Administrative Absence Leave

Situations occasionally arise that require work space to be closed during normal business hours. In the event of an emergency such as fire or water damage, or if planned renovations or emergency repairs interrupt the availability of work space, Administrative Absence may be available to management for providing paid time to employees.

Administrative Absence is available to all permanent SPA employees (including probationary, trainee, or time-limited).

This policy does not apply to student or temporary employees.

Management must make every reasonable effort to locate suitable alternate work spaces for employees if their normal work spaces are unavailable. In some instances, this could include allowing certain employees to work from home. This option must be used only when management can verify the amount of work performed and the correct amount of work time involved.

In the event that no suitable alternative work space is identified, affected employees are to be sent home.

Administrative Absence will be allowed only if requested by the department in advance (if the unavailability is planned) or as soon as practicable (if the unavailability is unplanned) and must approved by the Senior Director, Employee & Management Relations, Office of Human Resources, or his/her designee. Requests may be sent by email, campus mail, or fax and must include:

• The name of the department or work unit requesting leave;
• The name and contact information for the supervisor and/or HR Facilitator;
• The reason for (and expected duration of) the unavailability of the work space; 
• The number of employees affected; and
• The reason that other accommodations or work from home are not viable alternatives.

If Administrative Absence is approved, eligible employees may receive paid time for the absence.  This time is not charged to any other leave or PTO balance and employees do not have to make up the time.

If Administrative Absence is not approved, eligible employees may code available vacation, bonus, or accrued paid time off (PTO), take leave without pay, or arrange with management to work additional hours within the work week.

Administrative Absence does not contribute to time worked for determining overtime eligibility and will be offset by any additional time worked during the work week.

For Departments Using the Time Information Management (TIM) System:

Implementation of the Time Information System (TIM) to track work hours, special pay, and leave for University employees began its phased implementation in August 2007.  See "TIM Website" in the Related Subjects section below for information on recording Administrative Absence.

For permanent SPA exempt employees, use of Administrative Absence shall be recorded and tracked by the department's HR Facilitator or TIM Administrator.
Employee groups not yet moved into the TIM system follow the recordkeeping structure defined below. 

For Departments Using Employee Time Records:

The time will be recorded as "AA", Administrative Absence, in the "Coded Hours" column on the Employee Time Record. Because this code is not preprinted on some time records, use the "Explanation" section to identify the time as Administrative Absence.

If you have questions about this policy, contact the Employee & Management Relations Specialist in the Office of Human Resources assigned to work with your department.

If you have questions about recording Administrative Absence in the TIM system, visit the TIM website or contact your TIM Administrator.