Employee Matters

The Employee Compensation and Benefits Services staff prepares this column.

Unclassified leave options
Taking some time off from work for relaxation is an important part of your life.

What sort of leave am I eligible for?
Faculty and academic staff on a 12-month pay basis are eligible for 176 hours of vacation and 28 hours of personal holiday each fiscal year. This leave time is pro-rated for part-time employees. Faculty and academic staff on a nine-month pay basis do not earn vacation or personal holidays.

How are vacation and personal holidays allocated?
The fiscal year runs July 1-June 30. Your vacation hours would be pro-rated if you started after the beginning of a fiscal year, but you would get the full allocation of 28 hours of personal holiday time.

What if I don’t use all my leave?
If you don’t use all of your personal holiday hours by the end of the fiscal year, they are lost. You may carry over up to 176 hours of vacation from one fiscal year to the next with your department’s approval.

How do I schedule time off?
Make arrangements with your supervisor or department chair to get approval to use vacation or personal holiday time.

What is ALRA?
The annual leave reserve account allows eligible employees to bank up to 40 hours of vacation each fiscal year. You become eligible beginning with the fiscal year following the year in which you complete 10 or more years of Wisconsin Retirement System service in a position in which you earned vacation. After 25 years of service, you are eligible to bank 80 hours. Prior to 2003, employees could take 40 hours of the vacation balance in cash.

What if my appointment changes?
If you move from a 12-month appointment to a nine-month appointment, you can retain that vacation until you leave employment, or receive it as a lump sum payment.

What if I leave UW employment or transfer to another state agency?
If you are leaving UW employment, you should talk to your department about using vacation before leaving, extending your termination date by using earned vacation, or receiving payment for the vacation.

If you are transferring within the UW System, or transferring to another state agency, you should discuss with your new employer whether your vacation balance will be accepted. If transfer of the balance is not possible, you would be paid the value in a lump sum.

Information: http://www.bussvc.wisc.edu/ecbs/ecbs.html. Select “Employees,” then select “Leave Benefits.”