Leave of Absence
TBD
Family Leave
The Family Medical Leave Act provides the following job protected leave benefits to eligible employees:
- Up to 12 work weeks of unpaid leave
- Ability to maintain existing medical benefits
Leave of absence under FMLA can be taken for:
- Birth & child care of an employee’s biological child during the first year of life.
- Adoption or foster care placement.
- Serious illness or health related, disabling condition of spouse, civil union partner, domestic partner, children or parents.
- Serious illness or health-related, work disabling condition of the employee.
Employees must have 12 months of service with NJIT and must have worked at least 1,250 hours in the twelve months immediately preceding the leave (if leave is for their own health condition) or 1,000 (if leave is for a family member) hours in the previous 12 month period in order to be eligible for FMLA. Sick leave is used concurrently with FMLA for employees on leave.
Military FMLA Leave
An eligible employee who is the spouse, child, parent or next of kin of a member of the armed forces, inclusive of national guard or reserves is eligible for up to 26 work weeks of family leave in a 12 month period to care for such person while she/he undergoes medical treatment or therapy on an in or outpatient basis or is on temporary disability for a service illness or injury.
Long Term Disability
ABP
Long Term Disability is available to employees who are enrolled in the Alternate Benefit Program (ABP). The ABP Plans include: TIAA-CREF, VOYA (ING Financial), MetLife, Equitable, Mass Mutual aka Hartford, VALIC and Prudential.
If you are expected to be disabled for six months or longer, you may be eligible for Long Term Disability.
- The benefit is 60% of pre-disability salary
- Medical insurance continues by paying required employee premiums
- Employee (5%) and employer (8%) contributions are made into the pension plan on behalf of employee
- Life insurance continues at the full amount of 3.5 times base salary the disability
- This benefit ends at age 70
Effective date of coverage: Automatic after one year of participation in the ABP program; if the required service is transferred from another NJ State pension fund, coverage becomes effective on the date of hire.
Insurance Carrier – Prudential Insurance Company
Cost – Non-contributory benefit
LTD Disability Application
Appeals Process: If your claim for benefits is denied you or your representative may appeal your denied claim in writing to Prudential within 180 days.
Reliance Long Term Disability
Full time employees who are not enrolled in the ABP can enroll in the Reliance LTD plan. The cost is 1.26% of base pay. Benefits become available 90 days after total disability. The employee will be paid 66 2/3 rds of their monthly earnings. The minimum monthly benefit is $100, the maximum benefit is $3,000.
Disability Retirement – PERS/PFRS
Disability Retirement is available for PERS members with 10 or more years of pension service or PFRS members with 4 or more years of pension service who become totally and permanently disabled.
- Complete an Application for Retirement Allowance via the Member Benefits Online System (MBOS)
- Send a copy of the Summary of Retirement Application Information to Human Resources
Family Leave
Under the Family Leave Insurance provision of the New Jersey Temporary Disability Benefits Law, cash benefits may be payable for up to twelve (12) weeks to bond with a newborn or newly adopted child or to provide care for a seriously ill family member.
The “Base Year” period is the 52 weeks immediately before the week in which your family leave began. Only New Jersey covered wages earned during the base year period can be used to establish a valid claim.
The seven consecutive days after the first date of your family leave claim is the “waiting week”. No benefits will be issued for the waiting week until benefits for any part of each of the following three weeks have been paid. However, if your family leave immediately follows leave for your own illness under State Plan temporary disability, there is no waiting period for Family Leave Insurance benefits.(Example: new mother bonding immediately after period of disability for pregnancy).
Weekly Benefit Rate
The weekly benefit rate for a State Plan Family Leave Insurance claim is based on your average weekly wage. The average weekly wage is generally based on how much you earn in the eight weeks immediately before your claim begins.
Important: To qualify in 2021, employee must have worked 20 weeks earning at least $220 weekly, or have earned a combined total of $11,000 in those four quarters (the base year). No one may receive more than twelve (12) weeks or sixty (60) days of benefits during the 12-month period, for any reason.
For more information regarding Family Leave Insurance, please contact the Department of Human Resources at (973) 596-3100.
As the name indicates, this leave is not a scheduled or programmed benefit but a leave provided at the discretion of NJIT under truly extraordinary circumstances. Employees who do not meet the qualification of any other leave will need to apply for an Extraordinary/Unpaid Leave. Terms of such leave are individualized. Please consult your collective bargaining unit agreement or contact the Department of Human Resources at ext. 3144 with any questions or concerns for eligibility.
Consult HR regarding paid leave for duty in the National Guard or any organized US reserve unit. (Refer to particular union contract.)