The following information was authored by the Academic Personnel Office
ALRA Payment at Termination
The following table provides a summary of UW-Madison's policy on ALRA payment when an employee leaves the university. It has been approved by the Academic Staff Executive Committee and the Compensation and Economic Benefits Committee.
For the UW-System on vacation and ALRA use, refer to the Unclassified Personnel Guideline Chapter 9 at http://www.uwsa.edu/hr/upgs/upg09.pdf
| Event | Policy | Justification |
|---|---|---|
| Retirement/ Resignation | Allow the employee to use vacation/personal/floating holiday/ALRA to extend the end date of the appointment or to receive a payout at his/her discretion. (current practice) |
After an employee has spent his/her career at the university, he/she should be entitled to extend the end date of the appointment to maximize benefits. |
| Lay-off/ Nonrenewal for Program Redirection* | Allow the employee to receive a lump sum payment for all hours accumulated in ALRA after the end date of the appointment at his/her discretion. Employer may require that all vacation and personal/floating holiday be used prior to the end date (current practice) |
The decision to terminate the position is not financially based, so the employee should not be forced to use the hours accumulated in ALRA. |
| Lay-off/ Nonrenewal for Funding/Budget* | With sufficient notice, the employer may require the employee to use accrued vacation, personal/floating holiday, and hours accumulated in ALRA prior to the end of the appointment or the employee will forfeit any unused hours. |
The decision to terminate the position is financially-based, so funds may not be available for the lump sum or extension of end date option. |
| Nonrenewal for Performance | With sufficient notice, the employer may require the employee to use accrued vacation and hours accumulated in ALRA prior to the end of the appointment, or the employee will forfeit any unused hours. (current practice) |
The employee has not performed in a satisfactory manner, so he/she should not be entitled to the benefit of a lump sum payment or extension of end date after termination. |
| Dismissal | The employer pays out any accrued vacation balance, personal/floating holiday, or hours accumulated in ALRA. |
The employee has insufficient time following notice of dismissal to use accumulated leave. |
*Decisions on vacation/ALRA payments should be handled on a case by case basis. The decision to restrict payment of vacation/ALRA should not be arbitrary or capricious. For situations involving a group layoff/nonrenewal, employees with similar notice periods should be treated equally with regard to vacation/ALRA payments.