UVA offers many options for paid leave to help employees maintain a healthy work/life balance. We encourage you to take time off to relax and rejuvenate.
Please see the relevant time off plan for your Employee Category below to determine the types of paid time off available for your position.
The information provided below is related to the general paid time off plans for staff due to vacation, personal time, or illness. Each section below discusses the following, if applicable, related to the different time off plans offered by employee type: PTO accrual, use or lose time, cash out options, and donations of time off.
If you are leaving the University, please see the paid time off policy applicable to your classification for the amount of any payout to expect. If you are leaving the University, please see the paid time off policy applicable to your classification for the amount of any payout to expect. Any PTO payout upon separation or transfer to a position with a different plan is paid in the pay cycle following your last regular paycheck, provided your separation or transfer is processed in a timely manner in Workday. The payout determination is based on the term or transfer date entered into Workday, not by the last day you worked
The Commonwealth provides paid Annual Leave to Classified Staff for vacation, personal or sick time.
Accrual
Annual Leave cannot be used in advance of accruing the time. You can input your time off request into Workday, which will then go to your supervisor for approval.
Time off is granted at supervisor discretion, whenever possible, while accounting for staffing needs and according to departmental guidelines.
The UVA Academic Leave Year begins with the first day of the pay period which includes January 1 (known as Pay Period 1) and ends on the last day of the pay period preceding Pay Period 1 of the following year.
Note that the accrual rate for Annual Leave in the DHRM policy is based on the state pay bi-monthly pay periods and not the UVA bi-weekly periods. To find your UVA accrual rate per period, you multiply the policy per period accrual rate by 24 pay periods (state pay periods) and then divide the total maximum hours by the number of UVA pay periods in the leave year outlined above. In most cases UVA has 26 bi-weekly leave periods. 2023 was an exception due to the way the calendar dates fell based on the leave year definition.
View your Time Off balance in Workday. You can go to your Workday Home Screen, the Absence Icon, and "View My Balance" to input a future date to determine what your balance will be based on estimated future accruals as well as any time off approved in Workday up until that date.
As Annual Leave is accrued based on hours worked or paid time off in each pay period, the amount accrued in the future may change.
It is prudent to check your time off balance periodically in case of unexpected absences or in preparation for use or lose time at the end of the Leave Year.
Accrual while on leave
Annual Leave does not accrue during periods of leave without pay (LWOP) and will stop accruing on a paid leave of absence after 90 days.
Accruals will also stop for periods of suspension, while on Layoff Leave or Temporary Workforce Reduction leave.
Accruals will resume upon return to work.
Use or Lose Annual Leave Job Aid
If Annual Leave, above the policy maximum carry forward time, is not used before the end of the UVA Leave Year, this time will be lost. To calculate use or lose and forfeiture for this year, see the My Time Off Balance Details with Use or Lose.
Payout upon Separation or Transfer
Payout upon transfer to another employee type (wage, Medical Center, UPG) or upon separation occurs according to the policy maximums. If the transfer or termination process has been entered into Workday in a timely manner, any pay out is distributed automatically in the next pay bi-weekly pay cycle following your last regular paycheck. The payout determination is based on the term or transfer date entered into Workday, not by the last day you worked.
Converting to University Staff
If a Classified employee converts to University Staff a portion of their Annual Leave will be allotted to an Annual Leave Bank for future use or payout upon separation. University Staff incorporates time off for vacation, personal time, and illness in one plan.
Please see the website section on converting to Ustaff for more details.
Employees in the Virginia Sickness and Disability Plan (VSDP) that have disability benefits managed by Alight are only eligible for donations of Annual Leave when they are approved for FMLA to care for an ill family member.
Employees in the Traditional (Personal) Sick Plan, may also receive Annual Leave donations for leave related to their own illness.
Donations would only be applied when an employee has exhausted all of their own paid time off options.
To apply, complete the leave sharing recipient application and return it to leave@virginia.edu. Once received the leave team will confirm approval of the leave. Once the leave is approved, the team send instructions about the donation process to the employee and their manager.
Classified employees may donate Annual Leave to eligible University Staff employees or vice versa by completing the Leave Sharing Donor form and return it to leave@virginia.edu. If an employee is eligible to receive donations, we will apply it. You may indicate on the form that it can go to anyone in need.
Non- Exempt Classified Staff are eligible for compensatory leave, which provides employees with paid leave as compensation for working beyond normal scheduled hours, but not more than 40 hours per week.
Overtime Leave can be accrued in lieu of pay, for working more than 40 hours per week.
An example of when you may earn this time off is if there is a holiday during the work week and you work additional time that week but not over 40 hours, then you would earn comp time. If you work on the actual holiday, there is a different earning option.
Your manager can change whether your earn pay or leave for these situations by going into Workday, going to your Employee profile, then "Actions" under your photo, then clicking on "Additional Data", there is a section in the "Grandfathered Time Off" where they can place a check next to Comp Time Off. With this change, you will automatically earn Comp Time instead of pay for scenarios where you work beyond your normally scheduled hours but not more than 40 hours per week.
Usage and Payout
Time off is granted at supervisor discretion, whenever possible, while accounting for staffing needs and according to departmental guidelines.
This time off does not expire and will be paid out at 100% at separation or transfer to a position in which this time off is not available.
It can be used for time off due to illness, vacation, or personal time.
This time cannot be donated.
Exempt Classified Staff may retain any balance they have at the time off transfer from a non-exempt Classified Staff position but they do not continue to accrue additional compensatory time.
If you work on a Holiday, you may earn Comp Special time by entering "Worked Holiday- Comp Special Earned".
Non Exempt employees may enter this time on their time card.
Exempt employees may enter this time on their absence calendar.
This time is earned in lieu of additional pay for your hours worked on a Holiday. Employees will earn pay for the holiday in addition to the earned time off.
Usage and Payout
Time off is granted at supervisor discretion, whenever possible, while accounting for staffing needs and according to departmental guidelines.
It does not expire and will be paid out at 100% at separation or transfer to a position in which this time off is not available.
It can be used for time off due to illness, vacation, or personal time.
Non-Exempt Classified Staff are eligible for Overtime leave, which provides employees with paid leave as compensation for working beyond normal scheduled hours.
Overtime Leave can be accrued in lieu of pay, for working more than 40 hours per week.
Your manager can change whether your earn pay or leave for these situations by going into Workday, going to your Employee profile, then "Actions" under your photo, then clicking on "Additional Data", there is a section in the "Grandfathered Time Off" where they can place a check next to Overtime Leave. With this change, you will automatically earn Overtime Leave instead of pay for scenarios where you work more than 40 hours per week.
Usage and Payout
Time off is granted at supervisor discretion, whenever possible, while accounting for staffing needs and according to departmental guidelines.
This time off does not expire and will be paid out at 100% at separation or transfer to a position in which this time off is not available.
Exempt Classified Staff may retain any balance they have at the time off transfer from a non-exempt Classified Staff position but they do not continue to accrue additional Overtime Leave.
It can be used for time off due to illness, vacation, or personal time.
Classified Employees in the Virginia Sickness and Disability Plan (VSDP) have access to Sick Leave which may be taken for personal illnesses, injuries, preventive care and wellness physician visits.
Eligible employees may use 33% of their available Sick Leave for an FMLA absence for an immediate family member.
Sick Leave can be utilized during the Short Term Disability waiting period, if you are approved for Short Term Disability. Sick Leave cannot be used to supplement your disability benefits, if they drop below 100% for continuous disability benefits.
If an employee returns to work on a reduced schedule while still receiving disability benefits, they can utilize their Sick Leave to supplement their income if their disability benefits are less than 100%.
More information about Short Term Disability can be found on the Disability section of our website.
Family Personal Leave
Family/Personal Leave (F/P) may be taken at the discretion of the employee for any purpose (family, illness, attend a funeral, or other personal needs, etc.) provided the employee gives reasonable notice and his/her supervisor approves the absence.
Accrual
Sick Leave and Family Personal Leave cannot be carried over to the next year or paid out upon separation.
The Sick Leave and Family Personal Leave allotment is awarded at the beginning of each UVA leave year. If you are on a leave of absence at the beginning of the year, the time will be awarded upon your return to work.
Conversion
If a Classified employee converts to University Staff they will no longer have Sick or Family Personal Leave. University Staff incorporates time off for vacation, personal time, and illness in one plan.
Traditional Sick Leave was provided to Classified employees prior to the Short Term Disability Plan offered under the Virginia Sickness and Disability Plan.
This plan provides eligible employees with paid leave from work for reasons related to their own injury, illness, or medical appointments.
Managers must enter this time off type into Workday on the employee's behalf.
Employees shall be allowed to use accrued sick leave to take time off from work for the illness or death of an immediate family member up to 48 hours per leave year.
In addition, employees may use up to 33% of their available sick leave balances for family illnesses/injuries that has been designated as FMLA leave. The calculation of 33% is made at the beginning of the FMLA leave.
Accrual
Classified employees in this program will accrue sick leave per pay period based on the UVA bi-weekly leave period versus state employees who accrue 5 hours per semi-monthly period. The total annual accrual for a 40 hour per week employee would amount to 120 hours.
If an employee is on leave without pay or after 90 consecutive calendar days on leave with pay accruals will cease.
Accruals will also stop for periods of suspension, while on Layoff Leave or Temporary Workforce Reduction leave.
Accruals will resume upon return to work.
Conversion
If a Classified employee converts to University Staff they will no longer accrue Sick Leave but the time accrued as of the date of conversion will be transferred into a University Staff Personal Sick Bank. It may be used for the same reasons outlined above but an employee may also use University Staff time for those reasons.
Payout
Payout upon separation of Traditional Sick Leave upon separation is 25% of the employee’s accrued sick leave balance up to a maximum of $5,000.
Leave Donations
Employees in the Traditional (Personal) Sick Plan, may receive Annual Leave donations when on an approved leave related to their own illness or to care for an ill family member.
Personal Sick time cannot be donated.
Donations would only be applied when an employee has exhausted all of their own paid time off options.
To apply, complete the leave sharing recipient application and return it to leave@virginia.edu. Once received the leave team will confirm approval of the leave. Once the leave is approved, the team send instructions about the donation process to the employee and their manager.
Classified employees may donate Annual Leave to eligible University Staff employees or vice versa by completing the Leave Sharing Donor form and return it to leave@virginia.edu. If an employee is eligible to receive donations, we will apply it. You may indicate on the form that it can go to anyone in need.
Disability Credits are Sick Leave (SL) converted by employees who enrolled in VSDP between January 1, 1999 and March 1, 1999 or employees who did not opt out during October 1 – November 30, 2002.
Use of Credits
Credits may be applied to receive pay under Long Term Disability if an employee reaches LTD so that the employee receives 100% of pay instead of the disability policy payment of 60% until the disability period ends or the credits are exhausted.
Credits may be converted to service credit upon separation or retirement.
Credits may be paid out at 25%, up to $5000, at retirement or separation.
While employees approved for Short Term Disability, whose benefits have dropped below 100%, may use these credits in lieu of the STD benefit to receive 100% pay, use of this time is required to be taken in 8 hour increments and will decrease the balance available for service time or LTD payment. Therefore, it is not recommended these credits be used in this manner.
The University Medical Center provides team members with a generous Paid Time Off (PTO) policy, one which exceeds industry standards for similar institutions nationally. This is according to a recent benchmarking study UVA Health performed across multiple medical centers, which found that out of 700 companies surveyed – including many of our peer healthcare groups – the Medical Center is seated in the top half for PTO generosity and in the top quartile for our carryover/payout program.
To provide flexibility to all of our team, UVA Health’s PTO plan combines leave into one pool that team members can use for a variety of purposes, including sick time, holidays, extended bereavement, personal business, etc.
The University Medical Center Leave Year is "Twelve month period from the first pay period that starts in January to the last pay period that starts in December, during which leave hours accumulate in an employee’s current account."
View your Time Off balance in Workday. You can go to your Workday Home Screen, the Absence Icon, and "View My Balance" to input a future date to determine what your balance will be based on estimated future accruals as well as any time off approved in Workday up until that date. As PTO is accrued based on hours in each pay period, the amount accrued in the future may change. Note that integration from Kronos occurs after each pay period processes so Workday may not reflect the most up to date balances.
Medical Center Exempt team members are paid for a full day from their salary if they work any part of the day. These team members are still required to follow attendance policies and complete their work if they miss time. They should utilize PTO for days where they do not work at all.
Time off is granted at supervisor discretion, whenever possible, while accounting for staffing needs and according to departmental guidelines.
Accrual
New full-time team members accrue up to 26 days of PTO per year and begin accruing PTO on day one, earning up to 8 hours every pay period based on their FTE and hours worked in the period.
New team members can utilize up to 32 hours of Advance PTO within their first 60 days of employment. Please make these requests to your supervisor. The Advance PTO will be deducted from your future accruals until you have earned that time back.
Please see the Medical Center PTO Policy for accrual charts based on years of service, most recent hire date, and classification.
Accrual on while on leave
Medical Center team members will continue to accrue PTO for 4 full, consecutive pay periods while on a paid leave of absence. After 4 full pay periods on leave, PTO accruals will be suspended until you return to work. Team members will not accrue PTO while on unpaid leave.
Prior Service
For new staff with prior benefited service at another Virginia State Agency, the Medical Center, or the UVA Academic division, please reach out to leave@virginia.edu for review to determine if that time may count towards your current PTO accrual rate.
Carry Forward
Team members can carry forward unused PTO from year to year (up to 1.5 times the annual PTO accrual rate). Any amount exceeding this number will be lost. Please plan your PTO usage accordingly and see the cash out opportunities afforded to team members bi-annually.
Team members have opportunities to cash out up to 160 hours of PTO annually at 100% of pay according to the biannual cash out opportunities.
Communications will be sent to inform employees of the cash out opportunities each Fall and Spring. More details about the process can be found under the UVA Finance site below.
If an employee is on an approved leave of absence for their own health (FMLA or Medical Leave) or to care for an ill family member (FMLA or Personal Leave) and they are near exhausting their own Paid Time Off, they can apply for PTO Donations. Employee's and their supervisor will complete the PTO Donation request form and return it to leave@virginia.edu.
If an employee is on leave and unable to complete the form, their manager may complete the form on their behalf.
Once the HR Leave Team has the form and the leave approval, we'll send instructions for the donation process to the employee and manager.
Employee's wishing to donate to eligible recipients can send a PTO Donation form to leave@virginia.edu.
Donor and recipient forms may also be faxed to 434-924-4042.
Take PTO Value With You
If separating from UVA after at least six months of employment, team members will be paid for unused accrued PTO hours at 100% of their base pay.
Payout upon transfer to another employee type (wage, academic staff, UPG) or upon separation occurs according to the policy maximums. If the transfer or termination process has been entered into Workday in a timely manner, any pay out is distributed automatically in the next pay bi-weekly pay cycle following your last regular paycheck. The payout determination is based on the term or transfer date entered into Workday, not by the last day you worked.
Clinic Holidays Exempt vs Non-Exempt
Some University Medical Center clinics or departments may be closed on designated holidays. The generous PTO plan provided, accounts for these closures.
Non-exempt team members may choose not to use PTO if their clinic or department will be closed on a holiday.
Exempt team members who do not work any portion of a holiday must use PTO.
PTO during Emergency Closure
Please see the Emergency Event Status resources for details on the usage of PTO due to closures.
Employees may have a Catastrophic Leave Account created from the transfer of sick leave balances when the University Medical Center converted to the PTO leave program. You may use accrued leave from this account for employee personal illnesses or disability after having used 16 consecutive hours of PTO.
Catastrophic Leave with Short Term Disability
Catastrophic leave payments fall under the Medical Center’s Short-Term Disability Plan. In order to utilize Catastrophic leave for your own illness beyond 14 business days, you must apply for Short-Term Disability. You will receive payment at 100% from your Catastrophic leave plan until exhaustion or your return to work.
If Catastrophic leave balances are exhausted prior to the expiration of the approved short-term disability benefit period, payments for the balance of the approved disability period will be made in accordance with plan provisions.
Short Term Disability Plan Information can be found here.
Catastrophic Leave for an Ill Family Member
You may also use catastrophic leave for approved absences due to the illness of an immediate family member or for an extended bereavement period due to the death of an immediate family member, up to a maximum of 48 hours in a calendar year. The 16 hour PTO requirement will be waived to allow immediate access to catastrophic leave for an approved absence due to family illness.
University Staff
University Staff Leave combines multiple paid time off types (time off to care for family, personal time, and sick time) into one flexible time off type to use as you wish.
The UVA Academic Leave Year begins with the first day of the pay period which includes January 1 (known as Pay Period 1) and ends on the last day of the pay period preceding Pay Period 1 of the following year.
Time off Tracking
Non-exempt University staff track time off in 15 minute increments.
For Exempt University staff, time off of less than 4 hours is considered discretionary and not reported; however, if an employee is taking ongoing time off on a regular basis related to a leave of absence, they may be required by their department to track their time off. Exempt University staff should record time off if they are absent for over 4 hours in a day.
While University Staff may take time off in advance of accruing their time off, up to the amount they will be able to accrue in a Leave Year, some departments have guidelines regarding advance time off if it is not yet accrued. In addition if an employee separates prior to accruing the time used, they will owe that time back to the university.
Time off is granted at supervisor discretion, whenever possible, while accounting for staffing needs and according to departmental guidelines.
View your Time Off balance in Workday. You can go to your Workday Home Screen, the Absence Icon, and "View My Balance" to input a future date to determine what your balance will be based on estimated future accruals as well as any time off approved in Workday up until that date.
It is prudent to check your time off balance periodically in case of unexpected absences or in preparation for use or lose time at the end of the Leave Year.
Accrual
To determine your bi-weekly accrual, take the total maximum based on your years of service from the policy and divide by the leave periods in the year. Typically there are 26 leave periods in a year matching the biweekly pay periods.
In 2023 due to the way the dates fell in the Leave Year, there were 27 leave periods.
Accrual while on leave
University staff will continue to accrue University Staff Time Off while on an approved leave of absence status.
Prior Service
For new staff with prior benefited service at another Virginia State Agency, the Medical Center, or the UVA Academic division, please reach out to leave@virginia.edu for review to determine if that time may count towards your current PTO accrual rate.
Carry Forward and Cash Out
If you have unused University Staff Leave at the end of the current leave year which exceeds the maximum carry-forward amount (use or lose), cashing out of unused time will automatically occur in accordance with the policy, provided you have used 80 hours of paid time off by the end of the Leave Year.
Payout of the unused time will occur on the paycheck following the last period of the Leave Year.
Payout upon transfer to a non-University Staff position or upon separation occurs according to the policy maximum. If the transfer or termination process has been entered into Workday in a timely manner, any pay out is distributed automatically in the next pay bi-weekly pay cycle following your last regular paycheck. The payout determination is based on the term or transfer date entered into Workday, not by the last day you worked.
Employees in the Virginia Sickness and Disability Plan (VSDP) that have disability benefits managed by Alight are only eligible for donations of Annual Leave when they are approved for FMLA to care for an ill family member.
Employees in the Traditional (Personal) Sick Plan, may also receive Annual Leave donations for leave related to their own illness.
Donations would only be applied when an employee has exhausted all of their own paid time off options.
To apply, complete the leave sharing recipient application and return it to leave@virginia.edu. Once received the leave team will confirm approval of the leave. Once the leave is approved, the team send instructions about the donation process to the employee and their manager.
Classified employees may donate Annual Leave to eligible University Staff employees or vice versa by completing the Leave Sharing Donor form and return it to leave@virginia.edu. If an employee is eligible to receive donations, we will apply it. You may indicate on the form that it can go to anyone in need.
Non-Exempt University Staff are eligible for compensatory leave, which provides employees with paid leave as compensation for working beyond normal scheduled hours, but not more than 40 hours per week.
Overtime Leave can be accrued in lieu of pay, for working more than 40 hours per week.
Your manager can change whether your earn pay or leave for these situations by going into Workday, going to your Employee profile, then "Actions" under your photo, then clicking on "Additional Data", there is a section in the "Grandfathered Time Off" where they can place a check next to Comp Time Off. With this change, you will automatically earn Comp Time instead of pay for scenarios where you work beyond your normally scheduled hours but not more than 40 hours per week.
An example of when you may earn this time off is if there is a holiday during the work week and you work additional time that week but not over 40 hours, then you would earn comp time. If you work on the actual holiday, there is a different earning option.
Usage and Payout
Time off is granted at supervisor discretion, whenever possible, while accounting for staffing needs and according to departmental guidelines.
This time off does not expire and will be paid out at 100% at separation or transfer to a position in which this time off is not available.
Exempt University Staff may retain any balance they have at the time off transfer from a non-exempt Ustaff position but they do not continue to accrue additional compensatory time.
It can be used for time off due to illness, vacation, or personal time.
If you work on a Holiday, you may earn Comp Special time by entering "Worked Holiday- Comp Special Earned".
Non Exempt employees may enter this time on their time card.
Exempt employees may enter this time on their absence calendar.
This time is earned in lieu of additional pay for your hours worked on a Holiday. Employees will earn pay for the holiday in addition to the earned time off.
Usage and Payout
Time off is granted at supervisor discretion, whenever possible, while accounting for staffing needs and according to departmental guidelines.
Comp Special time does not expire and will be paid out at 100% at separation or transfer to a position in which this time off is not available.
It can be used for time off due to illness, vacation, or personal time.
Non-Exempt University Staff are eligible for Overtime leave, which provides employees with paid leave as compensation for working beyond normal scheduled hours.
Overtime Leave can be accrued in lieu of pay, for working more than 40 hours per week.
Your manager can change whether your earn pay or leave for these situations by going into Workday, going to your Employee profile, then "Actions" under your photo, then clicking on "Additional Data", there is a section in the "Grandfathered Time Off" where they can place a check next to Overtime Leave. With this change, you will automatically earn Overtime Leave instead of pay for scenarios where you work more than 40 hours per week.
Usage and Payout
Time off is granted at supervisor discretion, whenever possible, while accounting for staffing needs and according to departmental guidelines.
This time off does not expire and will be paid out at 100% at separation or transfer to a position in which this time off is not available.
Exempt University Staff may retain any balance they have at the time off transfer from a non-exempt University Staff position but they do not continue to accrue additional Overtime Leave.
It can be used for time off due to illness, vacation, or personal time.
Want to help your direct reports plan Leave/PTO? To research the amount of 'Use or Lose' Leave/PTO for your direct reports, use the Time Off Balance Details with Use or Lose job aid.
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