The University supports employees who need to take time away from work to care for themselves and their families. In addition to the traditional sick leave time bank, the State of Minnesota also enacted a separate category known as Minnesota Earned Sick and Safe Time (ESST). For absences that meet the criteria for both traditional paid sick leave and ESST, the employee has the discretion to use whichever time bank they prefer.
You can view the balance of your sick leave and ESST time banks, rates of accrual, and request time away in MyU by clicking My Time.
Traditional Sick Leave
Sick leave is time away from work to care for your own wellbeing or for the wellbeing of your family members. A list of eligible family members, which are the same for both traditional sick time and ESST, can be found in the University of Minnesota Earned Sick and Safe Time policy.
Refer to your employee group governance document or the Paid Medical Leave and Disability Benefits for Faculty and P&A Employees Administrative Policy for details about your eligibility and guidelines for using sick leave.
Vacation Donation Program
The Vacation Donation Program supports eligible Civil Service and non-faculty Labor-Represented employees who are experiencing serious medical hardship or are caring for immediate family members with serious medical conditions and have exhausted all their paid leave options.
Note: The Vacation Donation Program is only for the traditional sick leave time bank. ESST cannot be donated to another employee.
Minnesota Earned Sick and Safe Time (ESST)
ESST is paid leave employers must provide to employees working in Minnesota. The University has chosen to extend this same paid leave to employees who work in states other than Minnesota.
For University employees who earn traditional sick time, ESST is a separate bank of time that provides up to an additional 48 hours a year. For employees who do not qualify for traditional sick time (temporary, student workers, etc.), ESST allows them to take time off for certain illnesses or emergencies without the loss of income.
Refer to the University of Minnesota Earned Sick and Safe Time policy for specific information, including what ESST can be used for, eligibility, accrual rates, and which family members are included.
Using ESST
ESST can only be used once it has been earned. Hourly employees can use ESST in 15-minute increments. Salaried employees can use ESST in half-day increments.
Note: employees start accruing ESST on their first day of employment, but cannot use the accrued ESST until they have worked 80 hours.
Designating One Non-family Individual
The University of Minnesota Earned Sick and Safe Time policy defines which family members are included for this time bank, including up to one individual annually designated by the employee. If an employee needs to use ESST to care for or assist a non-family individual, the employee will share the name of their non-family individual with their supervisor or other contact as determined by their college or unit. The designated non-family individual can be changed or renewed once per year.