Commonwealth Campuses Academic Paid Time Off Guidelines
Most full-time academic appointments are 36-weeks, with pay and benefits paid through 12 months. The University does not generally assign duties to full-time academic employees on 36-week appointments during the 12-week summer period; there are expectations, however, that full-time academic employees will spend part of their time during the 12-week summer period continuing to engage in scholarship, research, and course preparation. Given the flexibility inherent in the schedules of academic employees, the University’s policies for full-time staff employees who earn paid time off over time will not adequately apply. Currently, there are specific policies addressing paid parental leave for faculty HRG18 and unpaid leave pursuant to FMLA HRG11. In addition, there is a past practice in various University units of allowing full-time academic employees on leave pursuant to HRG11 or a similar reason to take some, or all, of that leave as paid leave. In order to achieve greater consistency among the Commonwealth Campuses, the following will provide guidance for paid leave available to full-time faculty classified as tenure, tenure track, fixed-term multi-year, or fixed-term one working at any Commonwealth Campus.
Leave because of an inability to perform assigned duties due to illness or injury (non-job related):
| Length of Continuous Full-Time Service of Any Leave Type with the University at the Start of the Leave | Maximum Length of Paid Granted |
|---|---|
| Less than one year | up to 3 weeks |
| One through 3 years | up to 12 weeks |
| Four through 9 years | up to 18 weeks |
| 10 years or more | up to 24 weeks |
Leave to care for a family member as defined in HRG11, Family and Medical Leave:
| Length of Continuous Regular Service of Any Type Maximum Length of Paid Leave with the University at the Start of the Leave | Maximum Length of Paid Granted |
|---|---|
| Less than one year | up to 3 weeks |
| More than one year | up to 12 weeks |
If an academic employee returns to active employment following any paid leave of absence due to an inability to perform assigned duties due to illness or injury (non-job related), or to care for a family member as defined in HRG11, and then has a need for another paid leave of absence for the same reason, i.e., due to an inability to perform assigned duties due to illness or injury (non- job related), or to care for a family member as defined in HRG11, the amount of paid time off that they are eligible for will be dependent upon three factors:
- Other related HR Leave policies,
- the amount of paid time they utilized during the original absence, and
- the amount of time they have been back to work, specifically, if the employee is back at work for:
- Less than one year = no additional paid leave
- One year = 4 additional weeks of paid leave
- Two through 3 years = 8 additional weeks of paid leave
- Four through 5 years = 16 additional weeks of paid leave
- Anyone back at work for more than 5 years reverts to the schedule listed above
Any paid leave time remaining after the first absence will be added to the amount of paid leave available as a result of the employee’s time back at work. For example, if an employee has worked for 4 years and takes a paid leave for 6 weeks due to their own illness or injury, then returns to work for another 2 years, the employee would be eligible for paid leave up to a maximum of 20 weeks.
If an employee uses their maximum amount of paid leave allotment during the first absence, their clock will restart, and they will only be eligible for the paid leave listed in the chart above, based on the time since returning from the initial leave. The maximum amount of paid leave granted to an employee is 24 weeks. Time spent on leave will not count toward full-time service for purposes of these calculations.
Paid parental leave for faculty – refer to Policy HRG18
Consistent with HRG18, this guidance does not address situations that may require extended leave due to illness or disability of a pregnant faculty member or faculty member giving birth. Such situations should be handled in consultation with the campus HR Team, Absence Management, or the Office for Affirmative Action.
Please refer to HRG18 for guidance on teaching releases.
Approval for paid or unpaid medical leaves of absence must be supported by an FMLA medical certification form completed by the treating health care provider. Contact Penn State Absence Management at [email protected] for consultation, information, and required forms. Also see Penn State Guideline HRG11, Family and Medical Leave. Following the period of paid leave, the academic employee will be eligible for unpaid leave in accordance with Penn State Policy HR16, Leave of Absence without Salary.
Time off during the summer does not count towards any of the paid time off outlined above.
All questions regarding leaves of absence should be directed to Absence Management or the campus HR Team for consultation and explanation of the process.
Exceptions to these guidelines may be authorized only by the full-time academic employee’s campus chancellor.
December 22, 2006
Revised January 23, 2007
Revised May 19, 2016
Revised March 12. 2021
Revised February 6, 2025