Key Revisions to UNC Policy 300
Significant revisions to the following Section 300 of the UNC Policy Manual and Code listed below were adopted by the Board of Governors (BOG) on January 25, 2024:
300.1.1 – Policy on Employees Exempt from the North Carolina Human Resources Act
300.2.22 – Leave Programs for Faculty and Staff Exempt from the North Carolina Human Resources Act
The summary below provides the key changes. While it is not all-inclusive of all updates and revisions to Policy 300, the summary focuses on the following:
- Employment Categories
- Discontinuation and severance
- New Personal Leave plan
- Leave and separation from employment
who is impacted?
Employees deemed Exempt from the Human Resources Act of NC (EHRA) are impacted by these policy changes, including:
- Senior Administrative and Academic Officers (SAAO Tier 1 and Tier 2)
- 12-Month EHRA Faculty
- EHRA Non-Faculty
Commissioned Police Officers are not impacted, and faculty in 9-, 10- and 11-month positions who do not earn leave are not impacted.
employment categories
The category of employees deemed Exempt from the Human Resources Act of NC includes Senior Administrative and Academic Officers (SAAO) and Exempt Professional Staff (EPS). The terms “EHRA Faculty,” “EHRA Non-Faculty,” Institutional Research and Informational Technology positions (IRIT) and Audit, Business and Finance (ABF) are now obsolete. The table below describes how the old terms are now defined.
| Was | Defined as | Now | Defined as |
| SAAO T1 | Senior Administrative and Academic Officer – Tier 1 included Chancellor, Vice Chancellor, Provost, Dean, and other senior leadership positions | SAAO | Senior Administrative and Academic Officers include Chancellor, Vice Chancellor, Provost, Dean, and other senior leadership positions |
| EHRA Non-Faculty and EHRA Faculty | Exempt from the Human Resources Act of NC included employee classifications unique to employees of the UNC System Institutions, including faculty | EPS | Exempt professional Staff includes: Associate and Assistant Vice Chancellor, Chief/Officer, Faculty, and Institutional Research and Information Technology positions |
| SAAO T2 | Senior Administrative and Academic Officer – Tier 2 included Associate Vice Chancellor, and Chief/Officer positions | EPS | |
| Faculty | Faculty | EPS | |
IRIT / AB | Institutional Research and Informational Technology positions / Audit, Business and Finance | EPS |
Discontinuation and Severance
The table below outlines changes to the discontinuation and severance policy for EPS employees.
| If… | And the Employment is Discontinued, then… |
| the employee converted from SHRA to EHRA or was hired at UNC Charlotte in an EHRA position before July 1, 2024 [NO CHANGE] | the University will issue a discontinuation letter with notice OR a lump sum separation payment based on the employee’s years of service at UNC Charlotte in an EHRA position (includes salary but not benefits). |
| the employee was hired at UNC Charlotte in an EHRA position after July 1, 2024 [NEW] | the University will issue a discontinuation letter with at least thirty (30) days advance notice OR a lump sum separation payment regardless of years of service (includes salary and benefits). |
* Note: The Chancellor has the authority to offer up to 90 days of severance in a lump sum payout if the employee signs a Release of Claims.
annual Leave vs. Personal Leave plans
The table below compares the traditional Annual Leave Plan and the new Personal Leave Plan affecting EHRA employees.
| Traditional Annual Leave Plan | New Personal Leave Plan | |
| WHO | All full-time, permanent employees hired before January 1, 2025 in an EPS position (does not include SAAO). | All full-time, permanent employees hired after January 1, 2025 in an EPS position (does not include SAAO). |
| WHAT | Will earn 24 Annual Leave days (2 days a month) each calendar year. Will not earn Personal Leave | Will earn 26 Personal Leave days (2.17 days a month) each calendar year. Will not earn Annual Leave |
| WHY | To be used for vacation. | To be used for vacation. |
| WHEN | Each year, after December 31, may carry forward to the next year up to 30 days of unused Annual Leave. Excess accrued Annual Leave (over 30 workdays) will automatically convert to Sick Leave on January 1. | Each year, may carry forward to the next year a maximum of 20 workdays of accrued Personal Leave. Must use or lose any excess accrued Personal Leave (over 20 workdays) before December 31 – does not convert to sick. |
Leave and Separation from Employment
When an EHRA employee leaves their current position, voluntarily or involuntary, the following applies.
| If… | Hired before January 1, 2025 and on Annual Leave then… | Hired after January 1, 2025 and on Personal Leave then… |
| Transferring to another EHRA position at UNC Charlotte | All leave balances transfer with the employee. | All leave balances transfer with the employee. |
| Transferring to another EHRA position within the UNC System | UNC Charlotte will pay out up to 30 workdays of Annual Leave to the employee. Employee must work on the last day of employment. No Annual Leave will transfer to the new institution. Employee will switch to the Personal Leave program at the new institution. | No leave is paid out. Employee must work on the last day of employment. A maximum of 20 days of Personal Leave will transfer with the employee to the new institution. Employee will remain on the Personal Leave program at the new institution. |
| Resigning | UNC Charlotte will pay out up to 30 workdays of Annual Leave to the employee. | No leave is paid out. |
| Separated from employment involuntarily | UNC Charlotte will pay out up to 30 workdays of Annual Leave to the employee. | No leave is paid out. |