Tarleton employees get birthday wish

Dawn Skinner / Staff Writer

Nobody wants to work on their birthday and now, thanks to a new policy, Tarleton State University employees won’t have to.

Beginning Jan. 1, all leave-eligible faculty and staff of Tarleton will be awarded paid time off for their birthday without having to dip into their vacation leave hours.

“The dedication and hard work of Tarleton’s faculty and staff is evident each and every day, and this additional paid leave is recognition of your commitment,” Tarleton State University President Dr. F. Dominic Dottavio said in an email to Tarleton employees.

Staff Council President Alana Hefner drafted a memo to the president expressing employees’ desire to receive paid leave for their birthday. Dottavio signed the memo in September and Human Resources later developed procedures and policies to administer the birthday leave. The final draft of the policy was approved on Nov. 14 and will be reviewed again in two years.

“The idea for the birthday leave has been discussed for some time and was recently recommended by Staff Council,” Dottavio said in the email. “It was a recommendation that I and the executive cabinet heartily endorsed. I commend the Staff Council for their work and continuing effort to look for development opportunities and service recognition.”

To be eligible for birthday leave, an employee must be able to accrue sick or vacation leave and be employed here at least six months prior to their birthday. Full-time employees are granted eight hours of leave while part-time workers are allowed leave on a proportional basis. However, birthday leave cannot be used in increments of less than one day.

For faculty, if their birthday is in June, July or August, and they do not teach during the summer, they may take birthday leave during the preceding March. Also, if an employee does not take their leave within their birth month, the leave will be forfeited for that calendar year. Eligible employees can request birthday leave on the LeaveTraq system just as they do for vacation and sick leave.

“Please know that I am thankful to each of you, and I trust this new benefit will serve as a reminder of the value of your work to Tarleton and the greater community,” Dottavio said.

To read the entire administrative procedure, visit http://www.tarleton.edu/policy/documents/31_03_03_T1_02_BirthdayLeave.pdf