MTA president urges Minnetonka board to pause proposed leave‑policy change, calls for bargaining

Jennifer Lipsky, president of the Minnetonka Teachers Association, told the Minnetonka School Board on Nov. 20 that a proposed change to Policy 4‑29 would harm teachers and students by forcing partial‑day medical or family leaves into full‑day absences.

"This policy would remove our educators from classrooms far more often than medically or personally necessary," Lipsky said during the opening citizen‑input period, arguing the amendment is a term and condition of employment that "must be bargained." She urged the board to "pause, reconsider, and reject this policy change."

District human‑resources counsel Miss Flowers and other administrators said the policy updates are prompted by the new state paid family and medical leave law, effective Jan. 1, and aim to clarify procedures and align with statute. Among the items staff highlighted at the board discussion was language that would allow paid family medical leave and FMLA to run concurrently and a provision that sets a minimum increment for ongoing intermittent leaves at no less than eight hours.

Miss Flowers said the statutory guidance permits a district to set a minimum increment for intermittent leave and that the intent of the eight‑hour threshold is to reduce classroom disruption and make substitute staffing feasible. "Intermittent leaves ... we can set a minimum parameter on leaves up to a full day. So and that's what we have here. No less than 8 hours," she said.

Board members pressed administrators for clearer definitions and practical examples about how intermittent leave would apply in everyday scenarios — for instance, recurring medical treatments that last a few hours — and asked staff to add explicit cross‑references to the statute and to distinguish intermittent paid family‑medical leave from routine uses of sick time and appointment allowances. Miss Flowers agreed to clarify the language and provide examples for a future board review.

The change under discussion has not been adopted; staff said the updated policies will return for formal action at an upcoming meeting. In the meantime, both union leaders and several board members asked the district to ensure the finalized wording distinguishes ongoing intermittent leaves (subject to the statutory leave programs) from daily, short‑term absences covered by accrued sick time or principal‑approved schedule adjustments.