Sickness Where an employee is absent from work due to sickness or injury the provisions of this clause will apply, depending on whether the absence is due to sickness, or work-related injury, or non-work related injury.
Overtime Meals When employees are required to work more than two (2) hours beyond their regular work days, the Employer will provide hot meals at no cost to the employees, up to a maximum of sixteen dollars ($16.00) (receipts to be submitted) plus paid meal periods of one-half (1/2) hour at the prevailing rate and thereafter at four (4) hour intervals. Any early morning start before regular starting time is entitled to a paid meal. The breakfast limit is thirteen dollars ($13.00) (receipts to be submitted). Employees called out on overtime shall be paid for meals as above, after four (4) hours work.
SICK LEAVE AND LONG-TERM DISABILITY (Articles 12.01 to 12.11 apply to full-time nurses only)
12.01 The Hospital will assume total responsibility for providing and funding a short-term sick leave plan at least equivalent to that described in the 1980 Hospitals of Ontario Disability Income Plan brochure. Effective January 1, 2006, new hires will be covered under the 1992 Hospitals of Ontario Disability Income Plan. The Hospital will pay 75% of the billed premium towards coverage of eligible employees under the long-term disability portion of the Plan (HOODIP or an equivalent plan). The employee will pay the balance of the billed premium through payroll deduction. For the purpose of transfer to the short-term portion of the disability program, employees on the payroll as of the effective date of the transfer with three (3) months or more of service shall be deemed to have three (3) months of service. For the purpose of transfer to the long-term portion of the disability program, employees on the active payroll as of the effective date of the transfer with one (1) year or more of service shall be deemed to have one (1) year of service.
12.02 Effective the first of the month following the transfer, all existing sick leave plans in the Participating Hospitals shall be terminated and any provisions relating to such plans shall be null and void under the respective Collective Agreements except as to those provisions relating to payout of unused sick leave benefits which are specifically dealt with hereinafter.
12.03 Existing sick leave credits for each employee shall be converted to a sick leave bank to the credit of the employee. The sick leave bank shall contain the unused sick leave days to the credit of the nurse on the effective date of the transfer to the Plan set out in Article 12.01. The "sick leave bank" shall be utilized to:
(a) Supplement payment for sick leave days under the new plan which would otherwise be at less than full wages, and;
(b) Where a payout provision existed under the former sick leave plan in the Collective Agreement, payout shall be made on the termination of employment, or in the case of death, to the nurse's estate. The parties may agree to voluntarily cash out existing sick leave banks. The amount of the payout shall be a cash settlement at the nurse's then current salary rate for any unused sick credits to the maximum provided under the sick leave plan in which the nurse participated as of October 23, 1981;
(c) Where, as of the effective date of transfer, an employee does not have the required service to qualify for payout on termination, her or his existing sick leave credits as of that date shall nevertheless be converted to a sick leave bank in accordance with the foregoing and the nurse shall be entitled to the same cash out provisions as set out in paragraph (b) above providing the nurse subsequently achieves the necessary service to qualify for payout under the conditions of the sick leave plan in which she or he participated as of October 23, 1981;
(d) Where a payout provision existed under the former sick leave plan in the Collective Agreement, a nurse who, as of the date of this award, has accumulated sick leave credits and is prevented from working for the Hospital on account of an occupational illness or accident that is recognized by The Workplace Safety and Insurance Board as compensable within the meaning of the Workplace and Safety Insurance Act, the Hospital, on application from the nurse, will supplement the award made by The Workplace Safety and Insurance Board for loss of wages to the nurse by such amount that the award of The Workplace Safety and Insurance Board for loss of wages, together with the supplementation of the Hospital, will equal one hundred per cent (100%) of the nurse's net earnings to the limit of the nurse's accumulated sick leave credits. Nurses may utilize such sick leave credits while awaiting approval of a claim for WSIB benefits.
12.04 When a nurse has completed any portion of her or his regularly scheduled tour prior to going on sick leave benefits or WSIB benefits, the nurse shall be paid for the balance of the tour at her or his regular straight time hourly rate. This provision will not disentitle the nurse to a lieu day under Article 15.05 if she or he otherwise qualifies.
12.05 Any dispute which may arise concerning a nurse's entitlement to short-term or long- term benefits under HOODIP or an equivalent plan may be subject to grievance and arbitration under the provisions of this Agreement. The Union agrees that it will encourage a nurse to utilize the carrier’s medical appeals process, if any, to resolve disputes.
12.06 Nurses presently employed who are covered by a long-term disability plan in effect as of the date of this award, may elect to be covered by HOODIP or to continue their present coverage.
12.07 The Hospital further agrees to pay employees an amount equal to any loss of benefits under HOODIP for the first two days of the fourth and subsequent period of absence in any calendar year.
12.08 The Hospital will notify each nurse of the amount of unused sick leave in her or his bank annually.
12.09 For nurses whose regular hours of work are other than the standard work day, the short-term sick leave plan will provide payment for the number of hours of absence according to the scheduled tour to a total of 562.5 hours. All other provisions of the existing plan shall apply mutatis mutandis.
12.10 Absences due to pregnancy related illness shall be considered as sick leave under the sick leave plan.
12.11 A nurse who is absent from work as a result of an illness or injury sustained at work and who has been awaiting approval of a claim for WSIB benefits for a period longer than one complete tour or more may apply to the Hospital for payment equivalent to the lesser of the benefit the nurse would receive from WSIB if the nurse's claim was approved, or the benefit to which the nurse would be entitled under the short-term sick portion of the disability income plan (HOODIP or equivalent plan). Payment will be provided only if the nurse provides evidence of disability satisfactory to the Hospital and a written undertaking satisfactory to the Hospital that any payments will be refunded to the Hospital following final determination of the claim by The Workplace Safety and Insurance Board. If the claim for WSIB benefits is not approved, the monies paid as an advance will be applied towards the benefits to which the nurse would be entitled under the short-term portion of the disability income plan. Any payment under this provision will continue for a maximum of fifteen (15) weeks. (Articles 12.12, 12.13 and 12.14 apply to both full-time and part-time nurses)
12.12 Nurses returning to work from an illness or injury compensable from the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board will be assigned light work as necessary, if available.
12.13 A nurse who transfers from full-time to part-time may elect to retain her or his accumulated sick leave credits to be utilized during part-time or subsequent full-time employment as provided under the sick leave plan in which the nurse participates as of October 23, 1981.
12.14 If the Employer requires the employee to obtain a medical certificate, the employer shall pay the full cost of obtaining the certificate.
LEAVE OF ABSENCE 12.01 Employees requesting leave of absence shall make written application to their Location Manager giving at least seven (7) working days· notice. The Company may, at its discretion, grant such leave of absence for a period of up to three (3) months provided the services of the employees are not immediately required and there is an employee available who has the qualifications to perform the work. Such leave of absence shall be granted in writing, with a copy to the Local Chairperson. Leaves of absence will not be granted during the month of September. The Company's response to the request shall be given in writing within seven (7) days of the· Company receiving the employee's written request.
12.02 Leave of absence may be extended in writing by the Company upon application in writing from the employee, provided such application is received at least seven (7) calendar days prior to the expiration of the leave of absence.
12.03 An employee who fails to report for duty on or before the expiration of a leave of absence shall forfeit his seniority and his name will be removed from the seniority list. In the case of an employee being granted an extended approved unpaid leave 6f absence, the employee may not be permitted to sign for a regular school run and/or the run vacated by the employee may be posted.
12.04 Absolute proof of illness preventing return upon expiration of leave of absence shall excuse an employee's failure to return at that time.
12.05 Leave of absence shall not be granted to enable an employee to work outside the Company's service. Leave of absences or illness longer than five (5) working days will be posted as a temporary position.
12.06 An employee elected as a full-time representative of the Union shall be granted leave of absence without pay while so engaged.
12.07 Upon written request of the National Representative, Local President and/or Local Chairperson, employees delegated and attending general business of the Union shall be granted leave of absence without pay for that purpose. As much advance notice as possible will be given by the National Representative and/or Local Chairperson prior to the effective date of the requested leave of absence. The Company will pay lost time for regular scheduled work for all union leaves under this article to employees at their regular rate of pay and such rate of pay will be reimbursed by Unifor Local 195.
12.08 The name of an employee who is on authorized leave of absence shall be retained on the seniority list and shall continue to accumulate seniority. School bus drivers on an approved leave shall be returned to their scheduled work on the scheduled return date.
12.09 An employee wishing to return from leave of absence prior to the expiration of his approved period of leave must advise his Supervisor at least seven (7) days in advance of the date upon which he wishes to return to work. The Supervisor will, if such leave is due to illness, make every effort to change the work schedule to accommodate the returning employee, but if this is not possible, the employee shall return at the earliest possible date following the receipt of such notification by the Supervisor. If the leave were for other reasons, the employee will resume his duties at a time specified by the Company.
Maternity Maternity leaves, not to exceed six (6) months, shall be granted at the request of the employee.
Leave for Personal Reasons An employee may be granted leave of absence without pay and without loss of seniority when she requests such leave for good and sufficient cause. Such requests shall be in writing and approved by the Employer. In an emergency, application may be made by telephone or in person. Permission for such leave shall not be unreasonably withheld.
Sick Leave Abuse When the Employer suspects sick leave abuse, the employee will be provided the opportunity to explain the circumstances surrounding their sick leave use prior to disciplining the employee, or making reference to sick leave use in the employee’s performance evaluation. The Employer may not adopt or enforce any policy that counts the use of paid sick leave time as an absence that may lead to or result in disciplinary action for an authorized purpose. The Employer may not discriminate or retaliate against an employee for the use of paid sick leave for an authorized purpose.
ARTICLE LEAVE OF ABSENCE The Employer, may, in its discretion, grant a leave of absence with or without pay to any employee for education personal reasons. Request for leave of absence shall be in writing and submitted to his supervisor who will forward the same to the designated Human Resources representative for approval. An employeeshall not be required to use his accumulated vacation before requesting a leave of absence for non-vacation purposes. The Employer shall grant leaves of absence without pay to up to four (4) employees to attend Union conventions or seminars, provided that: such leave does not unduly interfere with the operation requirements of the Employer; the total leave of absence granted hereunder shall not exceed twenty-five working days per year of the agreement; not more than one (1) employee from any program unit may receive leave hereunder at any one time and; the Union gives fourteen (14) clear notice of such leave to the Employer. Leave of absence due to pregnancy and/or parental leave shall be granted in accordance with the requirements of the Standards Act of Ontario If an employee who has completed his probationary period is required to serve as a juror, he shall not lose his regular pay because of such attendance provided he notifies his supervisor immediately upon notification that he will be required to serve as a juror, presents proof of service and promptly pays to the Employer any amounts paid to him for such service. Employees absent from work for any continuous period of fifteen (15) calendar days or more other than a period of vacation leave or paid sick leave shall not earn vacation or sick leave credits during the period of any such absence and anniversary dates shall be adjusted accordingly except as specified in Article In addition, the Employer shall not be required to contribute to the payment of health and welfare benefits during any such absence. Employees who desire to maintain health and welfare benefits through the Employer must arrange payments of premiums for all such benefits and pay all such premiums through the Employer before commencing any absence. Notwithstanding the preceding paragraph, it is agreed that the Employer shall maintain health and welfare benefits for employees who are off work on Long Term Disability or Workplace Safety and Insurance Board Benefits for a period of up to one (1) year from the date such employee ceased working for the Employer provided the employee pays his portion of the health and welfare benefits premium. An employee shall be entitled to paternity leave which shall consist of one (1)day with pay and two (2) days without pay.
Sick Leave Use An employee shall be granted sick leave with pay to the extent of the employee's accumulation for absences necessitated by the following conditions:
PERIOD OF SERVICE The Grant Services will commence on the Start Date and shall expire on the End Date as set forth in the SUMMARY PAGE.