The University of Texas at Arlington

Excessive Absences

Absences in excess of accrued vacation and sick leave in any month for budgeted employees is reported to the Office of Budgets and Financial Planning via a revised Personnel Action Form or entered online in DEFINE by the employing department. The revised Personnel Action Form adjusts the employee’s appointment to reflect the excessive absences.

The budgeted, monthly employee’s appointment can be adjusted only in eight hour increments in DEFINE. Therefore, if the employee has no accrued vacation and/or sick leave and the employee is absent for less than an eight hour increment, the employing department must adjust the monthly appointment in DEFINE for the full eight hour increment. The department then reports the residual hours worked in that eight hour increment on a semi-monthly Departmental Payroll Voucher. Payroll Services processes the payment on the semi-monthly payroll for those residual hours only.

Example: The employee is absent for 3 hours and has no accrued vacation/sick leave. The department adjusts the employee's monthly appointment so that he/she is removed from the payroll for one full day. The department then pays the employee on a semi-monthly Departmental Payroll Voucher for the 5 hours that he/she worked.

An employee must complete the six-month probationary period before he/she is eligible to be paid for vacation. Therefore, if an employee is absent from work for reasons other than illness and state approved holiday, the absence is without pay.

Mid-Month Terminations

If an employee terminates after the tenth working day of a month, the employing department must notify Payroll Services by telephone immediately. The employing department then prepares a terminating Personnel Action Form to forward to Office of Budgets and Financial Planning or enter the termination online in DEFINE.

If the monthly payroll has already processed when Payroll Services receives notification of an employee's mid-month termination, Payroll Services adjusts the final check for proper payment, if possible. If the time frame does not allow for such adjustment, Payroll Services cancels the entire paycheck or direct deposit. The employee is then paid on the semi-monthly payroll after the 1st of the month.