Annual and special leave

Article V

Regulation 5.1

Staff members shall be allowed appropriate annual leave.

Regulation 5.2

Special leave may be authorized by the Secretary-General in exceptional cases.

Regulation 5.3

Eligible staff members shall be granted home leave once in every 24 months. However, the Secretary-General may grant home leave once in every 12 months to eligible staff members in duty stations having the most difficult conditions of life and work under specific conditions, as approved by the General Assembly. A staff member whose home country is either the country of his or her official duty station or the country of his or her normal residence while in United Nations service shall not be eligible for home leave.

Chapter V

Rule 5.1

Hours of work

  • (a) The Secretary-General shall set the normal number of working hours per week for each duty station pursuant to staff regulation 1.3 (b). Exceptions may be made by the Secretary-General as the needs of service may require. A staff member may be required to work beyond the normal number of working hours whenever requested to do so.

Overtime and compensatory time off

  • (b) A staff member in the General Service, Security Service or Trades and Crafts category, or in the Field Service category up to and including level FS-5, who is required to work in excess of the normal number of working hours per week shall be given compensatory time off or may receive payment for overtime, under conditions established by the Secretary-General.
  • (c) Should the exigencies of service permit, and under conditions established by the Secretary-General, occasional compensatory time off may be granted to staff members serving in the Professional and higher categories and in the Field Service category at the FS-6 and FS-7 levels who have been required to work substantial or recurrent periods of overtime.

Night differential

  • (d) A staff member who is assigned to regularly scheduled night-time hours of work shall receive a night differential at a rate and under conditions established by the Secretary-General.
  • (e) Unless otherwise specifically prescribed by the Secretary-General, night differential shall not be paid for the same work for which overtime payment or compensatory time off is allowed, or for any hours when the staff member is on leave or in travel status.

Rule 5.2

Official holidays

  • (a) Pursuant to staff regulation 1.3 (b), the number of official holidays at each duty station shall be 10 days in each calendar year, including those official holidays mandated by the General Assembly, which shall be observed at all duty stations. When an official holiday falls on a non-working day, the preceding or following working day which is closest to the holiday shall be observed as an official holiday.
  • (b) Pursuant to staff regulation 1.3 (b), the official holidays not mandated by the General Assembly shall be determined by the Secretary-General at Headquarters and under conditions established by the Secretary-General at other duty stations, after staff consultation.

Rule 5.3

Annual leave

  • (a) A staff member who holds a temporary appointment:
    • (i) Shall accrue 1 1/2 days per month of annual leave while in full pay status;
    • (ii) May accumulate and carry forward up to 18 working days of annual leave by the first day of the next annual leave cycle as established by the Secretary-General.
  • (b) A staff member who holds a fixed-term or a continuing appointment:
    • (i) Shall accrue 2 1/2 days per month of annual leave while in full pay status;
    • (ii) May accumulate and carry forward up to 60 working days of annual leave by the first day of the next annual leave cycle as established by the Secretary-General.
  • (c) Regarding leave
    • (i) Annual leave may be taken in units of days and half-days;
    • (ii) Leave may be taken only when authorized.
  • (d) All arrangements related to leave shall be subject to the exigencies of service, which may require that leave be taken by a staff member during a period designated by the Secretary-General. The personal circumstances and preferences of the individual staff member shall, as far as possible, be considered.
  • (e) If a staff member is absent from work without authorization, payment of salary and allowances shall cease for the period of unauthorized absence. However, depending on the circumstances, including if the absence was caused by reasons beyond the staff member s control, the Secretary-General may decide to charge the absence to accrued annual leave, or a combination of accrued annual leave and uncertified sick leave where available or special leave without pay.
  • (f) A staff member may, in exceptional circumstances, be granted advance annual leave up to a maximum of 10 working days, provided that the staff member s service is expected to continue for a sufficient period to accrue the advance leave.
  • (g) No leave shall accrue while a staff member is receiving compensation for injury or illness attributable to service equivalent to salary and allowances as provided in appendix D to the present Rules.

Rule 5.4

Home leave

  • (a) Eligible internationally recruited staff members, as defined under staff rule 4.5, shall be entitled to periodic travel to their home country at United Nations expense for the purpose of spending in that country a reasonable period of annual leave, under conditions established by the Secretary-General, as follows:
    • (i) Staff members who hold fixed-term or continuing appointments shall accrue qualifying service towards home leave entitlement for themselves and their eligible family members;
    • (ii) Staff members who hold temporary appointments and who are serving at duty stations classified as D or E by the International Civil Service Commission that do not fall under the rest and recuperation framework shall accrue qualifying service towards home leave entitlement for themselves only.
  • (b) Staff members who reside in their home country while in service with the United Nations or whose duty station is in their home country shall not be eligible for home leave.
  • (c) Leave taken for this purpose will be charged against the staff member s accrued annual leave.
  • (d) Staff members shall be eligible for home leave provided that the following conditions are fulfilled:
    • (i) While performing their official duties:
      • a. They continue to reside in a country other than that of their recognized nationality; or
      • b. In the case of staff members who are native of a non-metropolitan territory of the country of the duty station and who maintained their normal residence in such non-metropolitan territory prior to appointment, they continue to reside, while performing their official duties, outside such territory;
    • (ii) Their service is expected by the Secretary-General to continue:
      • a. At least six months beyond the date of their return from any proposed home leave; and
      • b. In the case of the first home leave, at least six months beyond the date on which the staff member will have completed 24 months of qualifying service;
    • (iii) In the case of home leave following the return from a family visit travel under staff rule 7.2 (a) (vi), normally not less than nine months of continuous service have elapsed since the return from the family visit travel.
  • (e) Staff members whose eligibility under paragraph (d) above is established at the time of their appointment shall begin to accrue service credit towards home leave from that date. Staff members who become eligible for home leave subsequent to appointment shall begin to accrue such service credits from the effective date of their becoming eligible.
  • (f) The home country shall be the country of the staff member s recognized nationality.
  • (g) The place of home leave of staff members within their home country shall be, for purposes of travel and transportation entitlements, the place with which the staff members have the closest residential ties during the period of their most recent residence in the home country. In exceptional circumstances, a change in the place of home leave may be authorized, under conditions established by the Secretary-General.
  • (h) Staff members who have served with another public international organization immediately preceding their appointment shall have the place of home leave determined as though their entire previous service with the other international organization had been with the United Nations.
  • (i) The Secretary-General may authorize in exceptional and compelling circumstances:
    • (i) A country other than the country of nationality as the home country;
    • (ii) A one-time permanent change of home country if it is consistent with the intent and purpose of home leave.
  • (j) The Secretary-General may also authorize travel to a country other than the home country. In such a case, the travel expenses borne by the United Nations shall not exceed the cost of travel to the home country.
  • (k) Regarding home leave
    • (i) A staff member s home leave shall fall due upon completion of 24 months of qualifying service;
    • (ii) After falling due, home leave may be taken within 12 months, subject to the exigencies of service.
  • (l) Staff members may be granted advance home leave, provided that normally not less than 12 months of qualifying service have been completed or that normally not less than 12 months of qualifying service have elapsed since the date of return from their last home leave. The granting of advance home leave shall not advance the eligibility for, or the due date of, the next home leave. The granting of advance home leave shall be subject to the conditions for the entitlement being subsequently met. If these conditions are not met, the staff member will be required to reimburse the costs paid by the Organization for the advance travel.
  • (m) If a staff member delays taking home leave beyond the 12-month period after which it falls due, such delayed leave may be taken without altering the time of the next and succeeding home leave entitlements, provided that normally not less than 12 months of qualifying service elapse between the date of the staff member s return from the delayed home leave and the date of the next home leave departure.
  • (n) The Secretary-General may require staff members to take their home leave in conjunction with travel on official business or change of official duty station. Due regard will be paid to the interests of the staff members and their families.
  • (o) Subject to the conditions specified in chapter VII (Travel and relocation expenses) of the present Rules, staff members shall be entitled to claim, in respect of authorized travel on home leave, expenses for themselves and eligible family members for the outward and return journeys between the official duty station and the place of home leave. Staff members may also claim travel time in respect of authorized travel on home leave.
  • (p) When both spouses are staff members eligible for home leave, and taking into account staff rule 4.7 (Family relationships), each staff member shall have the choice of either exercising the home leave entitlement or of accompanying the spouse. Staff members who choose to accompany their spouse shall be granted travel time appropriate to the travel involved.
  • (q) Dependent children whose parents are both staff members entitled to home leave may accompany either parent regardless of which parent is entitled to the dependency benefits.
  • (r) In the situations described in paragraphs (p) and (q) above, the frequency of travel shall not exceed the established periodicity of the home leave both with regard to staff members and to their dependent children, if any.
  • (s) A staff member travelling on home leave shall be required to spend no less than seven calendar days, exclusive of travel time, in the staff member s home country. The Secretary-General may request a staff member, on return from home leave, to furnish satisfactory evidence that this requirement has been fully met.
  • (t) Under terms and conditions established by the Secretary-General, eligible staff members serving in duty stations classified as D or E by the International Civil Service Commission that do not fall under the rest and recuperation framework shall be granted home leave once in every 12 months. Staff members shall be eligible for home leave provided that the following conditions are fulfilled:
    • (i) The staff member s service is expected by the Secretary-General to continue:
      • a. At least three months beyond the date of the return from any proposed home leave; and
      • b. In the case of the first home leave, at least three months beyond the date on which the staff member will have completed 12 months of qualifying service;
    • (ii) In the case of home leave following the staff member s return from family visit travel under staff rule 7.2 (a) (vi), normally a period of not less than three months of continuous service has elapsed since the staff member s return from family visit travel.

Rule 5.5

Special leave

  • (a) Regarding special leave
    • (i) Special leave may be granted at the request of a staff member holding a fixed-term or continuing appointment for advanced study or research in the interest of the United Nations, in cases of extended illness, for childcare or for other important reasons for such period of time as the Secretary-General may prescribe. Special leave may also be granted under conditions established under appendix C to the present Rules (Arrangements relating to military service);
    • (ii) Special leave is normally without pay. In exceptional circumstances, special leave with full or partial pay may be granted;
    • (iii) In exceptional cases, the Secretary-General may place a staff member on special leave with full or partial pay or without pay if such leave is considered to be in the interest of the Organization;
    • (iv) Subject to conditions established by the Secretary-General, family leave without pay may be granted as follows:
      • a. Staff members who are the parent of a newborn or adopted child may be granted special leave without pay for up to two years with a possibility of extension for up to an additional two years in exceptional circumstances. The right of a staff member to be reabsorbed after the end of such special leave without pay shall be fully protected;
      • b. As special leave without pay for a reasonable period, including necessary travel time, upon the death of a member of the immediate family of the staff member or in case of serious family emergency.
  • (b) Special leave shall not be authorized for governmental service in a political office, in a diplomatic or other representational post or for the purpose of performing any functions that are incompatible with the staff member s continued status as an international civil servant. In exceptional circumstances, special leave without pay may be granted to staff members who are requested by their Government to render temporary services involving functions of a technical nature.
  • (c) The Secretary-General may authorize special leave without pay for pension purposes to protect the pension benefits of staff who are within 2 years of reaching the applicable qualifying age for an early retirement benefit under article 29 of the Regulations of the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Fund and 25 years of contributory service, or who are over that age and within 2 years of 25 years of contributory service.
  • (d) Staff members holding a temporary appointment may exceptionally be granted special leave, with full or partial pay or without pay, for compelling reasons for such period as the Secretary-General deems appropriate.
  • (e) Continuity of service shall not be considered broken by periods of special leave with or without pay.
  • (f) However, staff members shall not accrue service credits towards sick, annual and home leave, salary increment, seniority, termination indemnity and repatriation grant during periods of special leave with partial pay or without pay exceeding one month. Periods of special leave with partial pay or without pay exceeding one month shall not be counted towards accrued years of service for eligibility requirements for a continuing appointment.