Donated Leave
Information for donors and recipients of Donated Leave.
Guidelines for Donated Leave recipients
At the University of Mississippi, we believe in the strength of our community, especially during times of need. When an employee or their immediate family faces a serious illness or injury that requires more time off than they have available, our Donated Leave helps to close the gap.
Qualifying employees can receive up to 90 days of Donated Leave without returning to work. The maximum amount of Donated Leave an employee may receive without returning to work is 90 days.
To qualify as a recipient, you must:
- Have been employed with the University for at least one year
- Have worked at least 1,250 hours in the year preceding the request
- Be absent from work because you are suffering from a catastrophic injury or illness, or are caring for a member of your immediate family who is suffering from a catastrophic injury or illness
- Have used all of your own accrued Personal Leave and Major Medical Leave
Donated Leave may be used for the following reasons:
- Catastrophic injury or illness: A life-threatening injury or illness of an employee or a member of an employee’s immediate family (spouse, parent, stepparent, sibling, child or stepchild) which totally incapacitates the employee from work.
- Chronic illnesses or injuries: An illness or injury of an employee or a member of an employee’s immediate family (spouse, parent, stepparent, sibling, child or stepchild) such as cancer or major surgery, which result in intermittent absence from work, are long-term in nature, and require long recuperation periods.
To receive Donated Leave, you must first complete the Medical Certification Form below. Fill out the form and send it to hrbenefits@olemiss.edu.
Employees may only receive leave donated by their fellow University of Mississippi employees.
Guidelines for donors
If you are interested in donating leave to a fellow University employee, here is what you need to know:
- First, you will need to complete the below Donor Leave Request form (Form 14), and indicate the employee who you are donating to (recipient employee) and the amount of earned Personal and/or Major Medical Leave you wish to donate. This form must be signed by the donor and the recipient’s department head.
- When donating leave, an employee must retain at least seven days of earned Personal Leave for their own use.
- Employees may donate up to 50% of their earned Major Medical Leave.
- Leave must be donated in 24-hour increments.
- An employee may not donate leave after notice of separation, for any reason, or after separation of employment.
University employees may donate leave to approved recipients of other Mississippi state agencies if the agency has fewer than 500 employees. The external donor leave request form is available by contacting a member of the Human Resources Benefits team via email at hrbenefits@olemiss.edu.
Frequently asked questions
Common questions about Donated Leave.
Yes, faculty and staff may donate hours to any qualifying employee of the University.
When the employee returns from their leave of absence, any unused hours will be returned to donors on a pro-rata (proportional) basis.
It is at the discretion of the donor to inform the recipient of their generosity. State code mandates donor information remain confidential, and no other University member should provide donor information to the recipient.
Contact the HR Service Center
If you have a question, need help, or are dealing with an HR problem, the HR Service Center is here for you. Whether it's about benefits, pay, leave, insurance, tuition waivers, or anything else, our team of experienced HR Service Coordinators is ready to get you the answers you need as quickly as possible.
We're Here to Help!