Paid Leave Accruals

The University offers generous paid sick, vacation and personal time to benefited employees.

The University offers generous paid sick, vacation and personal time to benefited employees. Non-benefited employees are eligible for Massachusetts paid sick leave.

Paid time accruals differ by employment type and the collective bargaining agreement under which a employee's position falls. Please select the option that applies to your position.

Not sure of your bargaining unit? This webpage can help you determine your bargaining unit!

Information provided on these webpages is for informational purposes. Where it differs from federal law, state law, university policy or a collective bargaining agreement the latter shall prevail.

The Massachusetts Earned Sick Leave policy describes paid sick leave available to employees who do not have a more generous benefit under a bargaining agreement or another University policy. This document provides an overview of the Massachusetts Earned Sick Leave law and answers Frequently Asked Questions. 

PostDoctoral employees with a full-time, twelve (12) -month appointment receive paid:

  • Personal time accrues at the rate of one and five-twelfths (1 and 5/12) workdays for each full payroll month of employment for a total of seventeen (17) days per year. PostDoctoral employees may accumulate a maximum of twenty-five (25) days of paid personal time the balance of which may be paid to the employee following separation from employment.
     
  • Sick time accrues:
    • During the first year of employment full-time Postdoctoral employees receive seven and one-half (7 and 1/2) days of paid sick leave at the beginning of their appointment and again at the beginning of the second six (6) months of their appointment.
    • Is accrued at the rate of one and one-fourth (1 and 1/4) days for each full payroll month for a total of fifteen (15) days per year starting in the second year of their appointment.
       
  • Bereavement - upon the death of a Postdoctoral employee's spouse, domestic partner, child, parent, sibling, grandparent, grandchild, person living in the immediate household, or parent of a spouse or domestic partner, the employee is entitled to up to five (5) consecutive days of paid bereavement.

    In the event of the death of a PostDoctoral employee's son-in-law or daughter-in-law or of the spouse's or domestic partner's brother, sister, grandparent or grandchild the employee is entitled to up to three (3) consecutive work days of paid bereavement.

    The PostDoctoral employee may, upon request and with approval of their PI, defer use of one or more of the paid bereavement days for a later internment and/or memorial service.

Paid time off is pro-rated for PostDoctoral employees on a less-than full-time appointment.
PostDoctoral employees must coordinate use of accrued paid time with their PI.

Please refer to the PostDoctoral collective bargaining agreement for detailed information. Where information on this webpage differs from federal law, state law, university policy or the collective bargaining agreement the latter shall prevail.

  • Undergraduate Student Employees
    • In a position covered by the RAU collective bargaining agreement
    • Undergraduate student employee (position not covered by RAU collective bargaining agreement)
  • Graduate Student Employees
    • In a position covered by the GEO collective bargaining agreement (RAs, TAs, TOs)
    • In a position not covered by the GEO collective bargaining agreement