(a) Each appointing authority shall grant to each full-time employee in a permanent position in the state service, who has worked at least one full calendar year, an annual vacation with pay of twenty-one consecutive calendar days or its equivalent. Each such employee who has completed twenty years of service shall be entitled to one day for each additional year up to twenty-five years of service, and each such employee with twenty-five or more years of service shall be entitled to not more than twenty days' vacation, subject to regulations issued by the Commissioner of Administrative Services. The Commissioner of Administrative Services may adopt regulations, in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54, concerning the accrual, prorating and granting of vacation leave with pay as required. Computation of such vacation leave may be made on an hourly basis. Hourly computation of vacation leave shall not diminish benefit entitlement.

(b) An appointing authority may permit a full-time permanent employee in the state service to accumulate vacation days with pay up to a maximum of one hundred twenty vacation days, subject to regulations issued by the Commissioner of Administrative Services.

(c) In addition to annual vacation, each appointing authority shall grant to each full-time permanent employee in the state service three days of personal leave of absence with pay in each calendar year. Personal leave of absence shall be for the purpose of conducting private affairs, including observance of religious holidays, and shall not be deducted from vacation or sick leave credits. Personal leave of absence days not taken in a calendar year shall not be accumulated.

(d) Vacation accruals earned by employees in the unclassified service, in accordance with administrative practice or internal departmental policy, which accrual practice or policy was included, by the appointing authority, in the terms of employment on the basis of which such employees were employed prior to July 1, 1972, and which accruals have not been used and which can be verified by written attendance records, remain to the credit of such employees for use as vacation time or for payment as provided in section 5-252, as the case may be.

(e) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, a general worker employed in a position by the Department of Developmental Services as a self-advocate, not to exceed eleven such general workers, shall be eligible for prorated vacation and personal leave.

(1967, P.A. 657, S. 58; 1969, P.A. 658, S. 17; P.A. 73-462, S. 2, 3; P.A. 74-217, S. 2, 4; P.A. 76-254, S. 9, 11; P.A. 77-614, S. 67, 610; P.A. 79-621, S. 20, 24; P.A. 80-57, S. 2; P.A. 96-168, S. 19, 34; P.A. 12-197, S. 51.)

History: 1969 act substituted “vacation” days for “calendar” days in Subsec. (b) and added Subsec. (d) re vacation accruals of unclassified employees; P.A. 73-462 replaced “regulations ... prior to June 30, 1967” with reference to departmental policy included in terms of employment prior to July 1, 1972; P.A. 74-217 required verification of accruals by written attendance records; P.A. 76-254 included permanent part-time employees in provision for prorating vacation for less than full year's service; P.A. 77-614 replaced personnel policy board with commissioner of administrative services; P.A. 79-621 changed day basis for accrual to hourly basis provided there is no diminishment of entitlement; P.A. 80-57 amended Subsec. (a) to make computation of vacation leave on hourly basis optional rather than mandatory substituting “may” for “shall” and added day equivalencies accordingly; P.A. 96-168 amended Subsec. (a) to make a technical change deleting the reference to “seven additional hours” and “one hundred forty hours” in specifying the amount of extra time earned after 20 years of service, effective July 1, 1996; P.A. 12-197 added Subsec. (e) re general workers employed by Department of Developmental Services, effective June 15, 2012.

Subsec. (a):

Hourly calculation of vacation leave authorized by section may not operate to reduce the total number of days of vacation leave that an employee has earned and consequently plaintiffs were entitled to the number of days of vacation leave previously earned, despite an increase in the number of hours in their standard work day. 249 C. 693.

Subsec. (c):

“Day” of personal leave represents an entire 24-hour period for which a state employee elects not to work, but, nonetheless, is paid; legislature's use of terms “day” and “holiday” reflects its intent that employees shall be compensated for leave commensurate with their scheduled hours during the calendar day. 267 C. 255.