HRM-036: Use of Disaster Leave

Disaster leave may be granted to provide requested emergency services in a declared state of emergency or major disaster when requested by an authorized agency and approved in writing by the immediate supervisor. The amount of Disaster Leave permitted on an annual basis is:

• 5 business days for faculty (which includes academic, administrative and professional faculty), postdoctoral research associates, and senior research staff; and
• 40 hours for staff (which includes classified and University staff) and research assistants.

These amounts may be extended an additional 5 business days/40 hours, respectively, when requested and approved.

Classified Staff are covered under State policy, 4.17 Emergency Disaster Leave.

[Note: The University may assign an individual who provides emergency services as part of his/her normal job duties to assist in a disaster area. In such cases, this policy would not apply. The time will be treated as normal hours of work and will not be considered leave under this policy.]

Individuals who are victims of disasters (natural or man-made) may be granted paid time off as Disaster Leave with annual limits as noted above. (For more information, refer to Section 2, Leave for an Employee Who is a Victim of a Disaster.)

At the end of each calendar year, any unused hours will not carry forward and will not be eligible for cash payout.

Faculty and staff members activated under military orders, whether by state or federal authorization, refer to policy HRM-038, Faculty Leaves or the procedure on Military Leave.

1. Disaster Leave to Provide Emergency Services:

1. Requesting Disaster Leave to Provide Emergency Services: Faculty, staff, and professional research staff (includes research assistants, postdoctoral research associates, and senior research staff) must request Disaster Leave in accordance with procedures established by the University. The decision to grant leave is solely within the discretion of the immediate supervisor, taking into consideration the need for the individual’s assistance and the expected impact of the absence on the school or unit’s ability to maintain services.

2. Extended Leave to Provide Emergency Services: Faculty, staff and professional research staff asked by emergency/relief service authorities through a federal or state agency to extend their service beyond the first week (5 business days or 40 hours) of Disaster Leave, may request approval from their immediate supervisor to continue service and use a second week of leave.

Any emergency/relief service approved beyond the maximum must be performed using other sources of leave subject to the policies that govern such leaves (e.g., volunteer service leave, appropriate accrued leave, or leave without pay). [Refer to the University Human Resources website and employment category for these leave policies.]

3. Compensation, Benefits and Expenses during Use of Disaster Leave:
   Employees shall continue to receive normal salary and benefits during the use of approved Disaster Leave.

The University will not pay for expenses related to provid­ing emergency service, such as travel, food, lodging, supplies, equipment, etc.

4. Events that Qualify for the Provision of Emergency Services: Faculty, staff, and professional research staff may be granted leave to provide emergency services if all of the following criteria are met:

   • The geographic area is covered by an official declaration of major disaster by the President of the United States, or a declaration of a State of Emergency by the Governor of Virginia or the governor of another state; and, except for Classified Staff (unless otherwise authorized by the State), an international body or the government of a foreign country.
   • Public officials at the site of the disaster have requested from federal or state government officials the assistance of individuals with specialized skills or training.
   • The individuals possess the required specialized skills or training requested by the authorities.
   • Individuals present written requests to provide emergency services and obtain approval prior to using leave under this policy.

5. Evaluating Requests for Disaster Leave to Provide Emergency Services: The Office of Emergency Preparedness (OEP) coordinates requests received from federal and/or state government officials with applicable areas in the University. Leave shall be granted at the discretion of the immediate supervisor as noted below. In evaluating requests, the immediate supervisor (in consultation with department administration) should consider the need for the individual to provide the specified assistance and the expected impact of the individual’s absence on the school’s or unit’s ability to fulfill its mission.

All employees must request permission for leave to provide emergency services in response to a declared state of emergency or disaster from their immediate supervisor (e.g., department chair, unit manager, supervisor, principal investigator, etc.).

Prior to awarding paid leave, required documentation must be on file that establishes that the criteria outlined in Section 1D above have been met. The immediate supervisor shall make a recommendation: (1) based on the information as required in Section 1D above; and (2) written confirmation that adequate arrangements have been made to meet the individuals’ teaching or other job responsibilities during the requested leave of absence.

2. Disaster Leave For an Employee who is a Victim of a Disaster:

1. Leave for an Employee who is a Victim of a Disaster: Leave may be available under this policy to an employee who has sustained severe or catastrophic damage to or loss of his/her primary personal residence, or has been ordered to evacuate that residence, as a result of a natural or man-made emergency or disaster.

An employee requesting such leave must meet all criteria noted below:

• The event resulted in a formal declaration of a State of Emergency or of federal disaster status.
• The employee’s primary personal residence was located in the officially declared disaster area.
• The employee’s primary residence is temporarily or permanently uninhabitable as formally documented by disaster relief organizations or insurance companies.

The immediate supervisor has sole discretion for authorizing the use of Disaster Leave for an employee who is a victim of a disaster in the increments and up to the maximum permitted as noted previously. In cases for which it is impossible to request leave in advance (e.g., immediately following a disaster when communications are unavailable), paid leave may be granted retroactively by the supervisor upon written request.

The University will not pay for expenses incurred by the individual in recovering from the personal effects of a disaster.

3. Responsibilities:

The Office of Emergency Preparedness is responsible for:

• Confirming the declaration of a state of emergency or emergency or major disaster by the President of the United States, Governor of Virginia, governor of another state, an international body, or government of a foreign country;
• Coordinating requests from the Commonwealth of Virginia and relief organizations;
• Notifying (in collaboration with University Human Resources) the University community of a need for volunteers in a qualifying emergency situation;
• Coordinating the University’s effort in providing volunteers when an emergency situation has been declared;
• Developing information packets for employees with pertinent information regarding required inoculations, travel, and contact information with relief agency (checklist of requirements); and
• Establishing a process for employees to submit skills and certification information.

University Human Resources is responsible for:

• Communicating the Use of Disaster Leave policy;
• Notifying (in collaboration with OEP) the University community of a need for volunteers in a qualifying emergency situation;
• Obtaining current employee licensures/certifications with expiration dates;
• Maintaining a database of self-identified volunteers with respective skills and certifications;
• Corroborating that the employee possesses the relevant specialized skills or training;
• Contacting the supervisor and employee when a request has been made for specialized services;
• Receiving the signed Leave Approval Form from the employee;
• Assisting employees with questions pertaining to health insurance coverage and other benefits, policy and procedures relevant to disaster situations;
• Following up with employees upon return from the field with referral resources; and
• Monitoring and administering the leave process.

The Executive Vice President and Provost is responsible for:

• Communicating the Use of Disaster Leave policy to school deans and others as applicable;
• Advising the academic areas on good practices of implementation; and
• Serving as the primary resource on policies related to leave for faculty.

The supervisor, unit manager, department chair, principal investigator, dean or vice president is responsible for:

• Knowing and understanding this policy;
• Discussing with the employee and department administration, if necessary, the impact of the employee’s leave on business operations;
• Evaluating requests for Disaster Leave in a timely manner, and where applicable, submitting a recommendation for the leave;
• Verifying that required documentation is obtained and maintained on file in accordance with record retention requirements; and
• Ensuring that University services are maintained during the employee’s leave period.

Individuals requesting Disaster Leave are responsible for:

• Knowing and understanding this policy;
• Providing certification and/or licensure information and updating this information as necessary;
• Following established procedures to submit a request for leave;
• Discussing with supervisor the impact of leave on school/unit business operations;
• Assuming costs associated with travel, lodging, and meal expenses, if not otherwise provided by an outside entity;
• Providing the required documentation or verification as required in this policy; and
• Planning for continuation of important tasks during the absence.