LLVARE
Loma Linda Veterans Association for Research and Education
EMPLOYMENT PRACTICES
TIME OFF
EMPLOYMENT POLICIES
COMPENSATION
BENEFITS
TRAVEL
SUBSCRIPTIONS AND DUES
FACILITIES
SAFETY AND SECURITY
IMPORTANT POLICIES
Non-Harassment Policy
Non-Violence Policy
Alcohol and Drug-Free Workplace
Standards of Ethical Conduct
NOTICE

TIME OFF

LEAVE ACCRUAL

All employees who are actively at work or on paid leave – such as vacation leave, sick leave, holidays, or authorized absence – will continue to accrue paid leave benefits provided by LLVARE.

Employees who are on unpaid leave will not be entitled to continue accruing paid leave benefits, including employees who are receiving income replacement benefits such as short-term disability, long-term disability, or workers’ compensation.

When an employee is out on leave that is protected by the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the California Family Rights Act (CFRA), or Pregnancy Disability Leave (PDL), that employee will continue accruing paid leave as long as the employee is using paid leave benefits such as those listed above. If an employee on FMLA, CFRA, or PDL leave uses all paid leave in accordance with LLVARE’s FMLA, CFRA, or PDL policies and remains unable to return to work, then the remainder of the leave will be unpaid. During the period of unpaid leave, the employee will not continue to accrue paid leave, consistent with LLVARE’s policy for all types of unpaid leave.

COMPENSATORY TIME OFF

Compensatory time off is time off substituted for payment of overtime for nonexempt employees and is not permitted by LLVARE.

AUTHORIZED ABSENCE

Authorized absence is generally used when an employee attends a meeting, seminar, etc. on official business and with the knowledge and consent of management. The use of authorized absence requires supporting documentation attached to the leave request when such a request is submitted.

Authorized absence will be granted for attending court as a witness on behalf of the Federal, state, or local government or for jury duty.

In addition, LLVARE requires reasonable notice when employees anticipate absences.

VACATION

LLVARE provides vacation for rest, relaxation, and renewal. Employees eligible for paid vacation benefits include most full-time and part-time employees. Casual employees are not eligible for paid vacation accrual. Vacation benefits begin to accrue to eligible employees from their first day of employment and may be used after 30 consecutive days of employment. Eligible part-time employees working between a 50% and 80% level of employment (typically between 20 and 32 hours per week) accrue vacation appropriate to their percentage of time. Part-time, non-exempt employees take vacation at the rate of 4 hours/day, regardless of how many hours per day or week they normally work. Vacation is credited at the end of each pay period as earned.

Normal vacation accruals are as follows:
In service for Full-time Employees Part-Time Employees
0-36 months 4 hours per pay period  (0.05 hrs per hr worked)
>37 months 6 hours per pay period (0.075 hrs per hr worked)

Vacations are taken at the mutual convenience of the employee and the employer, except when it is necessary for a supervisor to require vacation to be taken at a specific time for scheduling or budgetary reasons. All vacation requests must be in writing and are subject to management approval. Vacation requests must be submitted in advance. Vacation may be used in no less than half-hour increments. Employees may not accrue more than 240 hours of vacation. If an employee’s vacation balance reaches 240 hours, accrual will be suspended until the balance is reduced. Unused, earned vacation up to a maximum of 240 hours will be paid upon separation on the basis of the employee’s current rate of pay.

Employees are encouraged, but not required, to take vacation in the year earned. Vacation hours are not accrued for hours worked in overtime status. Employees may not take more vacation than they have actually earned at the time their vacation is to begin. When a company-paid holiday occurs while an employee is on approved, scheduled vacation, the day will be paid as a holiday and not deducted as vacation.

Unless taken in connection with intermittent or reduced-schedule leave pursuant to the FMLA, exempt employees must take vacation in eight (8) hour increments, part-time employees must take vacation in four (4) hour increments, and full-time nonexempt employees must take vacation in one (1) hour increments. When taken in connection with intermittent or reduced-schedule leave pursuant to the FMLA, vacation will be charged in increments of ¼ hour for all employees.

HOLIDAYS

Full-time regular employees receive eight hours of pay per holiday. Part-time employees receive holiday pay for 4 hours. For eligible part-time hourly employees, the holiday must fall on one of the employee's regularly scheduled workdays in order to be paid. If the employee does not have a fixed work schedule, the employee must work the day before and the day after a holiday in order for it to be paid. The holidays recognized by LLVARE are:

When a holiday falls on a Saturday, the preceding Friday is observed as a holiday unless an alternate day is designated by LLVARE. When a holiday falls on a Sunday, the following Monday is observed as a holiday.

All employees must be in an active work status (which includes vacation and sick leave) on the day before and the day following a holiday in order for the holiday to be paid, i.e., no employee shall receive holiday pay for any holiday immediately preceded by an unauthorized absence or a suspension for disciplinary reasons or while the employee is on unpaid leave of absence or leave without pay.

Full-time employees who generally do not work 40 hours per week (usually work 32) and generally work a set schedule fall under a specific set of circumstances in relation to holidays. When there is a LLVARE-paid holiday that falls on the day the employee generally does not work, the employee can either work 24 hours that week and take the holiday off (thereby getting paid for 32 hours) or work 32 hours and not claim the holiday, but the employee cannot work 32 hours and then claim 8 hours for a holiday.

If a holiday falls during an employee’s vacation, the holiday will not be considered a day of paid vacation. Only the non-holiday period will be charged to vacation.

Non-exempt employees who work on designated holidays will be paid for their hours worked in accordance with applicable law and will also receive pay for the equivalent of one regular workday at straight time pay. Compensated holidays (including additional holiday pay at a rate equivalent to that for a regular workday paid at straight time) are not hours worked and are, therefore, not counted in making overtime calculations.

Part-time employees who accrue paid leave will be paid for holidays at the rate of four (4) hours per day, regardless of the number of hours the employee usually works.

If an employee has formally requested vacation by use of a Leave Request and someone other than LLVARE’s Executive Director or her designee (such as the Pettis VA Medical Center Director or the Associate Chief of Staff for Research or your supervisor) tells staff who are at work to go home early, the employee who has formally requested vacation abides by the original request. The Leave Request is not changed as a result of such direction.

If an employee has formally requested vacation by use of a Leave Request and LLVARE’s Executive Director or her designee announces that LLVARE employees may have time off in addition to the observed holidays listed in your Employee Handbook, the employee may change his/her vacation request to reflect the additional time off as a Holiday for pay and leave purposes.

JURY DUTY AND WITNESS DUTY

LLVARE encourages employees to perform their civic duty and to fulfill jury and witness duty obligations. Employees who receive a summons to jury duty or who are subpoenaed as witnesses must notify their supervisor immediately.

For those days you serve on jury duty and which you were regularly scheduled to work, you will be paid your regular rate of pay for a maximum of 80 hours from the date stated on the official jury summons. Employees must obtain a certificate of jury service from the court and provide it to their supervisor. You are expected to report to work if you are excused from jury duty during regularly scheduled hours. Jury duty time is nonproductive time and is not counted for purposes of overtime calculation.

Authorized absence will be granted for attending court as a witness on behalf of the Federal, state, or local government or for jury duty. An employee on court leave, jury or witness duty (on behalf of the Federal, state, or local government) will continue to receive pay and benefits as normally entitled.

Employees who are subpoenaed to appear as a witness for a private party will not be compensated for their jury duty unless they use vacation, except that exempt employees will be paid their normal salary for workweeks during which they testify , provided that they also perform some company work during that week. Should work time remain after any day of testimony, employees are expected to return to work for the remainder of their work schedule. Employees must provide LLVARE with a document from the court within 5 (five) working days after his/her return to work. Employees are responsible for notifying their supervisor immediately after receiving the summons to appear for a court appearance during scheduled work hours. A copy of this notice should be attached to the applicable timesheet.

LLVARE will not pay jury duty or witness duty benefits for absences of employees accused of a crime in order to attend legal proceedings relating to the accused crime

FAMILY-RELATED LEAVES

State and Federal law provide for unpaid time off from work for a variety of family-related reasons. LLVARE will honor requests for time off under these laws and cooperate with employees to help balance family and work needs. In some cases, these leaves may be coordinated with existing sick leave and vacation leave to provide pay during time off. Time off to attend school-related activities for children of employees will be granted according to the operational needs of the department up to 8 hours/month not to exceed 40 hours/year. Time spent may be charged against the employee’s vacation leave balance; exempt employees who take time off for school leave of less than 8 full hours will not have their pay (or vacation bank) docked. If a nonexempt employee’s leave balance falls below zero, unpaid time off will be granted.

There are several State and Federal laws that govern family-related leaves, with requirements specific to the type of leave requested. The California Family Rights Act (CFRA) works in conjunction with the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA detailed below) and the Pregnancy Disability Act to allow for disability leaves related to pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions.

The Family Medical Leave Act runs concurrently with the California Family Rights Act unless the employee is disabled by pregnancy. If the employee is disabled by pregnancy, Pregnancy Disability Leave runs concurrently with FMLA, and the employee will be entitled to CFRA leave after she is no longer disabled by the pregnancy.

During any leave period, LLVARE requires the substitution of vacation and then sick leave except where otherwise required by law. For FMLA and CFRA-based leave, employees are required to substitute vacation regardless of the reason for the leave, but this substitution of sick leave is required only for absences necessitated by the employee’s own serious health condition, rather than for the care of family members or domestic partners. For any period of time during which an employee receives workers’ compensation or temporary disability benefits, LLVARE allows but does not require the substitution of paid leave. Employees substituting workers’ compensation or disability benefit payments with paid leave cannot receive a combined total of more than their regular day’s wages for any given day in which they receive benefits.

FAMILY MEDICAL LEAVE POLICY

The Leave Policy

Pursuant to the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and the California Family Rights Act (CFRA), you may be eligible to take an unpaid family or medical leave of absence of up to 12 weeks in a 12-month period. Eligible employees may take a maximum of 12 weeks of unpaid leave in a rolling 12-month period measured backward from the date an employee uses any family medical leave. To be eligible for a Family/Medical Leave, you must have: (1) worked for LLVARE for at least 12 months; (2) have worked at least 1,250 hours in the last 12 months; and (3) be employed at an office with at least 50 LLVARE employees within 75 miles of that location. Any leave taken pursuant to this policy, which qualifies as leave under FMLA/CFRA, will be counted against your available leave under the applicable LLVARE policy, as well as the available leave under FMLA/CFRA, to the extent permitted by applicable law.

Reasons for Leave

If you are eligible, you may take FMLA/CFRA for any of the following reasons: (1) the birth of a son or daughter and in order to care for said son or daughter; (2) the placement of a son or daughter with you for adoption or foster care; (3) to care for your spouse, child, or parent with a serious health condition; (4) because of your own serious health condition, which renders you unable to perform the functions of your job. Leave taken for the birth, adoption, or foster care placement for your child must be concluded within one year following the child’s birth or placement with you. In addition, at the end of an employee’s period(s) of pregnancy disability leave (see below), a CFRA-eligible employee may request a CFRA leave of up to 12 workweeks for reason of the birth of her child, if the child has been born by this date. There is no requirement that either the employee or child have a serious health condition. Nor is there a requirement that the employee no longer be disabled by her pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical condition before taking a CFRA leave for reason of the birth of her child.

Spouses or registered domestic partners who are both employed by LLVARE may take a maximum combined total of twelve (12) weeks for FMLA/CFRA leave in a 12-month period for the birth, adoption, or foster care placement for their child or to care for a parent with a serious health condition. Employees are allowed to take CFRA leave (but not FMLA leave) to care for an ill domestic partner and/or child of a domestic partner. (Only CFRA applies to domestic partners; FMLA does not apply.)

You may not be granted FMLA/CFRA leave to gain employment or work elsewhere, including self-employment. If you misrepresent facts in order to be granted FMLA/CFRA leave, you will be subject to immediate termination.

Notice of Leave

If your need for FMLA/CFRA is foreseeable, you must give LLVARE at least 30 days’ prior written notice. Failure to provide such notice may be grounds for delaying your leave. Where the need for leave is not foreseeable, you are expected to notify LLVARE as soon as practicable, generally within 1 to 2 business days of learning of your need for leave.

Medical Certification

If you are requesting leave because of your own or a covered family member’s or domestic partner’s serious health condition, you and the relevant health care provider must supply appropriate medical certification. You may obtain Medical Certification forms from the HR department. The medical certification must be provided to LLVARE within 15 days after it is requested, or as soon as reasonably possible under the circumstances. Failure to provide medical certification in a timely manner may result in denial of leave until it is provided. Under certain circumstances, LLVARE, at its expense, may require an examination by a second health care provider to conduct an examination and provide a final and binding opinion. LLVARE may also require medical re-certification periodically during the leave, and you will be required to present a fitness-for-duty verification upon your return to work following a leave for your own illness.

Reporting While on Leave

During your FMLA/CFRA leave, you may be required to contact your workplace supervisor and/or HR department periodically to report on your condition/situation and your intention to return to work.

Leave is Unpaid

FMLA/CFRA leave is unpaid leave. Workers’ compensation (and short-term and long-term disability) may cover part of the 12-week leave period when the leave is requested due to your own serious health condition. Paid Family Leave (see below) may cover part of the 12-week leave period when the leave is requested due to the serious health condition of a family member or domestic partner. The substitution of paid leave time for unpaid leave time does not extend the 12-week Family/Medical leave period.

Medical and Other Benefits

During an approved FMLA/CFRA leave, LLVARE will maintain your health benefits, as if you continued to be actively employed. If paid leave is substituted for unpaid Family/Medical leave, LLVARE will deduct your portion of the health plan premium as a regular payroll deduction. If your leave is unpaid, you must pay your portion of the premium during the leave. Your group health care coverage may cease if your premium payment is more than 30 days’ late. If LLVARE pays the missed employee premium contributions, you will be required to reimburse LLVARE for the delinquent payments. If you do not return to work at the end of the leave period, you may be required to reimburse LLVARE for the cost of the premiums paid by LLVARE for maintaining coverage during your unpaid leave, unless you cannot return to work because of a serious health condition or other circumstances beyond your control. The obligation to maintain health benefits is for a maximum of 12 workweeks in a 12-month period.

Intermittent and Reduced Schedule Leave

FMLA/CFRA leave because of a serious health condition may be taken intermittently (in separate blocks of time due to a single covered health condition) or on a reduced leave schedule (reducing the usual number of hours you work per workweek or workday) if medically necessary. You are required to make a reasonable effort to schedule medical treatment so as not to unduly disrupt LLVARE’s operations, subject to the approval of your health care provider, or the health care provider of your family member, as appropriate. If the leave is unpaid, LLVARE will reduce your salary based on the amount of time actually worked. In addition, while you are on an intermittent or reduced schedule leave, LLVARE may temporarily transfer you to an available alternate position which better accommodates your recurring leave and which has equivalent pay and benefits.

Returning from Leave

Generally, upon return from FMLA/CFRA leave, you will be reinstated to your same position or to an equivalent position with equivalent pay, benefits, and other employment terms, to the extent required by law. However, you have no greater rights to reinstatement or to other benefits and conditions of employment than if you had not taken the FMLA/CFRA leave. As provided by law, under certain circumstances, reinstatement following FMLA/CFRA leave may be denied. In addition, any right to reinstatement terminates if you fail to return to work at the end of an approved leave, in accordance with applicable laws. An employee whose employment is terminated under these circumstances may still apply for vacancies the employee is qualified to fill.

If you take leave because of your own serious health condition, you are required to provide medical certification that you are fit to resume work. Employees failing to provide a release to return to work when required to do so will not be permitted to resume work until the release is provided. Additionally, LLVARE reserves the right to require a fitness-for-duty examination before allowing employees to return to work.

Pregnancy Disability Leave Policy

Pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions will be treated like any other disability, and an employee on leave will be eligible for temporary disability benefits in the same amount and degree as any other employee on leave.

Any female employee planning to take pregnancy disability leave should advise Human Resources as early as possible. The individual should make an appointment with the Human Resources manager to discuss the following conditions:

Leave does not need to be taken in one continuous period of time and may be taken intermittently, as needed. Leave may be taken in increments of 15 minutes.

Under most circumstances, upon submission of a medical certification that an employee is able to return to work from a pregnancy disability leave, an employee will be reinstated to her same position held at the time the leave began or to an equivalent position, if available. An employee returning from a pregnancy disability leave has no greater right to reinstatement than if the employee had been continuously employed.

Paid Family Leave Policy

California’s Paid Family Leave (PFL) is unemployment compensation disability insurance paid to workers who suffer a wage loss when they take time off work to care for a seriously ill family member or domestic partner or bond with a new child. Claims are payable on or after July 1, 2004. Benefits will not be payable for leave taken prior to July 1, 2004. California’s Paid Family Leave Policy will be administered in accordance with applicable law. Employees must use available vacation (up to 2 weeks) before collecting benefits. It is the responsibility of an employee on family or medical leave to apply for PFL, as applicable. For more information about PFL benefits, please visit the EDD’s internet site at www.edd.ca.gov.

LEAVE OF ABSENCE

We realize that an unpaid leave of absence due to a prolonged illness, accident, or other compelling reason is sometimes necessary. Unless otherwise required by applicable federal or state law, the granting of a leave of absence is discretionary with LLVARE and should be properly arranged through your supervisor. The term “leave of absence” means an approved absence from work, without pay, for a period of time in excess of five (5) working days (except in the instance of intermittent leave for approved Family/Medical leave).

Extensions for a leave of absence must be in writing and must be submitted to your supervisor prior to the expiration of the approved leave of absence. Unless otherwise required by federal or state law, there is no guarantee an extension of the leave of absence will be approved.

Extensions for a leave of absence for medical reasons may require a note from your physician showing the necessity for the medical extension of your leave of absence prior to expiration of the current leave.

At the end of an approved leave, an effort will be made to reinstate you to your original position or to an available position for which you are qualified. However, unless otherwise required by applicable state or federal law, LLVARE does not guarantee that there will be a position available for you at the end of your leave.

Employees returning from a leave necessitated by medical reasons may be required to provide a doctors’ release before they will be able to return to work.

You will be asked to read and sign that you understand and agree with the following:

I understand that:

  1. I am still an employee of LLVARE while on leave. I will not accept employment with any other company during the period of this Leave of Absence. I realize that, should I accept other employment during this time, my employment with LLVARE will be terminated.

  2. I will return to work on the scheduled date or notify my supervisor or LLVARE representative to request an extension of my Leave of Absence.

  3. I will be subject to termination for failure to comply with either of the above conditions.

  4. I will be reinstated in my former position, or a similar one, unless business needs dictate otherwise or unless mandated by law.

  5. In the event of compelling conditions, I may apply for an extension of my Leave of Absence. Applications must be made for such extensions to LLVARE’s Human Resources Department, Chief of Operations, or Executive Director. Approval must be obtained prior to expiration of my current Leave of Absence.

  6. It is my responsibility to make arrangements for payment of benefit costs with LLVARE during my leave. Such arrangements should be made before I commence my leave. If not paid, I understand that my benefit coverage is subject to cancellation.

  7. I understand that I will not accrue paid time off during any unpaid portion of my leave.

  8. I understand that, should I decide not to return to work at the end of this leave of absence or should I return to work but fail to work 30 calendar days, LLVARE can seek to recover the cost of group health insurance premium payments LLVARE made during any unpaid part of the leave.

I have read and agree to accept the conditions set forth above.

LEAVE WITHOUT PAY

Hourly employees can take leave without pay (LWOP) with the permission of their supervisor. If leave without pay is taken because the employee is sick and their sick leave bank is exhausted, the employee must follow the same procedure as they do when “calling in sick.” This procedures is as follows:

Employees must notify their supervisor within 1/2 hour of their regular starting time each day when they are absent due to illness. If unable to personally reach your supervisor by phone (do not rely solely on a voice mail message, as they are not consistently reliable), phone the LLVARE office at 909-583-6250 and ask that your supervisor receive the message that you are out ill.

If the leave without pay is taken for personal reasons (not sick), the employee must secure permission in advance from their supervisor and record the hours on their time sheet and Leave Request form as LWOP.

If a salaried employee wishes to take leave without pay, he or she must contact the Human Resources department for guidance.

BEREAVEMENT LEAVE

A bereavement period is a time when you need to know that the people you work with care about you and your family. We will make every effort to meet your needs for time off during this period. In addition, as part of our commitment to you, we will provide bereavement pay for up to 2 days of regularly scheduled work. This benefit covers death in the employee’s immediate family as follows: spouse, child, stepchild, brother, sister, parent, grandparent, grandchild, and spouse’s parent. In addition to the 2 days, you can take up to an additional 8 days of sick leave, if you wish, and if you have the sick leave accrued.

SICK LEAVE

Sick leave is a form of insurance that employees accumulate in order to provide a cushion for incapacitation due to illness. It is intended to be used only when actually required to recover from illness or injury; sick leave is not for “personal” absences. Time off for medical and dental appointments will be treated as sick leave. LLVARE will not tolerate abuse or misuse of your sick leave privilege and may withhold sick pay if it suspects that sick leave has been misused.

While sick leave is primarily for use for an illness of the employee, up to two-thirds of an employee’s accrued sick leave balance may be used to care for specific family members (see Kin Care, below).

Employees returning from sick leave may be required to provide a doctors’ release before they will be able to return to work.

Employees eligible for paid sick leave benefits include full-time and part-time employees. Casual employees are not eligible for paid sick leave. Sick leave benefits begin to accrue to eligible employees from their first day of employment. Regular full-time employees are credited with 4 hours per pay period; part-time employees are credited with 0.05 hours for every 10 hours worked. (For example, a person regularly scheduled to work 20 hours per week will be credited with 2 hours of sick leave per pay period.)

Unused sick leave benefits may accumulate from year to year. The maximum sick leave accrual balance allowed is 240 hours. If an employee’s sick leave balance reaches 240 hours, accrual will be suspended until the balance is reduced.

Under no circumstances will employees be paid for unused sick leave benefits.

LLVARE may require an employee to submit a Medical Certification Form to Human Resources during or after any unpaid sick leave, as well as submittal of a Medical Release Form, prior to the employee’s return to work.

No advances on sick leave are allowed. Unless taken in connection with intermittent or reduced-schedule leave pursuant to the FMLA, exempt employees must take sick leave in eight (8) hour increments, part-time employees must take sick leave in four (4) hour increments, and full-time, nonexempt employees must take sick leave in one (1) hour increments. When taken in connection with intermittent or reduced-schedule leave pursuant to the FMLA, sick leave will be charged in increments of ¼ hour for all employees.

Employees must notify their supervisor within 1/2 hour of their regular starting time each day when they are absent due to illness. If unable to personally reach your supervisor by phone (do not rely solely on a voice mail message, as they are not consistently reliable), phone the LLVARE office at 909-583-6250 after 8:00 a.m. and ask that your supervisor receive the message that you are out ill.

Kin Care

California regulations state that employees may use up to one-half of their yearly sick leave accrual to attend to a child, parent, spouse, registered domestic partner, or registered domestic partner’s child who is ill. LLVARE has expanded this regulation such that up to two-thirds of the employee’s accrued sick leave balance may be used to care for the specific individuals named in this section (named above and defined below). Leave for this purpose may not be taken until it has actually accrued.

For purposes of sick leave use, a “child” is defined as a biological, foster, or adopted child; stepchild; or a legal ward. A “child” also may be someone for whom you have accepted the duties and responsibilities of raising, even if he or she is not your legal child.

A “parent” is your biological, foster, or adoptive parent; stepparent; or legal guardian.

A “spouse” is your legal spouse according to the laws of California, which do not recognize “common law” spouses (a union that has not been certified by a civil or religious ceremony).

All conditions and restrictions placed on an employee’s use of sick leave apply also to sick leave used for care of a child, parent, or spouse.

MILITARY LEAVE

Employees who are required to attend annual military reserve training or other active military duty are granted leave with regular pay for up to 15 working days per year. Leave for additional military service may be taken as regular vacation or as unpaid leave, except that exempt employees will be paid their normal salary for workweeks during which they perform military duty, provided that they also perform some company work during that week. Employees who take military leave are entitled to return to their jobs as provided under federal and state laws. Employees should bring any military orders to the attention of their supervisor on the first working day after receiving the notice. A copy of the orders must be supplied to the LLVARE Administrative Office.