Vacation & Leave Programs

Vacation Leave

Vacation benefits accrue for appointed non-faculty employees based on duration of employment:

• Full-time staff accrue vacation leave at the rate of 15 days per year, or 1.25 days per month, up to a maximum of 15 total vacation days.
• Vacation leave accrual is prorated for staff employees who work less than full-time.
• After completing seven years of benefited service at the University, the vacation leave accrual rate increases to 2 days per month, up to a maximum of 22 total vacation days.

Vacation leave accrual stops once the maximum has been reached and resumes when the balance falls below the maximum. Accrued time will carry over from year to year until it is utilized or until separation of employment.

Upon separation, any accrued unused vacation leave will be paid out according to University policy and included in your final paycheck.

Vacation pay will not be counted as time worked for overtime purposes.

Sick Leave

Full-time, non-faculty employees accrue sick time at 1 day per month up to a maximum of 130 days.  Sick accrual is prorated for employees who work less than full-time.

Paid Sick Leave under the Colorado Healthy Families and Workplaces Act (HFWA)

An employer must provide 1 hour of accrued, paid leave per 30 hours worked, up to 48 hours per year. Accrued paid sick leave can be used for a wide range of health and safety needs:

• Inability to work due to a mental or physical illness, injury, or health condition. 
• Obtaining preventive medical care (including vaccination), or medical diagnosis/care/treatment.
• Needs due to domestic abuse, sexual assault, or criminal harassment including medical attention, mental health care or other counseling, legal or other victim services, or relocation.
• Care for a family member who needs the sort of care listed above.
• During a PHE, a public official closed the employee’s workplace, or the school or place of care of the employee’s child.
• Effective Aug. 7, 2023: Bereavement, or financial/legal needs after a death of a family member; or
• Effective Aug. 7, 2023: Due to inclement weather, power/heat/water loss, or other unexpected event, the employee must
  1. evacuate their residence, or
  2. care for a family member whose school or place of care was closed.

Since January 1, 2022, all employers in the state, regardless of size or industry, are fully covered by HFWA.

HFWA covers all employees (part-time, seasonal, temporary, etc.), excluding only federal government employees and some railroad employees.

Employers can require documentation for accrued paid sick leave (not for COVID-related public health emergency (PHE) leave), but only for absences of four or more consecutive days — and employees can provide the documentation after the leave ends.

Faculty Paid Parental Leave

The University of Denver provides up to 12 weeks of fully-paid parental leave for faculty members, which must be taken within the first year after delivery, adoption, or foster care placement, and pertain to the care and well-being of the newborn or adopted child. This paid leave shall be taken continuously (defined as no more than three blocks of consecutive weeks) and concurrently with FAMLI and may bridge multiple academic terms. Faculty members will also be granted a course release equivalent to one academic term and will need to coordinate the leave plans with their department chairs or deans with the goal of providing flexibility while minimizing the impact to the academic operations of the department.

Eligibility

Parental leave is available to both birth and non-birth parents. DU's paid parental leave benefit must be used concurrently with, as applicable, leave under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA), Colorado FAMLI leave, and for the birthing parent, short-term disability benefit.

Notification

Whenever possible, faculty members intending to take parental leave should inform their chairs or deans no later than three months prior to the proposed beginning of the leave. If this is not possible due to pre-term delivery, sudden availability of adoption, or other unpredictable changes in family status, leave will still be granted.

Tenure Probationary Period

Faculty members taking parental leave may request the addition of one year to the total number of years that otherwise would constitute that individual's tenure probationary period. Such requests shall be made in writing no later than six months after the end of the parental leave period, and must be approved by the appropriate dean and the provost. This election is irrevocable and not subject to modification.

Effect on Sabbatical Leave

In computing years of service for sabbatical eligibility, time spent on a faculty parental leave will constitute a term of service and will not delay sabbatical eligibility.

How to Apply

The Leave of Absence Communication Form must be submitted to HRIC Benefits. Supporting documentation will be required..

HRIC Benefits Confidential fax: 303-871-6339

HRIC Benefits Email: Benefits@du.edu

Staff Paid Parental Leave

The University provides up to 12 weeks of partially- or fully- paid Parental Leave for all benefited staff to assist and support new parents with balancing work and family matters. The University will continue to pay the employer’s portion of the employee’s health insurance premium while the employee is on Parental Leave. 

The University does allow for intermittent parental leave as long as the schedule is not disruptive to the business operations of the unit and has been approved by the employee's supervisor. In some departments, intermittent leave is not available due to the nature of the position. 

Parental Leave is available to both birth and non-birth parents. Parental Leave must run concurrently with FAMLI, FMLA, and short-term and long-term disability. As such, employees must apply for FAMLI, FMLA and/or short-term disability before being approved for Parental Leave. When the birthing parent is taking Parental Leave, such leave will be in conjunction with the University's core short-term disability benefit, when applicable. 

The amount of Parental Leave the University will pay depends on whether the employee is receiving paid benefits from some other source (such as FAMLI, short-term or long-term disability). An employee taking Parental Leave may not receive more in compensation than their average weekly wage regardless of the source of the payments. 

If both parents are employed by the University, both parents have access to Parental Leave and may elect to, but are not required to, take such leave simultaneously. Whenever possible, employees intending to take Parental Leave should inform their department or division leadership no later than three (3) months prior to the proposed beginning of the Parental Leave. If this is not possible due to pre-term delivery, sudden availability of adoption, or other unpredictable changes in family status, the University will still grant the Parental Leave. 

Parental Leave must be taken within the first year after delivery, adoption, or foster care placement, and pertain to the care and well-being of the newborn or adopted child. The birth or placement of multiple children will not increase the duration of Parental Leave. 

Following Parental Leave, employees must return to work for at least 30 calendar days. Employees who choose not to return to work for reasons other than an ongoing serious health condition must reimburse the University the amount the University paid: (a) for the employer’s portion of the employee's health insurance premium; and (b) to the employee as salary during the Parental Leave period. employee’s health insurance paid by the University during the Parental Leave period. 

Eligibility

Parental leave is available to both birthing and non-birthing parents. All benefited employees are eligible to receive up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave.

 

How to Apply

The FAMLI & FMLA Leave Form must be submitted to HRIC Benefits.

HRIC Benefits email: Benefits@du.edu

Confidential fax: 303-871-6339

Discretionary Leave

The University, at its sole discretion, may grant discretionary leave. In order to be considered for discretionary leave, eligible employees must comply with the FMLA leave requirements regarding coordination with other leave, notice, and, if applicable, medical certification.

Faculty and professional staff applying for non-medical discretionary leave should submit written requests at least four months in advance. If an employee fails to comply with these requirements, the University reserves the right to deny the request for discretionary leave.

Discretionary leave may be requested for study, research, educational travel, or other employment that would either enhance the employee's service to the University, provide a significant community service, or be mutually advantageous to the employee and University.

Eligibility

The following employees are eligible for discretionary leave:

• Appointed, non-union employees
• Tenured faculty members
• Other professional staff with three or more years of service

Except as otherwise required by law, the University is not required to grant discretionary leave in any particular case.

Reinstatement

The University reserves the right to deny reinstatement of any employee who takes discretionary leave, except as the law may otherwise require. If an employee's original position cannot be held open during a leave of absence, the University will make reasonable efforts to place the employee in a position of equivalent status and salary upon return from leave.

Bereavement Leave

Leave with pay is available to all appointed exempt and non-exempt (non-faculty) staff because of death in the immediate family. Immediate family is limited to the spouse of the employee, a parent of the employee or employee's spouse, a child of the employee or employee's spouse, a sibling of the employee or employee's spouse, or a grandparent of the employee or employee's spouse. Funeral leave will be limited to three days if the burial is within Colorado, and to five days if it is outside of Colorado. Supervisors may request an obituary or other notice to substantiate the absence.

Bereavement pay will not be counted as time worked for overtime purposes.

Jury Duty Leave

Paid jury duty leave is available to all appointed employees for the duration of their jury service. When a summons for jury duty is received, it should be presented to the employee's supervisor. Employees are expected to report to work if excused from jury duty during normal work hours. Supervisors may require their employees to furnish documentation from the court clerk certifying days served. Any jury duty fees received may be retained by the employee.

Jury duty pay will not be counted as time worked for overtime purposes.

FMLA Provisions for Military Families

On January 28, 2008, new provisions of the FMLA were signed into law requiring up 26 weeks of protected leave for employees who:

• Provide care to service members wounded in the line of duty while on active duty
• Care for veterans undergoing medical treatment, recuperation, or therapy, are in outpatient status, or are on the temporary disability retired list for a serious injury or illness
• Are the spouse, son, daughter, parent, or next of kin of a wounded service member

The new amendments also provides up to 12 weeks of FMLA leave to the spouse, child, or parent of any armed services member, including Reservists and members of the National Guard, who is called to active duty in the military.

The statutory language grants leave for any "qualifying exigency" caused by the active duty call up.

Employers are entitled to request that the service member provide certification of being called to active duty. Under both types of FMLA leave for military families, intermittent leave is available.

For more information, see this FMLA page on Department of Labor Website.

About FAMLI Program

About FAMLI

The FAMLI program will provide all eligible employees a portion of their weekly salary for up to 12 weeks of leave to care for themselves or a family member, with an additional four weeks of leave for complications during pregnancy or childbirth.

FAMLI aims to ensure that Coloradoans don’t have to choose between earning a paycheck or caring for themselves or their family in a time of need. It can be used by all employees who reside in Colorado, including faculty, staff, student employees, and graduate students.

FAMLI will provide 12-16 weeks of paid leave for the following events:

• To manage their own serious health condition.
• To care for a family member with a serious health condition.
• To care for a new child (within the first year of birth, foster placement or adoption).
• To make arrangements for military deployments.
• To address immediate safety needs and impact of domestic violence or sexual assault.

See required steps and more information below:

FAMLI Program Frequently Asked Questions

What is FAMLI?

Colorado voters passed Proposition 118 in November 2020, approving the creation of the Family and Medicare Leave Insurance Program. It passed with 57.75% of voters supporting the initiative.

This social insurance program provides all Colorado workers a portion of their weekly salary for up to 12 weeks to care themselves or their families, with an additional four weeks of leave for pregnancy or childbirth complications.

When does the program benefits begin for DU employees?

FAMLI will begin providing benefits on January 1, 2024.

You can apply for FAMLI prior to January 1, 2024 if you are expecting a qualified leave of absence in 2024.

Who is eligible for FAMLI?

FAMLI leave can be used by all employees who reside in Colorado, including faculty, staff, student employees working and living in Colorado who earn wages of at least $2,500.

Employees working and living in Colorado who earn wages through DU’s payroll will see an after-tax deduction in each paycheck. This includes non-benefited employees, student employees, and graduate assistants.

Employees are eligible for FAMLI payments on day one of employment provided they have at least $2,500 from another employer in the State of Colorado. Employees may receive job protection through FAMLI after 180 days of employment.

Who qualifies as a family member for FAMLI benefits?

Understanding that families are not always traditional, family members include a covered individual’s child, parent, spouse, domestic partner, grandparent, grandchild, sibling or someone with whom they have a significant personal bond.

How is FAMLI funded?

The FAMLI Program will be funded by both the University and the employee. Employee premiums are set 0.45% of the employee’s wage. Premiums will be deducted post-tax (will not reduce an employee’s taxable income).

Can I opt out of FAMLI?

No. Individual employees in Colorado may not opt out of participating in FAMLI.

I live and work outside of Colorado. Can I use FAMLI?

FAMLI benefits can only be utilized by in-state employees. Out-of-state employees do not pay the premium deduction and must use their state’s family medical leave policies, if available.

How often can I use FAMLI benefits?

Employees are allowed 12 weeks of partial wage replacement through FAMLI every rolling 12-month period.

How does FAMLI work with other types of leave programs?

FAMLI may either run concurrently or in conjunction with other leave programs:

• Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA): FMLA is a federal program that provides job protection for 12 weeks per rolling 12 months. FMLA will run concurrently with FAMLI when the need for leave meets the FMLA requirements.
• Parental Leave: Paid Parental Leave runs concurrently with FAMLI and FMLA.
• Short-Term Disability: Provides up to 60% of pre-disability pay for up to 13 weeks – with 2 weeks elimination period. If enrolled in short-term disability, it will run concurrently with FAMLI and FMLA.
• Vacation and Sick Leave: Accrued through benefited employment, this leave can be used in conjunction with FAMLI, FMLA, STD and Parental Leave.

Additional Resources

How to File a Claim with New York Life

FAMLI - Benefit Calculation Guide

FAMLI - FAQ's

Colorado FAMLI Website