NYC Safe & Sick & Emergency Instance Leave
According to Article XX(A) of the collective bargaining agreement between ACT-UAW Local 7902, Article XXIX, of the AFL-CIO Local 802 collective bargaining agreement, and The New School, faculty members are entitled to take NYC Safe and Sick or Emergency Instance.
If an employee’s general health is causing frequent or regular absences, employees should be directed to contact Human Resources. Absences of three or more consecutive days should be reported to Human Resources and documentation will be requested. The existence of an illness or injury may support continued use of sick leave under short-term disability.
Safe & Sick Leave & Emergency Instance Procedure
When safe or sick leave is foreseeable, faculty members must provide seven calendar days’ advance written notice of their intention to take safe or sick leave to their supervisor and to the Human Resources department.
If safe or sick leave is unforeseeable, faculty members shall provide written notice of the use of the leave to their supervisor and to the Human Resources department as soon as reasonably practicable. A faculty member’s failure to provide the required timely notice may result in a denial of the leave, unless unusual circumstances justify the failure to comply.
Where the need for Emergency Instance or Safe and Sick Time is foreseeable, faculty are required to alert their college through its notification process or an absence form along with their Absence Plan for plan approval and then record their Safe & Sick or Emergency Instance time off request in MyDay.
Additional information regarding eligibility and accruals can be found by reviewing the university’s Sick Time policy. Instructions to complete the Safe & Sick and Emergency Instance request process can be found on the Part-Time Faculty Contract Implementation Hub website.
New York State Paid Family Leave
New York State’s Paid Family Leave (PFL) allows eligible employees to take up to 12 weeks of leave. General program information is available on the New York State Paid Family Leave website. The university will begin taking payroll deductions from faculty starting in March. The 2024 payroll contribution is 0.373 percent of an employee’s wages each pay period and is capped at
an annual maximum of $333.25. This deduction may fluctuate from pay period to pay period, depending on gross wages. The university will subsidize 50 percent of the faculty contribution rate. In
addition, we will impute income for NYPFL employer-paid premiums and report the payment of such premiums on behalf of the faculty in Box 14 of the employee’s W-2 form.
Faculty will be able to take up to 12 weeks of job-protected paid family leave:
- To bond with a child during the first 12 months following the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child
- To participate in providing care, including physical or psychological care, for a family member (child, spouse, domestic partner, parent, grandchild, grandparent, or parent of a spouse or domestic partner) with a serious health condition (defined
at the end of this policy)
- For qualifying exigencies, as interpreted by the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), arising out of the fact that a spouse, domestic partner, child, or parent is on active duty (or has been notified of an impending call or order to active duty)
in the armed forces of the United States
PFL is paid at 67 percent of the employee's average weekly wage, not to exceed 67 percent of the State Average Weekly Wage (SAWW), which is set annually by the New York State Department of Labor. For 2024, the SAWW is $1,718.15, so the maximum weekly
PFL benefit someone may receive is $1,151.16.
Paid Family Leave wages are based on what you've earned eight weeks before applying for New York State Paid Family leave.
Please read the New York State Paid Family Leave Statement for more details.
Opting Out of Paid Family Leave (PFL) Only those part-time faculty members who meet one of the following conditions may opt out of PFL:
- They work less than 20 hours per week and fewer than 175 days in a consecutive 52-week period.
- They work 20 or more hours a week but for fewer than 26 consecutive weeks in a 52-week period.
If you think you will meet one of these criteria, you may request to opt out. You will not be automatically excluded from the program. To request exclusion, you must submit the Employee Opt-Out of Paid Family Leave Benefits Form to the Human Resources Office for approval. The deductions will stop only after approval.
PFL Claim Submission Procedure
- Faculty should provide at least 30 days’ advance notice if the reason for PFL is foreseeable—for example, an expected birth, placement for adoption or foster care, planned medical treatment for a serious health condition of a family member or
covered service member, or known military exigency. If 30 days’ notice is not practicable, then notice must be given as soon as reasonably possible. Faculty must also advise the university as soon as possible when dates of a scheduled leave
change, are extended, or were initially unknown.
- To initiate a PFL request, faculty should email [email protected]. In addition, faculty who wish to use PFL benefits must complete the appropriate Request for Paid
Family Leave form and submit proof of claim documentation. Completed paperwork with applicable documentation will be submitted to the university's carrier, The Standard, for review and approval. Once approved, PFL wages will be paid by The
Standard by check sent on a weekly basis to the mailing address listed on the form.
Along with submitting the Request for Paid Family Leave form, you must also alert your college through their notification process or absence form along with your Absence Plan for plan approval.
Employee Notice
If you have questions regarding the Emergency Instance, Safe and Sick Time, and Paid Family Leave procedures, please contact the Benefits team at [email protected].
Short-Term Disability
Short-term disability benefits provide wage replacement for up to 26 weeks if you are not able to work because of a qualified medical condition. If you are absent from work for more than seven consecutive calendar
days due to a medical condition, including pregnancy, you may qualify for short-term disability benefits.
Benefits are payable to a maximum of 26 weeks as certified by your physician and subject to approval of the short-term disability carrier. If you are approved for short-term disability benefits, you are eligible to receive a wage replacement directly
from the short-term disability carrier equal to the New York State Disability benefit of 50 percent of your weekly pay to a maximum of $170 per week. Your wage replacement shall not exceed your base rate of pay.
In order to be approved for short-term disability benefits by the carrier, you must have earned wages for eight weeks before incurring the disability.
For more information or to apply for short-term disability benefits, please contact the Benefits Department at [email protected].
Workers' Compensation Insurance
Workers' Compensation Insurance provides cash benefits and/or coverage for medical care to employees who are injured or become ill as a direct result of their job with The New School. You must
notify your supervisor and contact the Security Office to file an incident report about the injury and the way in which it occurred as soon as possible. Failure to file an incident report in writing within 30 days after the incident may cause you
to lose the right to Workers' Compensation benefits. Incident report forms are available at all security guard desks. Employees who qualify for Workers' Compensation benefits will receive pay continuation according to the requirements of the state law
and our insurance plan.
Please refer to our Workers’ Compensation Notice for more information concerning your rights under Workers’ Compensation
benefits.