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Vacations and Time Away Tracker


Requests & Tracking

In accordance with the Collective Bargaining Agreement, Unit Members are required to record/track their vacation time. To support this, the institute launched a Time Away Tracker and PMA has moved away from the Google Sheets.

Getting started

  • The Time Away Tracker can be found on your Access account.
  • There is an FAQ page on the application itself and a ? button for more questions.
  • The app was developed by IMSS, please reach out to them if you encounter any issues with the system.

PMA-Specific Requirement

Before submitting a request through the Time Away app, PMA postdocs must complete the following steps:
  1. Discuss your time off with your PI
    Unit Members should make best efforts to request vacation time at least 30 days in advance
  2. Obtain written approval from your PI
    a/ in email OR
    b/ Slack message (PI's 👍 is fine) OR
    c/ complete the PMA postdoc vacation request
  3. Enter your request in the app
  4. Upload the written approval(s) when entering your Time Away request.
  5. Exclude holidays from your request
    The system does not currently recognize Institute holidays, so you must manually remove any holidays from your vacation request. Please refer to the Caltech Holiday Schedule when planning your time off.
    If holidays are included in your request, it will be declined, and you will need to resubmit it with the corrected dates.

Review process

While Jessica Varlet, PMA Academic Affairs Manager,  will be reviewing your submissions in the Time Away app,  she does not have the authority to approve or deny requests. Her role is to confirm that proper documentation and dates are included. If your request is returned, it simply means something is missing or incorrect. Final approval or denial rests solely with your PI, so please ensure you are communicating directly with them.

Policies

CBA
  • Postdoctoral Scholar Unit Members shall be entitled to take 21 days of paid vacation per year. Each year on the anniversary date of their eligibility for vacation, they will be credited with vacation not to exceed twenty-one (21) days per year, and pro-rated if the appointment is for less than one year.
  • Vacation days must be used in order to be absent from work with pay.
  • As a condition of using vacation days, Unit Members shall record and/or track their vacation use and shall provide and/or enter such information upon request.
Notes
  • For year-based appointments: Your salary is budgeted for 11 months of work and 1 month of vacation.
  • For month-based appointments: Your salary includes vacation time (pro-rated at 1.75 days per month of work).
  • Postdocs are expected to take their vacation time during the appointment period.
  • Vacation cycle is based on your hire date. Each anniversary date, the clock will reset.
  • Vacation time does not roll over.