Personal Business Leave

Staff members should schedule appointments to conduct personal business, including medical and dental appointments, at times outside of their normal work schedules. When this is not possible, staff members should consider departmental work flow and attempt to schedule appointments during those times when reduced staff will cause the least amount of hardship for the department. Normally it is most efficient to schedule such appointments at the beginning or end of the workday. Personal business leave is a contingency leave entitlement (like bereavement leave or jury duty leave) and only applies if it is needed.

Eligibility

All staff members in regular positions are eligible for personal business leave. New staff members are not eligible to use personal business leave until they have worked for three (3) months. Staff members in temporary positions are not eligible for personal business leave except when stipulated in a written agreement for a long-term temporary appointment which has been authorized by the Director of Human Resources and Affirmative Action.

The immediate supervisor, in approving time off under this policy, shall give consideration to all relevant factors, including work requirements, the impact of the staff member's absence on others, urgency of the reason for the request, the frequency of such requests, and the possibility of handling such business after working hours. Requests for time off during the workday should be made in advance whenever possible.

Personal Business Leave Use

Supervisors monitor the use of the personal business leave benefit to prevent its abuse and insure that work normally performed during this period is not allowed to accumulate or to cause hardship on other staff members. Personal business leave can be used for periods of authorized absence of up to two (2) hours. When medical or dental appointments unexpectedly extend beyond the authorized two (2) hours of personal business leave due to circumstances beyond the staff member's control, time off beyond two (2) hours will be charged to sick leave credits or will be taken as leave without pay. When other personal business appointments unexpectedly extend beyond the authorized two (2) hours of personal business leave, time off beyond two (2) hours will be charged to vacation leave credits or will be taken as unpaid leave. Alternatively, the supervisor may request that time off beyond two (2) hours be made up during the same workweek.

Origination Date: 3/1974
Revised: 1996