Leave Options for Special Circumstances

Human Resources representatives, including HR Business Partners and Employee Relations Consultants, may work with departments to determine if Administrative Leave with full, partial, or no pay is appropriate in certain circumstances. Employees will be notified of any determinations by their department. 

Human Resources representatives, including HR Business Partners and Employee Relations Consultants, may work with departments to determine if Administrative Leave with full, partial, or no pay is appropriate in certain circumstances. Employees will be notified of any determinations by their department. 

The Medical Center provides eligible team members with time off with or without pay for a variety of approved absences. Please see policy 600 to confirm which Administrative Leave reasons include pay. 

There are additional time off reasons under the Administrative Leave policy that are noted under the appropriate categories elsewhere on the page. 

Reasons for this leave related to employment issues include:

Pending Completion of Investigation for Alleged Misconduct or Criminal Conduct

May be paid or unpaid, determined by Employee Relations

Work Related Issues

Paid Admin leave for employees seeking assistance or resolution for a work related problem through the Grievance Procedure, HR, EOC, FEAP, or University Ombudsman. An employee's work responsibilities have been coordinated and approved by their supervisor to attend meetings, interviews, or hearings. 

Unemployment Insurance and Workers Comp Claim Hearings

For attendance at these hearings, HR determines if time is paid or unpaid. For employees whose duties require attendance at the hearings, the time in attendance will be considered hours worked. 

Interviews for positions within the University of Virginia

An employee may be granted paid Administrative Leave by Human Resources to interview for and to take employment tests for positions within the University of Virginia, provided that coverage of the employee’s work responsibilities has been coordinated and approved by the supervisor. The employee may use Administrative Leave only for the actual time away from work for interviewing and testing.

Use of Administrative Leave to interview for University of Virginia positions outside the Medical Center is limited to three occurrences per calendar year; however, there is no limit for employment interviews within the Medical Center unless the employee’s absence creates an undue hardship for the department

Family/Personal Leave (F/P)

Virginia Sickness & Disability Program Policy 4.57

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.

Personal/Traditional Sick Leave

Traditional Sick Leave Policy 4.55

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. The policy defines Immediate Family member. 

The maximum amount of family sick leave an employee may use for minor or brief periods of disability, or following the death of certain family members, is limited to 48 total work hours in a leave year.

Annual Leave

Employees in the classified staff plan, may also utilize their Annual Leave for bereavement. 

The Medical Center provides Bereavement Leave to regular full-time, part-time, flex staff, and management employees in a benefits eligible position as of the date of the request for Bereavement Leave.

Employees may take up to three (3) shifts (a maximum of thirty-six (36) hours) paid Bereavement Leave for days they are scheduled to work in the event of an Immediate Family Member’s death.

Employees shall take the paid Bereavement Leave within seven (7) calendar days of death or the funeral/memorial service of an Immediate Family Member

Immediate Family Member – For the purpose of absences due to a death:

• Parents, including stepparents, in-laws and in loco parentis (a person who stood in place of parent).
• Spouse or domestic partner.
• Children, including stepchildren, adoptive, foster child or ward, sons-in-law, daughters-in-law.
• Siblings, including stepsiblings, siblings-in-law.
• Grandparents.
• Grandchildren.
• Any person living in the Eligible Employee’s household.
• Any individual related by blood or affinity whose close association with the employee is the equivalent of a family relationship.

An employee may take additional time for bereavement with the approval of their immediate supervisor. Any additional time approved beyond the first three (3) shifts/days of Bereavement Leave shall be compensated from the employee’s accrued Paid Time Off (PTO) hours, if available, or from Catastrophic Leave if accruals are available and the forty-eight (48) hour calendar year maximum has not been exhausted.

A Personal Leave request may also be submitted to a supervisor for extended Bereavement leave. The Personal Leave will be paid via the employee's on PTO balance. If the employee has exhausted their PTO, the leave will be unpaid. Additional time off is subject to supervisor approval. 

UVA provides Bereavement Leave for benefits eligible staff who are full-time or part-time. The policy provides three days (24 hours based on full-time employment, pro-rated for part-time) of paid leave for a death in the immediate family. If additional time is needed, a supervisor may authorize use of the employee's paid time off. 

Immediate family includes:

• Parents - including stepparents, in-laws and in loco parentis (a person who stood in place of parent)
• Spouse or Domestic Partner
• Children - including step, adoptive, foster child or ward, sons-in-law, daughters-in-law
• Siblings - including stepsiblings, siblings-in-law
• Grandparents
• Grandchildren
• Any person living in the eligible employee’s household
• Any individual related by blood or affinity whose close association with the employee is the equivalent of a family relationship.

For further details, please see the Bereavement Leave Policy – Academic Division.

Employees scheduled 30 or more hours per week are granted three days of leave with full pay for a death in the immediate family. If additional time is needed, a supervisor may authorize use of Paid Time Off.

Civil and Work-Related Leave provides for the following situations:

• Administrative summons
• Use of Career Services
• Use of Employee Assistance Program
• Grievance process
• Service on State (or Federal) Council, Commission, Board, or Committee 
• Naturalization ceremony
• Subpoena (for witness or victim)
• To accompany your minor child to court
• Unemployment or workers’ compensation
• Interview with UVA, or another state agency
• Jury duty/ court appearance
• Emergency disaster leave

UVA requires documentation be provided to supervisor when requesting leave, which can be uploaded through Workday when you:

• Serve jury duty (as required by a summons)
• Appear as a crime victim, or as a witness, in a court proceeding or deposition (as compelled by a subpoena or summons)*
• Accompany your minor child to appear in court
• Serve as an officer of election
• Attend your own naturalization ceremony

*This policy includes time off for victims of a crime to attend court appearances. Please note, if you are a victim of a crime and need time off for court appearances related to the crime, you may also be eligible for a job protected leave status for those appearances, please contact UNUM to apply for this leave. Their number is 866-269-0979.

A faculty member who serves on a federal jury will receive payment for their services. A faculty member must use annual leave if he/she keeps the payment. If the faculty member remits the payment back to UVA, he/she should not use annual leave.

Money received for non-federal jury duty is considered “reimbursement for expense” and the faculty members should not use annual leave.

Please note, if you are a victim of a crime and need time off for court appearances related to the crime, you may also be eligible for a job protected leave status for those appearances, please contact UNUM to apply for this leave. Their number is 866.269.0979.

Under the Administrative Leave Section of the Medical Center Leaves of Absence Policy leave is provided for the following circumstances related to civil duty and work related situations.

Jury Duty 

Employees are eligible Paid Administrative Leave when they are summonsed to serve on a jury. 

Employees must present the Jury Duty notice to their supervisor upon receipt to arrange for staffing in the employee's absence. 

If the employee is not selected to serve, prior to the end of their normal work schedule, should return to work for the remainder of the shift. Administrative leave covers the actual time away from work for jury duty and reasonable travel time to and from court. 

Employees who appear and serve on jury duty for four (4) or more hours, including travel time, shall not be required to start any work shift that begins on or after 5:00 p.m. on the day of appearance for jury duty or begins before 3:00 a.m. on the day following the day of appearance for jury duty.

Note: Fees given to jurors by the court are considered reimbursement for expenses. Therefore, payments for expenses such as meals, mileage, parking, etc., may be retained by the employee.

Other Court or Litigation/Prosecution Related Appearances 

Administrative Leave may be granted to employees to appear as a witness in a court proceeding or deposition as compelled by a subpoena or summons, or to accompany the employee's minor child when the child is legally required to appear in court. Human Resources will determine if this leave is paid or unpaid.

The Medical Center Administrative Leave policy includes time off for victims of a crime to attend court appearances.

Please note, if you are a victim of a crime and need time off for court appearances related to the crime, you may also be eligible for a job protected leave status for those appearances, please contact UNUM to apply for this leave. Their number is 866.269.0979.

Virginia Code 40.1-28.7:2

Paid Administrative Leave for crime victims shall only apply when the employee's presence at such criminal proceedings is compelled by subpoena or summons. 

Administrative Leave shall not be granted for use by an employee who:

• Is a defendant in a criminal matter, where criminal matter means either an alleged misdemeanor or felony.
• Has received a summons to appear in traffic court (except as a witness).
• Is a party to a civil case, either as plaintiff or defendant, or who has any personal or familial interest in the proceedings

Training or Emergency Missions with Civil Air Patrol 

The Medical Center shall grant Administrative Leave to employees who are volunteer members of the Civil Air Patrol to engage in training for emergency missions with the Civil Air Patrol, not to exceed ten (10) workdays per federal fiscal year, or to respond to an emergency mission as a Civil Air Patrol volunteer, not to exceed thirty (30) workdays per federal fiscal year. Human Resources shall determine whether the leave shall be paid or unpaid. Employees are not required to exhaust any other leave to which the employee is entitled prior to such leaves of absence.

The employee requesting leave must provide certification that the employee has been authorized by the United States Air Force, the Governor, or a department, division, agency, or political subdivision of the state to respond to or train for an emergency mission and verification from the Civil Air Patrol of the emergency need of the employee’s volunteer service.

Employees who need to be away from work for jury duty; to comply with a subpoena as a witness for court proceeding or disposition; or to accompany a minor legally required to be present in court may request civil leave, in advance of the absence. 

Civil leave does not cover court appearances for criminal defendants or divorce proceedings. 

If civil leave is approved, UPG will pay the difference between an employee’s normal pay and any jury pay received from the court.

When an employee is subpoenaed to court as a witness in his or her role at UPG, the absence is considered work time.

Agencies may grant up to 80 hours of paid leave annually to qualifying employees who provide emergency services during defined times of state and/or national disaster. Agencies may also grant up to 80 hours of paid leave annually to employees who are victims of disasters (that meet certain criteria).

The University provides two types of disaster leave. 40 hours are permitted for staff and research assistants. It is possible to extend the leave an additional 5 business days/40 hours.

Under the Administrative Leave Section of the Medical Center Leaves of Absence Policy leave is provided for the following circumstances. Please review the policy for additional details regarding who is eligible and the process of requesting this time off. 

Disaster Relief Services

After declaration of an emergency by the authorities designated in the policy, employees who are authorized to provide disaster relief services, may be granted up to 40 hours per year to serve. 

Leave for Victims of a Disaster

After declaration of an emergency by the authorities designated in the policy, victims of disaster whose primary residence was impacted, may be granted up to 40 hours per year

Other time off options for Disaster

For disaster situations not addressed by policy, the employee may utilize their own Paid Time Off. They may also apply for a Personal Leave request. Both of these requests require supervisor approval. 

University Medical Center Team Members have this Paid Time Off option under the Administrative Leave section of the Leaves of Absence Policy. 

An employee shall be granted paid Administrative Leave for time lost from work to donate blood or blood products at a donation site on the Medical Center campus. The absence must be approved in advance by the employee’s supervisor and should be limited to the time necessary to complete the donation.

See the page on Weather or Emergency Event Status for additional guidance about time off in the event of an unexpected or emergency closure.  

Under the Administrative Leave Section of the Medical Center Leaves of Absence Policy leave is provided for the following circumstances related to civil duty and work related situations.

Furlough Approved for Infection Control Issues

If an employee is exposed to a communicable disease which poses a threat to patient safety, the employee may be granted Administrative Leave by Human Resources once the case is reviewed by Employee Health and Infection Control.

See the policy for procedures

Public Health Threat Emergency Leave

The Medical Center protects the health of Medical Center team members - and the public - through continuity of services during times of pandemic illness or communicable disease outbreak. Public Health Threat Emergency Leave is paid up to 80 hours.

Suspension of Operations During a Declared Emergency Event

See the page on Weather or Emergency Event Status for additional guidance about this leave. 

An employee who reports to work for a scheduled shift and is subsequently sent home due to the suspension of Medical Center operations during a declared emergency event may be eligible for paid Administrative Leave as required to ensure regular pay for the first two (2) hours of the shift. The use of Administrative Leave for an event must be approved at the Chief level, in coordination with the Chief Operating Officer or Incident Commander as appropriate.

Classified & University Staff employees may receive recognition leave (as well as bonuses and non-monetary awards) for contributions to the University. These rewards are typically provided to employees in recognition of teamwork, special projects, identification/implementation of new or modified business practices, exemplary effort, and employee appreciation.

To award leave departments should email leave@virginia.edu with the following information:

Employee Name

Employee ID

Number of hours (up to 5 days per calendar year)

Pay Period effective date

Reason for leave award

For larger requests they may be submitted via spreadsheet with the above requested information. 

School Assistance and Volunteer Service Leave provides for up to 16 hours in any year. An additional 8 hours may be allowed for full-time employees serving in a volunteer fire department or rescue squad. To use the additional 8 hours, contact the UVA HR Leave Division.

Public Service Leave: All regular full-time, regular part-time, flex staff and management employees may receive approval from their supervisor for up to 8 hours of paid Public Service Leave per calendar year to attend school functions or to perform volunteer work for a school or organizations specified in the policy. Leave not taken under this policy will not be carried forward to the next year. There will be no payout for unused Public Service Leave.