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

[Ruralguy]

This is all institutionally dependent, obviously.

One problem is that many schools have both a Faculty Handbook and
an Employee Handbook and its not always clear which one trumps the other.

So, when in doubt, ask a Chair or Dean, and if you sense you have a good HR
staff, HR.

[coolswimmer800]

OP Here.

Thank you all for your comments! It sounds like my question wasn't as stupid as I thought, given the weird world of academia.

The reason why I brought this question up is because my Benefits Office contacted me about converting my Vacation Days to other benefits.

I can't imagine using vacation days and I can see hitting limits on my vacation accrual in the far future, so I think I am going to accept the conversion offer since I do pay for the other benefits OOP.

[apl68]

OP Here.

Thank you all for your comments! It sounds like my question wasn't as stupid as I thought, given the weird world of academia.

The reason why I brought this question up is because my Benefits Office contacted me about converting my Vacation Days to other benefits.

I can't imagine using vacation days and I can see hitting limits on my vacation accrual in the far future, so I think I am going to accept the conversion offer since I do pay for the other benefits OOP.

I'm a little curious as to whether they would let you sell vacation days.  Our staff handbook here allows that--but we're not academics.  Being allowed to sell vacation days sounds odd for academics.  Which doesn't necessarily mean it might not be possible at some institutions.

[bio-nonymous]

It seems a major difference on policies is in appointment type, where I have worked (12-month appointments), you accrue sick and vacation days--and are expected to use them if you are not working. One place paid out unused vacation when you left, but the current job is use it or lose it (no payouts). Both limited maximum banked vacation to 240 hours, neither allowed paid out sick days (but no maximum accrual for sick time). It sure does seem silly, and petty, to use sick time to go a doctor's appointment when you work 60 hours a week though...

[phi-rabbit]

At my U., I accrue sick time at some rate I am unsure of because I never have come close to using anything like all of it.  If I cancel a class, I am required to call the department secretary and say I am canceling class so they can post an official notice of cancelation.  Allegedly this is partly so they know what to say to any students who didn't see the announcement on the CMS and came to the office to complain I'm not in the classroom.  I suspect not everyone does this rigorously, but I do.  I have from time to time glanced at the line on my pay stub about sick hours and noticed that it said some were used, so clearly it does get reported somewhere.  But I tend to cancel between 0 and 1 class per semester so I don't come close to needing to worry about it.  It all seems strange and very hypothetical.

I have been told that canceling class for professional reasons such as attending a conference does not count as taking sick time but I am still required to advise that I am doing so.  Also, I have recently been advised that giving an occasional non-classroom alternate activity, provided it's a reasonable functional equivalent to time in class, is OK and doesn't count as taking sick time either.  (This came up as I had asked whether doing an asynchronous day for a class that's supposed to be online synchronous would be any sort of problem.  I just wanted to make sure because currently there is a great deal of touchiness, I think mainly student driven, about whether professors are teaching in the advertised format or not, due to a lot of faculty covertly going online only when Hyflex turned out to be a big joke.)

[clean]

I have been told that canceling class for professional reasons such as attending a conference does not count as taking sick time but I am still required to advise that I am doing so.

There is likely a form that is used to approve travel as well.

For what it is worth I used to teach classes for the local Bankruptcy Trustee and that counted toward the Service component.  So I would fill out travel requests every time I went... just in case there was an accident or injury, they would know and might maybe be covered under Worker's Compensation. 

(I never missed a class for these, but would complete the travel requests anyway). 

Again, It NEVER hurts to document things JUST IN CASE!!! 

[Dismal]

At my previous state university, we received sick days and could save them up. Some people were getting a year's pay when they retired - this was in Illinois and I bet they have prohibited getting that much now.  But I did use mine for FMLA - I had about six weeks banked up and used them all. Otherwise FMLA leave was unpaid.
Regarding telling the department secretary when you are ill and can't teach - this was an issue there because faculty were calling in sick and then not using a sick day and so we were scolded about this because it seemed to be only something that faculty could get away with.
Now in a different state - we don't seem to accrue sick days, at least the kind that can be turned into cash.

[Juvenal]

At my college, before I retired, I had accrued over 600 six days.  In earlier days, all sick days on retirement were paid out; latterly, it was limited to about 200.  They were very generous the one time I did need sick days (major accident) and appeared to take out fewer than perhaps should have been.  I said nothing, but sub-vocalized, "Thanks."

Aside from this I was rarely sick--probably took no more than a dozen in 49 years.  If you skipped a required meeting, you were supposed to subtract some portion of a sick day, usually 1/2.

If a faculty member had run out of sick days, those who were sick-day rich could donate some of theirs to the needy.

I think our system worked well.  I never felt exploited ... although if another four hundred days had been paid out, hmm.

[apl68]

I recall at my former employer there were efforts by some members of the staff to establish a "sick bank" of sick days contributed by all staff members for the benefit of those who found themselves in especially serious need.  The idea never got any traction.  I don't know why.  It wasn't because some were wanting to hoard their sick days for an eventual cash-out, though.  That wasn't a possibility under our rules. 

I once had to remind staff members here that sick days couldn't be treated as additional vacation time.

[rxprof]

At my institution, we are expected to work Monday - Friday during business hours (and frequently evenings and weekends...). I work year round. I value my vacation time because it allows me to (mostly) disconnect for a few weeks each summer. We lose our unused vacation and sick time at the end of each fiscal year. We are not allowed to sell back the time or donate it to colleagues. Some of my colleagues don't bother taking any time off, but I need that time!

[histchick]

In our state system, faculty can choose either TRS or ORP for retirement plans.  We all accrue sick time, but only TRS gets a sick time pay out at retirement. 

Of course, my husband and I are ORP.  I think he has something like 1100 sick hours built up.  Could be more.  Ugh. 

[clean]

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!! 

[dr_codex]

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.

[mythbuster]

Along similar lines, out Union recently negotiated with upper admin to institute a massively overdue Maternity and Family Leave Policy. Yea!
Then a friend in my department got the be the first at the University to test it out. HR was not part of the negotiations (?!?) and so had no clue about said new policy. It took months to get straightened out an involved the head of the Union insisting on a sit down with the President of the Uni and the head of HR, and all the relevant lawyers.

Our Uni President is quite new, and comes from a business background. Apparently the HR response was so poor, that he's now issued an order for a full departmental audit! So yes, learn how it works at your place! If anyone actually knows.

[Kron3007]

Where I am we have to submit an annual form that states how many sick days and holidays we used.  I never actually track this too closely, so I just give them a ball park (I think they end up "winning" since I often work outside of work hours).  I don't think we can accumulate them and get paid out, so probably not that important.  I do not need to let enyone know if I cancel a class or anything (at least not to my knowledge) and we self police our sick/vacation days.

We start with about 22 vacation days per year (we are on a 12 month contract). I had to look up the specific number of sick days we get (thanks OP, good info to know).  It is a little vague about total numbers but we get paid for up to 90 consecutive days (may be required to provide evidence), after which we would need to go on disability.