DUHS Time Off Policy - for Employees with a Continuous Service Date on or before December 31, 2025

Click here to see the policy for employees with a Continuous Service Date on or after January 1, 2026:

DUHS Time Off Policy - for Employees with a Continuous Service Date on or after January 1, 2026

Policy Statement

Duke University Health System (DUHS) provides employees time off for personal, family, and other obligations through the "Paid Time Off" (PTO) plan. PTO combines vacation, holiday, and sick leave into one program. DUHS employees accrue time off based on years of service and whether they are in an hourly-paid or monthly-paid position.

Policy Details

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

Guidelines

Eligible health system employees receive time off in the form of the DUHS PTO program. PTO provides employees with more flexibility in scheduling time off to meet personal needs and balance work and family life. The design of the PTO program is also intended to assist employees and the health system in managing staffing needs to meet DUHS operational needs. Time away from work must be approved and recorded in a manner that protects the interests of both the institution and its employees.

Eligibility & PTO Structure

DUHS provides PTO for all regular employees who are scheduled to work 20 or more hours per week.

PTO begins accruing on the first day of employment. PTO accrual rates are based on years of service and are prorated to reflect the actual number of hours an employee is paid (up to the appointed hours or Full Time Equivalent (FTE) status) per pay period (biweekly or monthly). No PTO is earned on overtime hours.

FTE represents the percentage of time an employee is expected to work based on a 40-hour work week. For example, a 0.9 FTE is expected to work 36 hours per 40-hour work week.

Usage

DUHS employees will have access to accrued PTO for the purpose of taking time off from work up to their assigned FTE. DUHS employees have the opportunity to accumulate time for rest, relaxation, illness, personal use, family needs, or cash-out.

Employees must use accrued PTO up to their assigned FTE for scheduled or unscheduled time away from work.

Payment

• Payment of PTO for time away from work will be made at the employee’s regular rate of pay at the time of leave and will not include any premium or differential payment.

Scheduling Time Off

• The supervisor and employee schedule time off in accordance with existing department scheduling requirements and operational needs.
• Other factors that may be considered in scheduling time off include department needs, the employee’s length of service, and the employee’s accrued amount of unused PTO.

Department Closures or Reduced Workload

In the event an employee’s department is closed (for reasons other than DUHS-designated holidays) or operating on a reduced workload due to low census, non-exempt (hourly-paid) employees may choose to use accrued PTO or take the time off unpaid. Exempt (monthly-paid) employees must use PTO when their departments are closed.

Severe Weather and Emergency Conditions

• If an employee does not come to work, they must use accrued time from the Short-Term Bank.
• Any unapproved absence incurred during a severe weather and/or emergency condition event will be considered unscheduled time off.

Maximum and Minimum Accruals

Earned hours are accrued each pay period and deposited into the Short-Term Bank. Time accrued over 55 days (440 hours) is deposited into the Long-Term Bank, up to 120 days (960 hours). Employees may use a maximum of 55 days of PTO from the Short-Term Bank each year.

Pay for Unused Time

All eligible PTO will be paid in a lump sum at the employee’s current base rate of pay on regular payroll dates. Upon termination of employment or death, unused accrued PTO time is paid to the employee or their estate at the following rates, or as required by applicable state law. If an employee moves to a part-time status (less than 0.5 FTE), the employee is no longer eligible for PTO and will follow the guidelines outlined in the Payout of Accrued Time Upon Leaving DUHS Policy

For accrued and unused PTO in the Short-Term Bank:

• 0% is eligible for payout if the employee has less than 90 days of continuous service
• 50% is eligible for payout if the employee has more than 90 days but less than one year of continuous service
• 100% is eligible for payout if the employee has more than one year of continuous service or if an employee is over 55 and retiring

For accrued and unused PTO in the Long-Term Bank, no PTO is eligible for payout outside of the following two scenarios.

• If the employee is over 55 and retiring, 100% is eligible for payout.
• If the employee is part of a reduction in force (layoff), 50% is eligible for payout.

For more information, please see the Payout of Accrued Time Upon Leaving DUHS policy.

Long-Term Bank Cash-Out

Every November, employees can cash-out hours not used from the Long-Term Bank at 50% of the employee’s base rate of pay at the time the payment is processed.

• This payment will be based on the employee’s base rate of pay as recorded in the payroll system (as of the date of the check).
• Employees 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.
• Employees may verify balances in the API Time and Attendance System or call 919-681-1011 to check Long-Term Bank accrual balance.

Bank Definitions and Usage Process

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

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

• If an employee accrues more than 55 days (440 hours) of paid time off, the excess goes into the Long-Term Bank (LTB) automatically. Employees 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 an employee 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.

* 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) – Employees who are hired directly into the health system do not have a Carry Over Bank. This bank is only for employees who transfer from Duke University to DUHS, where 100% of accrued and unused sick time will be placed in the Carry Over Bank. In some cases, acquisitions may have time transferred into the Carry Over Bank. Please see other acquisition specific policies for more details.

Carry Over Bank for Hourly-Paid Employees from Duke University

Hourly-paid employees who transferred from Duke University, are eligible for retirement from DUHS, and have accrued time in the Carry Over Bank (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 employee'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 employee'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 employee’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).

Accrual & Usage

Hourly-Paid – PTO Eligibility and Accrual

Continuous Service Date on or before December 31, 2025

*Scheduled to work 80 hours each two-week period

**Scheduled to work at least 20 but less than 40 hours per week (or 80 hours per biweekly pay period)

***Scheduled to work less than 20 hours per week

Monthly-salaried – PTO Eligibility and Accrual

Continuous Service Date on or before December 31, 2025

*Scheduled to work 40 hours or more each week

**Scheduled to work at least 20 but less than 40 hours per week (or 80 hours per biweekly pay period)

***Scheduled to work less than 20 hours per week

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

Recognized Holidays

Health System employees, both bi-weekly and monthly, must use accrued time from the Short-Term Bank for recognized holidays when departments are closed or requesting time off. Please refer to the list 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

Bank Usage

Employees working in departments that close on these holidays or requesting time off on recognized holidays will be required to use PTO hours from their Short-Term Bank up to their assigned FTE.

Bereavement Leave

PTO eligible employees have access to three days of bereavement leave to handle matters related to a death in the family.

• Days are defined as distinct calendar days tied to regularly scheduled shifts or working hours.
• Bereavement leave is available for the loss of a direct family member, including a child, spouse, registered same-sex partner, sibling, parent, parent-in-law, grandparent, grandchild, or in the event of pregnancy loss.
• If there is a special relationship, not identified above, where an employee would like to use bereavement, the employee must speak with their supervisor when requesting bereavement leave.
• Verification of the reason for this absence, such as a funeral program or obituary, may be requested by the employee's supervisor immediately upon return to work. Verification is the employee's responsibility.
• The employee must arrange time off with his or her supervisor.

Bereavement Pay

• Pay for missed work due to bereavement leave is paid at base rate (with shift differential and weekend work premium not applicable).
• Should the death of a relative occur while the employee is on scheduled time off, the employee should immediately notify their 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 an employee request additional bereavement leave, PTO must be used up to the employee's assigned FTE from the Short-Term Bank.
• Such requests should be coordinated with the employee's supervisor.