Vacation Leave

Annual Leave (vacation) is credited to eligible employees who are in pay status (working, on paid leave or on workers’ compensation leave) for one-half or more of the regularly scheduled workdays and holidays in the pay period in accordance with the provisions outlined below. Eligible employees are granted leave based on position type and length of total State service. Only up to 240 hours of Annual Leave (vacation) can be carried over year to year or are paid out upon separation. The cap of 240 hours carry over is prorated for permanent part-time employees, and permanent full-time employees working less than 12 months.

Annual Leave (vacation) is credited to employees who are working, on paid leave, or on Workers’ Compensation leave and meet one of the following criteria:

• Full-time and part-time permanent SHRA employees, persons in time-limited appointments, trainees and probationary employees.
• Permanent Senior Academic and Administrative Officers (SAAO), Exempt Professional Staff (EPS) and 12-month faculty employees, hired prior to January 1, 2025, in a leave earning role, who work between 20 hours per week (.5 FTE) and 40 hours per week (1.0 FTE), and are employed on a 9, 10, 11 or 12 month appointment.
• Note: 9-month faculty do not earn leave. SAAO, APS and 12-month faculty employees hired January 1, 2025, or after are subject to Personal Leave.

Annual Leave (vacation) may be used with supervisor approval for:

• vacation
• other periods of absence for personal reasons
• absences due to adverse weather conditions
• personal illness (in lieu of sick leave)
• illness in the immediate family,
• time lost for late reporting
• donations to an employee who is an approved voluntary shared leave recipient

To use Annual Leave (vacation), make a request in Kronos WFR under the category VACATION.

SHRA employee accrual rates:

EHRA employee accrual rates:

On Dec. 31 of each year, if you have accumulated more than 240 hours of Annual Leave (vacation), the amount of hours above 240 will be converted to Sick Leave so that only 240 hours of Annual Leave (vacation) are carried forward to Jan. 1 of the next calendar year. The cap of 240 hours carry over is prorated for permanent part-time employees, and permanent full-time employees working less than 12 months.

Eligible Annual Leave (vacation) will be paid in a lump sum (within three pay periods following the last regular paycheck), not to exceed 240 hours (pro-rated based on FTE).

• NC Office of Human Resources Policy: Vacation Leave
• University Policy 102.4: Annual and Sick Leave for Faculty Members

The University of North Carolina System recently established a new Personal Leave program for vacation leave accrual for Exempt Professional Staff (EPS), leave-earning employees. Effective Jan. 1, 2025, all EPS employees hired on or after Jan, 1, 2025 in a leave eligible position will be subject to the new Personal Leave Program. Employees hired before Jan. 1, 2025, will have a one-time opportunity to opt in to the new Personal Leave Program in February of 2025; the decision to opt in will be irrevocable. Current EPS employees who do not opt in will continue to accrue Annual Leave as vacation time.

The new Personal Leave program only affects vacation leave for new EPS employees and current EPS employees who choose to opt in; the Personal Leave program does not affect any other leave programs. Employees under the Personal Leave program accrue and are entitled to other leave allotments (Sick Leave, Civil Leave, Personal Observance, etc.) per the policies already established for those leaves and in the same way as employees in the Annual Leave program.

New EPS employees
All permanent “eligible leave earning” EPS staff and EPS 12 month faculty whose effective date of employment at UNC Charlotte is on or after Jan. 1, 2025, will accrue leave in accordance with Personal Leave Program.

Employees transferring to an EPS position on or after Jan. 1, 2025
Any employee who transfers to an “eligible leave earning” EPS position from another UNC System school on or after Jan. 1, 2025, will be subject to Personal Leave Program.

Current EPS employees who choose to opt in
The following employees may choose to opt in to the Personal Leave Program or remain with the Annual Leave Program:

• Employees hired into a permanent EPS position at the University before Jan. 1, 2025.
• Employ
  • Accept an EPS position on or after Jan. 1, 2025, or
  • Choose to convert to an EPS position on or after Jan. 1, 2025.

The decision to opt into the Personal Leave Program will be irrevocable. The UNC Charlotte Human Resources department will develop and distribute information about the opt-in dates and process in February 2025.

Personal Leave may be used with supervisor approval for:

• vacation
• other periods of absence for personal reasons
• absences due to adverse weather conditions
• personal illness (in lieu of sick leave)
• illness in the immediate family,
• time lost for late reporting
• donations to an employee who is an approved voluntary shared leave recipient

To use Personal Leave, make a request in Kronos.

The annual accrual rate for Personal Leave is 26 days/208 hours (prorated for part-time).

• Personal Leave accrues at a monthly rate and is adjusted proportionately for permanent part-time employees who work halftime or more (0.50 – 0.99 FTE) or who are on a contract for fewer than twelve months.
• The monthly earnings amount is equal to one-twelfth of the annual rate.
• Leave is earned monthly when an employee works or is in approved paid status at least half the working days of a month.

Employees may carry forward up to 20 days/160 hours of unused leave into the next year. Any remaining unused leave is forfeited. Unused Personal Leave is never paid out. Personal Leave can be contributed as Voluntary Shared Leave (VSL), similar to Vacation and Annual Leave and subject to the requirements of the VSL policy.

New appointments within UNC Charlotte: If an employee receives a new eligible appointment within the University, then all Personal Leave and/or Annual Leave retained will transfer to the new appointment.

Transfer to another UNC System institution: If an employee transfers to another UNC System institution to an eligible EPS position, then up to a maximum of 20 days of Personal Leave will transfer to the new institution, and any excess leave will be forfeited. Annual Leave, up to 30 days, will be paid out prior to the transfer.

For EPS employees hired on or after Jan. 1, 2025:

• A new accrual, EPS Personal Leave, will be assigned in Kronos.
• These employees can earn up to 17.33 hours (26 days a year) of EPS Personal Leave when an employee works or is on approved paid leave at least half of the work days of the month. These employees will have access to the new EPS Personal Leave pay code in Kronos to take the Personal Leave hours they have accrued.
• No Personal Leave hours are paid out to employees at separation.
• Up to 160 ho
  • All hours over 160 at the end of the calendar year will be forfeited.
  • Remaining unused Personal Leave will not convert to Sick Leave.

For EPS employees hired before Jan. 1, 2025, or who qualify under specific conditions:

• These employees will continue to earn and take Annual Vacation hours and to use the current Vacation pay codes in Kronos.
• The limit for Vacation Leave payout at separation will remain at 240 hours (pro-rated for part-time employees).
• Vacation hours over 240 at the end of the calendar year will still carry forward to Sick Leave.
• The amount of Annual Vacation hours currently earned will not change.

New EPS Employees, and current EPS employees who opt into the Personal Leave program will use Personal leave for the same reasons Annual Vacation is used. If they have remaining Annual Vacation it will be considered “Legacy” Annual Leave (Vacation) and is not frozen. No additional accruals will be made for the “Legacy” Annual Leave. However, an employee can use it at any time, similar to how bonus leave is used. The “Legacy” Annual Leave (Vacation) must be paid out when the employee separates from employment at the institution or moves to a position that is not subject to the personal leave program.

Note: Exempt Professional Staff (EPS), was formally addressed as Exempt from the Human Resources Act (EHRA).

• Leave Programs for Faculty and Staff Exempt from the North Carolina Human Resources Act, UNC Policy Manual, 300.22