Attendance
Attendance is an important part of the College’s performance and success. Poor attendance can have a substantial impact on the College’s operations, productivity, and efficiency. Importantly, attendance can also directly impact our students, their learning, and their experience at the College. Predictable and reliable attendance are essential functions to all positions at the College. Unscheduled absences, late arrivals, and early departures often cause productivity problems, are disruptive to the College, its operations, and the students it serves, and put additional burden on other employees to pick up the workload. Employees are responsible for regular and predictable attendance and punctuality. Employees are expected to come to work on time and ready to work. Excessive unexcused absenteeism, tardiness, or failure to comply with this policy may subject an employee to discipline, up to and including termination of employment. Absences that are taken in accordance with applicable federal, state, or where applicable, local law (e.g., FMLA, PFL, PSL, etc.) will not be considered as a basis for disciplinary or other personnel action and will constitute an excused absence.
An excused absence occurs when all the following conditions are met:
- The employee provides to his or her supervisor sufficient notice at least 48 hours in advance of the absence.
- The absence request is approved in advance by the employee’s supervisor.
- The employee has sufficient accrued paid time off (PTO) to cover the absence.
An unexcused absence occurs when any of the above conditions are not met. If it is necessary for an employee to be absent or late for work because of an illness or an emergency, the employee must notify his or her supervisor no later than the employee’s scheduled starting time on that same day. If the employee is unable to call, he or she must have someone make the call. Employees who will be absent or are absent for three or more consecutive workdays/shifts because of illness or injury will be required to provide The Office of Human Resources with documentation verifying the absences and also clearing the employee to return to work.
Employees are required to use Paid Time Off (PTO) for every absence unless otherwise prohibited by law. Accordingly, the College will deduct from an employee’s existing PTO bank (personal/vacation) for absences unless the need for the absence falls within a protected leave policy and the law prohibits an employer from requiring the use of PTO concurrently with such leave. If an employee has available PTO, it must be used to reach the required standard hours for the work week.
When possible, employees should schedule medical and personal appointments outside of work hours. However, the College recognizes that illnesses and emergencies may occur, and in such circumstances employees should follow the College’s general call-in procedure set forth below, or call-in procedures established by the Department and/or Division Head. Employees should also refer to the College’s leave of absence policies for more information on available leave in certain circumstances.