Time and Absence

Military duty leave and military family leave

Last updated: December 1, 2025

University employees who are in the uniformed services, and their spouses, are entitled to employment protections under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA).

Military Duty Leave

University employees who perform voluntary or involuntary duty in the uniformed services, which include the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Coast Guard, and Public Health Service commissioned corps, as well as the reserve components of each of these services, are covered by USERRA and are entitled to unpaid military leave during a period of service in the uniformed services for up to five years. In addition, certain disaster response work (and authorized training for such work) is considered “service in the uniformed services.”

Qualifying employees will not be denied employment, reemployment, promotion, or other benefits of employment because of their in any of the U.S. uniformed services.

Request process

Qualifying employees must provide their manager with advance notice before they are absent for a military leave of absence.

For campus employees:

In Workday, employees should follow the Manage Absence business process and select “LOA – Military Unpaid Leave.” The request will then route for department and HR approval.

Departments should collect military orders to confirm the validity of the request.

Once the leave of absence is approved, “Military Unpaid Time Off (hours)” (for staff, student, and time off accruing academic personnel) or “Military Unpaid Time Off (days)” (for faculty) should be entered for the duration of the leave of absence.

For medical centers staff:

Complete the Military Duty Leave of Absence Request (MS Word) form and submit it to your supervisor along with a copy of your military orders.

Shared leave

Time off accruing employees who are called to service and who have used, or are about to use, all of their accrued vacation and paid military duty time off, may be eligible to receive donations of time off from other employees through the Shared Leave Program or request shared leave from the Uniformed Services Shared Leave Pool administered by the Washington Military Department.

Benefits continuation while on leave

Employees must remain in pay status at least eight hours per calendar month in order for the University to continue paying its employer portion of health insurance. To meet this requirement, employees may-use accrued paid time off in eight-hour increments across the months of active duty.  For the continuation of benefits, it is encouraged that employees apply paid time off on the first work day of the month.

The following types of paid time off may be interspersed:

  • Vacation time off
  • Compensatory time
  • Holiday credit
  • Personal holiday
  • Shared leave

Employees who do not remain in pay status for at least eight hours in a calendar month will need to self-pay for that month (in other words, pay both their own and the University’s portion) to keep health insurance coverage active.

For more information on benefits continuation or to reinstate any benefits not maintained while on active duty, contact the Benefits Office.

Return to work process

Employees who return from military duty leave  are eligible to receive all the rights and benefits that they would have received had they never been absent, such as pay increases, seniority, and vacation accrual rate.

Absences for military duty are considered time worked for determining FMLA eligibility, layoff seniority, and completion of a probationary or trial service period.

Return to work notification requirements

Prior to returning to work while on a USERRA covered military duty leave, employees must notify their manager of their intent to return to the University and provide a copy of their discharge documentation. The documentation should include:

  • Date of discharge
  • Duration of military service
  • Proof of satisfactory service

The length of the employee’s military leave of absence determines the  return-to-work notice requirement.

Length of leave Notification requirements
Less than 31 days Report to work the first scheduled work period on the first full calendar day following completion of service plus eight hours.
31 to 180 days Request reinstatement within 14 calendar days of completion of service.
More than180 days Request reinstatement no later than 90 days following completion of service.

If the employee does not return to work within five years, the University will assume that the employee has resigned from UW employment. However, the return-to-work deadline can be extended for up to two years if the employee is hospitalized or convalescing due to a service-connected injury or illness.

Vacation time off accrual

Employees will continue to accrue vacation time off each month as long as they have not taken 10 or more days of unpaid time off in the month.

Salary Increments and progression start date (staff paid on steps only)

Upon  return to UW work, employees paid on wage steps will be placed at the step that they would have reached had they not been absent for military duty. The employee’s progression start date is not negatively impacted.

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Military Family Leave

A spouse or domestic partner of a service member enlisted in the United States armed forces, National Guard, or reserves during a period of military conflict is entitled to up to 15 days of military family leave when the employee’s enlisted spouse or domestic partner has been called to active duty or deployment, or when the enlisted spouse or domestic partner is on leave from deployment.

The employee may use their accrued paid time off, including sick time off (for staff and time off accruing academic personnel), for their absence. If paid time off is not available, military family leave is taken as unpaid time off. An employee who takes leave is entitled to be returned to their regular position or to an equivalent position.

The employee must notify their manager of their intent to take military family leave within five business days of receiving official notice of either an impending call to active duty, or of the enlisted spouse’s or domestic partner’s leave from deployment.

Request process

Staff campus: In Workday, select the paid time off you wish to use and also select the reason code “Spouse of service member call up.”

If you are a family member of a uniformed service member, you may be eligible for leave under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) if that service member is deployed.

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Manager responsibilities

Follow your department’s usual absence request approval procedure when an employee requests military duty leave or military family leave. Place copies of the employee’s documentation supporting the request for military duty leave in the employee’s departmental file to support entries made in the time off tracking system (Workday or Kronos). Retain these records for 3 years after termination of employment with the department.

Managers must consult with their HR consultants prior to denying a request for military duty leave as any denial must follow the law and University policy.

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Resources

 

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