Public Office Leave (a) An Employer shall grant a leave of absence without pay upon the request of any Nurse to run as a candidate in a Federal, Provincial, or Municipal election. If the Nurse withdraws as a candidate or is an unsuccessful candidate, she/he is entitled to return to her or his former position without loss of benefits provided that the Nurse gives two (2) weeks notice to the Employer of her/his intent to return unless mutually agreed to a shorter notice period.
(b) Any Nurse in the Bargaining Unit who is elected to full-time office in the Federal, Provincial, or Municipal level of Government shall be granted a leave of absence without pay, for a term not exceeding five (5) years.
(c) Upon return, the Nurse will be placed in a position determined in accordance with the needs of the Employer at that time. The Nurse shall be placed on the same level of the increment scale the Nurse formerly occupied prior to commencing the leave of absence. The Nurse shall retain all benefits which accrued up to the time the Nurse commenced the leave of absence, including Service. The Nurse shall continue to accrue Seniority during the leave of absence.
