If you are ill, you do NOT have to work. That is what sick pay is for.
If you become ill and cannot work, you should notify your direct supervisor and/or the Associate Chair as soon as possible.
Finding a substitute
Your input might be requested in finding a substitute.
- Classes with teams (instructor plus TAs) will ideally exchange contact information and cover each other if possible.
- Ideally, we all have at least one colleague whom we can call at the last minute to help us out in a pinch. If you don’t have one, maybe now is the time to talk to you colleagues about contingencies.
- If your illness will lead you to miss more than one class in a row, be sure to notify your supervising instructor (if any) and the department chair and/or associate chair. We can and have in the past hired substitute teachers for extended illnesses.
Canceling class
If we cannot find someone to cover your class, there is really nothing else to do but cancel. You DO have obligations unless you are unconscious or in other ways completely incapacitated.
- Email your students as soon as you realize you will not be able to get to class to tell them that you are ill and must cancel. Be sure to apologize and explain that you are ill. ALSO email the instructor if you are a TA.
- CALL THE MAIN OFFICE 608-262‐2921 to tell them that you cannot make it to class and ask them to go to the classroom to put a note up. Trust me, not all your students will have read your email.
- As soon as you are well enough to do it, take stock of what the students missed from the canceled class and figure out how you can make them whole in terms of missed material. This may involve extra office hours or optional makeup sessions. If you are the instructor, this may involve modifying the syllabus. If you are a TA, this may need to involve extra effort to get the students in the missed section(s) back on par with others. NOTE: If you are a TA whose hours are contractually limited, you should consider how to help your students while staying within your contract.
- Report the day of absence on your sick leave form. If you miss class you MUST take the sick leave, even if you make up the work other ways.
Other reasons
You may use your sick leave for reasons including but not limited to:
- Personal physical or mental illness, bodily injuries, maternity, or exposure to contagious disease
- Personal medical and dental appointments which cannot be scheduled at times other than during scheduled work hours
- Temporary emergency care of immediate family members
- Funeral leave
If you wish to miss class for some reason under your control (either professional or personal), you DO have the affirmative obligation to either arrange for colleague coverage OR make up the missed class in some way. This is a state institution and you do not have the right unilaterally to reduce your hours of face time with the students. When proposing a time to make up the class, remember that the announced class time is usually the only time all students in the class are available, so students should not be penalized for being unable to attend some alternate class time. Instructors MAY plan around an absence with extra office hours or optional group workshop sessions. You are supposed to report to the chair’s office in advance if you plan to voluntarily cancel class and explain what arrangements you have made.
- The best option is colleague coverage, especially for TA‐taught sections. TAs should not voluntarily reschedule sections without consulting with the supervising instructor.
- Make sure you give adequate notice for any rescheduled class, both in class and via email. Explain options for students who cannot attend the rescheduled class.
- Be sure to tell the main office that the class has been rescheduled, in case there are lost students who have tuned out their email and your announcements.
The full leave benefits policy for TAs, RAs, and PAs can be found at the web page for Graduate Assistantship Policies and Procedures.