135.17 MATERNITY AND PATERNITY LEAVE.

   (a)   Maternity and paternity leave shall be granted to any non-bargaining employee with at least 12 months of service as a City employee, who has worked 1,250 hours or more in the 12 months preceding the date the leave first begins.

   (b)   Maternity and paternity leave shall be available to any employee who experiences the live birth of their own child, the legal finalization of the adoption by the employee of a child, or the legal placement of a foster child with the employee (each of which is referred to as an "event").

   (c)   An employee eligible for maternity or paternity leave may take a maximum of 6 weeks total of such leave, beginning within six weeks prior to the scheduled date of the event. The leave may be taken consecutively or intermittently. Such leave must be taken no later than the end of 12 months after the occurrence of the event. The leave must be used concurrently with Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) time to the extent FMLA time is available to the employee. The employee taking maternity or paternity leave shall receive 100% of their normal pay during the leave, and shall be considered an employee for the purpose of receiving all benefits (e.g. accrual of sick and vacation time).

   (d)   Interpretations of this section, as may be required on a case-by-case basis, may be made by the Mayor, whose decision shall be final.

   (e)   The provisions set forth herein shall not apply to any employee of the City who is a member of a collective bargaining unit with which the City has a written collective bargaining agreement. (Ord. 20-64. Enacted 8-24-20.)