This policy has been developed in support of the provisions for Personal/Carer’s leave for all staff at our company.
Policy Statement
Personal/Carer’s leave is designed to enable staff to take leave needed to deal with a range of personal, health and other circumstances.
Policy Purpose
This policy informs staff members of their entitlement to Personal/Carer’s Leave and its application at our company.
Application of Policy
Categories of Personal/Carer’s Leave Entitlement
Category A includes:
- Continuing and fixed-term Staff (up to and including Level E);
- Continuing and fixed-term Professional Staff (up to and including HEW 9) whose conditions of employment are covered by the Australian Catholic University Staff Enterprise Agreement 2013 – 2017 (the Agreement);
- Continuing and fixed-term Senior staff members of our company;
A Category A staff member is entitled to Personal/Carer’s Leave on full pay at the rate of twenty (20) working days for each completed year of service from their date of commencement, fifteen (15) days of which is cumulative. Staff will be credited with twenty (20) days Personal/Carer’s Leave on commencement. On commencement of her/his employment a staff member appointed for a fixed-term of less than fifty-two (52) weeks will be credited with the pro-rata amount of Personal/Carer’s Leave that would accrue during the period of their fixed-term appointment.
The Carer’s Leave component of Personal/Carer’s Leave is ten (10) days per annum, which has accrued from 1 January 2010. The first five (5) days of Personal/Carer’s Leave authorised during any year of service will be drawn from the staff member’s non-cumulative accruals for that year of service.
Category B includes those staff whose conditions of employment derive from the National Employment Standards of the Fair Work Act (the NES). This includes but is not limited to:
- Teachers in Centres (who are staff employed under the Educational Services (Post Secondary Education) Award 2010
A Category B staff member is entitled to accrue Personal/Carer’s Leave on full pay for each completed four (4) week period of continuous service at the rate of 1/26 of the number of nominal hours worked by the staff member during that four (4) week period. A full-time staff member will normally accrue up to ten (10) days paid Personal/Carer’s Leave per twelve (12) months of continuous paid service. The Carer’s Leave component of Personal/Carer’s Leave is ten (10) days per annum, which has accrued from 1 January 2010.
Category C includes all Casual Staff, including casual Academic and Professional Staff, sessional staff, and casual Teachers in Centres. A casual staff member is entitled to a period of up to two (2) days’ Unpaid Carer’s Leave for each permissible occasion when a member of the staff member’s immediate family or household requires care or support during such a period because of:
- a personal illness, or injury or
- an unexpected emergency affecting the member.
Pro Rata Entitlement
Staff engaged for a specific fraction of a full-time appointment are entitled to the amount of leave available on a pro-rata basis, relative to that staff member’s fraction of employment.
Reasons for Taking Personal/Carer’s Leave
A Category A and B staff member may be granted paid Personal/Carer’s Leave to cover their absences due to the following circumstances:
- Personal illness of or injury to the staff member (sick leave);
To provide short term care or support to a member of the staff member’s immediate family 2, or to a member of the staff member’s household, who requires care or support because of a personal illness or injury or because of an unexpected emergency (carer’s leave);
- To provide care for the staff member’s child or grandchild during the six (6) month period commencing from the date of birth of the grandchild (up to ten (10) days carer’s leave per year).
- Medical or therapeutic appointments for the staff member or a member of the staff member’s immediate family or household;
- Appointments and commitments associated with pre-natal and post-natal responsibilities;
- To deal with an emergency arising due to fire, flood, burglary or other unforeseen event beyond the control of the staff member (up to five (5) days per year);
- Where the carer of a staff member’s child is unable to look after the child (up to five (5) days per year);
- Caring for a child on a pupil-free day (up to four (4) days per year) Note: Personal/Carer’s Leave may not be used to substitute for childcare or dependent care arrangements during normal school holiday periods;
- Attendance at the staff member’s own graduation, citizenship, and justice of the peace ceremony (up to one (1) day for each ceremony);
- Moving house (up to one (1) day per year);
- Ceremonial leave for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples (up to three (3) days per year);
- Observance of recognised religious/culturally significant days (up to three (3) days per year). The staff member must advise her/his nominated supervisor of her/his anticipated absence at the beginning of each calendar year.
Other Forms of Leave
Other Forms of Paid Leave and Leave Without Pay
Where all Personal/Carer’s Leave entitlements have been exhausted, staff may apply for available accrued Annual Leave or Long Service Leave, or may apply for Leave Without Pay for personal reasons. The responsibility for a request to use available Annual or Long Service Leave rests with the individual staff member. If no such request is received, the staff member will be placed on Leave Without Pay when Personal/Carer’s Leave credits are exhausted.
Unpaid Carer’s Leave
Where all Personal/Carer’s Leave entitlements have been exhausted, a staff member may apply for Unpaid Carer’s Leave of up to two (2) days for each permissible occasion when a member of the staff member’s immediate family or household requires care or support during such a period because of:
- a personal illness, or injury, or
- an unexpected emergency affecting the member.
Extraordinary Leave
Where a staff member has exhausted all paid leave entitlements, and because of extraordinary circumstances, requires further paid leave, the companymay grant such further paid Extraordinary Leave as the company decides is warranted. For more information, please read the Extraordinary Leave Policy.
Long Term Illness, Injury or Medical Condition
In the event of a long-term illness, injury or medical condition of a staff member, and subject to the provision of a medical certificate to support such long-term absences, a staff member may elect to convert the period of the absence to half pay. In such circumstances, the staff member will be regarded as a part-time staff member for the purposes of leave accruals and superannuation contributions. Where a staff member undertakes half pay Personal (sick) Leave, their normal superannuation contribution will reduce to 50 percent, with our company contribution being equivalently adjusted. Alternatively, the staff member may elect, in writing, to maintain and pay their full contribution and top-up the company contribution from 50 percent to the full level of its normal contributions.
Medical Assessment
Where a staff member has exhausted their Personal/Carer’s (Sick) Leave entitlement, and/or the staff member has been absent either for an extended period of time or is absent on a regular basis on Personal (Sick) Leave, and/or in circumstances where our company may have a doubt about a staff member’s wellbeing, it is appropriate for our company to seek information about a staff member’s health.
Our company may request permission from the staff member to seek information from their treating doctor and/or specialist/s. In addition, the company may require the staff member to attend an independent medical assessment to ascertain the staff member’s capacity to perform the duties of their position. Our company will choose the medical practitioner to conduct the medical examination at the expense of our company. The company will give the staff member written notice of not less than four (4) weeks, except in exceptional circumstances, that a medical assessment is required.
Approvals
An application for Personal/Carer’s Leave must be submitted for approval by the appropriate delegated officer. Information on delegated officers for leave approvals is located in the relevant company Delegations.
Procedures
Notification of Absence to Supervisor
A staff member who is absent from work due to personal illness or injury or due to their being required to provide short term care or support to a member of their immediate family or household, or for any other type of Personal/Carer’s Leave will normally make contact with their nominated supervisor at the earliest opportunity to advise the supervisor of their absence from work.
If a staff member fails to make contact within a reasonable timeframe (normally one (1) day), the supervisor will make arrangements to contact the staff member as set out in the Policy for Abandonment of Employment.
Requirement for a Medical Certificate
Personal (Sick) Leave
A staff member who is absent on a period of leave due to personal illness or injury for more than three (3) consecutive working days is required to provide proof of illness or injury to the company.
A staff member may be required to provide proof of illness for absences of less than three (3) consecutive working days in certain circumstances, such as:
- when the staff member has a pattern of recurring absences on personal sick leave; or
- when there is evidence that a staff member is not using personal leave for its proper purpose and notification has been provided. The requirement for such notification will be reviewed after six (6) months.
Notice and Evidence Requirements
A staff member who takes Personal (sick) leave is required to provide our company with a medical certificate from a registered health practitioner or a registered medical practitioner.
Medical certificates for up to five (5) days’ absence will be accepted from the following registered health practitioners:
- Medical practitioners
- Chiropractor
- Osteopath
- Optometrist
- Physiotherapist
- Psychologist
- Oral and Maxillo facial surgeon
- Registered midwife or
- Dentist
Where the absence is for longer than five (5) days, applications for further Personal (sick) leave must be supported by a medical certificate provided by a registered medical practitioner.
A medical certificate will normally only be acceptable from a registered health practitioner or registered medical practitioner if it relates to illnesses, accidents, etc in their expertise (for example, an osteopath would not be expected to provide a medical certificate in relation to a dental injury or procedure).
If a staff member wishes to return to work during the period covered by a medical certificate, the staff member must obtain a certificate of clearance to work from a registered health or medical practitioner.
If our company believes that the medical certificate provided by a staff member does not comply with this clause, the staff member will be given a copy of this policy and will be asked to provide an amended certificate within a specific timeframe.
The company may contact the registered health practitioner or registered medical practitioner to seek verification of a medical certificate or to seek further information regarding the nature of a staff member’s symptoms. Our company will not seek information on the cause/s of the symptoms or seek identification of the illness, unless the staff member provides specific written permission for the company to do so.
If a complying medical certificate is not provided within the specified timeframe, the absence will be treated as leave without pay or another form of leave, if available, and if requested by the staff member.
If it is not reasonably practical for the staff member to provide a medical certificate, a statutory declaration by the staff member must be provided.
Carer’s Leave
All staff (other than casual staff) are required to promptly complete and submit a leave application in respect of any absence on Personal (Carer’s) Leave. A staff member who is absent on a period of leave because they are required to provide short term care or support to a member of their immediate family, child or grandchild, or a member of their household for three (3) or more consecutive working days, is required to provide proof of the illness or injury to the company in the form of a complying medical certificate. If it is not reasonably practical for the staff member to provide a medical certificate, a statutory declaration by the staff member must be provided.
Applying for Leave and Submitting Documentation
A staff member must submit their application for Personal/Carer’s Leave via Staff Connect, indicating the type of Personal/Carer’s Leave required. Where, for example, a staff member is on a period of Personal (sick) leave for more than three (3) consecutive working days, supporting documentation such as a medical certificate must be included in their application for leave. It is the responsibility of the staff member and supervisor to ensure that a staff member’s leave requests and approvals are registered on Staff Connect.