Community Service Leave

Auburn University recognizes the importance of community involvement and encourages employees to participate in volunteer activities.

The university provides up to 8 hours of paid Community Service Leave (CSL) annually to full-time employees to accommodate participation in community service opportunities. Appropriate community service organizations should have goals that the university would deem ethical and consistent with the university’s mission.

(IMPORTANT: An employee cannot use CSL to participate in partisan political events, such as campaigning or political rallies. However, the employee can use it to volunteer as a poll worker during an election.)

Important to Note

• To qualify for CSL, the employee should have an active role in organizing, administering or facilitating a community service event or activity. Merely attending an event would not qualify for CSL.

• An employee must request CSL in advance through his or her immediate supervisor. 

• The supervisor should attempt to review and/or approve the request at the time it is submitted, but has the discretion to deny the request if it would significantly impact university operations. 

• A supervisor also has the option of asking for documentation.

• An employee who wishes to request CSL should do so in the time-off request section of Kronos (or on a paper leave request form, where relevant), just as they would request annual or sick leave.

• An employee can utilize up to 8 hours of paid CSL annually, without having to use annual leave.

• An employee can use CSL at one time, or in two-hour increments.

• CSL is not considered ”time worked“ and does not count toward the overtime calculation.

• A maximum of 8 hours of paid leave will be made available on Jan. 1 each calendar year to current full-time employees for CSL. Newly hired employees will be credited with 8 hours of CSL upon hire to be used through the end of the calendar year (Dec. 31).

• CSL does not accrue and does not carry over into the next calendar year. 

Please email univhr@auburn.edu if you have questions.