The Office of Human Resources

Once you have determined that you need to take a leave of absence — be it to care for your own medical needs or those of a family member — the first thing you should do is follow the normal Brandeis University absence reporting procedures and inform your department chair, manager or supervisor.

Once you have done so, you must contact The Standard, either by phone or online, to begin the process of reporting your leave.

1. Contact The Standard's Absence Management Service Center:

   • By phone: Call 1-866-756-8116 (available Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern Time).

   • Online: Point your browser to https://standard.com/absence. (First-time users will need to create an account. The Standard's website has a step-by-step guide (pdf) on how to do this.)

2. Through a brief 7-to-10-minute phone call or online session:
   • You will be asked to provide the following information:

     • Your employer (Brandeis University), employee ID number and group policy number (759559).

     • Your last day at work.

     • The reason you are requesting leave.

   • The Standard will:
     • Record your upcoming absence and set up all applicable leaves for you (including federal, state and short-term disability, if applicable).
     • Send you all paperwork.
     • Answer general questions you may have about your claim and inform you about next steps.
     • After this intake session is complete, you will be able to view your leave information and application status on The Standard’s website.
3. Once you have received your paperwork, complete and submit all documents to The Standard within 15 calendar days (45 days if you are applying for disability). You may fax completed forms to 1-866-751-5174 or mail them to:

Standard Insurance Co.
Employee Benefits Division
P.O. Box 3877
Portland, OR 97208

4. For a medical leave, be sure to also sign the authorization form allowing The Standard to speak with your physician's office to obtain the medical information needed to inform your claim decision. Without this authorization, The Standard is not able to work with your doctor on your behalf.

Once you have completed the process above to request your leave and it has been approved, The Standard will regularly communicate with Brandeis' human resources and finance offices to seamlessly manage your leave on your behalf. All that you will need to do is notify your department chair, manager or supervisor.

Once your leave begins, you will have a single point of contact — called an absence coordinator — who will handle your leave and short-term disability claim, if applicable.

You will be able to contact your absence coordinator for any questions, concerns or issues you may have along the way. For medical leaves, The Standard will continue to make decisions about the status of your leave based on medical information received from you and your doctor.

To Contact Your Coordinator

Your absence coordinator can be reached:

• By phone: 866-756-8116.
• By email: absence@standard.com.
• Online: https://www.standard.com/absence.

Be sure to regularly log into The Standard's portal to review the status of your leave claim, request an extension to your leave, report your return to work and more.

If you are on a medical leave, once you have received clearance from your doctor to return to work, an anticipated return date will be established. The Standard will notify you about this date 14 days prior to your anticipated return.

One week before your return date, have your health care provider sign the Return to Work Authorization form provided to you by The Standard. Then, provide a copy of this completed form to:

• The Standard, by fax (866-751-5174).

• Brandeis University, by fax (781-736-4466).

Note: The requirement above is only applicable if you are returning from a continuous or reduced-schedule leave, not an intermittent leave.

If you need a copy of your job description, contact Renee Relerford at reneerelerford@brandeis.edu or 781-736-4451.

You must also submit a signed return-to-work form to Brandeis' Office of Human Resources two days prior to your return. Once you have successfully returned to work, you will receive a closure letter in the mail.

If You Are on Family Leave

If you are on a family leave, be sure to contact your manager and The Standard in the week before your leave ends to notify them that you will be returning to work. They will inform you of any next steps that you must take.

When you miss time associated with an intermittent leave, you can quickly and easily report absences through The Standard's self-service phone system or the absence management self-service portal. These services are available anytime.

• By phone: Call 1-866-756-8116. When prompted, say "Report an absence."
• Via self-service portal: From your computer, smartphone or tablet, log in at standard.com/absence.

• Your leave number (you can find this on the correspondence you received after your intermittent leave was approved).
• Your date of birth.
• The date of the absence. (Note: You may report multiple absences during one call. Dates can be today, in the past or in the future. However, each absence will be a separate entry during the same call.)
• The type of absence. (Note: You will need to let the system know if your absence relates to your condition or is to attend a medical appointment.)
• The number of hours you were scheduled to work, and the number of hours of leave taken for each day you’re reporting.
• A phone number in case you need to be contacted for further information.

Once the automated intake is complete, you’ll receive a confirmation number to let you know that your absence report has been successfully submitted. The Standard will verify your reported absences against your medical certification (if applicable) and email Brandeis' human resources team with the decision for each instance.

Please note that the waiting period (also known as an elimination period) for intermittent leave is seven consecutive calendar days, beginning with the first day of your intermittent leave, and not the aggregate accumulation of seven days' leave.