There are 11 paid holidays per year – ten (10) designated holidays and one personal holiday. See the UW's holiday calendar for the complete holiday schedule.
Full-time (100% FTE) employees receive eight (8) hours of regular pay for each holiday, including the personal holiday. Part-time employees who work at least half time (50% FTE) receive pay for holidays at a rate proportionate to the percentage of their appointment (e.g., half-time employees receive four (4) hours of regular pay for each holiday).
All monthly-paid employees are entitled to regularly scheduled state holidays. Classified non-union employees are eligible to be paid for the holiday if they are in pay status for the entire work shift on the work day preceding a holiday. Contract-classified and professional staff employees are eligible to be paid for the holiday if they are in pay status for at least four hours on the work day preceding a holiday.
Employees who hold appointments for periods of less than 12 months are eligible to receive only those scheduled holidays that fall within their appointment term.
If a holiday falls on an employee’s regularly scheduled day off, the employee will receive holiday credit equal to the appointment’s percentage of full time. The holiday is worth a maximum of eight (8) hours for full-time appointments (100% FTE), and pro rated down to four (4) hours for half time appointments (50% FTE). An employee may request to use holiday credit as soon as it is accumulated, i.e. the employee does not have to wait to use holiday credit until the month following its accumulation.
Employees whose number of scheduled work hours varies throughout the work week (e.g., work schedules other than a Monday through Friday schedule in which the employee works the same number of hours per day) work alternate schedules.
If a designated holiday or personal holiday falls on a day the employee is regularly scheduled to work and the scheduled work hours are greater than the holiday hour entitlement, the difference between the scheduled work hours and the holiday hours must be made up from annual leave, accrued compensatory time or leave without pay.
If a holiday falls on a day the employee is regularly scheduled to work and the scheduled work hours are less than the holiday hour entitlement, the difference between the holiday hours and the scheduled work hours is accrued as holiday credit.
All accrued holiday credit must be used or paid annually.
Classified staff employees must use the holiday credit, or be paid by the following deadlines:
Harborview Medical Center and UW Medical Center…………………….September 30
All other units……………………………………………………………………………June 30
Professional staff employees are expected to use accrued holiday credit within 90 days of the holiday for which it was earned.
The balance of unused holiday credit should be used or paid if an employee moves from one staff position to another within the University or when separating from University employment.
If an employee asks to use accrued holiday credit hours, consider the following items in order to review and approve the employee’s request:
If an employee wishes to request an extension for use of accrued holiday credit, you will need to take the following steps in order to obtain an extension for the employee:
The University lists the ten (10) paid holidays on the UW Holiday calendar.
If a professional staff employee's normal workweek schedule requires them to work on a holiday, the employee receives holiday leave credit in the form of an alternative day off.
Holiday credit is also referred to as Holiday Compensatory Time.