47.29 Members are entitled to up to five days paid leave per calendar year to provide care to family members who are ill.

47.30 Where care for family members who are ill can be accommodated through short-term adjustment of responsibilities without an overall reduction in workload or teaching assigned, departments will make reasonable attempts to facilitate such adjustments.

47.31 In the event of serious illness or disability of a family member, Members may request a Modification of Appointment from full-time to part-time pursuant to Article 25: Modification of Appointments from Full-Time to Part-Time.

47.32 Where family care requires the full-time commitment of an employee, the employee may apply for a Critical Illness or Injury Leave of up to 36 weeks when caring for a child under 19 years of age at the start of the leave or 16 weeks when caring for an adult. Such leave will be without pay, but benefits coverage will be maintained. 

If additional leave beyond 36 weeks (for a child) or 16 weeks (for an adult)  is required it will be treated as an unpaid Leave of Absence pursuant to CA Articles 47.1-47.4.  Please submit a general Leave of Absence Application Form.

47.33 A Member will be granted a Compassionate Care Leave of Absence without pay for up to 27 weeks to provide care or support to a family member if a medical practitioner or nurse practitioner issues a certificate stating that the family member has a serious medical condition with a significant risk of death within 26 weeks.

47.34 The Member’s benefit coverage will continue for the duration of the Compassionate Care Leave.

If additional leave beyond 27 weeks is required it will be treated as an unpaid Leave of Absence pursuant to CA Articles 47.1-47.4.  Please submit a general Leave of Absence Application Form.

47.36 The University will maintain benefits coverage for any Member undertaking a leave of absence pursuant to the Employment Standards Act, including but not limited to Domestic Violence Leave, Leave for Disappearance of a Child, or Leave for Death of a Child.

Please see the BC Employement Standards Act for the leave entitlements:

• Domestic Violence Leave
• Leave for Disappearance of a Child
• Leave for Death of a Child

Contact your Faculty Relations Advisor with questions about or for assistance with these types of leaves.

Pension contributions will not be made or taken on the unpaid Critical Illness/Injury, Compassionate Care, or other ESA type Leaves in accordance with the 2019-2022 SFUFA Collective Agreement. You have 2 options to “purchase service” from the BC College Pension Plan (BCCPP) for this unpaid time.

1. You may make continuous contributions to your pension throughout your leave. To implement this, you must apply within 30 days of the start of your leave. BCCPP will send you a monthly invoice to pay directly. If you choose this option, SFU will also pay for the employer portion of the leave cost.
2. You may choose to do nothing at this time and no pension contributions will be made on the unpaid portions of your leave. You will have up to five years after your leave ends (or within 30 days of your termination of employment if earlier) during which to buy service in a one lump sum payment. If you choose this option, SFU will also pay for the employer portion of the leave cost.

Please note that whether you choose to purchase past service from the BCCPP or not, SFU will compensate you in accordance with the current Collective Agreement (July 1, 2019 – June 30, 2022).