Using Sick Days and Vacation Days as a Full-Time Faculty Member

[histchick]

I think he has something like 1100 sick hours built up.

Part rant that follows!:

As a faculty member, we can take sick leave only when we are sick and teaching.  So SUMMER is NOT for sick leave, unless you teach.  No classes, no sick leave.

My now departed best friend had over 30 years in the system.  He needed knee replacement surgery. He offered to do it in the summer, BUT didnt want to lose the summer pay. (AS he had been here more than 30 years, he had lots of salary inversion issues, so he was the lowest paid of us). 

"NOPE, IF you schedule surgery we wont schedule classes".  So I told him to schedule in January and take off the entire term.  Better to replace him for the semester than to have him out part of the term. Unfortunately, by the time he got the word about summer the surgeon had already booked the early part of the term, so he was out from Spring Break on, and THEY STILL would not schedule him for summer as they felt he would still be in rehab. 

The bottom line is this:
IF you have a lot of sick pay, and you NEED to get ANYTHING done medically, make sure to schedule it for the start of a semester.  Perhaps the admin will allow you to be out the entire term if your medical professionals believe that there is a chance your recovery will take that long.

IF you need to have 'parts replaced' make sure that you do it while you are still on the payroll and use up that sick time!!  Dont let the employer off the hook to 'get it taken care of after you retire?'


Remember these 2 things:
IF YOU are not looking out for YOU, then NO ONE IS!
Also, you didnt make the rules. You simply must live in the rules that THEY created.  IF they create adverse incentives, then let THEM  LIVE BY THEM!!

In no way is this a rant. People need to learn both the formal rules AND the Way Things Are Done at their places of employment. Both can -- and do -- change, in sudden and subtle ways.

The amounts are not trivial, which is why HR might not be your best friend when you're in need. The difference between getting paid out weeks/months/years of salary or not can be life-changing. Being able to "pool" sick days and/or vacation days might save somebody from personal bankruptcy.

If you can, make friends with somebody in HR. And somebody else in the Union, if yours has a shop. And somebody in accounts payable. Educate yourselves about who approves the expenditure, who signs off on it, and who actually cuts the check. I've been watching a colleague flail around all semester because he suddenly realized that a lot of handshake deals were shook with administrators no longer holding those posts.

If you won't listen to me, listen to clean. Look out for you, and for yours.

OP, all of this is great advice.  Our place is small enough so that we know Anyone Who Can Approve Things, and have good contacts in multiple divisions.  Nonetheless, we get everything in writing, because a.) it's good life advice, and b.) our place is also the Revolving Door of People Who Can Approve Things. 

To the extent that you do the same at your institution, do it.