Note: This is a printed version of https://isc.uw.edu/your-time-absence/time-off/paid-sick-time-off-for-all-hourly-workers-faqs. Please visit this page on the ISC website to ensure you're referencing the most current information.

ISC

Paid Sick Time Off For All Hourly Workers: FAQs

Last updated Tuesday, April 9, 2024

The provisions on this page are a result of Initiative 1433 changes and subject to collective bargaining for those covered by a collective bargaining agreement.

Effective January 1, 2018, state law (Initiative 1433) requires paid Sick Time Off for all nonexempt (overtime eligible) workers covered by the WA Minimum Wage Act. Additionally, the University updated Sick Time Off policies for all staff so that there is institutional consistency for when Sick Time Off may be taken.

Temporary and student hourly workers now earn Sick Time Off hours at a rate of one (1) hour for every 40 hours worked (0.025 per hour). An hourly employee’s work hours will contribute to this new accrual beginning January 1, 2018, and Sick Time Off is available for use as soon as it is accrued.

Hourly employees’ Sick Time Off accrues at the end of the month and is based on payroll results from both of the pay periods within that month. Hourly workers accruing Sick Time Off will not see those hours available until after payroll has been completed for the last pay period of the month (typically five to six days after the end of the month). This is different from salaried employees, who accrue their sick time based on their monthly FTE and do not see a delay in an accrual.

FAQs – Temporary and Student Hourly Workers

No. The accrual of one (1) hour of Sick Time Off for every 40 hours worked is equivalent to an accrual multiplier of .025 and is based on actual worked hours paid in a month. For example, if you are paid for 30 hours worked in a month, then you will accrue .75 hours of Sick Time Off for that month.

Since Sick Time Off accruals for temporary and student hourly employees is based on paid hours in the month, accruals will be reflected in Workday only after the pay results are completed and the payslip is available, typically five to six business days after the end of the month.

The Balance as Of Date function on the Absence Calendar is used to help salaried employees proactively plan for time offs, taking into consideration time off already requested and projected accruals for time off. Since Sick Time Off hours for temporary and student hourly employees are based on paid hours, and paid hours cannot be predicted (ie, paid hours can vary month to month), this functionality will only verify your balance as of today because Workday will not know what Sick Time Off you have accrued for any given month until after the pay results complete for that month.

For hourly workers, retro hours will contribute to your Sick Time Off accrual in the month the hours are paid, not the month the hours are worked.

For example:

Pay Period Hours Worked & Submitted Sick Time Off Accrued*
January 1 – January 15
  • 10 hours worked.
  • Timesheet submitted and approved on time.
  • Hours paid on January 25 paycheck.
  
January 16 – January 31
  • 15 hours worked.
  • Timesheet not submitted on time. Timesheet is approved in the next pay period from February 1 – February 15.
  • Hours paid on February 25 paycheck.
 0.25 hours of Sick Time Off on January 31 (after pay results are completed) based on 10 hours paid in January.
February 1 – February 15
  • 20 hours worked.
  • Timesheet submitted and approved on time.
  • Hours paid on February 25 paycheck.
  
February 16 – February 28
  • 0 hours worked.
  • No timesheet submitted.
  • No hours paid.
 0.875 hours of Sick Time Off on February 28 (after pay results are completed) based on 35 hours paid in February. 

*(Sick Time Off accrues on a monthly basis at the end of the month)

FAQs – Monthly Paid Classified and Professional Staff

Eligibility for the Sick Time Off accrual in this scenario is based on your employment program: overtime exempt classified nonunion employees do not accrue any time off during a calendar month in which they have taken more than 80 hours of unpaid time off, prorated for part-time employment. (For 0.5 FTE, that would be 40 hours.)

However, effective January 1, 2018, contract classified staff, professional staff, and overtime eligible classified non-union staff who have more than 80 hours of unpaid time off in a month (prorated for part-time employment), accrue one (1) hour for every 40 hours worked. The accrual of one (1) hour of Sick Time Off for every 40 hours worked is equivalent to an accrual multiplier of 0.025 and is based on the actual regular hours paid for hours worked in a month.

  • Example 1: If you are a full-time employee and recorded 88 hours of Unpaid Time Off and worked the remaining 88 hours in the month, then you would accrue 2.20 hours of Sick Time Off for that month.
  • Example 2: If you are a full-time employee and recorded 88 hours of Unpaid Time Off, eight (8) hours of paid time off (e.g., vacation or sick), and worked the remaining 80 hours in the month, then you would accrue two (2) hours of Sick Time Off in that month.

It depends. You will want to consult your collective bargaining agreement to determine whether Sick Time Off counts as time worked toward  overtime. Otherwise, if you are not eligible for contractual overtime, the answer is no. FLSA overtime is based on hours worked above 40 in a standard FLSA work week (Monday-Sunday) and paid time off does not contribute to FLSA overtime eligibility.

The maximum amount of Sick Time Off any worker can accrue per month is 8 hours. Workday allows Sick Time Off to accrue above the eight (8) hour maximum, but no worker should have more than eight (8) hours per month. HCM Operations will audit Sick Time Off balances monthly and will adjust down any accruals that may post above the eight (8) hour maximum per month for both single and multiple position combinations. Unit Administrators can also contact HCM Operations for an absence balance adjustment to reduce any accruals above the eight (8) hour maximum per month.

FAQs – Multiple Position Employees

Sick Time Off accruals are position-based and impacts to multiple position workers will vary depending on the types of positions.

  • All positions are hourly (for example, Position A is hourly and Position B is hourly)
    • Both positions will accrue Sick Time Off based on paid hours in the month. If you work 10 hours in one (1) month for Position A, and 30 hours in one (1) month for Position B, then you will accrue 0.25 hours of Sick Time Off for Position A and 0.75 hours of Sick Time Off for Position B.
  • All positions are salaried (for example, Position A is salaried and Position B is salaried staff):
    • All positions will accrue based on your FTE. For instance, if you are a 50% FTE for Position A and a 50% FTE for Position B, you will accrue four (4) hours of Sick Time Off for Position A and four (4) hours of Sick Time Off for Position B, provided you have not recorded greater than 10 days of Unpaid Time Off (respective to each position).
  • At least one position is hourly and one position is salaried (for example, Position A is hourly and Position B is salaried staff):
    • The hourly position will accrue Sick Time Off based on paid hours in the month while the salaried position will accrue Sick Time Off based on your FTE. For instance, if you work 10 hours in one (1) month for Position A, and you are 50% FTE in Position B and have not recorded greater than 10 days of Unpaid Time Off for Position B, then you will accrue 0.25 hours of Sick Time Off for Position A and four (4) hours of Sick Time Off for Position B.

You can contact HCM Operations for an absence balance adjustment. Your balance will be adjusted so that you can request one (1) hour of Sick Time Off associated with the position for which you are taking time off. In this example, if you are taking Sick Time Off from Position A, then HCM Operations will move the 0.75 hours of Sick Time Off from Position B to Position A.