Classified staff employees' annual leave balances must be at, or below, 240 hours on their anniversary date. Employees may voluntarily accumulate annual leave hours above the 240-hour maximum as long as they use the excess hours by their anniversary date. If employees fail to use the excess annual leave hours by their anniversary date, the hours accrued in excess of 240 must be forfeited. The 240 hour maximum is per employee and not per number of appointments.
When annual leave balances are approaching the maximum 240 hours, the Online Work/Leave System (OWLS) automatically displays a notification to employees when viewing their balances in Employee Self-Service (ESS). The notice describes the forfeiture consequences if employees exceed 240 hours on their anniversary date.
Timekeepers should alert employees who are approaching the 240 hour maximum that they may risk losing excess leave hours on their anniversary date. However, employees should be aware of annual leave hours accrued and should plan to use any hours in excess of 240 by their anniversary date or risk losing them.
Because there are circumstances in which extensions can be granted, OWLS is not programmed to automatically delete an employee’s hours in excess of 240. If an extension has not been approved by your Human Resources representative, you will need to remove the excess annual leave hours manually.
To remove excess annual leave from the OWLS record, open the employee’s record and take the following steps:
7. Click on the “Calendar” tab.
8. Re-release any/all previous months, if the posting of the forfeiture is retroactive.
To learn more about the 240 hour annual leave accrual limit for classified staff and how to request an extension for use, visit the Annual Leave webpage for the classified employee's employment program:
The 240-annual leave accrual limit is also referenced in the following: