Vacation (Effective 01/01/2021)

This policy applies to: Regular full-time and part-time staff.

Faculty, departmental fellows, ACGME residents and fellows and postdoctoral appointees are eligible for vacation in accordance with the terms of their appointment.

Individuals represented by collective bargaining agreements receive benefits in accordance with those agreements.

I. Policy

The intent of the Vacation Plan is to recognize an individual’s need to have time away from the work environment. Effective management of vacation time, by both the department and by the staff member, should increase efficiency on the job, encourage continued employment and reward University service.

II. Guidelines

A. Vacation Accrual

1. Staff earn vacation starting with their date of appointment and continue to earn a portion of the annual vacation entitlement each pay period.
2. Staff paid on a bi-weekly basis earn one twenty-sixth of their annual entitlement each pay period; staff paid on a semi-monthly basis earn one-twenty-fourth of their annual entitlement each pay period; staff paid on a monthly basis earn one-twelfth of their annual entitlement each pay period.
3. Benefits provided by the Plan: See schedules below.

B. Benefits Upon Retirement, Termination, or Change to Ineligible Status

If a staff member has completed at least six months of service upon termination, retirement or change to an ineligible status, payout of accumulated vacation, up to one year’s entitlement, is made. Vacation cannot be used to extend a termination or retirement date.

C. Benefits During Short-Term Disability, Workers’ Compensation, and Long-Term Disability

Accumulated vacation may be used to supplement partial pay while receiving Short-Term Disability or Workers’ Compensation benefits.

Vacation does not accrue during periods covered by the Short-Term Disability (STD), Paid Family Leave (PFL), Workers’ Compensation (WC), or Long-Term Disability (LTD) Plans. Vacation accruals will occur if an individual works any time in a pay period. Payout of accumulated vacation, up to one year’s entitlement, is made:

1. After an individual’s benefits under Short-Term Disability have been exhausted; or,
2. After periods of job-related disability extend beyond six months: or,
3. When an individual’s status changes to “Pending LTD” after a short-term disability or workers compensation leave.

A staff member on vacation who becomes disabled may be eligible to receive sick pay instead of vacation pay. Questions about sick leave while on vacation should be directed to Leave Administration (HRLeaveAdministration@UR.rochester.edu). View Leave Administration contact information.

D. Benefits During Leave of Absence

During an approved leave of absence, vacation does not accrue. When an individual is placed on leave of absence, payout of accumulated vacation, up to one year’s entitlement, is made.

E. Benefits During Layoff

During a staff member’s temporary or indefinite layoff, vacation does not accrue. When an individual is placed on indefinite layoff status, payout of accumulated vacation, up to one year’s entitlement, is made. Individuals placed on temporary layoff are not required to have vacation paid out but may make a request for the payout.

III. Procedures

A. For all staff members, the online pay statement reflects available vacation balances as of the end of the pay period.

B. Vacation time off must be requested in advance and approved by the department head/supervisor. Salaried staff may schedule vacation in increments of one-half the normal work day; Hourly paid staff (including PAS staff paid hourly) may schedule vacation in increments of one-half hour. Vacations must be scheduled to meet the work requirements of each department. Every effort is made to satisfy individual preference for vacation dates. Departments which experience periods of reduced work schedules may require that vacations be taken at those times, and when feasible, individuals will be informed of such requirements in advance.

C. Vacation is to be taken during the year it is earned and is to be utilized in the amount that mirrors one’s normal work schedule for that day (i.e. employee with a 12-hour schedule would use 12 hours of vacation for that day). Concurrent with the University philosophy, such periods of vacation are an important component of work life. At the beginning of the first full pay period each January, a maximum of one year’s accrual may be carried forward. During the year, vacation accruals will continue to be earned but will be reduced to one year’s entitlement at the end of the calendar year.

CORONAVIRUS AMENDMENT: Due to the Coronavirus Pandemic, the following rules will apply regarding vacation carry-over for the 2021, 2022, and 2023 program years:

1. For calendar year 2020, vacation accruals will continue to be earned, but will be reduced to one and a half year’s (1.5 year’s) entitlement at the end of the calendar year. At the beginning of the first full pay period on January 1, 2021, a maximum of one and a half year’s (1.5 year’s) accrual may be carried forward.
2. For calendar year 2021, vacation accruals will continue to be earned, but will be reduced to one and a quarter year’s (1.25 year’s) entitlement at the end of the calendar year. At the beginning of the first full pay period on January 1, 2022, a maximum of one and a quarter year’s (1.25 year’s) accrual may be carried forward.
3. For calendar year 2022, vacation accruals will continue to be earned, but will be reduced to one year’s (1 year’s) entitlement at the end of the calendar year. At the beginning of the first full pay period on January 1, 2023, and for all subsequent program years, a maximum of one year’s accrual may be carried forward as described in Section III.3 of this Policy.

D. An individual’s base pay rate and standard hours in effect at the time vacation is taken are used in calculating vacation pay.

E. For hourly paid staff members (including PAS staff paid hourly), paid vacation hours are not counted as “time worked” in calculating overtime pay.

F. Shift differential is included in the calculation of vacation pay when an individual’s regular schedule qualifies for the shift differential.

G. When an individual transfers from one University department to another, accumulated vacation is carried over.

H. Employees who transfer between Medical Center and Non-Medical Center departments will have their vacation accruals adjusted in the next pay period to account for the vacation allocation under the Medical Center PTO plan.

I. Payment in lieu of vacation is permitted only as noted in the previous sections II. B, C, D, and E.

In such instances, the vacation payout should be noted by the department on the Personnel Action Form (610). Payouts will occur within the on-cycle pay period following the date the request was processed.

Schedule of Annual Vacation Entitlement for MC Staff in PTO Plan

For employees whose primary appointment is in divisions 40 (School of Medicine and Dentistry), 50 (Strong Memorial Hospital), 60 (School of Nursing), 90 (Health Sciences), 91 (Medical Faculty Group) and 92 (Eastman Institute for Oral Health). This is effective on or after January 1, 2021.

Note: A “day” of vacation is equal to one-fifth the staff member’s standard weekly work hours. Years of service listed below means the new accrual will begin at the completion of that full year (end of year 4 you will earn 14 days)

Staff Members in Clerical, Technical, and Service Positions

Years of University Service*	Annual Vacation Accrual (In Days Per Year)
0 through 3	13
4	14
5	15
6	16
7	17
8	18
9	19
10	20
11	21
12	22
13 through 17	23
18 through 22	25
23 and over	28

Licensed Practical Nurses

Years of University Service	Annual Vacation Accrual (In Days Per Year)
0 through 8	18
9	19
10	20
11	21
12	22
13 through 17	23
18 through 22	25
23 and over	28

Staff Nurses
(Those with employee classification of RNN or RNE)⁽¹⁾

Years of University Service	Annual Vacation Accrual (In Days Per Year)
0 through 17	23
18 through 22	25
23 and over	28

⁽¹⁾ To find your employee classification go to HRMS<Main Menu<Self Service<Benefits< Benefits Eligibility Key. See notation after EMPL CLASS.

Schedule of Annual Vacation Entitlement for Non-Medical Center Staff

Primary appointment is in divisions 10 (Central Administration), 20 (River Campus), 21 (College of Arts and Sciences), 22 (College of Engineering and Applied Science), 23 (Simon School), 24 (Warner School of Education), 30 (Eastman School of Music) or 70 (Memorial Art Gallery)

Note: A “day” of vacation is equal to one-fifth the staff member’s standard weekly work hours. Years of service listed below means the new accrual will begin at the completion of that full year (end of year 4 you will earn 16 days)

Staff Members in Clerical, Technical, and Service Positions

Years of University Service	Annual Vacation Accrual (In Days Per Year)
0 through 3	15
4	16
5	17
6	18
7	19
8	20
9	21
10	22
11	23
12	24
13 through 17	25
18 through 22	27
23 and over	30

Staff Nurses (UHS)

Years of University Service	Annual Vacation Accrual (In Days Per Year)
0 through 17	25
18 through 22	27
23 and over	30

Schedule of Annual Vacation Entitlement for All Professional Administrative and Supervisory Staff (PAS) (including those paid hourly)

PAS staff in Salary Grades 50 through 54 (including those paid hourly)

Years of University Service	Annual Vacation Accrual (In Days Per Year)
0 through 3	17
4 through 6	20
7 through 17	25
18 through 22	27
23 and over	30

PAS Staff in Salary Grades 55 and above (including those paid hourly)

Years of University Service	Annual Vacation Accrual (In Days Per Year)
0 through 17	25
18 through 22	27
23 and over	30

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The University reserves the right to interpret, modify, amend, or terminate any or all of the benefit plans at any time, including actions that may affect coverage, cost-sharing, or covered benefits. A paper copy of this information is available for free from Leave Administration.