The regular workweek for full-time employees covered by this
bylaw shall be 40 hours or such lesser number of hours as is set by
the employee's department head with the written approval of the
Town Administrator. In no event, however, shall the regular workweek
for a full-time position be less than 35 hours. The actual hours to
be worked by employees shall be scheduled by the applicable department
head.
An employee who is not exempt from the provisions of the Fair
Labor Standards Act will be compensated at a rate of 1 1/2 times his/her
regular hourly rate for all hours worked in excess of 40 during a
payroll week or eight in a day. Hours of paid leave taken during a
week other than paid sick leave shall be considered as "hours worked"
in determining whether an employee is eligible for overtime compensation
for that week. No employee shall be permitted to work beyond his/her
regular work hours without the explicit authorization of his/her department
head.
Except as otherwise provided in this bylaw, or applicable state or federal statute, all leaves of absence shall be without compensation or other benefits and shall be subject to the approval of the department head. When a leave of absence is occasioned by the medical disability of an employee, as ascertained under §
62-37B of this bylaw, after exhausting all available sick leave and vacation leave, the full-time employee shall be granted one day of additional sick leave for each month of such disability and a part-time employee shall be granted one part-time day for each month of such disability.
A. Leave without pay. Upon approval of the Board of Selectmen, or its
designee, an employee may be granted leave without pay for a specified
period of time not to exceed one year. At the expiration of a leave
without pay, the employee shall return to the position or to a similar
position. Failure of the employee to report promptly at the expiration
of such leave shall be considered a resignation. Leave without pay
shall not constitute a break in service. However, during leave without
pay vacation, personal leave, and sick leave shall not accrue.
B. Jury service. Full-time employees shall be allowed leave to fulfill
jury duty. If the jury fees, exclusive of travel allowances, received
by said employee for such jury duty shall be less than the regular
pay received by him/her from the Town, the difference between said
fees and regular pay shall be paid to such employee by the Town. However,
as a condition to receiving such payment, the employee agrees that
if during such jury duty he/she is discharged for the day or major
portion thereof during regular work hours, he/she will report to his/her
supervisor for such work as may be assigned. An employee performing
such jury duty and who desires the benefit of this subsection shall
be required to present weekly to his/her department head a certificate
by the court or any duly authorized representative as to the time
spent by the employee in such jury duty during such week.
C. Regular military service; re-employment. Leaves without pay shall
be granted to permanent full-time and part-time employees, excluding
temporary employees, who enter military service in accordance with
the provisions of the Acts of 1941, Section 708, as amended (Appendix
to General Laws Chapter 33), for the duration of a single enlistment
which, except for a national emergency as declared by the President
of the United States, will not exceed four years.
D. Military training leave. Any member of the Reserve Forces of the
United States who, in order to receive military training not exceeding
17 days in any one calendar year, leaves a position of regular full-time
employment with any Town department and who first shall give notice
to his/her department head of the date of departure and date of return
for the purpose of military training, and who shall give evidence
to his/her department head of the satisfactory completion of such
training immediately thereafter, shall be entitled to treat such time
of absence for military training as military leave time and be compensated
therefor by the Town in an amount equivalent to the difference between
his/her normal rate of pay from the Town and the base pay received
by him/her from his/her reserve unit. Such employee shall provide
evidence satisfactory to his/her department head of the base pay he/she
received from said reserve unit during said period of time. The employee's
absence for military training shall not affect the employee's
right to receive normal vacation, sick leave, advancement and other
advantages of his/her employment normally to be anticipated in the
employee's particular position. In lieu of military leave time
and compensation therefor as provided above, the employee shall be
entitled to treat such time of absence for military training as part
or all of the vacation time to which he/she is entitled and be paid
in full for said time upon request prior to departure, notice of date
of departure and return for the purpose of military training being
first given by the employee to his/her department head.
E. Parental leave for purposes of giving birth or adoption.
(1) Per Massachusetts Maternity Leave Act (MMLA), as amended, a full-time male or female employee who has completed
his/her probationary period, or, if there is no such probationary
period, has been employed for at least three consecutive months, and
who is absent from his/her employment with the employer for a period
not exceeding eight weeks for the purpose of giving birth or adoption,
shall be granted a parental leave without pay if his/her request for
such leave is made to the department head at least two weeks in advance
of the anticipated date of departure. If an employee has accrued sick
leave or vacation credits at the commencement of his/her parental
leave, he/she may use such leave credits for which he/she may be eligible
under the sick leave or vacation provisions of this bylaw.
(2) At the expiration of the parental leave, the employee will be restored
to his/her previous position or similar position with the same status,
pay and length of service credit as of the date of his/her leave.
If during the period of the leave, employees in the same or similar
position in the department have been laid off through no fault of
their own, the employee will be extended the same rights and benefits,
if any, extended to employees of equal length of service in the same
or similar position in the department.
(3) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this bylaw to the contrary,
the parental leave granted under this article shall not affect the
employee's right to receive any contractual benefits for which
he/she was eligible at the time of his/her leave.
(a)
If, upon request of an employee, the department head grants
a leave beyond eight weeks, such leave shall be considered a regular
leave of absence without pay. The period of such unpaid leave shall
not be included in any computation of contractual benefits, rights,
or advantages.
(b)
Not later than two weeks prior to the expiration of the eight
weeks' parental leave, an employee may request a return to work
reduced time. If approved by the department head, said employee will
accrue benefits in the same proportion that such part-time service
bears to full-time service.
F. Family and medical leave. Under the Family and Medical Leave Act
of 1993 (FMLA), eligible employees are entitled to take up to 12 weeks
of unpaid, job-protected leave during a twelve-month period for specified
family and medical reasons.
(1) Eligibility.
(a)
An employee who has been employed by the Town for at least 12
months and has worked at least 1,250 hours in the Town's service
over the previous 12 months is eligible for FMLA leave.
(b)
Purposes for which FMLA leave may be taken. FMLA leave may be
taken for the following purposes:
[1]
For the birth and care of the newborn child of the employee;
[2]
For placement with the employee of a son or daughter for adoption
or foster care;
[3]
To care for an immediate family member (spouse, child, or parent)
with a serious health condition; or
[4]
To take medical leave when the employee is unable to work because
of a serious health condition.
(c)
Leave for birth and care, or placement for adoption or foster
care must conclude within 12 months of the birth or placement.
(2) Twelve-month period.
(a)
The twelve-month period in which the 12 weeks of FMLA leave
may be taken is a "rolling" twelve-month period measured backward
from the date an employee uses any FMLA leave. Thus, each time an
employee takes FMLA leave, the remaining leave entitlement would be
any balance of the 12 weeks that has not been used during the immediately
preceding 12 months.
(b)
For example, if an employee has taken eight weeks of leave during
the past 12 months, an additional four weeks of leave could be taken.
If an employee used four weeks beginning February 1, 2017, four weeks
beginning June 1, 2017, and four weeks beginning December 1, 2017,
the employee would not be entitled to any additional leave until February
1, 2018. However, beginning on February 1, 2018, the employee would
be entitled to four weeks of leave, and on June 1 the employee would
be entitled to an additional four weeks, etc.
(3) Serious health condition. As used in the FMLA, the term "serious
health condition" means an illness, injury, impairment, or physical
or mental condition that involves either:
(a)
Any period of incapacity or treatment connected with inpatient
care (i.e., an overnight stay) in a hospital, hospice, or residential
medical-care facility, and any period of incapacity or subsequent
treatment in connection with such inpatient care; or
(b)
Continuing treatment by a health care provider which includes
any period of incapacity (i.e., inability to work, attend school or
perform other regular daily activities) due to:
[1]
A health condition (including treatment therefor, or recovery
therefrom) lasting more than three consecutive days, and any subsequent
treatment or period of incapacity relating to the same condition,
that also includes:
[a] Treatment two or more times by or under the supervision
of a health care provider; or
[b] One treatment by a health care provider with a
continuing regimen of treatment; or
[2]
Pregnancy or prenatal care. A visit to the health care provider
is not necessary for each absence; or
[3]
A chronic serious health condition, which continues over an
extended period of time, requires periodic visits to a health care
provider, and may involve occasional episodes of incapacity (e.g.,
asthma, diabetes). A visit to a health care provider is not necessary
for each absence; or
[4]
A permanent or long-term condition for which treatment may not
be effective (e.g., Alzheimer's disease, a severe stroke, terminal
cancer). Only supervision by a health care provider is required, rather
than active treatment; or
[5]
Any absences to receive multiple treatments for restorative
surgery or for a condition which would likely result in a period of
incapacity of more than three days if not treated (e.g., chemotherapy
or radiation treatments for cancer).
(4) Intermittent leave. Under some circumstances, employees may take
FMLA leave intermittently; which means taking leave in blocks of time,
or by reducing their normal weekly or daily work schedule.
(a)
If FMLA leave is for birth and care or placement for adoption
or foster care, use of intermittent leave is permissible only with
prior approval of the Board of Selectmen.
(b)
FMLA leave may be taken intermittently whenever medically necessary
to care for a seriously ill family member, or because the employee
is seriously ill and unable to work.
(5) Use of paid leave time. An employee may choose to use accrued vacation
leave or personal leave to cover some or all of the FMLA leave. Also,
to the extent that the circumstances of the leave meet the Town's
usual requirements for the use of sick leave, the employee may elect
to use accrued sick leave. For example, an employee whose FMLA leave
is due to his/her own "serious health condition" would be able to
elect to use accrued sick leave during the FMLA leave. However, an
employee whose FMLA leave is for the purpose of caring for his/her
sick parent would not be able to use paid sick leave during his/her
FMLA leave since under the Town's policies sick leave may not
be used for family illness.
(6) Maintenance of health benefits. During the period that an employee
is on FMLA leave, the Town will maintain its usual contribution toward
the premium expense of the health insurance coverage in which the
employee is enrolled. The employee will be required to make arrangements
with the Town Treasurer for paying his/her share of the premium expense
during such leave.
(7) Notice requirements and certifications.
(a)
Employees seeking to use FMLA leave are required to provide
to their supervisor or department head 30 days' advance notice
of the need to take FMLA leave when the need is foreseeable and such
notice is practicable. When the approximate timing of the need to
take FMLA leave is not foreseeable, the employee will be expected
to provide notice to the Town as soon as practicable under the facts
and circumstances of the particular case.
(b)
The Town may also require employees to provide:
[1]
Medical certification supporting the need for leave due to a
serious health condition affecting the employee or an immediate family
member;
[2]
Second or third medical opinions (at the Town's expense)
and periodic recertification; and
[3]
Periodic reports during FMLA leave regarding the employee's
status and intent to return to work.
(c)
When intermittent leave is needed to care for an immediate family
member or the employee's own illness, and is for planned medical
treatment, the employee must try to schedule treatment so as not to
unduly disrupt the Town's operation.
(8) Job restoration.
(a)
Upon return from FMLA leave, an employee will be restored to
the employee's original job, or to an equivalent job with equivalent
pay, benefits, and other terms and conditions of employment.
(b)
In addition, an employee's use of FMLA leave will not result
in the loss of any employment benefit that the employee earned or
was entitled to before using FMLA leave, nor be counted against the
employee under a "no fault" attendance policy.
(9) Further information. The United States Department of Labor's
Employment Standards Administration, Wage and Hour Division, has issued
detailed regulations that explain the rights of employees and employers
under the FMLA. A copy of these regulations is available at the Town
Administrator's office.
If any portion of the bylaws contained herein conflict with
the provisions of the Massachusetts Maternity Leave Act or the Family
Medical Leave Act, the provisions of the applicable statute shall
prevail. In addition the MMLA and the MCAD's interpretation will
apply in all questions related to qualifying circumstances for use
of both MMLA leave and FMLA leave in same twelve-month period.
G. Domestic violence leave. Employees who are impacted by domestic violence,
if eligible, and in accordance with MGL c. 149, § 52E, may
elect to take leave under the Town's Domestic Violence Leave
Policy. See Appendix B, as amended.