How To Make And Manage A Sabbatical Leave Policy For A Business

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If you’ve decided to offer a sabbatical to your employees, you’ll reap a lot of rewards from this benefit, but a policy must be in place to ensure you’re prepared for key players to step away from work.

Sabbatical leave is not a required benefit, but it’s one that can bring many rewards to your company and to your employees. In fact, there are compounded advantages to encouraging sabbaticals for your long-term employees.

But how do you create a sabbatical leave policy, and how do you manage one, so it’s fair for all. It’s not an easy task, but we’ve got some tips to help you make and manage a sabbatical leave policy.

Key Takeaways

• A sabbatical is a voluntary benefit some companies offer to employees, sometimes as a paid benefit and sometimes unpaid.

• There are a variety of types of sabbaticals, and they each might be treated differently.

• Sabbaticals have multiple benefits for employees and employers.

• Creating a sabbatical policy that looks at all aspects of an extended absence makes managing during this period easier for everyone.

What Is Sabbatical Leave?

Sabbatical leave from work is an extended break from work that allows employees to pursue other interests or simply decompress and refresh. The key is that during the sabbatical, the individual is still employed but doesn’t need to report to work.

You might have heard of sabbaticals in relation to higher education, where an esteemed professor will take a semester off to pursue research or to work in their field. Professors who do this are better in touch with the current climate of their profession and often bring new information to their students. They also bolster the reputation of the school through their continued research and activities in their profession.

Types of Sabbatical Leave

Sabbaticals for academic pursuits are very common, but there are other types of sabbaticals that individuals may want to take and some that companies might want to encourage their employees to make the most of. Some common sabbaticals include:

• Academic pursuits. This can include research or experiences in the individual’s current field, or it could include study or training to advance their career or earn a degree.

• Travel. Many people would like to experience travel abroad for an extended period of time. There are profound benefits to a long-term break and experiencing other cultures.

• Volunteering. A volunteering sabbatical is not simply taking a day off to help with a Habitat for Humanity project; it’s an extended time volunteering on huge projects, sometimes in other countries. For example, helping build a school in an underprivileged section of the world so children can be educated.

• Personal or family time. This is different than maternity or paternity leave or any other qualifying situation under the Family and Medical Leave Act. This type of break from work can be used for a variety of reasons, from finally writing that novel to helping your child visit and explore colleges.

Benefits of Sabbatical Leave for Employees

The benefits for employees when they get to take an extended break from work without worrying about losing their job are usually fairly evident. They include:

• Less stress. Stepping away from work and disengaging from daily responsibilities relieves stress as well as boredom and can avoid potential burnout.

• Increase in overall well-being. Having a purpose other than a job, getting a chance to help others, and experiencing different cultures all boost well-being and adds to a dynamic life experience.

• Greater sense of fulfillment in life. Most sabbaticals involve a goal that enriches life and provides a great sense of fulfillment.

• Renewed approach to work. The break itself can refresh an individual, but if they’re pursuing new activities, they’re able to bring a creative and vitalized perspective to their job, renewing their approach overall.

• Professional growth. Obviously, someone who takes a sabbatical to further their education or professional experiences is going to have growth in their field. But people who take sabbaticals for personal reasons can also experience professional growth by viewing the world from a different perspective.

• Broader sense of their purpose at work and elsewhere. Having a deeper understanding of the world around you and seeing things from a different perspective can cement an individual’s sense of purpose and belonging. This can translate into their work performance.

Benefits of Sabbatical Leave for Businesses

While everyone can pretty easily imagine taking a month or more off of work and feeling refreshed, it’s harder to see the benefits to a company that has to make up for that loss. The good news is sabbaticals have multiple advantages for businesses.

• Attractive benefits and company culture highlight. Sabbaticals are exciting for employees as they aren’t mandatory and demonstrate a company’s dedication to their employee’s professional and personal growth. It can be the thing that makes someone decide to go with your company over the competition.

• Less employee turnover and burnout. When employees take a sabbatical, they break the boredom that comes from doing the same thing over and over. Their sense of purpose is renewed, and they’re less likely to burn out or quit their job.

• Higher employee engagement. Not only are employees who have taken a sabbatical more engaged but knowing that there is a sabbatical offered and they’ll get to have that break reinforces engagement.

• Remaining employees are able to deal with absences. When someone is gone for an extended period of time, it forces the others on that team to deal with their absence. This can build relationships, strengthen bonds and appreciation for the missing individual, and it teaches them how to do it in the future.

• All employees have a broader sense of the company’s purpose. When employees are asked to step up and help during an extended absence, they get a deeper and broader feel for what the company does and how it’s done. This boosts their understanding of their job, purpose, and the company.

• Returning employees lift the morale of others. Returning employees are filled with a refreshed attitude that extends to others and lifts morale. It encourages others to consider their own sabbatical and raises overall job satisfaction.

What Is a Sabbatical Leave Policy?

Your company’s sabbatical leave policy is an essential document that defines what you consider a sabbatical, categorizes the types of sabbaticals, details who qualify for a sabbatical, and lists specific information on how to take a sabbatical and what is involved.

A well-thought-out sabbatical leave policy will also contain information about how the company will manage with employees gone and how they will reintegrate when they return.

Factors to Include in a Sabbatical Leave Policy

So how do you create a sabbatical leave policy? The first step is to consider all the factors at play. Each company is different, and because this is an optional benefit, you can establish your own rules and policies. Some factors to consider include the following:

• Who is eligible? Most companies require employees to be with the company for a pre-determined number of years before they qualify for a sabbatical. Five years is fairly standard, but it can vary.

• How long can the sabbatical last? Sabbaticals typically run anywhere from a month to six months. It can depend on the type of sabbatical, the level of the employee, and the situation.

• Is it paid or unpaid leave? This determination must be made by the company. For example, some companies opt to have unpaid personal and travel sabbaticals and paid sabbaticals that are related to academic pursuits as long as it advances the employee’s knowledge and experience in their field.

• What purposes will you allow, and will they be treated differently? The types of sabbaticals your company allows and how each one is treated can vary. Some companies are very interested in seeing their employees learn and grow and will pay for them to have these experiences. Other companies encourage employees to take time off but to do it on their dime.

• How much notice must be given? It’s important that most, if not all, sabbaticals are scheduled in advance, giving the business enough time to plan for the absence. It’s good to encourage this in the policy and then understand that sometimes the timing might be difficult or impossible to predict.

• What is the process for requesting a sabbatical? How will you require employees to request sabbatical time off? Will there be a preference for employees who have been there longer? Can more than one person take a sabbatical at a time? Will they be required to submit paperwork and proof of sabbatical? These are important considerations for your policy.

• How often can an employee qualify for a sabbatical? It’s critical that your policy state how frequently employees can qualify for sabbaticals. This lets everyone know what’s expected.

• How will the employee’s absence be handled? Detailing this information in the sabbatical policy might not be possible or practical for all companies, but it’s a consideration that deserves thought and management input.

• How will reintegration happen? Similar to the step above, it might not be possible to write out integration steps for all companies and all positions, but it’s something to consider.

• Retention term. Some companies want to ensure that the employee who takes a sabbatical will stay with the company once they return. Requiring a one-year retention period as a minimum after a sabbatical, especially a paid one, is not unheard of.

• Limited opportunity. Most people consider this a use it or lose it clause. Creating a window of sabbatical opportunity encourages employees to take advantage of this benefit, and it removes a lot of confusion and doubt about timing.

• Additional obligations related to the sabbatical. This factor is often required if the sabbatical is academic in nature but can be required in some other situations.

  For instance, if someone takes three months off to do research that’s related to your business, having them do a presentation to executives or the entire company about what they did is fairly common. It’s a great way to share knowledge and encourage others to explore a sabbatical.

How to Manage a Sabbatical Leave Policy

Before rolling out your sabbatical leave policy, there are some key management factors to consider.

• What is the goal of the policy? Why is this person taking a sabbatical, and what’s the purpose of the sabbatical? This will determine a lot of coordinating factors.

• How long is the sabbatical? Knowing how long an individual will be gone is critical.

• How will the team be impacted, and how will you cope? Taking a deep look at what the individual does and how the rest of the team will manage will form the basis of much of the management duties during any sabbatical.

• What is the expense? The expense of a sabbatical isn’t just if there is a paid leave or not; it also encompasses extra training or even bonuses for those who step up during the absence.

Understanding the above key points will help management during the sabbatical as they keep the team working together and manage the workload in a fair manner. Having a clearly defined policy keeps everyone on track and eliminates any confusion. Just remember that a policy needs to have a little flexibility to be effective, as life rarely goes exactly as planned.

How to Make and Manage a Sabbatical Leave Policy for a Business FAQ

1. What’s the difference between a sabbatical and a vacation?

   A sabbatical is an extended time away from work that may be paid or unpaid, during which the employee is still employed. Many vacations are short in duration, and they are paid as a benefit of the job. Sabbaticals are typically much longer and often have a purpose other than rest and relaxation.

2. What’s the difference between a sabbatical and a career break?

   A career break and a sabbatical are extended periods away from work, but a career break is often longer and typically requires that you leave your job.

   A sabbatical guarantees that your job is waiting for you when you return. A career break does not contain any guarantees about employment; in fact, many people don’t return to the same profession or in the same capacity after a career break.

3. Is an employee paid when they take a sabbatical?

   Some companies pay employees during a sabbatical, and other companies do not. Sometimes companies look at the purpose of the sabbatical to determine if they will pay the employee when they’re gone. Often, completing a degree or working on a project in the field qualifies as a paid sabbatical because the employee then brings that experience and knowledge back to the job.

4. What does a sabbatical policy look like?

   Sabbatical policies are meant to explain how the company sees sabbaticals, the process involved in taking one, whether there will be pay or not, and who qualifies for a sabbatical. There are often many other key points that are discussed in the policy to clear up confusion and make the process a smooth one throughout.

5. Is a sabbatical a required or mandated benefit?

   No, sabbaticals are an optional benefit to be determined by the employer. They’re becoming more popular as companies realize the advantages to them and their employees. They can also be seen as a recruiting point for new hires.

References

1. Department of Labor – FMLA

Author

Kristin Kizer

Kristin Kizer is an award-winning writer, television and documentary producer, and content specialist who has worked on a wide variety of written, broadcast, and electronic publications. A former writer/producer for The Discovery Channel, she is now a freelance writer and delighted to be sharing her talents and time with the wonderful Zippia audience.