NIH Leave Bank Holds Open Enrollment

Fall open enrollment for the NIH Leave Bank is available now through Dec. 12. The membership period will begin on Jan. 8, 2017.  

The Leave Bank is a pooled bank of donated annual and restored leave available to eligible members. It acts like insurance for your paycheck and amounts to paid leave for members who have exhausted all of their leave and are affected by a personal or family medical emergency. Said one grateful Leave Bank recipient, “This program was wonderful; I don’t know what I would have done without it. I think this program is a great benefit to new employees and to any employee who has not accrued sufficient time for needed leave. I recommend joining to everyone.” 

The Leave Bank differs from the Voluntary Leave Transfer Program (VLTP) in that the bank is a depository of leave and leave is distributed to members who are approved to be leave recipients. 

The VLTP, on the other hand, requires a direct donation from a donor to a recipient. An advantage of the Leave Bank is that eligible members may receive leave from the bank to cover time out of the office without awaiting donations from co-workers.  

To elect to become a Leave Bank member, access the Integrated Time and Attendance System during open enrollment and sign up under “Leave Bank Membership.” 

If you are currently a 2016 Leave Bank member, your membership will automatically continue into 2017, unless you take action in ITAS during open enrollment to opt-out. The membership contribution is one pay period’s worth of annual leave accrual. The membership contribution will automatically be waived if you lack sufficient leave to make the membership contribution.  

A list of upcoming Leave Bank events may be viewed at http://hr.od.nih.gov/benefits/leave/vlbp/important.htm. The events are free and no registration is required. Questions may be directed to the NIH Leave Bank office at (301) 443-8393 or LeaveBank@od.nih.gov.