Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 18, September 16, 2024
(a) Full-time State employees in the career service shall be entitled to annual paid vacation leave, credited at the beginning of each calendar year in anticipation of continued employment, based on their years of continuous State full-time or part-time service in the career, senior executive or unclassified service. See (c) below for definition of continuous service.
1. New employees shall only receive one working day for the initial month of employment if they begin work on the 1st through the 8th day of the calendar month, and one-half working day if they begin on the 9th through the 23rd day of the month.
2. After the initial month of employment and up to the end of the first calendar year, employees shall receive one working day for each month of service. Thereafter, employees shall receive paid vacation leave as follows:
i. From the beginning of the first full calendar year of employment and up to five years of continuous service, 12 working days;
ii. After five years of continuous service and up to 12 years of continuous service, 15 working days;
iii. After 12 years of continuous service and up to 20 years of continuous service, 20 working days;
iv. Over 20 years of continuous service, 25 working days.
3. An increase in vacation leave shall be granted at the beginning of the calendar year in which the years of service requirement will be met.
i. When there is a change in the calendar year in which the years of service requirement is met, due to an employee's leave without pay, the employee shall be liable for any increased vacation leave that was not earned.
4. Vacation leave credits shall not accrue after an employee has resigned or retired although his or her name is being retained on the payroll until exhaustion of vacation or other compensatory leave.
(b) From initial employment up to the end of the first calendar year, annual paid vacation leave for full-time local employees shall be at least the amounts specified in (a)1 and (a)2 above. Thereafter their vacation leave shall be at least:
1. From the beginning of the first full calendar year of employment and up to 10 years of continuous service, 12 working days;
2. After 10 years of service and up to 20 years of continuous service, 15 working days; and
3. After 20 years of continuous service, 20 working days.
(c) Continuous service, for purposes of this section, shall mean employment for the same jurisdiction, or, if the requirements of N.J.A.C. 4A:4-7.1Aare met, employment for different jurisdictions (except as provided in (d) below), without actual interruption due to resignation, retirement, or removal.
1. An employee who has been appointed from a special reemployment list shall be credited with any continuous service prior to the layoff in addition to continuous service subsequent to reemployment.
2. Periods of employment before and after a suspension or leave without pay shall be considered continuous service. However, the period of time on a suspension or leave without pay, except for military leave, furlough extension leave, leave for a job-related injury under the Worker's Compensation Statute, N.J.S.A. 34:15-1et seq., and voluntary furlough, shall not be included in calculating years of continuous service.
3. An unclassified State employee, who is reappointed following a layoff under the provisions of a collective negotiations agreement, shall be credited with service prior to the layoff and shall continue to accrue service upon reappointment.
(d) Continuous service, for purposes of this section, shall not mean employment for different jurisdictions in the case of an intergovernmental transfer pursuant to 4A:4-7.1A of a firefighter, or where a law enforcement officer, including a sheriff's officer and a county correction officer, has waived all accumulated seniority rights.
(e) Part-time and 10-month employees shall be entitled to a proportionate amount of paid vacation leave. See 4A:3-3.8(f) for paid vacation leave to which State employees in intermittent titles are entitled.
(f) In State service, vacation leave may be granted and shall be recorded and tracked in hours.
(g) Appointing authorities may establish procedures for the scheduling of vacation leave. Vacation leave not used in a calendar year because of business necessity shall be used during the next succeeding year only and shall be scheduled to avoid loss of leave, provided, however, that:
1. In State service, vacation leave not taken by an employee in the career, unclassified, or senior executive service in a given year because of duties directly related to a state of emergency declared by the Governor shall accumulate until, pursuant to a plan established by the employee's appointing authority and approved by the Chairperson or designee, the leave is used or the employee is compensated for that leave;
2. In State service, vacation leave not taken by an employee in the career, unclassified, or senior executive service who is called to active duty in response to the continuing global war on terrorism, armed conflict with Iraq, or other areas of heightened tension throughout the world, including the defense of the Homeland Security of the United States, shall accumulate until, pursuant to a plan established by the employee's appointing authority and approved by the Chairperson or designee, the leave is used or the employee is compensated for that leave; and
3. In local service, vacation leave not taken in a given year because of duties directly related to a state of emergency declared by the Governor may accumulate at the discretion of the appointing authority until, pursuant to a plan established by the employee's appointing authority and approved by the Chairperson or designee, the leave is used or the employee is compensated for that leave.
(h) An employee who leaves State government service or service with a local jurisdiction shall be paid for unused earned vacation leave, even if the employee has received an intergovernmental transfer in accordance with 4A:4-7.1A.
(i) An employee who exhausts all paid vacation leave in any one year shall not be credited with additional paid vacation leave until the beginning of the next calendar year. See 4A:6-1.5(b)2 for State service.
(j) Upon the death of an employee, unused vacation leave shall be paid to the employee's estate.
(k) See 4A:6-1.2 2 for the donated leave program.
