5.2.4 Maternity Leave
Seattle Pacific University supports faculty and staff who welcome a new child by providing a combination of university-paid maternity leave and access to state and federal leave programs. This policy outlines available benefits and the steps employees should take before, during, and after leave.
Eligibility
Employees are eligible for the maternity leave benefit after one year of continuous employment in a regularly budgeted position in which the employee works a minimum of 20 hours per week (.50 FTE). Continuous employment is defined as employment of one year which is not interrupted by termination and reinstatement.
Completion of a faculty contract for an academic year (9mos - 11mos) also meets the one-year requirement.
SPU Paid Maternity Leave
After one year of service, SPU provides a paid maternity leave benefit equal to 30% of weekly pay:
6 weeks for a normal vaginal birth.
8 weeks for a cesarean section or medically certified traumatic birth (documentation required).
If you need additional leave for a related medical condition either before or after birth, please contact the HR Leave Administrator. Depending on your situation, your time off may qualify under SPU sick time off or medical leave. Please note that additional medical certification may be required to support your request.
Leave Coordination
SPU paid maternity leave may run concurrently with applicable Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) leave and Washington State Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML).
The Washington State Paid Family & Medical Leave Act (PFML) also provides options for two forms of maternity-related coverage. Beginning at the date of delivery, (usually) a six-week period of medical (post-natal) leave is approved. On rare occasions, this post-natal medical leave may be extended to eight weeks if the mother experiences complications related to pregnancy or birth. New parents may take up to 12 weeks of family leave (bonding leave) to bond with their new child. However, PFML caps the total benefit in your claim year to a total of 16 weeks if you use leave under both medical and family leave in the same claim year (may be extended to 18 weeks due to complications related to pregnancy or birth).
After completing SPU paid maternity leave, employees may immediately begin PFML bonding leave.
Your initial plan for maternity leave must be requested through the Absence request system in Workday.
Supplementing PFML Bonding Leave
Employees who accrue sick or vacation time off may supplement PFML bonding leave with their supplemental time off at 30% of weekly earnings if bonding leave is taken immediately after SPU paid maternity leave.
If bonding leave is not taken consecutively, employees may use vacation time off only to supplement PFML bonding leave.
Bonding leave can be taken intermittently; however, only vacation time off may be used for supplementation if not consecutive to initial maternity leave or if bonding leave extends beyond 16 weeks after birth (18 weeks if the mother experiences complicaitons related to pregnancy or birth).
Accrual and Benefits During Leave
Employees do not accrue vacation, sick time off, or receive retirement contributions for income received from PFML. Employees would only accrue vacation and sick time off on SPU paid leave dollars or sick/vacation time off hours reported during leave.
If the amount of SPU pay during leave is not sufficient to cover benefit-related deductions (such as medical, dental, vision, or life insurance), the unpaid balance will be placed in arrears and recovered when the employee returns to work. If the employee separates from the University before repayment, the outstanding arrears balance will remain the employee’s responsibility and must be repaid prior to separation.
While on an SPU paid time off (ex: 6 weeks of maternity leave) staff will receive scheduled holiday pay. If the staff member is not on an SPU paid leave (ex: PFML bonding leave) they will not receive SPU holiday pay.
Limitations and Exclusions
Temporary employees, short hour employees, employees scheduled to work fewer than 20 hours per week and those employed less than one year are not eligible for the maternity benefit.
Seattle Pacific University would like to ensure that employees who become pregnant while employed receive appropriate maternity related salary replacement and at the same time would like to encourage full disclosure between employees and their supervisors about their intentions for returning to work at the conclusion of maternity leave, so that supervisors and departments can plan appropriately.
The salary replacement offered through the Maternity Leave benefit is available in all maternity leave circumstances. This continued salary replacement will be in place for employees who do not plan to return to work at the conclusion of the maternity leave, as well as for those who do plan to return or those who change their plans during the maternity leave.
Since benefits for maternity leave are designed to provide reasonable salary protection to employees for recovery from childbirth, payment for maternity leave will not be extended in length when holidays or Christmas closure occurs between the designated start and end of the leave. For example, if a staff member begins a 12 week leave of absence in the first week of December for childbirth, recovery, and care of the newborn they would receive six weeks of paid maternity leave through the second week of January regardless of closure or encompassing holidays and the remaining six weeks would be counted as unpaid FMLA leave and either paid through use of accrued vacation or will be unpaid if no accrued vacation time is available.
Like staff, eligible faculty on maternity leave are entitled to SPU paid leave for up 6 weeks. Unlike staff, however, faculty obligations come in 10-12 week quarters. What’s more, faculty who are the primary caregiver of a new child, by birth or adoption, are under similar constraints owing to the 10-12 week quarter. Deans are therefore expected to work out appropriate leave arrangements with affected and eligible faculty members which will vary by the time of the birth in the context of a quarter. As and where possible, deans are encouraged to provide leave for up to an entire quarter.
The SPU paid maternity leave benefit is designed to coordinate with WA PFML wage replacement. Employees should be aware that combined payments from all sources are not intended to exceed 100% of their regular weekly earnings. However, because WA PFML benefit amounts are not shared with SPU, there is a possibility that may occur. SPU will review and analyze the maternity leave benefit program on an annual basis to ensure responsible financial stewardship and to minimize the potential for employees receiving combined payments that exceed their regular earnings.