Chicago Paid Leave Ordinance Policy
Policy
The Chicago Paid Leave and Paid Sick and Safe Leave Ordinance, effective July 1, 2024, provides up to 40 hours of paid leave annually to employees who do not currently receive vacation time. Employees who work at least 80 hours for an employer in Chicago within any 120-day period are covered by the ordinance and eligible for paid leave. Employees can use paid leave for any reason starting September 30, 2024. An FAQ resource is available here to understand the ordinance.
Applicability
This policy applies to employees of the University who do not currently receive vacation time, which includes full-time faculty, part-time faculty, monthly paid full-time staff members, Vice President level staff and above positions, and hourly paid staff employees who work less than 20 hours per week, including temporary, seasonal, active casual hourly paid staff, and hourly paid student workers. Faculty who teach at the Stritch School of Medicine in Maywood, IL, or at the JFRC Rome Center in Rome, Italy, are not covered under this policy. Additionally, faculty who teach online courses with an address outside of Chicago, IL are not covered under this policy.
Information/Guidelines
- Employees begin to accrue paid leave on the first calendar day after they begin their employment.
- Employees are eligible to use paid leave after they have completed their first ninety (90) days of employment.
- Will accrue at a rate of one (1) hour per thirty-five (35) hours worked of paid leave in a 12-month period.
- *Full-time faculty, monthly paid full-time staff members and Vice President level staff and above positions will receive a front-loaded allotment of 40 hours of paid leave upon hire.
- Employees can accrue up to forty (40) hours of paid leave per year.
- The maximum carry-over accrual of paid leave is 16 hours. *This carry-over provision does not apply to full-time faculty, monthly paid staff members and Vice President level staff and above positions who have their paid leave front-loaded.
- Unused hours will be paid out upon termination.
Applicable Use of Paid Leave
Paid leave can be used for any reason.
Notification and Attendance
Employees should provide notice of time off as soon as it is foreseeable. Time off requests will be subject to supervisor approval.
Termination, Resignation or Retirement of Employment
Unused paid leave time, up to fifty-six (56) hours, will be paid out to the employee upon termination, resignation, or retirement of employment. Paid leave time cannot be used for the last day worked.
Please note:
- For full-time faculty, monthly paid full-time staff members and Vice President level staff and above positions, Human Resources will look back 12-months to see if university paid leave or paid sick programs were used. For example, a faculty member was on an approved FMLA, disability leave, or parental leave. If yes, HR will decrement paid sick leave bank first and then paid leave bank before the paid leave payout is processed to terminating faculty member, monthly paid full-time staff member and Vice President level staff and above positions.
- Unused paid leave time will be paid to student workers at the end of the spring academic term each year to coincidence with the annual auto-termination of student workers.
- Unused paid leave time will be paid to part-time faculty at the end of the spring academic term each year.
- In addition, if an employee has not had an active work assignment for sixty (60) days, they may request any accrued but unused paid leave be distributed to them by contacting Human Resources.
Responsibility
- Employee: It is the responsibility of the employee to make all requests for paid leave to the supervisor in a timely manner as set by department procedure.
- Department: Every supervisor is responsible for scheduling and documenting paid leave time used by employees and authorizing the Payroll Department’s payment of paid leave time in accordance with this policy.
- Human Resources: Human Resources is responsible for administering the paid leave policy.
Revised: 7.1.24, 6.26.25
Policy
The Chicago Paid Leave and Paid Sick and Safe Leave Ordinance, effective July 1, 2024, provides up to 40 hours of paid leave annually to employees who do not currently receive vacation time. Employees who work at least 80 hours for an employer in Chicago within any 120-day period are covered by the ordinance and eligible for paid leave. Employees can use paid leave for any reason starting September 30, 2024. An FAQ resource is available here to understand the ordinance.
Applicability
This policy applies to employees of the University who do not currently receive vacation time, which includes full-time faculty, part-time faculty, monthly paid full-time staff members, Vice President level staff and above positions, and hourly paid staff employees who work less than 20 hours per week, including temporary, seasonal, active casual hourly paid staff, and hourly paid student workers. Faculty who teach at the Stritch School of Medicine in Maywood, IL, or at the JFRC Rome Center in Rome, Italy, are not covered under this policy. Additionally, faculty who teach online courses with an address outside of Chicago, IL are not covered under this policy.
Information/Guidelines
- Employees begin to accrue paid leave on the first calendar day after they begin their employment.
- Employees are eligible to use paid leave after they have completed their first ninety (90) days of employment.
- Will accrue at a rate of one (1) hour per thirty-five (35) hours worked of paid leave in a 12-month period.
- *Full-time faculty, monthly paid full-time staff members and Vice President level staff and above positions will receive a front-loaded allotment of 40 hours of paid leave upon hire.
- Employees can accrue up to forty (40) hours of paid leave per year.
- The maximum carry-over accrual of paid leave is 16 hours. *This carry-over provision does not apply to full-time faculty, monthly paid staff members and Vice President level staff and above positions who have their paid leave front-loaded.
- Unused hours will be paid out upon termination.
Applicable Use of Paid Leave
Paid leave can be used for any reason.
Notification and Attendance
Employees should provide notice of time off as soon as it is foreseeable. Time off requests will be subject to supervisor approval.
Termination, Resignation or Retirement of Employment
Unused paid leave time, up to fifty-six (56) hours, will be paid out to the employee upon termination, resignation, or retirement of employment. Paid leave time cannot be used for the last day worked.
Please note:
- For full-time faculty, monthly paid full-time staff members and Vice President level staff and above positions, Human Resources will look back 12-months to see if university paid leave or paid sick programs were used. For example, a faculty member was on an approved FMLA, disability leave, or parental leave. If yes, HR will decrement paid sick leave bank first and then paid leave bank before the paid leave payout is processed to terminating faculty member, monthly paid full-time staff member and Vice President level staff and above positions.
- Unused paid leave time will be paid to student workers at the end of the spring academic term each year to coincidence with the annual auto-termination of student workers.
- Unused paid leave time will be paid to part-time faculty at the end of the spring academic term each year.
- In addition, if an employee has not had an active work assignment for sixty (60) days, they may request any accrued but unused paid leave be distributed to them by contacting Human Resources.
Responsibility
- Employee: It is the responsibility of the employee to make all requests for paid leave to the supervisor in a timely manner as set by department procedure.
- Department: Every supervisor is responsible for scheduling and documenting paid leave time used by employees and authorizing the Payroll Department’s payment of paid leave time in accordance with this policy.
- Human Resources: Human Resources is responsible for administering the paid leave policy.
Revised: 7.1.24, 6.26.25