Policy Statement

Duke University Health System (DUHS) provides staff time off for personal, family, community, and other outside needs and obligations through the "Paid Time Off" (PTO) plan, which combines vacation, holiday, bereavement, and sick leave into one program. DUHS staff accrue or earn time off based on years of service and whether they are in an hourly-paid or monthly-salaried position. Time away from work must be approved and recorded in a manner that protects the interests of both the institution and its staff.

Policy Details

• Guidelines
• Accrual & Usage
• Recognized Holidays
• Bereavement Leave

Guidelines

Eligible health system staff receive time off in the form of Duke’s PTO (Paid Time Off) program. Paid Time Off provides staff with more flexibility in scheduling time off to meet family needs and balance work and family life. It incorporates vacation, sick leave, holiday, and bereavement leave into one bank. The design of the PTO program is also intended to assist staff and the health system in managing staffing needs so as to meet Duke’s operational needs.

Eligibility

Duke provides a PTO system for all Health System staff who are scheduled to work 20 or more hours per week. PTO is accrued but not used during the first 90 calendar days of employment (that is, during the Orientation and Evaluation Period). However, recognized holidays that occur during the Orientation and Evaluation period will be paid.

Usage

Health System staff have access to PTO accrual banks in the form of Short-Term, Long-Term and Carry Over Banks for the purpose of taking time off from work. PTO incorporates vacation, sick time, holiday, and bereavement leave into one program. Health System staff have the opportunity to accumulate time to be used for rest, relaxation, illness, personal, family needs, sellback (cash-out), or retirement.

Maximum and Minimum Accruals

Earned hours are deposited into the Short-Term Bank on each pay period. Any time saved in excess of 55 days (440 hours) is deposited into the Long-Term Bank. Time off can be for holidays, illnesses, vacations, or any other reasons as long as the time is accrued and scheduled with the supervisor. Staff may use a maximum of 55 days from the Short-Term Bank each year.

Pay for Unused Time

Payment for PTO is made at base pay on regular payroll dates. Upon termination of employment or death, unused accrued Short-Term Bank time is paid to the staff member or his or her estate. Upon retirement, unused accrued Short-Term Bank and, if you are age 55 or older, 100% of your Long-Term Bank will be paid to the staff member. Upon Layoff, accrued and unused Short-Term Bank and 50 percent of the Long-Term Bank will be paid.

Cash-Out

Every November, Health System staff have the opportunity to buy back hours not used from the Long-Term Bank at 50 percent of the staff member’s base rate of pay at the time of cash-out.

• This payment will be based on the staff member’s base rate of pay as recorded in the payroll system (as of the date of the check).
• Staff must complete an “Annual Request for Cash-out of Long-Term Bank Hours” form and return it to the Corporate Payroll Office by the assigned date.
• Staff may call the Time Call System at 681-1011 to check on Long-Term Bank accrual balance.

Accrual

• Accrual is based on years of service, monthly-salaried or hourly-paid status and hours worked.
• No PTO is earned on overtime hours.

Payment

• Payment of PTO time should be made at the staff member’s regular rate of pay at the time of leave and should not include any premium or differential payment.

Scheduling Time Off

• The supervisor and staff member schedule time off in accordance with existing work requirements.
• Due consideration is given to personal preferences.
• Other factors that may be considered in scheduling time off include department needs, the staff member’s length of service, and the staff member’s accrued amount of unused vacation/PTO.

Severe Weather and Emergency Conditions

• If an hourly-paid staff member does not come to work, he or she may use accrued time from the Short-Term Bank.
• Any absence incurred during a severe weather and/or emergency condition event will be considered as unscheduled time off.

COB for Hourly-Paid Staff

Hourly-paid staff who are eligible for retirement from Duke and have accrued time in the COB will receive either a normal or early reduced pension as provided in the Employees’ Retirement Plan and will be eligible for the following:

• At the time of retirement, an hourly-paid staff member's total, accumulated bank of unused Carry-Over-Bank hours will be calculated.
• The total of unused Carry-Over-Bank hours will be used to adjust the hourly-paid staff member's credited years of service for benefit calculation.
• This adjustment will be accomplished by taking the total number of these unused Carry-Over-Bank hours and converting them into additional-length-of-service credits that are then used to calculate the staff member's eventual retirement payment.
• The exact method of computation of pension benefits and the conversion of unused Carry-Over-Bank hours into additional-length-of-service credits will be governed and defined by the Employees’ Retirement Plan (ERP).

Bank Definitions and Usage Process

Short-Term Bank (STB) days are available for vacation, holiday, bereavement leave, and sick time. Staff may not use more than 55 days in a year.

When the Short-Term Bank (STB) is empty, Long-Term Bank (LTB) days can be used for family or personal illness time.

• If a staff member accrues more than 55 days (440 hours) of paid time off, the excess goes into the Long-Term Bank (LTB) automatically. Staff may keep up to 120 days (960 hours) in their Long-Term Bank (LTB). No additional accruals will be applied until the Long Term Bank balance is below 120 days (960 hours).
• Time in the Long-Term Bank (LTB) may only be used for personal or family medically-related reasons including illnesses, injuries, or medical emergencies for a staff member or his or her family members* (FMLA, Workers Compensation or Maternity). The Long-Term Bank (LTB) is the second bank from which PTO is taken and can only be accessed once the STB is depleted.
• Once a year, staff will be given an opportunity to sell Long-Term Bank (LTB) time at 50 percent of their base rate of pay.

* A family member is defined as a child, spouse, registered same- sex partner, brother, sister, parent, parent-in-law, grandparent, or grandchild.

Carry Over Bank (COB) – This bank consists of earned time that was carried over from the University sick leave program when the DUHS PTO program was implemented in July 1999.

• No additional time can be earned or transferred to this bank because of the new PTO program.

Currently, this bank ensures that University staff who transfer to the Health System do not lose any of their earned sick time.

Accrual & Usage

Hourly-Paid – PTO Eligibility and Accrual

Monthly-salaried – PTO Eligibility and Accrual

For additional information on the PTO system, please contact a department or unit payroll representative or refer to the Paid Time Off web site.

Recognized Holidays

Health System staff must use accrued time from the Short-Term Bank for recognized holidays. Please refer to the table below for further information concerning the Health System’s recognized holidays.

Health System Recognized Holidays

• New Year’s Day
• Martin Luther King Day
• Memorial Day
• Juneteenth
• Independence Day
• Labor Day
• Thanksgiving Day
• Christmas Day

Compensation for Working on a Recognized Holiday

As an incentive for its workforce to work on holidays, Duke will continue to pay hourly-paid staff time-and-one-half of their normal hourly wage on the six holidays the Health System recognizes. For further information, please see the Health System Premium Pay policy.

Bank Usage

Staff working in departments that close on these holidays or requesting time off on recognized holidays will be able to use their Short-Term Bank.

Bereavement Leave

Health System staff may use their accrued Short-Term Bank time to arrange for necessary time off.

• There is no relationship requirement.
• There is no pre-set limit to the number of days used.
• The staff member must arrange time off with his or her supervisor.

Pay

• Pay for missed work due to bereavement leave is charged to the Short-Term Bank at straight time rates (with shift differential and weekend work premium not applicable).
• Should the death of a relative occur while the staff member is on scheduled time off, the staff member should immediately notify his or her supervisor so that the necessary arrangements can be made for additional time off.

Scheduled Time Off

• Approved time for bereavement leave is considered Scheduled Time Off.

Requesting Additional Time

• Should additional time off be necessary for a staff member to attend the funeral, such additional time off may be requested either as Short-Term Bank Time or authorized non-paid time off.
• Such requests should be coordinated with the staff member's supervisor.