Mt Ida update and medical sick leave rights
12/19/2019
Dear Colleague,
I hope you will soon have a restful and well-deserved break. Here’s an update on important matters.
► Mt Ida: Thanks to your help, FSU President Marlene Kim delivered the Mt. Ida petition with 330 signatures to the Board of Trustees on December 18. This was covered by WBUR, WGBH, the Dorchester Reporter, State House News, and the Bay State Banner. For her remarks, see here. UMB Professor Kenneth Reardon described how his own master’s students were solicited to attend Mt. Ida for geographical science classes rather than taking classes at UMB, and to teach there! (see his statement here). If you have yet to sign or circulate the petition, please still do so here. We will deliver a lengthier petition in May, 2020, when the Board of Trustees finally meets at UMB again (it has been over two years since they have done so). They are feeling the pressure. Let’s keep it up!
KNOW YOUR CONTRACT RIGHTS
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Medical/Sick Leave: Because of your union, you have many options for medical and family leave. Besides unpaid leave mandated by the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and the Commonwealth’s new Paid Family Medical Leave (state laws), if you are benefited (i.e. 50% or more), you are also eligible for sick leave and parental leave through the FSU contract. Your sick leave time accrual, as well as other information on sick leave, can be seen in Article 27.3.3 of the contract. (To find out how much individual sick leave time you have accrued, contact Human Resources directly). Furthermore, once you use up all of your sick leave time, you can apply for additional time from the Sick Leave Bank. (See Article 27.3.3(g)) When contacting the Administration/Human Resources regarding a possible medical leave, be sure to ask about your paid sick leave option from the contract and, if needed, time from the Sick Leave Bank. You cannot be compelled to take time via FMLA or state family and medical leave benefits in lieu of the paid sick leave that you are eligible for under the contract. Please contact the FSU if you have any questions or concerns about this. |
► Reimbursement for Multi-Park Passes. Faculty who purchased multi-park passes before the spring 2019 semester can redeem the unused amounts from these passes from now until January 15, 2020 (note: a previous email indicated that the deadline was January 15, 2021- the deadline is in 2020). The university is extending the deadline for faculty to redeem these, so dig out those old passes. (Contact the Office of Transportation Services for more information).
►Semester Parking Passes Fall semester passes expire on January 15, 2020. Spring 2020 passes are valid January 16th to May 31st, 2020.
Sincerely,
Marlene Kim Caroline Coscia
FSU President FSU Vice President
Professor, Economics Senior Lecturer II, Political Science
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