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Other Absences

Learn more about paid absences. Jump to information about:

Bereavement absence

Losing a loved one is difficult. In the event of a death of a family member, a paid leave of absence is provided as follows to benefits-eligible staff members:

Jury duty

The University encourages participation in jury duty.

Voting time

You are encouraged to exercise your right to vote, voting either before or after work hours. If you wish to vote and face difficulty in doing so during those pre- or post-work hours, you are encouraged to take advantage of early voting opportunities that provide extended and weekend hours on multiple days, usually about a week before the election.

Early voting opportunities are offered by many municipalities, including Evanston and Chicago, whose city clerk websites provide information on this topic.

If early voting is not an option, you need to make a request to your supervisor at least 48 hours before an election day. If you are unable to vote before or after regular working hours on an election day, you may take the time needed to vote, not to exceed two hours, during the working day, without loss of pay.

School visitation

Staff members may take school visitation time off from work to visit their child’s school for conferences or classroom activities for a total of eight hours in a school year, but no more than four hours on any given day. You must request this time off in advance and may be required to provide documentation regarding the need to take time off. Supervisors or departments/units may allow additional time depending on departmental/unit operations.

Vacation and/or personal floating holiday time may be used, if available, for school visitation. If no paid vacation or personal floating holiday time is available for a non-exempt staff member, an unpaid excused absence may be used for the school visits.