Volunteer and Professional Development Time Guidelines

University staff are eligible to receive paid time off per month to participate in community service or volunteer activities (Volunteer Time) or to participate in professional development opportunities (Professional Development Time) during regular working hours. These guidelines are effective as of January 1, 2022.

Staff are not required to participate in University-approved opportunities when taking volunteer or professional development time. However, staff that are interested in University-approved volunteer activities can find opportunities on the PittServes website. Staff interested in University professional development opportunities are encouraged to participate in the Faculty & Staff Development Program.

For more information about these guidelines, please refer to the University’s Staff Handbook.

Eligibility and Available Time

Full- and part-time regular staff are eligible for Volunteer and Professional Development time:

  • Full-time regular staff may use up to 7.5 hours during regular working hours per month for volunteer or professional development time.
    • 7.5 hours is the total available time per month; full-time regular staff cannot take 7.5 hours for volunteer time and 7.5 hours for professional development within the same month.
    • Full-time regular staff may take a partial day for volunteering and a partial day for professional development time in the same month; however, that time may not exceed a combined 7.5 hours in a month.
  • Part-time regular staff are eligible for pro-rated volunteer time and professional development time based on their full-time equivalency.
    • For example, an employee at 50% effort is eligible to take up to 3.75 hours of paid volunteer or professional development time per month.

These guidelines do not apply to faculty, temporary employees, or executives. Represented employees should review their collective bargaining agreement for eligibility for Paid Volunteer time, Professional Development time, or a combination of both. Temporary employees should work with their supervisor on professional development opportunities. 

More information about eligibility can be found in the Staff Handbook.

Utilizing and Recording Volunteer/Professional Development Time

Opportunities for volunteer and/or professional development time must be requested by the employee and approved by the supervisor prior to that time being taken. Time should be requested in the same method as requesting vacation or personal time.

Activities that are mandated by a supervisor or department do not fall under these guidelines and do not need to be recorded as volunteer/professional development time. Volunteer or professional development time that takes place outside of regular working hours is not paid and should not be recorded.

Both exempt (monthly pay) and non-exempt (biweekly pay) staff are required to document the appropriate time taken on their timecard in Pitt Worx:

  • When taking volunteer time, use the Hours Type “Volunteer Time
  • When taking professional development time, use the Hours Type “Professional Development Time

A balance of Volunteer Time/Professional Development Time is not tracked in Pitt Worx. Employees and supervisors should manually track time taken to ensure it does not exceed 7.5 hours per month of paid volunteer time/professional development time. Employees can review prior time taken in Pitt Worx by viewing past timecards.

More information about the responsibilities for both staff and supervisors for requesting and utilizing volunteer or professional development time can be found in the Staff Handbook.  

Frequently Asked Questions

General Information

Eligibility

Utilizing Volunteer and Professional Development Time

Recording Volunteer and Professional Development Time on a Timecard