Leaves of Absence
Guidelines
The Boulder Campus leave benefits can be found on the campus . Leave usage by Classified Employees is governed by the State of Colorado, Department of Personnel's . The information found on this college site is for summary reference only. Please be sure to consult the campus Human Resources website for detailed policy information and guidance.
Types of Leave
Administrative Leave
Administrative leave must be granted in certain situations per state personnel board rules and may be granted a the discretion of the appointing authority in other situations. Please refer to .
Annual Leave
Annual leave is for an employee’s personal needs and use is subject to the approval of the appointing authority.
- The appointing authority may establish periods when annual leave will not be allowed, or must be taken, based on business necessity.
- These periods cannot create a situation where the employee does not have a reasonable opportunity to use requested leave that will be subject to forfeiture.
- If the department cancels approved leave that results in forfeiture, the forfeited hours must be paid before the end of the fiscal year.
- Leave accrual rates are based on length of service as outlined below:
| Years of Service | Hours/Month | Maximum |
| 1-5 | 8 | 192 |
| 6-10 | 10 | 240 |
| 11-15 | 12 | 288 |
| 16+ | 14 | 336 |
Bereavement Leave
Bereavement leave provides up to 40 hours (pro-rated for part-time work or unpaid leave in the month) at the discretion of the appointing authority.
Family Medical Leave
Family Medical Leave provides eligible employees with up to 13 weeks (520 hours) of Family Medical Leave during a rolling 12 month period, measured backwards from the day they use Family Medical Leave for the following reasons:
- The birth and care of a newborn child (for an employee who has pregnancy status and is not eligible for Family Medical Leave, the employee may be entitled to leave as an under the Colorado pregnancy law);
- The placement and care of a child from adoption or foster care;
- To care for a spouse, civil union partner or domestic partner, child, or parent with a serious health condition;
- An employee’s own serious health condition;
- Active duty family leave for qualifying exigency directly related to, being called to, or on active duty for a contingency operation; or
- Up to 26 weeks (1,040 hours) in a single 12-month period for military caregiver leave for a service member who is seriously ill or injured in the line of duty while on active duty.
Procedures for Requesting Family Medical Leave
- Staff member notifies Supervisor and Campus Human Resources' Family Medical Leave Act Coordinator regarding need to request Family Medical Leave by completing and submitting the Family Medical Leave Request Form for Classified and University Staff via email to:
- taylor.craven@colorado.edu, and
- Employee supervisor.
- Campus Human Resources' Family Medical Leave Act Coordinator determines Family Medical Leave Act eligibility within five business days of receiving request.
- If eligibile, Campus Human Resources Family Medical Leave Act Coordinator notifies employee of eligibility and provides the following to employee:
- Notice of Eligibility and Rights and Responsibilities,
- Medical Certification for Employee's Serious Health Condition or Medical Certification for Family Member's Serious Health Condition,
- ​ for Employee or for Employee’s Family Member, and
- Copy of Position Description (if leave request is for employee's serious health condition).
- If not eligible, Campus Human Resources' Family Medical Leave Act Coordinator notifies employee of ineligibility and provides the following to employee:
- Americans with Disabilities Act information.
- If eligibile, Campus Human Resources Family Medical Leave Act Coordinator notifies employee of eligibility and provides the following to employee:
- Staff member provides the following to medical provider:
- or with Section II completed,
- ,
- Copy of Position Description (if leave request is for employee's serious health condition), and
- Staff member returns the completed Medical Certification to Campus Human Resources' Family Medical Leave Act Coordinator within 15 business days of receiving forms.
- Campus Human Resources' Family Medical Leave Act Coordinator reviews the Medical Certification.
- If sufficient, Campus Human Resources' Family Medical Leave Act Coordinator will provide the following to employee with cc: to the Supervisor and the College of Arts and Sciences' Human Resources Service Center:
- Designation Notice,
- Fitness To Return Certification (if leave request is for employee's serious health condition and health condition is not pregnancy),
- Short Term Disability information (if leave request is for employee's serious health condition),
- My Leave instructions for recording time, and
- Supervisor will review Designation email and direct any questions to Campus Human Resources Family Medical Leave Act Coordinator.
- If not sufficient, Campus Human Resources' Senior Family Medical Leave Act Consultant will review Medical Certification and will be responsible for authenticating/clarifying by:
- Notifying College of Arts and Sciences' Director of Personnel.
- If sufficient, Campus Human Resources' Family Medical Leave Act Coordinator will provide the following to employee with cc: to the Supervisor and the College of Arts and Sciences' Human Resources Service Center:
- College of Arts and Sciences' Human Resources Service Center enters leave and pay rate change (if applicable) in HCM (Human Resources software).
- Staff member tracks and records leave in My Leave.
- Supervisor monitors Family Medical Leave for timesheet approval.
- Employee/Supervisor notifies the Campus Human Resources' Family Medical Leave Act Coordinator in situations where need for Family Medical Leave has changed (i.e., employee returns to work earlier than anticipated, employee needs to extend leave).
- Campus Human Resources' Family Medical Leave Act Coordinator will monitor Family Medical Leave Act time until leave is exhausted or case is closed.
Procedures for Fitness to Return Certification
- Campus Human Resources' Family Medical Leave Act Coordinator sends employee Fitness to Return form one week prior to expected return date as documented in the Designation Notice with cc: to supervisor.
- Staff member provides the Fitness To Return Certification to medical provider for completion and submits to the Campus Human Resources' Family Medical Leave Act Coordinator and Supervisor.
- Campus Human Resources Family Medical Leave Act Coordinator reviews Fitness to Return Certification and determines employee's eligibility to return to work.
- If employee is eligible to return with no restrictions, employee returns to work and Campus Human Resources' Family Medical Leave Act Coordinator notifies College of Arts and Sciences Human Resources Service Center and closes case.
- If employee is eligible to return with restrictions, Campus Human Resources' Employee Relations/Family Medical Leave Consultant works with unit and the Americans with Disabilities Act office regarding needed accommodations.
- If employee is ineligible to return and Family Medical Leave has not been exhausted, employee will need to provide an updated Medical Certification.
Holiday Leave
Holiday leave provides permanent full-time employees on the payroll when the holiday is observed with eight hours of paid holiday leave (pro-rated for part-time work or unpaid leave in the month) to observe ten designated holidays per the .
Jury Leave
Jury leave provides permanent (non-temporary) employees with paid leave for the term of the jury duty. Temporary employees receive paid leave for a maximum of three days.
Military Leave
Military leave provides paid leave for up to 15 working days in a fiscal year for permanent (non-temporary) employees. Unpaid leave is granted after the exhaustion of the 15 workdays up to the maximum allowed by law.
On-the-Job Injury Leave
On-the-job injury leave provides up to 90 occurrences of paid leave for an employee who suffers an injury or illness compensable under the Workers' Compensation Act.
Parental Leave
- In addition to the six months of unpaid parental leave, the Boulder campus will provide 240 hours of paid parental, prorated for percent of time if appointment is less than 100%, to eligible employees. University staff may also use sick and vacation accruals.
- If an employee terminates from the university within 30 days of completing parental leave, the university reserves the right to collect the amount provided under the university paid parental leave program.
- For employees experiencing a birth, adoption or foster care placement that occurred between January 1, 2018 and June 30, 2018, and has not exhausted the full six months of unpaid parental leave, the employee will be eligible for the 240 hours of paid parental leave. The amount of paid leave is capped by the six months entitlement within the twelve month deadline.
- There will be no retroactive payment for parental leave taken prior to July 1, 2018.
- The structure of the leave, block or intermittent, is based on supervisor discretion.
- Section II.A.3 will be removed from policy on July 1, 2019.
- All other terms and conditions for eligibility, definitions, and usage of the APS 5019 remain unchanged.
- Human Resources manages leave for this population.
Parental Academic Leave
Parental academic leave provides up to 18 hours (pro-rated for part-time) in an academic year for parents or legal guardians to participate in academic related activities.
Short Term Disability Leave
Short Term Disability leave provides up to six months of job-protected leave, including the 30 day waiting period, for employees with at least one year of state service while short term disability insurance benefit payments are being made. For questions regarding how to submit and/or complete an application, or if you have questions about disability benefits, please contact Employee Services at 303-860-4200.
Sick Leave
Sick leave is for health reasons only, including diagnostic and preventative examinations, treatment, and recovery. Accrued sick leave may be used for the health needs of the employee, employee’s child who is under the age of 18 or an adult child who is disabled, parents, spouse, injured military service member or veteran as established with State Personnel Rules, legal dependent, or a person in the household for whom the employee is the primary care giver. The appointing authority may require documentation of the familial relationship. Full-time employees accrue leave at 6.66 hours per month, for a maximum accrual of 360 hours (45 days).
The State of Colorado Medical Information Form is to be completed and signed by a health care provider for use of non-FMLA qualifying sick leave in excess of three (3) consecutive workdays.
Unpaid Leave
Unpaid leave may be approved at the discretion of the appointing authority unless otherwise prohibited. Probationary and trial service periods are extended by the number of days on unpaid leave. Employees must exhaust all applicable paid leave before being placed on unpaid leave.
Victim Protection League
Victim protection leave provides employees who have exhausted sick and annual leave with up to 24 hours (pro-rated for part-time employees) of unpaid leave, per fiscal year, for victims of stalking, sexual assault, domestic abuse, or violence.
Procedures for Requesting Leave
Leave requests are made via MyLeave, which is accessed via the Portal. A Step-by-Step Guide for setting preferences and submitting time in MyLeave can be downloaded from the .
Leave Balances When Terminating, Transferring, or Reinstating
For detailed information pertaining to leave balances when terminating, transferring, or reinstating, please refer to the .