Paid Time Off (PTO) Policy

Publication: Staff Handbook

Policy Statement

Full-time employees are granted paid time off (PTO) based on years of service that they have worked for the University and other qualifications and/or their faculty contract.

Policy Procedures

Staff

PTO is accrued at the rate of 1 day per month of employment, not to exceed 10 days in a year, during the first and second years of employment based on hire date. During the third through the fifth year of service he/she will be granted 15 days of PTO per year. Beginning with the sixth year of service the Full-time Staff member will be granted 20 days of PTO per year.

The specific time that PTO is taken must be submitted to the Supervisor through the employee’s portal and must be approved in advance except in the cases of illness or extreme circumstances. PTO should not be taken for a period longer than two weeks at a time. Exceptions to any rule should be rare and require the approval of the Supervisor and the President. The pay for PTO will be granted at the current rate and hours the person is presently being paid.

Bereavement of an Immediate Family Member

A Staff member may be granted one day off with pay to attend the funeral of a parent or his/her spouse’s parent, or that of a brother or sister. If the Staff member is required to arrange for burial, or if the funeral is more than three hours of travel away, an additional day may be taken with pay. Time beyond that may be taken only with the supervisor’s approval and without pay unless the employee has accumulated PTO.



In the event of the death of a spouse, a son, or a daughter, the Staff member may have up to five days with pay. Any additional time may only be taken with the supervisor’s approval and will be without pay unless the employee has accumulated PTO.

PTO DOES NOT ROLLOVER FROM ONE YEAR TO THE NEXT NOR CAN IT BE EXCHANGED FOR MONETARY COMPENSATION DURING EMPLOYMENT.

PTO for Terminated Employees

Employees who are dismissed because of budgetary or organizational changes will be paid for any accrued PTO. Additional severance can be granted by the Administration. Employees who are dismissed because of violation of University rules, policies, and standards will not be granted any PTO or pay from the moment of dismissal.



If an employee resigns in good standing having given at least a two-week written notice, exclusive of PTO, or if they provide notice acceptable to the University, they may be eligible to use any accrued PTO to extend pay beyond the last date of service.

Faculty

All faculty members employed on a twelve-month basis are granted one month’s vacation including four Sundays. If the faculty member has neither summer school teaching duties nor extensive administrative assignments, the contract will be considered a nine-month contract. The starting date for the contract will be August 16 and the ending date will be the following May 15. The faculty member may select 18 or 24 pay periods. There will be no vacation consideration in the contract.

It should be noted that any unused vacation days from one contract year do not carry over into the next year, i.e. vacation time is not cumulative. In the event of a proposed leave that extends beyond the allotted one month vacation, arrangements must be cleared with the Administration before plans are solidified or a commitment made.

Participation in conferences or other special meetings is by special arrangement only. Normally, no more than one week additional time will be granted for such activity during a semester.

Weekend preaching, speaking or official representation of the University is not included in the conference or special meeting category. Questions concerning absences from the Campus and/or classes may be addressed to the Administration for consideration and final decision.

Teaching Faculty

Specified vacation times need to be cleared with the Dean. All faculty (full-time, part- time, and adjunct) should schedule their vacation times when they do not conflict with teaching assignments. Exceptions will be rare and requests for exceptions should be submitted to the faculty’s Dean, in writing, 30 days in advance and must be approved by the Provost.

Administrative Faculty

If the faculty member has no teaching duties but only administrative duties, the contract will be twelve months. One month of that time will be considered to be for vacation. Specified vacation times need to be cleared in advance with the appropriate vice president (or the Provost in cases including a vice president).

Pay Periods and Vacation Periods for Faculty

The starting date for Faculty, as shown on the annual contracts, is August 16. This means that the first paycheck has been earned by the date August 31. However, the starting date for new faculty is August 1, which means the first paycheck will be paid August 15.

If the faculty member teaches during summer school, the contract will be considered a twelve-month contract. There will then be twenty-four pay periods during the academic year for that Faculty member. One month of that period will be considered vacation.