3.7.11 Personal Observance Leave

Purpose

Personal Observance Leave may be used by eligible employees on a single day of significance to the employee, including days of cultural, religious, or personal importance.

Eligibility

Personal Observance Leave is available to all full-time employees who are leave-eligible/benefits-eligible. Temporary, part-time, and interim employees are not eligible.

Newly hired employees who are leave-eligible/benefits-eligible may use this leave beginning on their hire date.

Amount of Leave

Eligible employees receive eight (8) hours of Personal Observance Leave per fiscal year, credited on July 1. The leave must be used in a single day and does not carry over.

Unused leave is forfeited and has no cash value.

The leave may not be transferred to another employee.

If an employee separates from the College and transfers to another State agency, university, or community college within the same fiscal year, unused leave may be transferred if accepted by the receiving agency.

Use of Leave

This leave may be used on any single 8-hour day of significance to the employee, including but not limited to days of cultural and/or religious importance. The day in which leave is taken does not have to be a day from the employee’s own religious or cultural background.

Employees may use this leave prior to exhausting any accumulated compensatory leave or other leave available to the employee.

This leave will not be applied to existing negative leave balances. This leave cannot be donated under the Voluntary Shared Leave policy.

Approval of Leave

Employees must receive prior approval from their immediate supervisor prior to using this leave. Requests for the use of leave should be made at least two (2) weeks prior to the expected day of leave.

Supervisors will honor all leave requests unless the use of the leave will create a disruption in the College’s operation, in which case the supervisor may require the leave be taken at a time other than the time requested.   

Supervisors may not require a justification of the employee’s request to use the leave.

It is the responsibility of an employee and their supervisor to ensure all leave is reported accurately.

Legal Citation:              Executive Order No. 262, §5 (June 6, 2022)