Article 32 – Maternity and Parental Leave

An employee shall qualify for maternity/adoption/parental leave (leave of absence without pay) after thirteen (13) weeks continuous employment with the University of Saskatchewan.

An Employee is entitled to apply for maternity leave without pay (see Article 32.06, Supplemental Benefits Plan).

The Employee is required to apply for this leave at least four (4) weeks prior to the commencement of the leave. The length and timing of the leave shall be consistent with the provisions in The Saskatchewan Employment Act (The Act). However, the Employee shall be entitled to no less than nineteen (19) consecutive weeks of maternity leave without pay.

In addition, the leave must commence on the date of the infant’s birth or at any time during the thirteen (13) week period prior to the infant’s estimated date of birth and shall be of uninterrupted duration.

The Employee must provide a certificate from a qualified medical practitioner to ConnectionPoint. The certificate must confirm the pregnancy and give the estimated date of birth.

An Employee who declares in writing to be the adoptive parent of an adopted child is entitled to adoption leave without pay (see Article 32.06, Supplemental Benefits Plan). The length and timing of the leave shall be consistent with the provisions in The Act. However, the Employee shall be entitled to no less than nineteen (19) consecutive weeks of adoption leave without pay.

The employee is required to apply for this leave at least four (4) weeks prior to the expected date the employee begins to care for the child (“care date”). If the employee cannot give four (4) weeks' notice, the University will accept as much notice as is given to the adoptive parents by Saskatchewan Social Services, the birth parent, or the adoption agency.

The leave must commence on the care date, or at any time during the thirteen (13) week period prior to the estimated care date, and shall be of uninterrupted duration. The Employee must provide official confirmation of custody to ConnectionPoint.

An Employee who qualified for maternity or adoption leave is also entitled to parental leave without pay (see Article 32.06, Supplemental Benefits Plan). The length and timing of the leave shall be consistent with the provisions in The Act. However, the Employee shall be entitled to up to fifty-nine (59) consecutive weeks of parental leave without pay.

The parental leave is in conjunction with the maternity or adoption leave and must be taken in one continuous period.

An Employee who did not qualify for maternity or adoption leave and who declares to be the parent of a newborn infant or of an adopted child is entitled to parental leave without pay (see Article 32.06, Supplemental Benefits Plan). The length and timing of the leave shall be consistent with the provisions in The Act. However, the Employee shall be entitled to up to seventy-one (71) consecutive weeks of maternity leave without pay. This leave shall be of uninterrupted duration.

The Employee is required to apply for this leave at least four (4) weeks prior to the commencement of the leave or as soon as possible in extenuating circumstances. The leave may commence at any time during the thirteen (13) week period prior to the estimated date of the infant’s birth or the day the child comes into the Employee’s care and must be completed within seventy-eight (78) weeks from the estimated date of the infant’s birth or the day the child comes into the Employee’s care. This leave shall be of uninterrupted duration.

The Employee must provide official confirmation of the infant’s birth or an official confirmation of custody of the adopted child to ConnectionPoint.

After nine (9) months of continuous service, an employee who qualifies for a leave as defined under Article 32.02, 32.03, 32.04 or 32.05 and is in receipt of Employment Insurance (EI) benefits is eligible to receive supplemental benefits. The Employer will provide a supplemental benefit of ninety-five (95%) (inclusive of EI) of weekly earnings (based on the Employee’s pre-leave earnings) for a period of up to fifteen (15) weeks (including the one (1) week waiting period) for Postdoctoral Fellows and for a period of up to twenty-one (21) weeks (including the one (1) week waiting period) for Research Associates.

In no case will the total amount of supplemental benefits, employment gross benefits, and any other employment earnings received by the Employee exceed ninety-five (95%) of the Employee’s regular weekly earnings (based on their pre-leave earnings).

Eligible employees as per Article 32.06 in receipt of extended parental EI benefits, shall receive supplemental benefits in the dollar amount equivalent to what they would have received during a twelve (12) month leave with standard EI benefits.

Postdoctoral Fellows, who qualify for a leave as defined under Article 32.02, 32.03, 32.04 or 32.05 and are eligible for continued funding for current salary under their granting agency during the leave period, are not eligible for supplemental benefits from the Employer, as long as the continued funding by the granting agency is equal to, or greater than, the supplemental benefits provided by the Employer.

During receipt of supplemental benefits, the Employer shall pay its respective shares of the cost of continuing benefit coverage. During the unpaid portion of the leave, the Employee will be eligible to continue their benefits by paying the full cost of the benefits coverage, unless prohibited by the benefit plan.

ln the event that an employee wished to breastfeed their infant at work, and provided the worksite is in an appropriate location as determined by the employee and the manager, the employee shall be allowed time off with pay for up to one (1) hour per day for this purpose, provided they have received approval from the appropriate manager. This arrangement may be provided for a maximum of six (6) months in duration.

The Employer shall modify the job functions of an Employee who is pregnant or nursing during the period from the beginning of pregnancy to the end of the fifty-second (52nd) week following the birth if any of their current functions may pose a risk to the Employee’s health or the health of the foetus or child. At the request of the Employer, Employees must provide medical information substantiating the need for modification of job functions.