Over the last two decades the North Carolina General Assembly has granted bonus leave to eligible state employees. Typically, this leave can be used similarly to how regular annual leave is used; however, each type of bonus leave has specific guidelines for its use. Please see the chart below for more information.
Bonus Leave and/or Special Bonus Leave Provisions Chart
FY 2012-13 to FY 2018-19
FY 2012-13 Special Leave |
FY 2013-14 Bonus Leave |
FY 2017-18 Special Bonus Leave |
FY 2018-19 Special Bonus Leave |
|
Does it Expire? |
YES | NO | YES Only upon separation or retirement |
YES Only upon separation or retirement |
Does it pay out upon separation? |
NO Only in the case of retirement |
YES | NO | NO |
Can it be used before exhausting comp time? |
YES | NO | YES | YES |
Can you donate this leave as Voluntary Shared Leave? |
NO | YES | NO | NO |
Does it have a leave offsetting rule? |
NO | NO | NO | YES |
In the 2018 Appropriations Act, the North Carolina General Assembly granted eligible state employees a one-time additional five days (40 hours) of FY 2018-19 Special Bonus Leave, effective July 1, 2018. This leave will remain available during the length of the employee’s employment. It has no cash value and cannot be paid out at the end of employment or applied to total state service. This 2018-19 Special Bonus Leave also has a leave offsetting provision. If this leave is used in a year when an employee has more than 240 annual leave hours at the end of the calendar year, it will offset the hours that normally would transfer to the employee’s sick leave hours.
To receive the FY 2018-19 Special Bonus Leave, employees must meet all of the following criteria:
- Full-time employment
- Employed (in pay status) with the state of North Carolina on July 1, 2018
- Eligible to earn vacation leave on July 1, 2018
- Permanent, probationary or time-limited appointment
Note: Full-time employees who work less than 12 months (nine-, 10-, or 11-month employees) and permanent part-time employees who work less than 40 hours per week shall receive a pro rata amount of leave.
This leave will be available for use in mid-September once it has been configured in the WolfTime system. We will send a follow-up email as soon as the system configuration is complete so you can use your FY 2018-19 Special Bonus Leave retroactive to July 1, 2018. Retroactive leave adjustments will not be allowed after 30 days from the September implementation date.
How many hours have been granted for the FY 2018-19 Special Bonus Leave?
Session Law 2018-5 granted five days (40 hours) of Special Bonus leave that can be used similarly to how regular annual leave is used.
Which employees at NC State are eligible to receive the the FY 2018-19 Special Bonus Leave?
Permanent full-time and part-time leave-earning SHRA, EHRA, Post docs, and the College of Veterinary Medicine House Officers are eligible to receive the FY 2018-19 Special Bonus Leave. Permanent part-time employees shall receive a pro rata amount of the five days (40 hours).
When did FY 2018-19 Special Bonus Leave become eligible to be used?
Session Law 2018-5 granted this leave to be effective on July 1, 2018.
What are the main provisions of FY 2018-19 Special Bonus Leave?
- Will expire upon an employee’s separation or retirement from NC State
- Will not pay out upon an employee’s separation or retirement from NC State
- Can be used before exhausting comp time
- Can be be used to make up adverse weather liabilities that occurred on or after July 1, 2018
- Is transferable with the employee who transfers (without a break in service) to another state agency position that is eligible for this Special Bonus Leave.
- Is subject to a leave offsetting rule
What does leave offsetting mean?
Any FY 2018-19 Special Bonus Leave used will reduce the amount of annual leave over 240 hours (192 hours for postdoc/house officers) that roll over to sick leave at the end of each calendar year and be add those hours back to the FY 2018-19 Special Bonus Leave balance. Click here to see examples of how leave offsetting works.
Can employees swap leave that has already been submitted for the FY 2018-19 Special Bonus Leave?
Yes, but only annual leave/comp time and/or one of the bonus leave types listed in the table above may may be submitted for change to FY 2018-19 Special Bonus Leave beginning July 1, 2018. No changes can be made for leave used prior to July 1, 2018. FY 2018-19 Special Bonus Leave cannot be used to resolve negative leave balance liabilities that were the result of leave that occurred prior to July 1, 2018. See instructions
Will there be a specific time frame to submit retroactive changes for FY 2018-19 Special Bonus Leave?
Yes. Retroactive adjustments will only be allowed for a short period upon implementation. Requested changes must be submitted in WolfTIme within 30 calendar days from the implementation date of Sept. 25, 2018.
Is Special Bonus Leave transferable?
Yes, any balance of Special Bonus Leave will be transferred with the employee who transfers (without a break in service) to another state agency position eligible for Special Bonus Leave.
Can employees use the FY 2018-19 Special Bonus Leave to make up adverse weather liabilities?
Yes, if the adverse weather leave occurred on or after July 1, 2018.
FY 2017-18 Special Bonus Leave, a one-time three days (24 hours) of leave granted to leave-earning SHRA/EHRA employees and postdocs, was applied to WolfTime on Wednesday, Sept. 6, 2017. Those SHRA/EHRA employees working less than 40 hours/week (1.0 FTE) received a pro rata amount of leave. Employees may use Special Bonus Leave for time taken on or after July 1, 2017. This leave can be used similarly to how regular annual leave is used; however, it differs from regular Bonus Leave and Special Leave previously granted.
When did Special Bonus Leave become eligible to be used?
Session Law 2017-57 granted this leave to be effective on July 1, 2017.
Can employees change vacation/bonus requests already submitted/exhausted to reflect special bonus leave instead?
Yes, but only vacation and bonus leave used beginning July 1, 2017, may be submitted for change. No changes prior to July 1, 2017, can be made. Changes must have been made by September 27, 2017.
Is Special Bonus Leave transferable?
Yes, any balance of Special Bonus Leave will be transferred with the employee who transfers (without a break in service) to another state agency position eligible for special bonus leave.
Can employees use Special Bonus Leave to make up adverse weather liabilities?
Yes, if the adverse weather leave occurred on or after July 1, 2017.
Are part-time employees eligible for Special Bonus Leave?
Yes, leave-earning, part-time employees received a pro rata amount of the three days.
When can I start using Special Bonus Leave?
WolfTime was updated with Special Bonus Leave on Sept. 6, 2017.
Bonus Leave was credited to employees who were actively working. Bonus Leave was prorated based on the following criteria:
- Full-time, leave-eligible employees who work less than 12 months
- Permanent, part-time, leave-eligible employees (> .5 FTE)
Note: Post-doc employees and nine-month faculty did not earn Bonus Leave.
Bonus Leave Given by the State, 2002-2014
| Amount of Leave | Effective Date |
| 80 Hours | September 30, 2002 |
| 80 Hours | July 1, 2003 |
| 40 Hours | September 1, 2005 |
| 40 Hours | September 1, 2014 |
How can I use this Bonus leave?
Employees should submit a request for Bonus Leave to their supervisor in WolfTime. Employee preferences should be considered, and schedules worked out bearing in mind individual departmental needs. Bonus Leave shall be used after all compensatory time has been used, and it may be used for any purpose for which regular annual leave is used.
Can I carry over Bonus Leave?
Any balance of Bonus Leave on Dec. 31 will be retained by the employee and carried forward into the next calendar year. It will not be part of the maximum 240 hours of annual leave that can be retained, and it will not be subject to conversion to sick leave.
Can Bonus Leave transfer or be paid out?
Any Bonus Leave balance can be transferred with the transferring employee to another state agency eligible for Bonus Leave. NC State will accept bonus leave for EHRA and SHRA employees coming from UNC System schools or state of North Carolina agencies.
Bonus Leave balances can be paid out in addition to regular annual leave payouts if the employee separates or the employee changes to a non-leave-eligible status. Bonus Leave may be applied to negative leave balances.
Other Resources
Office of State Human Resources policy update for Bonus Leave