As an MCCC member you are entitled to sick, vacation and personal time. You are not required to give advance notice for sick time. You are not required to explain why you will be away for personal time. There are no black out dates in the contract for vacation time, which means you can’t be told that you may not take a vacation date based on Departmental or College policies.
Sick Time
Q – How much sick time do Unit Professionals get?
A – According to section 9.01 A of the contract, “All professional staff members shall be entitled to one hundred twelve and one half (112.5) hours [fifteen (12) days] of sick leave for each year of service.” This is accumulated at the rate of one and one-quarter days of sick leave a month.
Q – Can sick time be accumulated?
A – Yes. Sick time that isn’t used in any year can be accumulated.
Q – How may I use my sick time?
A – Sick time may be used when you can’t perform your job because of an illness or injury; when because of an illness you might infect others; when you need to care for a sick member of your household and when a spouse’s wife is having a baby. See the contract for specific language pertaining to the use of sick time.
Q – How many days can I take off to care for my sick child?
A – You may take up to fifty two and one half hours within the calendar year or seven working days within the fiscal year to care for a sick child or other member of your household.
Q – How do I let my employer know that I am sick?
A – according to section 9.01, A3, “Notification of absences shall be given as early as possible on the first (1st) day of absence.”
Q – Is there a Sick Bank, and how does it work
A – Yes we do have a Sick Bank which employees are in but can opt out of.
How the Sick Bank works: “Five (5) working days after the exhaustion of a sick leave bank member’s personal sick leave accumulation, compensatory time, and personal leave accumulation, every member of the Sick Leave Bank shall be entitled to draw upon the Sick Leave Bank, effective thereafter upon notice to the President of the College. The granting of such sick leave shall be subject to the same criteria as regular sick leave days and shall be in all other respects consistent with Employer policy; provided, however, that such sick leave shall be available only for the illness of the employee and not for the illness of the family.” You can read more about the Sick Bank in the Contract under 9.01,
Bereavement Leave
Q – How much time may I take off for a death in my family?
A – You may take up to seven consecutive days of paid time off for the death of a spouse, domestic partner, child or step child. You may take up to four consecutive days for the death of a grandparent, parent, step-parent, mother or father in-law, step-sibling, brother or sister. Should interment take place at a different time, the Unit member may ask for a deferment of one day. For more information, read the Bereavement section of the contract at 9.01 B
Military and Court Leave
Q – Are there provisions for Military and/or Court Leave.
A – Yes, there are provisions for both Military and Court Leave. Every unit member shall be entitled, during the term of that unit member’s service in the armed forces of the Commonwealth,under Sections 38, 40, 41, or 60 of Chapter 33 of the General Laws,or during that unit member’s annual tour of duty, not exceeding seventeen (17) days as a member of a reserve component of the armed forces of the United States, to receive pay therefor, without loss of that unit member’s ordinary remuneration and shall in addition be entitled to all leaves of absence provided under this Agreement. Regarding Court Leave, Unit members who are called for jury duty or are summoned to appear as witnesses on behalf of any town, city, county, state or federal government shall be granted court leave. For more information on Military Leave, and Court Leave and payments see the contract
Vacation
Q – How much vacation time do I receive?
A – All professional staff members who work a twelve (12) month year shall be entitled to annual vacation leave as set out in Subsection 2 A 1-5.
Q – How much vacation time is described in Subsection 2 A 1-5?
A – Effective January 1, 2020, all professional staff members shall be credited with vacation leave subject to the following:
- 1. For less than one year of service beginning July1 and ending on June 30,vacation leave of 0.076923 hours per hour of employment not to exceed one hundred fifty (150)hours. (20)days
- 2. For one (1) full year of service through seven (7) full years of service beginning on the first working day of July and ending on June30,vacation leave of 0.08461 hours per hour of employment. (22days)
- 3. For eight (8) full years of service through eleven (11) full years of service beginning on the first working day of July and ending on June 30, vacation leave of 0.088461 hours per hour of employment. (23 days)
- 4. For twelve (12) full years of service through nineteen (19) full years of service beginning on the first working day of July and ending on June30,vacation leave of 0.09230 hours per hour of employment. (24days)
- 5. For a professional staff unit member who has completed twenty (20) full years of service or more shall be granted vacation leave of 0.096153 hours per hour of employment for a total of twenty-five (25) days of vacation leave.
- 6. all unit members who have reached twenty-five (25) years of service by June 30, 2021, shall be entitled to begin accruing thirty (30) days of vacation leave on their anniversary date if still on active payroll service
For further information on the new schedule of vacation times, see the contract.
Q – For what period of time does the vacation year cover?
A – From July 1 to June 30th.
Q – Can vacation time be carried from year to year?
A – Yes, but there is a limit to how many hours you may carry from one year to the next. According to the contract, section 9.01 F3, “in no event shall vacation credits in excess of four hundred eighty (480) hours [sixty-four (64) days] be carried over for more than one (1) year unless otherwise approved by the Employer.”
Q – What happens to vacation time that I earned that is over 480 hours?
A – Effective July 1, 2019, an employee may carry over 375 hours (50days) of vacation leave from year to year; provided further that in no event shall vacation leave amounts inexcess of fifty(50) days be carried over for more than one (1) year. Notwithstanding the above, current employees with vacation leave amounts in excess of the fifty (50) days shall haveuntilJune30,2021to lower their accrued vacation leave amounts to or below the fifty(50) day limit.
Q – My supervisor informed me that I can not take vacation anytime in August. Is that true?
A – No. There are no blackout dates for vacation. Blocks of time when vacation is not permitted or blackout dates are prohibited by or contract.
For more information on Vacation Leave, consult the contract.
Holidays
Q – What Holidays do we get off?
A – New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King Day, Washington’s Birthday, Patriot Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veteran’s Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas. For more information on Holidays, consult the contract.
Q – We used to get Evacuation Day and Bunker Hill Day off? What happened to these holidays?
A – Those days are no longer part of the paid holidays.
Personal leave
Q – How many Personal Days do professional staff get?
A – Effective January 1, 2019, each professional staff member shall be entitled to thirty-seven and one half (37.5) hours (five (5) days) of personal leave per calendar year beginning on January 1 of each year. Those professional staff members with initial employment dates between January 1 and March 31 shall be allotted twenty-two and one half hours of personal leave [three (3) days], professional staff members with an initial employment date between April 1 and June 30 shall be allotted fifteen (15) hours personal leave [two (2) days], and those with initial employment dated on or after July 1 shall be allotted seven and one half (7.5) hours personal leave [one (1) day] for the remainder of the calendar year. For more information on Personal Days, consult the contract.
Q – How much notice do I need to give in order to get a Personal Day?
A –A unit member who wishes to use a personal day shall, whenever practicable, submit a request no later than three (3) days in advance. Such request shall not be unreasonably denied. Personal leave days may not be accumulated beyond the termination of the calendar year
Q – Are Personal Days the same as Professional staff “Off Campus” days?
A – NO. Professional staff “Off Campus” days constitute and entirely different type of leave that you are entitled to. Professional staff “Off Campus” days are in addition to the personal days described in the above question.
Q – What are Professional staff “Off Campus” days?
A – According to Article 12.04C6 – the following is stated about Off Campus Days in the contract:
“Upon request of a professional staff member, the President of the College or the President’s designee may assign up to three (3) days during the fiscal yearin half-day segments or greater for participation in off–campus activities outside those assigned under the provisions of 12.04; one of these days shall be granted for the day following the Thanksgiving holiday. Such requests shall not be unreasonably denied.” When entering Professional Time on your time sheets, use AOCAD. (Approved Off-Campus Activity.)
According to Dennis Fitzgerald, our Grievance Coordinator, Professional staff days have no reporting requirements. This means you don’t have to report on what you did during this time off, including on the day after Thanksgiving.
Q – When during the calendar do Professional staff “Off Campus” days and Personal Days run?
A – Professional Staff “Off Campus” Days run from July 1st until June 30th. Personal Days run the calendar year, from January 1 until December 31st.