the same person, the leave must be divided amongst those taking the leave and shall not exceed 28 weeks during the 52-week period.
  
  

  The specified family members for whom a family medical leave may be taken are:

  • the employee’s spouse
  • a parent, step-parent or foster parent of the employee or the employee’s spouse
  • a child, step-child or foster child of the employee or the employee’s spouse
  • a child who is under legal guardianship of the employee or the employee’s spouse
  • a brother, step-brother, sister, or step-sister of the employee
  • a grandparent or step-grandparent of the employee or of the employee’s spouse
  • a grandchild or step-grandchild of the employee or of the employee’s spouse
  • a brother-in-law, step-brother-in-law, sister-in-law or step-sister-in-law of the employee
  • a son-in-law or daughter-in-law of the employee or of the employee’s spouse
  • an uncle or aunt of the employee or of the employee’s spouse
  • a nephew or niece of the employee or of the employee’s spouse
  • the spouse of the employee’s grandchild, uncle, aunt, nephew or niece
  • any other person who considers the employee to be like a family member (requires a Compassionate Care Benefits Attestation form)

  The specified family members do not have to live in Ontario for the employee to be eligible for family medical leave. During family medical leave, benefits will continue for regular full-time and part-time employees. The portion of benefits premiums that is paid by the employee will be billed to the employee on a monthly basis.

  Process

  The employee is required to give notice in writing to Crescent School prior to the start of a family medical leave. This must be accompanied by a medical certificate from a qualified health practitioner indicating that the ill individual has a serious medical condition with a significant risk of death occurring within a period of 26 weeks. If an employee must begin a family medical leave prior to notifying the School due to an emergency situation, the employee must notify the School in writing about the leave as soon as possible after its start.
  
  

  Employment Insurance: During this leave, employees may be eligible for up to 26 weeks of Employment Insurance benefits from the Government of Canada, called Compassionate Care Benefits.

• Jury and Witness Duty Leave

  An employee called for jury duty or subpoenaed as a witness or expert in court will be excused from work to the extent that their court obligations require. The employee should report all details of the jury or witness duty requirements to People and Culture as soon as possible upon receipt of notification. A copy of the jury or witness summons must be submitted to People and Culture at the time of notification.
  
  

  A regular full-time or part-time employee may continue to receive their regular pay for the time of leave involved, in accordance with the ESA. In addition, proof of service must be provided when the period of jury or witness duty is completed. Vacation, sick leave, health and benefit coverage, life insurance and personal leave days continue in force during the period of jury/witness duty.
  
  

  This policy does not apply to voluntary legal actions initiated by the employee.

• Long-Term Leave of Absence Without Pay

  Employees who wish to request a leave of absence from the School for a period longer than one month must submit a written request detailing the particulars of the reasons and desired dates of absence. Such a request must be made to the Headmaster as far in advance as possible. The Headmaster will make a decision based on a number of factors such as length of service, reasonableness of the request and the potential impact on staffing and coverage for the School. Requests that are approved will be without pay and without benefits (if out of country, continued health care by the Province may be an issue). Generally, requests for a leave of absence that provide professional or personal development are viewed favourably subject to the staffing impact they have on the School. If a leave is granted, the School will make every effort to reinstate the employee in their old job or a comparable job. However, no absolute guarantee can be given except in extraordinary situations.

• Miscarriages and Stillbirths

  An employee who has a miscarriage or stillbirth more than 17 weeks before their due date is not entitled to a pregnancy leave under the ESA. However, if an employee has a miscarriage or stillbirth within the 17-week period preceding the due date, she is eligible for unpaid, job-protected pregnancy leave. The latest date for commencing the leave in that case is the date of the miscarriage or stillbirth.
  
  

  The pregnancy leave of an employee who has a miscarriage or stillbirth ends on the date that is the latter of:

  • 17 weeks after the leave began; or
  • 12 weeks after the stillbirth or miscarriage.

  This means that an employee who has a stillbirth or miscarriage within 17 weeks of their due date will be entitled to a pregnancy leave of at least 17 weeks in length; in some cases it may be longer.

• Personal Days

  Crescent School permits regular full-time employees to take up to two paid days annually for personal reasons for events/situations that exist outside regular school hours. Examples of these situations are religious observation, moving, significant celebrations, or other events related to personal well-being. 
  
  

  In Case of Religious Observances:
  
  Should a situation arise where an employee has already exhausted their personal day allotment, the employee may request up to two additional paid days for observing recurring, widely-recognized religious, spiritual, and/or cultural days of observance, which form part of a religious, spiritual, or cultural calendar. For greater certainty, individually scheduled events that have elements of religious observance, such as weddings, are not included under this policy.
  
  

  In both cases, these days may be granted on an exchange basis and can be leveraged in a future, on-site work schedule including the Crescent Holiday schedule. 

   

  Employees should reach out to their Manager or Head of School to schedule a meeting to request these additional days. 
  
  

  Part-time employees are eligible for personal days pro-rated to their part-time appointment (for example, an employee who works 50% of the time is entitled to one full or two half personal days). Personal days cannot be used to extend vacation and unused personal days cannot be carried over from one year to the next. Faculty are not permitted to extend a long weekend or holiday period with a personal day due to the impact on student learning. 
  
  

  Employees must ask permission from their Supervisor or Division Head to use a personal day at least one week before taking that day off, except in emergency situations.

• Pregnancy and Parental Leave

  Pregnancy Leave

  Pursuant to the ESA, as amended from time to time, a pregnant employee who has completed 13 weeks of service with Crescent prior to their due date is entitled to an unpaid, job-protected pregnancy leave of 17 weeks.

  Parental Leave

  Pursuant to the ESA, as amended from time to time, employees who have completed 13 weeks of service with Crescent are entitled to an unpaid, job-protected parental leave following the birth of a child or the coming of a child into a parent’s care for the first time.

  • An employee who took pregnancy leave is eligible for 61 weeks of parental leave to be taken immediately following pregnancy leave
  • An employee who did not take pregnancy leave is eligible to take up to 63 weeks of parental leave.

  For employees who take pregnancy leave, parental leave commences at the end of the pregnancy leave or when the baby first comes into care of the birth mother. For employees who did not take a pregnancy leave, parental leave must commence no later than 78 weeks following the baby’s birth or the date on which the child comes into the employee’s custody, care and control for the first time. The parental leave does not have to be completed within this 78-week period; it just has to be started within this period.
  
  

  An employee who elects not to use the maximum amount of leave available shall not have the option of taking any unused leave time at a later date.
  
  

  During pregnancy and parental leaves, benefits will continue, pursuant to the ESA. The portion of benefits premiums that is paid by the employee will be billed to the employee on a monthly basis.
  
  

  Employment Insurance: Employees may be eligible for EI Maternity and Parental Benefits, from the Government of Canada. EI Maternity Benefits provide 15 weeks of maternity benefits for the biological mother. Standard parental benefits provide EI benefits for up to 35 weeks; extended parental benefits provide EI benefits for a maximum of 61 weeks but at a reduced rate. Before an employee can start receiving benefits from the Government of Canada, there is a 1-week waiting period for which they won't be paid. To support employees during this waiting period, Crescent will provide employees on pregnancy leave with a one-time payment equivalent to one week's base salary.

  Process

  An employee must notify Crescent in writing at least 4 weeks prior to the expected date of the leave, earlier if possible.
  
  

  An employee must notify Crescent in writing at least 4 weeks prior to returning from leave.

• Protected Leaves under the Employment Standards Act, 2000

  Crescent School wishes to ensure that employees are provided with authorized time off in accordance with the ESA without the fear of a negative impact on their employment status or opportunities with the School. The School is committed to providing a family-first environment for employees and understands that situations can arise that call for an extended period of absence.
  
  

  The leaves referred to below apply in circumstances where employees may need to take a planned or unplanned leave of absence in order to attend to situations that directly affect themselves, their families or dependents.
  
  

  Benefits will continue during ESA leaves, in accordance with the ESA, and the employee will continue to be responsible for paying the employee portion of the benefit premiums.
  
  

  An employee may be entitled to more than one leave for the same event.
  
  

  ESA leaves will run concurrently with paid leaves provided pursuant to School policy.

• Self-Funded Leave Plan (Four over Five)

  Faculty who have at least five years of service at Crescent School and who wish to request a self-funded leave of absence must submit a written request prior to April 1st to the Headmaster and the relevant Division Head.
  
  

  Deferral Period – During the first four years of an approved Self-Funded Leave Plan (referred to as the “deferral period”) the School will withhold 20% of the employee’s salary and the employee will be paid at the rate of 80% of their entitled salary. The 20% “deferred salary” will be held in trust by the School and any interest accrued will be considered taxable employment income. Benefits continue at 100% coverage during the deferral period.
  
  

  Leave Period – During the leave period, Teacher’s Pension Plan contributions and credits will be made as if the employee was earning 100% salary for the five-year period. Eligibility for benefits coverage is determined on a case-by-case basis by the insurance company.
  
  

  In the leave year, the employee will be paid the deferred salary in monthly installments. The employee will be guaranteed return to their teaching position or equivalent. In accordance with Canada Revenue Agency guidelines, the employee must return to employment with the School for a period of time equivalent to the leave.
  
  

  No employee may take a leave in the year prior to their retirement. Withdrawal from the Self-Funded Leave Plan for reasons other than termination of employment, death or disability requires the approval of the Headmaster. Withdrawal from the Self-Funded Leave Plan must be made at least six months prior to the beginning of the leave. Upon withdrawal, the deferred salary will become payable in a lump sum and treated as such for tax, CPP and EI purposes.

• Short-Term Leave of Absence Without Pay

  Administrative and Facilities employees who wish to request a short-term leave of absence without pay should first discuss the request with their Department Head or Supervisor. The Headmaster, in consultation with People and Culture, may approve a leave of absence without pay for up to one month, subject to the reason for the request and the operational requirements of the department. The employee will be guaranteed the right to return to the same position at the end of the leave period. Employees may request an unpaid short-term leave of absence to extend or enhance vacation provided that the operational requirements of the division or department will not be compromised. Vacation days and lieu time must be used prior to any unpaid leave of absence. During the period of the leave of absence, benefits will continue and employees will be responsible for paying the employee portion of the benefits.

• Use of Sick Leave, Vacation and/or Family Medical Leave

  In the event that an employee requires the use of sick leave benefits at any time prior to the commencement of a pregnancy or parental leave period, the Personal Emergency Leave policy and/or the Short-Term Disability policy shall apply.
  
  

  In the event that an employee requires an extension of leave following a pregnancy or parental leave, the employee may use family medical leave up to a maximum of 8 weeks, where they meet the requirements for the leave.
  
  

  Employees who elect to extend their leave through the use of family medical leave are requested to provide Crescent with as much advance notice as possible prior to the exhaustion of pregnancy or parental leave.
  
  

  After the pregnancy and parental leaves have concluded, employees shall be allowed to use up any accrued vacation time. Employees who elect to extend their leave through the use of accrued vacation time must provide 4 weeks’ notice of this intention prior to the exhaustion of the leave.

• SUMMARY CHART: Protected Leaves Under the Employment Standards Act, 2000