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General policy

On : On occasion, an employee may find that personal, health, or family situations make it necessary to be absent from work. Reliant desires to support its employees in times of stress and, if possible, accommodate needs that can arise unexpectedly. Leaves of absence for limited periods of time will be permitted, in Reliant's sole discretion, depending on the reasons and circumstances that prompt such a request. Such a leave of absence must be supported by valid reasons and approved by both the local supervisor and the Reliant office. Leaves of absence are normally granted only for the reasons specified below.

Reliant employees may be eligible for up to 12 weeks of leave during a 12-month period if they have been employed by Reliant for at least 12 monthsone year. Employees may be eligible for family or medical leave for one of the reasons listed below:

• The birth of a child and in order care for the child
• The placement of a child with the employee for adoption or foster care and to care for the newly placed child
• To care for a child, spouse, or parent with a serious health condition
• When the employee is unable to perform the functions of his or her position due to a serious health condition
• When an employee’s spouse, son, daughter, or parent who is a member of the Armed Forces (including National Guard and Reserves) and who is on active duty or has been notified of an impending call or order to active duty, the employee may take leave in the case of one of the following qualifying exigencies events or circumstances related to the call-up or service:
• short-notice deployment
• military events and activities
• child care and school activities
• financial and legal arrangements
• counseling
• rest and recuperation
• post-deployment activities
• additional activities that arise out of active duty, provided that Reliant and employee agree, including agreement on timing and duration of the leave

The employee may take leave in 12 consecutive weeks, may use the leave intermittently, or, under certain circumstances, may use the leave to reduce the workweek or workday, resulting in a reduced hour schedule. In all cases, the leave may not exceed a total of 12 workweeks over a 12-month period.

For the birth, adoption, or foster care of a child, the supervisor and the employee must mutually agree to the schedule before the employee may take the leave intermittently or work a reduced-hour schedule. Leave for birth, adoption, or foster care of a child must be taken within one year of the birth or placement of the child.

In the case when spouses who are eligible for leave both work at the same ministry or church, they may be limited to a combined total of 12 weeks of leave during any 12-month period if the leave is taken to care for the employee’s parent with a serious health condition, for the birth of a child or to care for the child after birth, or for placement of a child for adoption or foster care or to care for the child after placement. Employees should coordinate with their supervisor and/or partner church or ministry if this situation applies to them. 

Employees are able to use available accrued PTO during Family or Medical Leave in addition to applicable benefits such as Paid Parental Leave. During a Medical Leave, Reliant employees may be eligible for Short-Term Disability. Please see this Common Parental Leave Scenarios page for more information.  

Employees are able to use available accrued PTO during Family or Medical Leave in addition to applicable benefits such as Paid Parental Leave. During a Medical Leave, Reliant employees may be eligible for Short-Term Disability. Please see this Common Parental Leave Scenarios page for more information.  

The death of a family member, close friend, or ministry supporter is a tragedy. In some cases, it is also an opportunity to comfort and minister to other people involved as well as to be comforted. Reliant recognizes that the death of an immediate family member can have a significant impact on an employee and that the grieving process is important. In the event of an immediate family member's death, such as spouse, child (including pregnancy loss), or parent, several days may be needed to prepare for a return to the workplace. In other cases, attending the funeral of a relative or friend that does not involve long travel may take less than a day. Therefore, Reliant gives the supervisor and employee reasonable flexibility in determining the time needed away from work in the event of a death.

An employee may take up to five days of paid leave for bereavement, if necessary. However, in extreme cases, additional leave may be taken as PTO or as an unpaid leave of absence. Specific permission for additional time off beyond the five days must be received from the supervisor and communicated to their Program Team. Employees must should notify their supervisor as soon as possible in advance of any absence when they desire to invoke leave for bereavement purposes.

Reliant recognizes the responsibilities of citizenship and expects its employees to fulfill their civic obligation when called to serve as jury members. Employees are permitted to participate in jury duty in lieu of normal work obligations. Employees must notify their supervisor when formal notice is received for jury duty. If released from court early, the employee shall report back to work. During such jury service, Reliant will generally continue to pay the employee's regular wages on the same basis as when the employee is actually performing all required services of employment for Reliant, independent of any jury duty compensation.

Reliant will grant military leave as necessary in compliance with all applicable state and federal laws and regulations.  Employees taking part in a variety of military duties are covered under this policy. Such military duties include leaves of absence taken by members of the uniformed services, including active duty, reserve or National Guard, for training, periods of active military service, and funeral honors duty, as well as time spent being examined to determine fitness to perform such service.

Unless military necessity prevents it, or is otherwise impossible or unreasonable, an employee employees should provide his/her their supervisor with notice of the need for short-term leave (fewer than seven consecutive days) as far in advance as is reasonable under the circumstances. For a longer leave period of consecutive days or more, the employee employees should provide Reliant their Program Team with written notice of leave as far in advance as is reasonable.

See below for the policies on pay and PTO depending on the length of leave. The lengths are defined by the number of consecutive days:

For military leave of 7 to 30 days, the employee will employees will need to submit his/her their Military Leave and Earnings Statement to the their Program Team in order to calculate supplemental pay.