To: Wellesley College Administrative Staff
From: Carolyn Slaboden, Chief Human Resources Officer
Re: Update on Vacation Policy and Future of Work
Date: March 23, 2022
As we are approaching the second half of the semester, I thought this would be a good time to update you on the implementation of our vacation policy change and next steps in our Future of Work Initiative.
Administrative staff vacation policy change postponed until July 1, 2023
When the College rolled out a change to the administrative vacation policy in March 2021, to be effective July 1, 2022, we had hoped it would encourage employees to use more of their earned vacation time throughout the year. However, due to the extended timeline of the pandemic and the impact of temporary vacancies, it has proved more difficult for many of us to take vacations than we had anticipated. We have therefore decided to postpone the change until July 1, 2023.
We appreciate all the work each of you has taken on during this time. We also recognize the impact the pandemic has had on us all as we manage our personal and family responsibilities. Even with this postponement, we want to reinforce the importance of taking time off to renew and restore ourselves.
It is my expectation that all managers will meet with their staff to discuss plans for time away in the coming months and that managers will phase work in a way that allows for time off. Below is a reminder of the current policy and future policy change:
On June 30, 2022, as in past years and under our current policy, vacation balances in excess of the maximum carryover of 175 hours for full-time, full-year exempt employees and 140 hours for full-time, full-year nonexempt employees (with fewer than 10 years of service) will roll back to the maximum carryover amount. Carryover maximums are prorated for employees who work less than full time, full year.
On June 30, 2023, maximum accruals will roll back to 140 hours (four weeks) for full-time, full-year exempt employees and 105 hours (three weeks) for full-time, full-year nonexempt employees. These maximums are prorated for employees who work less than full time, full year.
Beginning July 1, 2023, your weekly/monthly vacation accrual will stop if your total vacation balance reaches your annual award, and it will resume once you use enough vacation that your balance falls below your annual award. For example, a full-time, full-year exempt employee will have no more than 140 hours of accrued vacation at any one time. Accruals will stop until vacation is taken.
Your total vacation leave benefit will remain unchanged. Wellesley will continue to offer a generous administrative vacation allowance that is in line with those of our peers. I hope this postponement will be helpful as you plan for much-needed time away from work and the summer ahead.
Flexwork during summer 2022
As we did in January 2022, we will give administrative staff greater remote work flexibility from June 6 to July 29, 2022. You should meet with your manager to determine what degree of on-campus work will be necessary during that time.
Requirements for working in one of the approved states (Mass., N.H., Conn., Maine, R.I.) will apply for any fully remote work beyond one week.
Next steps for Future of Work Initiative
My senior leadership colleagues and I are eager to learn more about your experience with flexwork, and we’d like to hear your suggestions about the future of work at Wellesley.
Megan Núñez, dean of faculty affairs, Rachael Coombes, chair of the Compensation and Personnel Policy Advisory Committee (CPPAC), Sarah Pociask, assistant director for assessment in the Office of Institutional Research, and I will be collaborating on an approach this spring to formally collect your feedback, assess your experiences from the last year, and develop recommendations for Wellesley’s remote work policies in the 2022–23 academic year and beyond.
