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For any questions please send e-mail to: NDSU.Policy.Manual@ndsu.edu

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SECTION 130: ANNUAL LEAVE

SOURCE:

NDUS Human Resources Policy Manual, Section 6
NDSU President

1. Annual leave with pay is earned by eligible employees for the purpose of freeing them from their regular duties to spend time in rest and recreation or to attend to personal matters. Such leave should be programmed to insure that leave is taken rather than carried forward from year to year.

2. University operations govern annual leave periods. Consideration is given first to the convenience of the administration, departmental needs, then the employee's departmental seniority and finally to the employee's preference. Annual leave is computed on the basis of the employee's hours/week, and months/year.

   2.1

   The employee must obtain authorization from his/her department head before taking annual leave. The form of this authorization is to be determined by the respective department head.

   2.2

   The employee is responsible for furnishing their supervisor or department head with a completed "Notification of Employee Leave" card upon returning to work.

3. Annual leave with pay for full-time benefited, broadbanded staff employees is earned on the basis of continuous service from date of employment as follows:

   First through third year - the equivalent of 12 days per year
   Fourth through seventh year - the equivalent of 15 days per year
   Eighth through twelfth year - the equivalent of 18 days per year
   Thirteenth through eighteenth year - the equivalent of 21 days per year
   Over eighteen years - the equivalent of 24 days per year

   Annual leave for full-time, non-banded employees in the following job categories is earned on the same basis as for staff employees: graduate research fellows (2230), graduate teaching fellows (2235), post doc research fellows (2240), research scientists (2420), research associates (2421), research assistants (2422), extension program assistants (2530), and international exchange scientists (2810).

   Graduate teaching, research or service assistants and experiment station project assistants do not earn annual leave.

   3.1

   Years of service shall be computed from the employment anniversary dates.

   3.2

   Annual leave for part-time staff employees and the non-banded employees identified above in 3 is earned on a prorated basis.

4. Presidents, executive deans, provosts, vice presidents, positions excluded from the broadbanding system, and other positions approved by the President or chancellor at the time of hire are entitled to a minimum of twelve working days and a maximum of 24 working days of annual leave each year to be taken at the convenience of the administration. Accrual rates for these employees are determined by the institution president. For any of these employees who are less than full-time, the annual leave will be prorated.

   Each department may negotiate annual leave accrual on a case-by case basis during the recruitment, with prior Presidential approval.

5. Annual leave for 12 month faculty and other non-banded job categories not identified in #3 above is earned at the rate of 16 hours per month, 24 days per year. Annual leave will be prorated for those who are less than full-time. For non-banded employees on 9, 10, or 11, month appointments, see Section 320.

6. All eligible employees may accumulate annual leave hours. Full-time employees may accumulate up to 30 working days or 240 hours which shall be carried forward on January 1st of each year. Part-time employees may accumulate up to the equivalent number of days or hours on a prorated basis. Any accumulation in excess of 30 days or 240 hours (or the equivalent on a prorated basis for part-time employees) on December 31st of each year shall be cancelled.

7. All employees eligible to accumulate annual leave must take at least forty hours (or the equivalent on a prorated basis for part-time employees) of annual leave each year, except for the year during which they are hired.

8. When a holiday occurs during annual leave, the holiday is not considered a day of annual leave time.

9. At the discretion of the department head and the concurrence of the Director of Human Resources/Payroll, an employee may be granted annual leave in advance of the accumulation thereof.

10. Benefited employees terminating employment must be paid for earned unused annual leave subject to all approved payroll matched reductions/deductions. "Unused annual leave" shall include any leave carried over from the previous year and all accrued leave up to the date of termination. Proper termination notice must be given and any unearned annual leave taken shall be deducted from the employee's last paycheck.

    10.1

    In circumstances where an employee is paid entirely from nonappropriated sources, the unit head and the appointee may agree in writing, prior to the beginning of the appointment, that the annual leave will be used during the period of appointment and that any unused portion will be forfeited at is conclusion.

    In the absence of such a written agreement, the supervisor is responsible to assure that there is adequate money available for those sources to cover the payment for unused annual leave at the time of the employee's termination.

    10.2

    Annual leave earned by an employee on a limited term 12 month appointment (for example, interim administrative appointments or rotating department chair appointments) may not be carried forward by the employee to be used or paid for during the term of a subsequent appointment for less than 12 months.

    There are two options at NDSU for addressing annual leave accrual during limited 12-month appointments:

    10.2.1

    The unit head and the appointee may agree in writing, prior to the beginning of the limited 12-month appointment, that the annual leave will be used during the period of the 12-month appointment and that any unused portion will be forfeited at its conclusion.

    10.2.2

    Absent such a written agreement, for limited term 12-month appointments beginning April 1, 1998, or thereafter, the unused annual leave hours shall be paid out at the conclusion of the limited 12-month appointment.

11. In case of death, payment of all earned, unused annual leave shall be paid according to Section 34-01-12 of the North Dakota Century Code. (See Section 183.)

12. Accrued annual leave for employees previously employed with other North Dakota institutions or agencies may be transferred to institutions under the State Board of Higher Education according to agreements between the employee and the institution. If re-employment occurs within one calendar year, the re-employing institution shall credit the employee with prior years of service from any state agency in computing annual leave accrual rate.

13. When employment begins or ends during a pay period, the accrual of annual leave shall be prorated for the pay period when the employee is hired or terminated and does not work a full pay period.

14. "Notification of Employee Leave" cards are processed on an on-going basis. Each department is responsible for verifying the Departmental Leave Record. Late Leave Cards and errors must be submitted to the Office of Human Resources/Payroll for entry and/or correction.

HISTORY: July 1990; Amended April 1996; March 1998; October 1999, April 2002, October 2003, March 2006.