Human Resources Policies

HR34 Employment Conditions for Full-Time Staff Employees

Policy Status
Active
Subject Matter Expert
Dovizia Long, 814-867-0041, dul10@psu.edu
Policy Steward
Vice President for Human Resources

POLICY'S INITIAL DATE: October 1, 1992 
THIS VERSION EFFECTIVE: January 1, 2024

 

Contents:


PURPOSE:

To outline terms and conditions of full-time staff employees.

PROBATIONARY PERIOD:

Full-time staff employees serve a one (1) year probationary period. The probationary period begins on the employee’s most recent full-time date of hire. During an employee’s probationary period, their employment is at-will and may be terminated without cause. University policy HR78 Staff Employee Failure to Meet Acceptable Standards of Performance does not apply to the probationary employee and the probationary period employee is not eligible to use the staff grievance procedure.

If a probationary employee voluntarily accepts a different job within the University during the probationary period, the employee will serve a new one (1) year probationary period, which will begin on the effective date of the employee’s transfer.  

WORK SCHEDULES:

Unless otherwise notified, the standard work week for the University's employees is a seven-day period beginning on Sunday at 12:00 a.m. and ending at 11:59 p.m. on the following Saturday. 

At least two calendar weeks notice will be given to an employee if their regular work schedule is to be changed by the employee's manager, unless the change is caused by an emergency. 

Full-time staff employees may either be non-exempt or exempt. 

Non-Exempt Staff

The standard work week is 40 hours for a 100% FTE non-exempt position, and the 40 hours are to be scheduled within the work week. This is not, however, a guarantee that this number of hours of work will be available each week for each employee.  

The daily hours of work for an employee will be scheduled so that provision is made for unpaid meal periods. Flexible working hours and scheduling of less than 100% FTE may be established, see University policies HR107 and HR105, respectively. 

Non-exempt employees are subject to regulatory overtime provisions and must be paid at a rate of one and one-half their normal hourly rate for all hours worked in excess of 40 hours in a work week. All overtime worked by non-exempt employees must be approved in advance by the employee's supervisor. 

Exempt Staff

Exempt employees generally work 40 hours or more in a work week. Many assignments may require longer weekly work schedules than the established standard. Exempt employees are excluded from overtime provisions, are not required to track hours worked, and are not eligible for additional compensation in excess of 40 hours in a work week for their primary position. 

VACATION:

Vacation time off for full-time staff is typically requested by the employee and is subject to the approval of the manager. When approving vacation requests, managers will consider unit and University operational needs. Employees on limited-term appointments may be required to take vacation time off during the appointment so that all or part of accrued vacation is expended prior to the conclusion of the appointment. There may be other circumstances where employees may be required to take vacation time off. An employee earns vacation in any calendar month in which the employee is paid for at least eighty-eight (88) hours of the normally scheduled work time in the month. Overtime hours are not counted towards the eighty-eight (88) hour threshold. For exempt staff, deductions from salary for time off in excess of accrued vacation may be made only for full-day absences unless allowable under the law.


Eligible employees accrue vacation on the last day of each month. Once accrued, time is immediately available for use by the employee. Monthly rates of accruals and maximum accruals allowed will be prorated based on the employee’s annual FTE, see HR105. The following accrual criteria applies to full-time staff employees:

Nonexempt Staff Vacation
CriteriaMonthly Rate of AccrualMaximum Accrual Allowed
During the first 10 years of continuous employment as a full-time employee12 hours192 hours
More than 10 years up to and including the 25th continuous year16 hours240 hours
More than 25 continuous years and thereafter 18 hours264 hours

 

Exempt Staff Vacation
CriteriaMonthly Rate of AccrualMaximum Accrual Allowed
During the first 25 years of continuous employment as a full-time employee16 hours240 hours
More than 25 years of continuous years and thereafter 18 hours264 hours

 

  1. An employee preparing for a major life event such as the birth or adoption of a child, finishing a degree, etc., may request approval to accrue a vacation balance in excess of the maximum accrual limit. To do so, the employee submits a written request to the supervisor and unit Human Resources outlining the event, identifying the period of time involved, and the plan for using such time, which must include the end date of the arrangement. Requests will be considered on a case-by-case basis taking into account University business needs. In all cases, the approved accruals in excess of the maximums stated above must be used within twelve (12) months of the approval. The vacation payout described below will not include any vacation accrual in excess of the applicable maximum. 
  2. In the event that an unexpected work-related situation causes an employee to miss or delay using vacation accruals, a request for approval to accrue a vacation balance in excess of the maximum accrual limit may be allowed. To do so, the employee and manager submit a written request to unit Human Resources outlining the work-related event, identifying the period of time involved, and the plan for using such time, which must include the end date of the arrangement. In all cases, the approved accruals in excess of the maximums stated above must be used within twelve (12) months following the date of the approval. The vacation payout described below will not include any vacation accrual in excess of the applicable maximum. 
  3. An employee who is hospitalized while on a scheduled vacation will be permitted to charge the time off as sick leave rather than vacation time. Supporting documentation may be requested. 

VACATION PAYOUT:

An employee who terminates employment after completing at least one continuous year as a full-time staff employee immediately preceding the date of termination will receive the cash equivalent of unused vacation accruals (not to exceed the maximum provided by policy). An employee who satisfactorily completes a limited-term appointment of less than one year who separates from the University at the conclusion of the appointment, will receive the cash equivalent of unused vacation accruals (not to exceed the maximum provided by policy). See University policy HR50. 

All vacation payout amounts are calculated using the employee’s full-time salary or hourly rate.

SICK LEAVE:

A full-time staff employee will accrue eight (8) hours of paid sick leave for each calendar month in which they are paid for at least eighty-eight hours (88) hours of the normally scheduled work time in the month. Sick hours earned are available to use the first day of the month following the month in which they are earned. 

Overtime hours are not counted toward the eighty-eight (88) threshold. Monthly rates of accruals will be prorated based on the employee’s annual FTE, see University policy HR105.

NOTE: Exempt staff who began exempt employment prior to October 1, 1992, continue on their former sick leave plan. 

Accrued sick leave is intended to provide employees with salary continuation in the case of illness or injury. Employees may be required to submit documentation from their healthcare provider in the event of an illness or injury. Except as otherwise provided below, absence is chargeable as sick leave only when the employee is unable to perform their duties because of their own illness or injury. 

For an employee's own illness, sick leave is charged until depleted. However, if the employee's vacation accrual reaches the maximum, the employee may charge vacation as sick instead of sick leave, so the vacation accruals are not lost. For absences that extend beyond three consecutive work days, employees are responsible for submitting documentation to Absence Management to substantiate the need for such leave.

Once an employee exhausts all accrued sick leave, additional absences can be charged to vacation and/or other accrued time off to continue the employee's paid leave status, at the option of the employee. Once all accrued paid time off has been applied, the employee will be placed on an unpaid leave of absence for continuous absence, or use of unpaid time off for intermittent absence. See University policy HR16 - Leave of Absence without Salary (Other than for Extended Active Military Service).

A full-time staff employee may use up to 80 hours of their accrued sick leave per calendar year to care for a sick family member. Family member as used in this policy is defined as person(s) whom the employee considers as family. The care provided may include such activities as bed-side care, accompanying the family member to a medical appointment, and emotional support. 

An employee who meets the eligibility criteria to leave the University as a retiree as outlined in University policy HR54 is eligible to receive 1/4 the cash value of the employee's unused sick leave accruals, not to exceed an amount equal to 136 hours of pay. All sick leave payout amounts are calculated using the employee's full-time base pay or hourly rate. 

ABSENCE FOR ON-THE-JOB INJURY:

If a full-time staff employee is absent from work as a result of an injury or illness compensable under the Workers' Compensation Act, Occupational Disease Act, or applicable state or federal legislation, the following conditions apply:
  • Leaves of absence that qualify for Family and Medical Leave run concurrently with leave for a Workers' Compensation injury or illness and will be counted against the FMLA entitlement. 
  • The full-time staff employee has the option to request a leave of absence without pay or to charge the absence to their accrued sick leave, or other accrued paid time off once sick leave is exhausted. An employee electing to use such paid time off will be charged 1/3 of normally scheduled hours a day for each absence and will continue to receive full salary. Accrual balances are not adjusted until the last day of each month. Any lost wage compensation will be forwarded directly to the University while the employee is receiving full salary.
  • The employee will be placed on unpaid leave once all paid time off is exhausted. The University's Workers Compensation Carrier will provide lost wages to the extent provided by law. 
  • While on unpaid leave and receiving lost wages from the University's Workers Compensation Carrier, the employee's contribution for all enrolled group healthcare and insurance coverages will be paid by the University. 
  • Unpaid leave of absences will not exceed 24 months.

HOLIDAYS:

Each holiday established by the University is intended to give an employee on a 100% FTE appointment the benefit of eight (8) hours of paid time off. Employees with schedules involving longer than eight (8) hour days do not receive additional time in excess of eight (8) hours on holidays if they would have been scheduled and are not required to work. Holiday time off benefits will be prorated based on the employee’s annual FTE, see HR105.

The following 14 days are established as holidays:

  • New Year's Day
  • Martin Luther King Jr. Day
  • Memorial Day
  • Juneteenth
  • Independence Day
  • Labor Day
  • Thanksgiving Day
  • Christmas and five additional days
  • A Personal Holiday

When Christmas Day and New Year's Day fall on these days, the Winter Break holidays will be:

Day of the weekDays off
Sunday

December 23, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30

January 2

Monday

December 22, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29

January 1

Tuesday

December 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 31

January 1

Wednesday

December 24, 25, 26, 27, 30, 31

January 1

Thursday

December 24, 25, 26, 29, 30, 31

January 1

Friday

December 24, 25, 28, 29, 30, 31

January 1

SaturdayDecember 23, 24, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31
  1. Some areas substitute service days in lieu of some of the holidays listed above or follow alternate business schedules. Employees working in these areas should consult the following information.
  2. One personal holiday is earned each calendar year on January 1. A new employee in the first year of employment earns a personal holiday for that year after completing two months of employment. Employees hired on or after November 1 will accrue one (1) personal holiday on January 1 of the following year. The personal holiday is scheduled in the same way in which vacation is scheduled. If not used, the personal holiday will be carried over into the next calendar year but not thereafter. The personal holiday(s) will not be paid out at the time of separation from employment, unless the separation is due to layoff under policy HR97 Layoff and Severance Provisions for Staff Employees.
  3. A full-time nonexempt staff employee required to work a regularly scheduled work day on an official University holiday will receive their regular pay for the holiday and will be granted holiday compensatory time off at the rate of double time for the number of hours worked on the holiday, up to the number of hours normally worked by the employee on that day. At the option of the employee, the employee may receive the cash equivalent of 1/2 of compensatory time off earned on a holiday. Such payment will be calculated using the employee's regular rate of pay. The option to receive such payment must be made within one calendar week following the holiday or holiday period. Holiday compensatory time off not converted to the cash equivalent will be used for absences where vacation accumulation would be used. Holiday compensatory time will not be paid out to the employee at the time of separation from employment. Time worked on a holiday in excess of the employee's normal daily hours will be paid at two times the employee's regular rate of pay. Holiday compensatory time off will not be earned for such additional hours worked. If a holiday should fall on a day not normally scheduled as a work day for an employee the employee will be granted eight (8) hours of holiday compensatory time (see HR105 for positions that are less than 100% FTE). Such equivalent time off will be granted whether or not the employee works on the holiday and will be used for absences where vacation accumulation would be used, and scheduled in the same manner as requests for vacation. If the employee is required to work on such day, the employee also will be paid at the rate of two times the employee's regular rate of pay for the hours worked, but will not be granted additional holiday compensatory time off for such hours worked.
  4. An full-time exempt staff employee required to work on a regularly scheduled work day on an official University holiday will receive their regular pay for the holiday and will be granted holiday compensatory time off at the rate of double time for the number of hours worked on the holiday. At the option of the employee, the employee may receive the cash equivalent at the employee's regular rate of pay for 1/2 of the compensatory time off earned on a holiday, not to exceed a normal day's gross pay for the employee. The option to receive such payment must be made within one calendar week following the holiday or holiday period. Holiday compensatory time off not converted to the cash equivalent will be used for absences where vacation accumulation would be used, and scheduled in the same manner as requests for vacation. If a holiday should fall on a day not normally scheduled as a work day for an employee the employee will be granted eight hours of holiday compensatory time (see HR105 for positions that are less than 100% FTE). Such equivalent time off will be granted whether or not the employee works on the holiday, will be used for absences where vacation accumulation would be used, and scheduled in the same manner as requests for vacation. If the employee is required to work on such day, the employee also will be granted additional holiday compensatory time off at the rate of double time for the number of hours worked on the holiday. At the option of the employee, the employee may receive the cash equivalent at the employee's regular rate of pay for 1/2 of such additional holiday compensatory time off earned, not to exceed a normal day's gross pay for the employee. The option to receive such payment must be made within one calendar week following the holiday or holiday period. Such holiday compensatory time off not converted to the cash equivalent will be used for absences where vacation accumulation would be used, and scheduled in the same manner as requests for vacation. 
  5. Holiday compensatory time off will not be paid out to the employee at the time of separation from employment.
  6. If a holiday occurs during the vacation or sick leave of an employee, it will not be charged as a day of vacation or sick leave.
  7. An employee on an unpaid leave of absence is not paid for holidays that occur during the unpaid leave of absence.
  8. If a holiday listed above occurs on a Saturday, the University will observe it officially on the Friday immediately preceding the holiday. If a holiday listed above occurs on a Sunday, the University will observe it officially on the following Monday. 
  9. The final date of pay status for an employee who indicates an intent to resign at a time near the Winter Break Holidays is determined in accordance with University guideline HRG14.

 

OTHER PAID TIME OFF:

Paid time off for full-time staff employees, other than sick leave, vacation, or holidays is outlined below. All paid time off is prorated based on the employee’s annual FTE, see University policy HR105 for positions that are less than 100% FTE. 
 

Friday Following Thanksgiving

The University is not open for normal business on the Friday after Thanksgiving. Full-time staff who are normally scheduled to work on Fridays and who are not required to work will receive their regular pay for the day. Full-time staff employees who are normally scheduled to work on Fridays and who are required to work will receive, in addition to their pay for the day, compensatory time off equivalent to the number of hours worked, subject to a maximum of eight (8) hours. Full-time staff employees who are not normally scheduled to work on Fridays and are not required to work on the Friday following Thanksgiving will receive eight (8) hours of compensatory time. Compensatory time off will not be paid out to the employee at the time of separation from employment.
 

Bereavement Leave 

Absence from work because of death in a full-time staff employee's family will be given with full pay from the date of the death and through the date of the funeral or memorial service, based on the chart below:
 
 
Family MemberEmployee'sEmployee's Partner's
Spouse/Domestic Partnerup to 40 hoursX
Parent (including stepparent, guardian, or foster parent)up to 40 hoursup to 40 hours
Sibling (including half-siblings and step-siblings)up to 40 hoursup to 8 hours
Spouse/Domestic Partner of Siblingup to 8 hoursup to 8 hours
Child or stepchildup to 40 hoursup to 40 hours
Spouse/Domestic Partner of child or stepchildup to 40 hoursup to 40 hours
Grandchildup to 40 hoursup to 40 hours
Grandparentup to 8 hoursup to 8 hours
Aunt or uncleup to 8 hoursup to 8 hours
Spouse/Domestic Partner of Aunt or Uncleup to 8 hoursup to 8 hours
Nephew or nieceup to 8 hoursup to 8 hours

An employee qualifying for bereavement leave while using other accrued paid time off will be permitted to charge the time off as bereavement leave. 

 

Jury Duty

If a full-time staff employee is on jury duty, the University will pay their full salary for time absent from work. If the approved time absent results in the employee missing more than half of their regularly scheduled work shift, the employee will be excused from the remainder of the shift with no loss of salary. (See note below.)
 

Volunteer Fire Fighting 

The full pay of a full-time staff employee will be paid during the time spent by the employee during their regular working hours in fighting fires or in answering other public alarms, provided that the employee is a member of the volunteer fire department that is engaged in the activity or, in the event of a forest fire, the employee is engaged in an organized forest fire fighting operation in the area in which the employee's campus or center is located. (See note below.)
 

Ambulance Driving 

The full pay of a full-time staff employee will be paid during the time spent by the employee during their regular working hours in nonscheduled driving of an ambulance for a volunteer ambulance club or organization serving the community where the employee's campus or center is located. If an employee is a volunteer ambulance driver for a volunteer ambulance club or organization that does not primarily serve the community where the employee's campus or center is located, the full pay of the employee will be paid during the time spent by the employee during their regular working hours in driving an ambulance provided:
  1. The driving is limited to unplanned emergencies, and 
  2. The employee is not called from work to drive. (See note below.)

 

Subpoenaed Witness

If a full-time staff employee is subpoenaed as a witness and is not a party to the legal action, the employee's full salary will be paid for the time spent by the employee during their working hours as a witness. (See note below.)
 

Civil Air Patrol Members

A member of a Civil Air Patrol Group involved in an air search and rescue mission will be paid their full salary for the time spent by the full-time staff employee during their regular working hours, provided there is an authorized mission and the Civil Air Patrol authorities have requested the employee to report for duty. (See note below.)
 

Emergency Rescue 

The full pay of a full-time staff employee will be paid during the time spent by the employee during the employee's regular work hours when engaged in an organized emergency rescue, provided the employee is a member of a bona fide search and rescue organization and the rescue activity is in the area in which the employee's campus or center is located. (See note below.)
 

NOTE: Paid time off covered by Jury Duty, Volunteer Fire Fighting, Ambulance Driving, Subpoenaed Witness, Civil Air Patrol, and Emergency Rescue sections, includes time spent in the activity described, plus travel time, time necessary for normal sleeping, etc., as determined by management.  

OVERTIME - NONEXEMPT STAFF:

Overtime is all time worked by a full-time staff employee appointed to a nonexempt position for the University that is in excess of forty (40) hours in a work week. In any week in which a University holiday occurs on an employee's regularly scheduled work day, or an employee has used other approved paid time off, such holiday or paid time off will be considered as time worked.

Overtime is permitted to be worked only after advance approval by the manager. Such approved overtime is paid for at the rate of time and one-half the hourly rate, or at the rate of two times the hourly rate if the overtime qualifies as holiday overtime. 

SHIFT PREMIUM - NONEXEMPT STAFF:

Full-time staff employees in nonexempt positions will be paid a shift premium of $.60 per hour for work beginning between the hours of 1:00 p.m. and 9:59 p.m., and $.65 per hour for shifts beginning between 10:00 p.m. and 4:59 a.m. for all continuous hours worked on the shift. The shift premium will be added to the base rate before the calculation of an overtime rate.

UNAUTHORIZED ABSENCE:

Full-time staff employees must follow appropriate approval processes as determined by the University in order to be approved for the use of paid or unpaid time off. Absences from work which are not approved by either the employee’s manager or, in the case of a leave of absence, by Absence Management, will be considered unauthorized and will not be paid. Employees may be subject to discipline for unauthorized absences up to and including termination from employment.
If a full-time staff employee is absent from work and has not notified their manager, the employee will be considered as having abandoned their job at the completion of the third consecutive work day of unauthorized absence, unless the manager judges the circumstances to have been emergency in nature, and it can be shown that it was impossible for the employee to have given proper notification to the employee's manager.

RE-EMPLOYMENT WITH THE UNIVERSITY:

If a full-time staff employee terminates employment with the University and is rehired after break in service, the following conditions apply:
  1. The employee is a probationary employee, and will serve a new probationary period as outlined above.
  2. The employee does not receive service credit for their period of prior employment for the purpose of increasing the vacation accrual rate, the length of leave of absence, or other working conditions related to length of service unless provided by University policy.
  3. The employee does not receive credit for any unused sick leave from a previous period of employment.

CROSS REFERENCES:

HR06 - Types of Appointments

HR16 - Leave of Absence Without Salary (Other Than For Extended Active Military Service)

HR19 - Leave of absence for Active Military Service or Training

HR50 - Use of Accumulated Vacation at Time of Resignation or Retirement, or Upon Completion of a Limited-Term Appointment

HR74 - Staff Vacancies Announcing Procedure

HR90 - Extra Compensation for Exempt Staff Employees

HR105 - Reduced FTE Schedules

HR107 - Staff Flexible Work Arrangements 

HRG11 - Family and Medical Leave

HRG14 - Termination of Employment Near Dec-New Year Holidays

 

Date Approved
Date Published
Effective Date