Section 600.682  Leave for Personal Business

a)         Accrual:  Full-time employees shall be permitted twenty-one (21) hours of leave for personal business each calendar year with pay.  Full-time employees who enter service with the Office during any calendar year shall be given credit for personal leave at the rate of three and one-half (3½) hours for each two (2) months of service for the calendar year in which hired.  Permanent part-time employees working nineteen (19) or more hours per week shall earn personal business leave on a pro-rated basis determined by a fraction the numerator of which shall be the hours worked by the employee and the denominator of which shall be normal working hours in the year required by the position. Beginning with calendar year 2005, in the event an employee does not use sick leave in any calendar year, the employee shall be awarded one (1) additional personal day on January 1 of the next calendar year.  A permanent part-time employee who works at least 19 hours per week shall be awarded pro-rated additional personal leave on January 1 when the employee has not used sick leave during the previous calendar year.  A calendar year for purposes of this provision is the period beginning January 1 and ending December 31 of each year.

b)         Personal business leave may be used for occurrences or observance of religious holidays, absence due to severe weather conditions, or for other similar personal reasons but shall not be used to extend a holiday, vacation or other leave without prior written approval.  Personal business leave may be used by employees in half-hour increments.  Except for those emergency situations which preclude the making of prior arrangements, personal business leave shall be scheduled sufficiently in advance to be consistent with the Office's operating needs.

c)         Carry Over:  Personal business leave shall not accumulate or carry over from year to year. If the services of an employee in State service are terminated by reason of his or her retirement, disability or death, the employee, or the employee's estate, as the case may be, shall be paid a lump sum, for the number of days for leave for personal business which the employee had accumulated but not used as of the date the employee's services were terminated, in an amount equal to ½ of the employee's pay per working day times the number of personal leave days so accumulated and not used.  The accrued leave amount paid under this subsection shall be certified in writing to the employee by the Office.  This certification shall be held by the employee or forwarded to the Retirement System.

(Source:  Amended at 33 Ill. Reg. 1704, effective March 10, 2009)