Each month, our advocates answer your questions about workplace challenges, the AD 10 policies, and how they’re applied. Questions? Submit them anonymously here. These questions will be answered in a monthly advocacy corner issue. For an immediate answer, please contact APSA.
Hello, I'm Mike Peragine, an advocate on APSA's Advocacy Committee. On behalf of the Committee, I'm answering your question related to vacation carryover.
My department tells me that I can only carry over five days of vacation per year, but the AD 10 policies say different. How many vacation days can I carry over?
APSA employees can defer their full vacation entitlement for one year, but it must be taken the following calendar year. If you can't take vacation the year after, your deferred vacation entitlement is paid out.
Here's an example of this in action. Let's say your vacation entitlement is 4 weeks. Your department was super busy, and you had to defer your 2019 vacation entitlement to 2020. You now have 8 weeks vacation to use.
If you take 5 weeks vacation in 2020, the first 4 weeks are taken from the deferred vacation from the previous year (2019). The fifth week is then deducted from your 2020 vacation entitlement.
APSA, however, encourages you to take as much vacation as possible. Everyone needs to be able to spend time away from work to refresh and recharge.
It’s also best practice to talk to your supervisor and let them know what your plans are. This allows your department to better plan for your longer than anticipated absence.
If you still have questions about your vacation entitlement, you can always contact APSA to discuss your situation. Talking to APSA is 100% confidential.
Need an APSA advocate? Contact us at 778-782-4319.