Annual Leave
It’s that time of year where we are picking vacations for the 2018 calendar year. The choice of prime time and non-prime vacation picks; the number of carriers off during each of these periods; is determined by your Local Agreement (LMOU). If you are one who likes to take a vacation as soon as that ball drops for the New Year, it is important that you save leave to carry you through until the credit for the new leave year is given.
Here are some guidelines to follow:
Full-time employees earn leave based on the number of creditable years of service. Full time regulars are credited in advance with annual leave during the first completed pay period in a new leave year. When a Part-time Flexibles (PTFs) or a City Carrier Assistants (CCAs) employee is converted to Full-time status, they will receive the advance for the balance of the year. Otherwise, PTFs or CCAs earn leave based on the hours worked for the pay period. (For CCAs and annual leave, see your LMOU, if applicable)
According to the Employee and Labor Relations Manual (ELM) Section 512.311, Full-time Employees earn annual leave based on their number of credible years of service:
Less than 3 years: You receive 4 hours for each full bi-weekly pay period; I.E. 104 hours (13 Days) per 26-period leave year.
Employed 3 years but less than 15 years: 6 hours for each full bi-weekly pay period plus 4 hours in last pay period in leave year. I.E. 160 hours (20 days) per 26-period year.
Employed 15 years or more: 8 hours for each full bi-weekly pay period.
I.E. 208 hours (26 days) per 26-period leave year.
PTF employees earn annual leave based on the number of hours he/she works in a given pay period, as well as their years of creditable service. Creditable service includes time spent in the military, in addition to time in other federal agencies such as IRS, Treasury Dept., etc.
Part-time employees with:
Less than 3 years of creditable service: 1 hour for each twenty (20) hours in a pay status.
Employed 3 years but less than 15 years of creditable service: 1 hour for each unit of thirteen (13) hours in a pay status.
Employed 15 years or more of creditable service: 1 hour for each unit of ten (10) hours in a pay status.
Employees who earn thirteen (13) days of annual leave per year shall be granted up to ten (10) days of continuous annual leave during Choice (prime) vacation period.
Employees who earn twenty (20) days or twenty-six (26) days of annual leave per year shall be granted up to fifteen (15) days of continuous annual leave during the Choice (prime) period.
City Carrier Assistants (CCAs) are provided annual leave for rest, recreation, emergency purposes, illness, and injury. CCAs earn annual leave based on the number of hours in which they are in a pay status in each pay period.
Bi-Weekly Crediting: Annual leave accrues and is credited in whole hours at the end of each bi-weekly pay period.
Payment for Accumulated Annual Leave: A separating CCA may receive a lump-sum payment for accumulated annual leave subject to the following conditions:
A CCA whose separation is effective before the last Friday of a pay period does not receive credit or terminal leave payment for the leave that would have accrued during that pay period.
The maximum carryover amount according to the ELM, Section 512.321 of annual leave with which an employee may be credited at the beginning of a leave year is as follows:
For Bargaining Unit Employee the maximum leave carryover is 55 days (440) hours.
Make sure you reserve enough annual leave for the vacation time you are planning. Don’t put your plans in jeopardy of being cancelled; it is your responsibility to know your leave balance. Remember, Management does not have to approve Leave Without Pay (LWOP).
Please know that the annual leave you receive each year is another benefit that the NALC fought for you to receive through the collective bargaining agreement. Compare this to the private Sector. See how much vacation time they receive on a yearly basis.
