July 17, 2026
Civil Service granted sick leave policy updated
Human Resources is announcing an approved new policy beginning July 1, 2026, that is in place for non-represented Civil Service employees. This new granted sick leave policy replaces Extended Sick Leave (ESL). If an employee is represented by a union, the union agreement should be consulted to see if this benefit applies.
The policy grants approximately 20 days — up to a maximum of 160 hours — of sick leave benefits per fiscal year to civil service employees. Employees that work 75 hours per pay period will receive 150 hours. Employees that work 80 hours per pay period will receive 160 hours.
This time is proportionate to the employee’s full-time equivalent — a 50% employee will receive 75 hours. Employees who begin working after the start of each fiscal year on July 1 will receive a prorated portion of the granted sick benefit.
The granted sick leave is not accruable but will be refreshed each July 1. Granted sick leave is in addition to accruable sick that is already in place.
More information is available on the HR policies webpage. FAQs are located on the HR website at hr.siu.edu/benefits/granted-sick-faq.docx.
Contact HR Fringe Benefits at hrfringe@siu.edu with any questions.