Florida Addendum
In the event of a conflict between the Handbook and any provision of an applicable Addendum, the conflict will be resolved as follows:
- If a benefit provided by the University is more generous than the benefit provided in the applicable Addendum, the University will offer the employee the more generous benefit unless such benefit is limited by statute (e.g., to residents of or employees working in Colorado).
- If a University policy or procedure provides an employee with more protection than that provided under the applicable Addendum, the University’s more protective policy or procedure will apply to internal University processes, and the policy or procedure specified in the applicable Addendum will apply to external proceedings in the applicable state or local agency.
For example, if the University’s Discrimination and Harassment Policy includes more protected statuses than a particular state provides, the University’s Discrimination and Harassment Policy and the applicable procedures established by the Office of Equal Opportunity & Title IX (EOIX) will apply to a report or complaint filed with EOIX. For a complaint filed with the state or local civil rights agency, the protections afforded under the state Addendum will apply.
Employees with questions about the Handbook or any applicable Addendum should contact their HR Partner at AskHRPartners@du.edu.
Florida
Civil Air Patrol Leave
Florida employees and independent contractors who have worked for the University of Denver for at least 90 days and are senior members of the Florida Wing of the Civil Air Patrol with an emergency services qualification may take up to 15 days of unpaid time per year for a civil air patrol mission duty or training.
Employees and independent contractors must provide reasonable advance notice of the need for leave under this addendum. The University of Denver may request reasonable documentation reflecting the need for such leave. The University of Denver will not discriminate or retaliate against any employee or independent contractor for requesting or taking leave in compliance with this addendum.
Employees may use available vacation or paid sick leave during otherwise unpaid time off taken under this addendum.
The University of Denver will generally permit employees and independent contractors who have taken leave under this addendum to return to work after taking leave unless: (i) the Organization’s circumstances have changed to make employment impossible or unreasonable, (ii) reinstatement would impose an undue hardship on the University of Denver, (iii) the University of Denver engaged the worker for a brief, nonrecurring period without any reasonable expectation that the employment or consulting period would continue indefinitely or for a significant period, or (iv) the University of Denver had legally sufficient cause to terminate the employment relationship at the beginning of the leave. If entitled to reinstatement, employees and independent contractors returning from leave are entitled to the seniority they would have held or attained had they remained continuously employed.
Domestic Violence Leave
Florida employees who have worked for the University of Denver for at least three months may take up to 3 days of unpaid time off in any 12-month period if the employee or their family or household member is a victim of domestic violence or sexual assault. Employees may use this leave to:
- Seek an injunction for protection against domestic violence, repeat violence, dating violence, or sexual violence, or to otherwise attend court hearings;
- Obtain medical care, mental health counseling, or both, for the employee or their family or household member to address physical or psychological injuries resulting from the act of domestic violence or sexual violence;
- Obtain services from a victim services organization, including, but not limited to, a domestic violence shelter or program or a rape crisis center as a result of the act of domestic or sexual violence;
- Make the employee’s home secure from the perpetrator of the domestic violence or sexual violence or to seek new housing to escape the perpetrator; or
- Seek legal assistance to address issues arising from the act of domestic violence or sexual violence, or to attend and prepare for court related proceedings arising from the act of domestic violence or sexual violence.
For purposes of this addendum, “family or household member” means the employee’s spouse, former spouse, person related by blood or marriage, person with whom the employee currently resides as if a family (or with whom the employee resided in the past as if a family), and people who are parents of a child in common regardless of whether they have been married. Except for people who have a child in common, the family or household members must be currently residing in the same single dwelling unit or have done so in the past.
Employees must provide the University of Denver reasonable advance notice of the need to take time off under this addendum, if practicable. If advance notice is not practical, employees must provide notice as soon as practical. The University of Denver may request reasonable documentation of the need for such leave, including, but not limited to, a police report, court order, doctor’s note, or some other form of documentation.
The University of Denver will treat all information related to an employee’s leave pursuant to this addendum as confidential. The University of Denver will not discriminate or retaliate against employees for requesting or taking leave in compliance with this addendum.
Employees seeking to take leave under this addendum must first use and exhaust any available accrued vacation and paid sick leave for the absence.
Equal Employment and Anti-Discrimination Policy
This is only an excerpt of the University of Denver’s Non-Discrimination Statement and Discrimnation and Harassment policy with state specific information included in italics. Please refer to the complete policy for further information.
The University of Denver is an equal opportunity employer and makes employment decisions based on merit and University needs. Creating an inclusive and professional environment where employees feel comfortable, safe, and free from inappropriate and disrespectful conduct is one of the University’s core values.
The University of Denver does not discriminate against (in any aspect of employment, including recruiting and hiring, job assignment, compensation, opportunities for advancement, promotion, transfers, evaluation, benefits, training, discipline, and termination), nor does it tolerate harassment by any person, including, co-workers, supervisors, and third parties, on the basis of the following Protected Characteristics: In Florida: race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, ancestry, national origin, age, pregnancy, genetic information, disability, handicap, and marital status
Information about the Florida Commission on Human Relations can be found at https://fchr.myflorida.com/file-a-complaint-page or by calling (850) 488-7082 or 711 (TTY).
Immigration law Compliance
In Florida, The University of Denver uses the federal government’s E-Verify system when hiring new employees and any rehires while the university has 25 or more employees in Florida.
Jury Duty Leave
The University of Denver encourages all employees to report for jury duty and provides Florida employees with unpaid time off for jury duty service. While leave to serve on a jury is unpaid, exempt salaried employees will not have their pay reduced for any week in which they work and also miss time for jury duty.
After receiving a summons for jury duty, employees must notify The University of Denver as soon as reasonably possible. The University of Denver may request reasonable documentation of jury duty service to the extent permitted by law. The University of Denver will not discharge, discipline, retaliate against, coerce, or otherwise penalize employees who are absent to attend judicial proceedings in response to a summons for jury duty.
Employees may use available vacation and/or paid sick leave during otherwise unpaid time off taken under this addendum.
Meal and Rest Breaks
Non-exempt Florida employees under 18 who work at least four continuous hours in their workday are entitled and expected to take an unpaid, off-duty, 30-minute meal break. Employees will be relieved of all duties for the full meal break and are free to leave the premises during that time. Failure to take full meal breaks is a violation of the University of Denver policy, which may subject employees to disciplinary action, possibly including termination of employment.
Voting Policy
The University of Denver will not discharge or threaten to discharge any employee for voting or not voting in any election, state, county, or municipal, for any candidate or measure submitted to a vote of the people.
Witness Duty Leave
Florida employees may take unpaid time off to appear in court to comply with a subpoena, court order, or summons as a witness or prospective witness, including for discovery proceedings. Employees may also take leave under this addendum to appear in a juvenile proceeding involving their child or ward.
Employees must provide the University of Denver reasonable advance notice of the need to take time off under this addendum. The University of Denver may request reasonable documentation reflecting the need for such leave. The University of Denver will treat all information related to an employee’s leave pursuant to this addendum as confidential, except as required by law. The University of Denver will not discriminate or retaliate against any employee for requesting or taking leave in compliance with this addendum.
Employees may use available vacation or paid sick leave during otherwise unpaid time off taken under this addendum.