Leave Accrual Rules
| Annual Leave Program | Personal Leave Program | Sick Leave | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eligibility | Visit the Vacation Leave page for eligibility criteria. | Visit the Vacation Leave page for eligibility criteria. | Visit the Sick Leave page for eligibility criteria. |
| Leave accruals | Leave accruals are prorated based upon FTE and appointment length. EPS employees accrue 24 annual leave days annually or 16 hours monthly. SAAO employees accrue 26 annual leave days annually or 17.33 hours monthly. SHRA employees earn the following amounts of annual leave per month based on years of service: 0-5 years: 9.33 hours 5-10 years: 11.33 hours 10-15 years: 13.33. hours 15-20 years: 15.33 hours 20+ years: 17.33 hours | Leave accruals are pro-rated based upon FTE and appointment length. EPS and SAAO employees accrue 26 personal leave days annually or 17.33 hours monthly. Personal Leave is adjusted proportionally for part-time employees who work halftime or more (20-40 hours/week). Accruals are also prorated for those on a less than 12-month contract. (9 month faculty to do not earn personal leave) | 8 hours of sick leave are accrued per month. Hours are pro-rated if work week is less than 40 hours per week (full-time) and prorated appointment length. |
| For new hires, leave accrual is based on the permanent hire/appointment date. If hire date is the 1st-15th of the month, the employee will earn leave in the month of hire. If hire date is the 16th-31st of the month, they will earn leave beginning the following month of hire. | |||
| Carry forward leave balances | Employees can carry a maximum of 30 unused annual leave days (240 hours) into the next leave year, which starts Jan. 1 each year. If you have more than 30 days (240 hours) of annual leave, the excess leave days will convert to sick leave on the last day of the calendar year. | Employees can carry a maximum of 20 unused personal leave days (160 hours) into the next leave year, which starts Jan. 1 each year. Any excess leave over 20 days (160 hours) will expire and will not convert to sick leave. | Annual leave above maximum amount (240 hours for 1.0 FTE) will roll into sick leave balance. (For TSERS members, unused sick leave balance is reported to TSERS and increases retirement service credit. For every 20 days of sick leave, the retirement service credit is increased by one (1) month.) |
| Transfer in/out of leave balances | Several factors are considered | Several factors are considered | If transferring directly from another state agency or returning within five years from any type of separation, the ending balance of sick leave with the previous agency is eligible to transfer. |
| Payout of leave balances | Upon discontinuation of employment or when an employee transfers to a non-leave earning position, the annual leave balance shall be paid out up to a maximum of 30 work days (240 hours). See the Payout section on the Vacation Leave page for more information. | If the employee separates from service due to resignation, dismissal, retirement, reductions in force, or death, accumulated Personal Leave is forfeited and is not paid out. | Transfer of sick leave is based on the receiving agency’s rules. There is no payout of sick leave upon separation. |
* Employees cannot accrue personal leave and annual leave simultaneously.
Bonus Leave
| Bonus Leave | |
|---|---|
| Eligibility | Bonus leave is not earned, but granted per legislation. The North Carolina General Assembly granted bonus leave to eligible leave-earning state employees in prior sessions. |
| Leave accruals | 2002 bonus leave: 80 hours were issued for those in leave earning positions on September 30, 2002. Hours were pro-rated if work week was less than 40 hours/week and pro-rated if less than a 12 month appointment. 2003 bonus leave: 80 hours were issued for those in leave earning positions on July 1, 2003. Hours were pro-rated if work week was less than 40 hours/week and pro-rated if less than a 12 month appointment. 2005 bonus leave: 40 hours were issued for those in leave earning positions on September 30, 2005. Hours were pro-rated if work week was less than 40 hours/week and pro-rated if less than a 12 month appointment. 2012 special leave: 40 hours were issued for those in leave earning positions on July 1, 2012. Hours were pro-rated if work week was less than 40 hours/week and pro-rated if less than a 12 month appointment. Expires if not used by 6/30/2013. 2013 special leave: 40 hours were issued for those in leave earning positions on July 1, 2013. Hours were pro-rated if work week was less than 40 hours/week and pro-rated if less than a 12 month appointment. Expires if not used by 6/30/2014. 2014 bonus leave: 40 hours were issued for those in leave earning positions on September 1 2014. Hours were pro-rated if work week was less than 40 hours/week and pro-rated if less than a 12 month appointment. 2017 special bonus leave: 24 hours were issued for those in leave earning positions on July 1, 2017. Hours were pro-rated if work week was less than 40 hours/week and pro-rated if less than a 12 month appointment. 2018 special bonus leave: 40 hours were issued for those in leave earning positions on July 1, 2018. Hours were pro-rated if work week was less than 40 hours/week and pro-rated if less than a 12 month appointment. |
| Carry forward leave balances | Some special bonus leave does expire; see above |
| Transfer in of leave balances | If employee is transferring directly from another state agency, bonus leave balances are eligible to transfer. |
| Transfer and payout of leave balances | Transfer of bonus leave is based on the receiving agency’s rules. Upon separation, bonus leave balances (up to 240 hours) will be paid out the month after termination. Leave for retirees will be paid out in the month of retirement. Bonus Leave may be applied to negative leave balances. Special bonus leave 2012-13: will only pay out in the case of retirement. 2013-14 bonus leave: will pay out upon separation. 2017-18 and 2018-19 special bonus leave: does not pay out upon separation. |