Chapter 9: Leave Benefits
PERSONAL LEAVE
You are entitled to 10 workdays of personal leave during each full year of service. A workday is equivalent to your sponsoring organization's typically required day of work. If you reenroll or are reinstated, you are not entitled to any personal leave earned in your prior term of service. Members continuing service for less than a year but at least six months receive five workdays of personal leave. You must request and receive approval in advance from the sponsoring organization/supervisor for all personal leave, specifying the dates of leave requested.
During personal leave, all regular member allowances are continued. The Corporation does not pay travel expenses for personal leave. AmeriCorps*VISTA members enjoy the national holidays that are recognized by their sponsoring organization and are given as time off to the rest of the organization's personnel. Members do not get federal holidays that are not recognized by their sponsoring organization. For example, if your organization does not give its staff a holiday for Veterans Day, you are also expected to work unless you request and receive approval for one day of personal leave. Additionally, if you want the day off for a religious observance, you should request a day of personal leave.
If your sponsoring organization provides its staff additional "floating holidays," "spring breaks," "summer recesses," etc., you are expected to continue to serve on your assignment unless authorized to take the time off as part of your personal leave. Your work plan should spell out the assignments expected of you during these periods. If it does not, consult with your supervisor.
MEDICAL LEAVE
AmeriCorps*VISTA members are entitled to 10 workdays of medical leave during each full year of service for illness, injury, or medical appointments. Members who extend their period of service for less than a full year but for at least six months receive up to five workdays of medical leave for that period. A workday is equivalent to your sponsoring organization's typical required day of work. Partial days of medical leave also may be granted to the member. All living allowances continue during medical leave periods.
You are required to request prior approval for medical leave, except for extenuating circumstances, from the sponsoring organization or supervisor. You should also specify the hours or dates of leave requested.
The AmeriCorps*VISTA sponsoring organization or supervisor must notify the Corporation State Director immediately if it appears that you will not be able to resume project duties within the maximum medical leave period of 10 workdays. The Corporation State Director may approve an extension of your medical leave for up to another five workdays in cases of extended recuperation in which you are likely to return to the project within the approved leave period or in the event of undue delay in obtaining a diagnosis of your medical condition. In exceptional circumstances and when warranted, the AmeriCorps*VISTA headquarters may approve additional medical leave.
PARENTAL LEAVE
AmeriCorps*VISTA members are entitled to use a combination of medical and personal leave (20 workdays) for maternity leave. The Corporation State Director may approve an extension of up to 10 workdays, for a total of 30 workdays, in cases where extended recuperation is required.
EMERGENCY LEAVE
The sponsoring organization may grant you up to five workdays of emergency leave. Emergency leave is granted in two types of situations. First, it is granted if you serve in an area where a natural disaster that requires you to leave the area temporarily occurs. Second, emergency leave is granted if an immediate family member (spouse, domestic partner, parent, sibling, child, grandparent, or guardian) becomes critically ill or dies. Additional time away from the project requires the approval of the Corporation State Director. Emergency leave does not count against your personal leave time.
If circumstances require you to take emergency leave, you should notify the sponsoring organization or supervisor at once and, if requested, provide the sponsoring organization or supervisor with some evidence of the emergency. If the sponsoring organization determines that an emergency exists, the sponsoring organization will inform the Corporation State Office. AmeriCorps*VISTA will pay for the fastest regularly scheduled means of transportation to and from the site of the emergency or to your home of record, provided the destination is in the United States or a U.S. territory. You will be reimbursed for actual travel expenses, but you will receive no additional allowances for your travel.
In the event that the Corporation cannot pay for or provide a prepaid ticket in advance of the approved emergency leave, the sponsoring organization should furnish the needed travel assistance. This assistance would include advancing up to $500 from the sponsoring organization's own funds to you, if approved in the Memorandum of Agreement between the sponsoring organization and the Corporation.
Such advances, however, should be authorized (by telephone) by the Corporation State Office. Both the sponsoring organization and the member must complete and sign the AmeriCorps*VISTA Payment Voucher Form to record receipt of any emergency travel advance (see Appendix B). The form is then forwarded to the Corporation State Office for processing so that the sponsoring organization is reimbursed for the advance.
During emergency leave all regular member allowances continue. If an emergency leave extends beyond 10 workdays, all allowances, including the accrual of the end-of-service stipend or education award, may be discontinued by the Corporation State Office until you return to the project. When you return from emergency leave, you must notify the sponsoring organization/supervisor, who will notify the Corporation State Director.
JURY DUTY
AmeriCorps*VISTA members are subject to jury duty. Sponsoring organizations shall give members the necessary time away from project duties to comply with a jury duty summons or serve on a jury. Allowances will be paid during the period of jury duty. Your time on jury duty is not counted against your personal leave, term of service, or education award. If you are subpoenaed (for nonproject- related purposes), however, you are required to use personal leave.
MILITARY RESERVE LEAVE
If you enter AmeriCorps*VISTA service before completing a military reserve obligation, you must change the location of your reserve unit if necessary. AmeriCorps*VISTA members should try to minimize the disruption in AmeriCorps*VISTA service as a result of discharging responsibilities related to their reservist duties. If you are allowed to choose when to fulfill your annual two weeks of active duty requirement, you should choose a period that does not disrupt your AmeriCorps*VISTA service.
A member is granted military reserve leave to attend the monthly reserve training sessions and the two weeks of active duty training. Such leave does not count against a member's personal leave, term of service, end-of-service stipend, or education award. You should notify the sponsoring organization/supervisor before taking military reserve leave and upon returning from such leave. You may not receive time off for active duty or other reserve-related service beyond the two weeks and the monthly training activities usually required for reserve status. Any other reserve-related service does not apply to your AmeriCorps*VISTA service time for purposes of the education award.
The sponsoring organization/supervisor notifies the Corporation State Office of the exact dates of your military reserve leave.
All AmeriCorps*VISTA living allowances are discontinued during the period of military reserve leave for which you receive military pay.
