Leaves of Absence

Vacation Leave

The following information is based on the Leaves of Absence policy located on the University Policy Office website.

Members of the faculty and management/professional staff regularly employed on an academic year basis are on unpaid vacation during the periods of the academic year when classes are not in session. The seven-calendar-day period prior to the first day of classes each semester and the period between the end of classes and the final date for submitting grades are not considered vacation. Official University holidays are considered to be unpaid vacation days unless they occur during the time when classes are scheduled. View the Academic-Year Employment policy for more information

Eligible employees in positions classified under Faculty, Executive, Management (levels 3-6), Professional (levels 4-6), Continuing Lecturer, Postdoctoral Researcher, Clinical Intern, and Clinical Resident who are employed on a fiscal-year basis will accrue up to 22 workdays (i.e., 176 hours) of vacation leave during each year of service.

Eligible employees in positions classified under Management (levels 1-2), Professional (levels 1-3), and Operations/Technical who are employed on a fiscal-year basis will accrue up to 15 workdays (i.e., 120 hours) of vacation leave during the first year of service and up to 22 workdays (i.e., 176 hours) in each subsequent year of continuous service.

Vacation credits for the above groups accrue on a monthly basis up to a maximum of 44 workdays, as outlined below. This maximum can be maintained until vacation days are used. Individuals terminating employment may be paid for a maximum of 44 days of unused vacation. Individuals retiring or whose appointments cease due to death will be paid all accrued, unused vacation up to a maximum of 44 days. Vacation credits accrued in excess of the maximum allowable will be forfeited.

 

Table 1. Vacation Accrual for Individuals Designated Above

Month	Eligible for 15 days	Eligible for 22 days
July	1	2
August	2	2
September	1	1
October	1	2
November	1	2
December	2	2
January	1	2
February	1	2
March	1	1
April	2	2
May	1	2
June	1	2

The full vacation accrual for the first and last month worked may be granted only if the person is in a pay status for 15 calendar days or longer in that month. If a person is in a pay status for less than 15 calendar days in that month, vacation accrual would be prorated to the nearest half day.

Eligible employees in positions classified under Administrative and Operational Support and Police, Fire and Skilled Trades accrue vacation as of their date of hire in direct proportion to the time they are in paid status. Employees are considered to be in pay status if they are working or on a paid leave of absence approved by the University.

Table 2. Regular, Full-Time Clerical and Service Staff Vacation Accrual*

Years of Continuous Service	Days	Hours
1	10	80
2	11	88
3	12	96
4	13	104
5	14	112
6	15	120
7	16	128
8	17	136
9	18	144
10	19	152
11+	20	160

*Part-time employees will accrue vacation in direct proportion to their full-time equivalency. For example, an employee hired half-time would accrue on a half-time basis.

*Employees with this vacation benefit will receive an additional eight (8) hours of paid vacation leave on July 1 each year (replaces former Paid Personal Holiday). Once allotted, this day may be used under the same provisions as accrued vacation.

All employees request time off online through SuccessFactors, available through the Employee Launchpad.

Employees may carry over up to 320 hours (i.e., 40 workdays) of vacation from one calendar year to the next. Any hours over 320 must be taken by the last day of the last pay period of the calendar year. Employees may use vacation to supplement paid leave and/or benefit payments but may not be paid more than 100 percent of their normal salary. Upon resignation or termination, employees will be paid any accrued, unused vacation.

Sick Leave

The following sick leave information is based on the Leaves of Absence policy located on the University Policy Office website.

Benefit-eligible employees may use paid sick leave for the following reasons:
• When an employee is not feeling well due to an injury or illness;
• Pregnancy, childbirth or pregnancy-related medical conditions;
• For an appointment with a health care provider that could not take place during non-working hours.

If an employee takes paid sick leave, he or she is required to notify the University as follows:
• When planning medical treatment, an employee must consult with his or her supervisor and make a reasonable effort to schedule the leave so as not to disrupt the University’s operations.
• If the sick leave is foreseeable, an employee must give the supervisor as much advance notice of the need for leave as is practicable under the circumstances.
• If the sick leave is not foreseeable, the employee, or another person on the employee’s behalf, must notify the supervisor or department head no later than one hour after the scheduled start of the workday, unless instructed otherwise by the supervisor or department head.

Members of the faculty, executive, management, professional, continuing lecturer, postdoctoral researcher, clinical intern, clinical resident and operations/technical in a benefits eligible position are eligible for paid sick leave benefits as outlined below.

• On January 1 following the employee’s hire date, the employee receives 308 hours (i.e., 38.5 workdays) of paid sick leave.
• On January 1 following the employee’s one-year anniversary with the University, the employee receives 616 hours (i.e., 77 workdays) of paid sick leave).
• On January 1 following the employee’s two-year anniversary with the University, the employee receives 924 hours (i.e., 115.5 workdays) of paid sick leave. Employees continue to receive this benefit level on January 1 of each subsequent year of continuous service.
• If an employee is on continuous leave on January 1, the allotted paid sick leave will not be available for use until the employee returns to work. Upon return to work, the full allotment of paid sick leave will be available for use.

Upon hire, employees receive paid sick leave in the amount that corresponds to the month in which their employment began, as outlined in the table below.

Month Hired	Sick Leave Received upon Hire (in hours)
January	80.0
February	73.5
March	67
April	60.0
May	53.5
June	47.0
July	40,0
August	33.5
September	27.0
October	20.0
November	13.5
December	7.0

Administrative and operational support, and fire/police and skilled trades in a benefits eligible position, accrue paid sick leave as of their date of hire in direct proportion to the time they are in pay status. Employees will be considered to be in pay status if they are working or on a paid leave of absence approved by the University. Full-time employees accrue paid sick leave at a rate of 80 hours per fiscal year (3.1 hours per pay). Part-time employees accrue paid sick leave in direct proportion to their full-time equivalency.

Employees may carry over any accrued, unused paid sick leave from one fiscal year to the next fiscal year. With the exception of being an official retiree of the University, or upon death, any accrued, unused paid sick leave remaining upon resignation or termination of employment will be forfeited.

Upon official retirement by the University or death, an employee or eligible beneficiary will be eligible to receive payment for any accrued, unused paid sick leave as follows:

Cash payment: 25 percent of all accrued, unused paid sick leave up to and including 520 hours, and 100 percent of all accrued, unused paid sick leave that exceeds 520 hours.

Coordination with other leave

If an Administrative and operational support, and fire/police and skilled trades in a benefits eligible position is eligible for worker’s compensation, short-term disability (STD) or long-term disability (LTD) benefits, sick leave is coordinated with STD and LTD. Once the waiting period for the STD plan is satisfied, STD benefits will begin regardless of how much sick leave remains. STD will pay 65 percent of an employee’s budgeted pay. If an employee has paid sick leave remaining when STD benefits begin, sick leave will be coordinated with the STD benefits to bring the pay up to 100 percent of his or her budgeted pay. Employees are not allowed to draw more than 100 percent of budgeted pay through STD and sick leave combined.

If eligible for LTD benefits upon completing 13 weeks of sick leave and if the employee has accrued, unused paid sick leave, an employee will receive 100 percent of his or her paid sick leave benefit and a minimum LTD benefit.

Medical Statement

When sick leave and FMLA leave are used concurrently, the employee must satisfy the medical certification requirements of the University’s FMLA policy until the FMLA leave is exhausted.

When sick leave is used independent of FMLA, employees must follow the sick leave reporting procedures established by their department, including providing medical certification that the employee is unable to perform the essential functions of his or her job due to a medical condition. The statement also must include an estimate of when an employee will be able to return to work.

At minimum, employees must provide a medical certification within 15 calendar days of their first day of sick leave, unless it is impractical to do so despite diligent, good faith efforts. If the sick leave continues for more than 30 calendar days, the employee’s department may request medical statements at reasonable intervals (e.g., every 30 days). If an employee fails to provide a medical statement, the employee may be denied sick leave and/or disciplined, up to and including termination of employment.

With an employee’s written consent, a representative of Human Resources (West Lafayette) or a regional campus human resources department may contact a health care provider to clarify and authenticate the medical statement or the return to work statement, subject to any applicable provisions of the FMLA, the Indiana Workers’ Compensation Act or the Americans with Disabilities Act.

When released to return to work, an employee’s reinstatement rights will depend upon whether the employee is returning from FMLA leave and sick leave or only sick leave. If the employee is returning to work from FMLA leave and sick leave, reinstatement rights will be governed by the University’s FMLA policy. If an employee is returning to work from only sick leave, the employee will normally be reinstated to the same position held when the leave began if the position is available and the employee can perform the essential functions of the position, with or without reasonable accommodation as may be required by law. If an employee cannot be reinstated to the position held when the leave began, the employee’s employment may be terminated.

Upon returning to work from sick leave due to illness or injury, an employee must furnish to his or her department a return-to-duty statement from the principal attending health care provider. The statement must indicate that the employee has been released to return to work. It also must specify any physical or other limitations on the employee’s ability to perform the duties of the position and the duration of those limitations.

The University will continue to pay its share of the cost of group health insurance during paid sick leave. The employee’s share of the cost will be deducted from his or her pay in accordance with normal payroll practices.

All information, whether written or verbal, including — but not limited to — medical statements, return-to-work statements and notes relating to the health condition of the employee or the employee’s immediate family member will be kept confidential to the maximum extent possible. All written medical information will be kept in a confidential, secure file separate from the employee’s personnel file.

An employee who has exhausted all available paid sick leave may be terminated. Additionally, an employee who has exhausted FMLA and/or unpaid leave options may be terminated.

Bereavement Leave (Funeral Leave)

1. Bereavement Leave (Funeral Leave)

Purdue recognizes that a time of bereavement is very difficult. Accordingly, benefit-eligible staff members are eligible for paid bereavement leave as outlined in University Policy IV.10.2, https://www.purdue.edu/policies/human-resources/vie2.html.

The amount of paid leave provided for benefit-eligible staff will be as follows:

Immediate Family: Five workdays of paid bereavement leave over six calendar months for the death of the employee’s spouse, parent, child, grandparent, grandchild or sibling, and any corresponding in-law or step-relative.

Relative Living in the Employee’s Home: Five workdays of paid bereavement leave over six calendar months for the death of the employee’s uncle, aunt, niece, nephew or first cousin if the relative lived in your home.

Relative: One workday of paid bereavement leave for the death of the employee’s uncle, aunt, niece, nephew or first cousin.

Co-worker:  Up to one work day of paid bereavement for the death of a co-worker. 

You must request paid bereavement leave in writing on an appropriate University leave request form available from your department or business office.

Military Leave

Purdue University provides paid and unpaid military leave to all regular, full-time and part-time employees, as outlined in University Policy VI.E.2, www.purdue.edu/policies/human-resources/vie2.html. Eligible employees are entitled to 15 workdays (120 hours) of paid military leave without loss of benefits each calendar year. Military leave exceeding 15 workdays in a calendar year will be unpaid. Employees must also provide to their department a copy of the official orders to report for military leave.

Military Family Leave Act (Different from FMLA)

Purdue University, under state law, provides unpaid leave to family members of military personnel on active duty. Under the Military Family Leave Act, employees may take up to 10 days of unpaid leave per calendar year during one or more of the following periods:

• Within the 30-day period before a family member begins active duty,
• During the leave period of a family member on active duty,
• During the 30-day period following a family member’s return from active duty.

To qualify as a family member, the employee must be the spouse, parent, child, grandparent or sibling of the service person.

Employees seeking leave must have been employed by Purdue University for at least 12 months, and must have worked at least 1,500 hours during the 12-month period immediately preceding the day the leave begins.

Employees may use accrued, unused vacation and/or personal holiday (for clerical and service) or personal business days (for faculty and administrative/professional), for any part of the military family leave to remain in pay status. Employees must request leave by completing a University leave request form at least 30 days prior to the requested leave; unless the service person’s active duty orders are issued less than 30 days prior to the requested leave.

Paid Jury Duty and Witness Duty Leave

If you are a regular full-time or part-time employee, you are eligible for paid and unpaid jury duty leave and witness duty leave so that you may fulfill your civic duties as outlined in University Policy VI.E.2, www.purdue.edu/policies/human-resources/vie2.html.

If you are summoned to serve as a juror or as a witness, you must notify your supervisor immediately and provide him or her with a copy of the summons. In addition, you must request leave in writing on an appropriate University leave request form available from your department or business office. Upon completion of jury duty or witness duty, you must provide your supervisor official verification that the leave was due to jury or witness service.

Worker’s Compensation Leave

Purdue provides worker’s compensation benefits to eligible employees as required by the Indiana Worker’s Compensation Act and the Occupational Diseases Act (jointly “the act). Generally, under the act, an injured employee is eligible to receive weekly wage replacement benefits (temporary total disability benefits), medical benefits and benefits for any permanent partial impairment or permanent total disability caused by a work-related injury or illness. Details are provided in University Policy VI.E.2, www.purdue.edu/policies/human-resources/vie2.html.

Paid Parental Leave (PPL)

Benefit-eligible employees and benefit-eligible post-docs are eligible for paid parental leave (PPL) benefits once they are employed for at least one continuous year on at least a half-time basis.

PPL is provided to give parents flexibility and time off work to bond with their new child, adjust to a new family situation and balance professional obligations. PPL benefits are provided to an eligible employee during the first 12 months following a birth or adoption. An eligible employee may receive up to 240 hours (6 weeks) of PPL.

PPL time runs concurrent to Family and Medical Leave where applicable. More details regarding Paid Parental Leave is provided in University Policy VI.E.3, www.purdue.edu/policies/human-resources/vie3.html

Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)

Family and medical leave is available for employees who have been employed by the University for at least 12 months (consecutive or nonconsecutive) and have worked at least 1,250 hours (excluding any paid leave such as vacation or University-designated holidays) during the 12-month period preceding the date FMLA leave commences. This leave is coordinated with existing available leaves.

Purdue University will grant an eligible employee 12 workweeks of FMLA leave over a 12-month period for the following reasons:
• A serious health condition that leaves the employee unable to perform one or more of the essential functions of the employee’s job, as certified by his or her health care provider.
• The birth of his or her son or daughter.
• Placement with the employee of a son or daughter for adoption or foster care (including related court appearances, consultations with attorneys and counseling sessions).
• To care for a son or daughter during the first 12 months following birth or placement.
• To care for his or her spouse, domestic partner, son, daughter or parent with a serious health condition, as certified by the family member’s health care provider.
• Any qualifying exigency arising out of the fact that the employee’s spouse, domestic partner, son, daughter or parent is a covered military member on covered active duty to a foreign country (or has been notified of an impending call or order to covered active duty) in the armed forces.

The University will grant an eligible employee 26 workweeks of leave over a single 12-month period to care for a covered service member with a serious injury or illness, if the employee is the spouse, domestic partner, son, daughter, parent or next of kin of the covered service member. An eligible employee who is granted leave to care for a covered service member is limited to a combined total of 26 workweeks for all types of FMLA leave.

Spouses or domestic partners who are both employed by Purdue University will be limited to a combined total of 12 workweeks of leave during the 12-month period in which the leave is taken when such leave is (1) for the birth of their son or daughter, (2) for placement with them of a son or daughter for adoption or foster care, (3) to care for a son or daughter during the 12 months following birth or placement, or (4) to care for the employee’s parent with a serious health condition.

For certain FMLA-qualifying reasons, eligible employees may take intermittent or reduced-schedule leave.

FMLA leave will not be used as a negative factor in employment actions, such as hiring, promotions, disciplinary actions or under attendance policies.

While the FMLA definition of “spouse” does not include same-sex domestic partners, same-sex domestic partners will be deemed “spouses” for purposes of this policy pursuant to the Purdue Board of Trustees’ September 2002 resolution, which granted benefits to same-sex domestic partners. For more details, see University Policy VI.E.1, www.purdue.edu/policies/human-resources/vie1.html.

Unpaid Personal Leave

Unpaid personal leave may be requested for any reason that is not covered by another leave policy. Personal leave must be requested in writing on an appropriate University leave request form. Unpaid personal leave of 22 days or less can be authorized by the employee’s department head. Leave of more than 22 days must be authorized at an upper administrative level. Unpaid personal leave may not be granted for a period of more than one calendar year. This is a discretionary leave, and the department has the right to deny a request for personal leave unless personal leave is a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) or as required by the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA).

Personal leave that is granted for an employee’s convenience and for the purpose of the University saving wages when workload requirements can be reduced will not be charged against the employee’s accrued, unused unpaid leave. Personal leave for these reasons will not be less than 30 calendar days, nor will it exceed three calendar months per fiscal year. All accrued, unused vacation must be used before personal leave may be granted for these purposes. Staff in a nine-, 10-, or 11-month position will not be eligible for personal leave for these purposes. In keeping with the spirit of leave for these purposes, employees should not file a claim for unemployment compensation during the leave.

The University will continue to pay its share of the cost of an employee’s group health insurance during personal leave. Employees must pay their share of the premium. If employees fail to pay their share of the premium, the University reserves the right to cancel coverage, as permitted by law.