Program Terms & Definitions – Effective Jan. 3, 2026
Below are the key terms and definitions related to the MyPTO Maximization Program.
These are intended to promote clarity, consistency, and a shared understanding of the program’s provisions and the enrollment options for managing vested PTO hours.
| Accrued: | Unused paid leave accumulated by an employee. |
| Assistance animal training leave: | Up to 10 days of paid leave each fiscal year available for employees with a disability as defined by the Texas Human Resources Code, Section 121.002, to participate in an animal assistance training program. |
| Benefits eligible: | An employee who is appointed to work at least 20 hours per week (0.5–1.0 FTE) in a position that does not require student status as a condition of employment and who is eligible for health benefits and paid leave. |
| Carryforward limit: | The maximum number of unvested PTO hours an employee can roll into the next calendar year, as defined by UTMB. |
| Catastrophic illness/injury: | A severe condition or combination of conditions affecting the physical or mental health of an employee or an employee’s immediate family member that is immediately life-threatening or likely to be fatal within the next 12 months. |
| Continuous leave: | Type of leave taken by an employee in one, continuous period of time. |
| Court appointed special advocate (CASA) volunteer leave: | Up to five hours of paid leave each month to serve as a Court Appointed Special Advocate or to participate in mandatory training. |
| Deferred Enrollment option: | Occurs when an employee elects to defer enrollment in the PTO provisions of the MyPTO Maximization Program until all vested PTO hours are fully exhausted. |
| Draw Down Enrollment option: | Occurs when an employee elects to gradually transition into the PTO provisions of the MyPTO Maximization Program by using their vested PTO hours over three calendar years while also beginning to receive annual PTO grants under the new program. |
| Elimination period: | A period of time an employee must wait before income protection benefits become payable. |
| Exempt: | Position that is salaried and not subject to FLSA laws pertaining to minimum wage and overtime pay. |
| Extended illness | Illness/injury of an employee or an employee’s immediate family member that lasts for more than 16 work hours. |
| Extended Illness Bank (EIB): | A bank of hours that an employee may use for absences associated with the extended illness/injury of an employee or an employee’s immediate family member. |
| Extended Illness Bank Grant: | The amount of EIB to which an eligible employee is entitled, generally granted as a lump sum on Jan. 1 based on FTE status. |
| Family and Medical Leave (FML): | Up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave in a rolling 12-month period for specified family and medical reasons. |
| Fiscal year: | The 12-month budgeting period beginning Sept. 1 and ending Aug. 31. |
| FTE: | Full-time equivalency. |
| FTE status: | An employee’s total appointed hours in relation to a 40-hour workweek; FTE status is used as the pro-rata basis for determining leave accruals. |
| Funeral leave: | Up to three days of paid leave for the death of an employee’s immediate family member; for the purposes for funeral leave, an immediate family member is defined as a spouse, child, parent, sibling, grandparent and grandchild. |
| Holiday compensatory time: | Time off granted to an employee required to work on an institutional holiday. |
| Holiday pay: | Compensation for the time worked by an employee on an institutional holiday; pay is in addition to regular or overtime compensation. |
| Immediate EIB access: | Situations in which an employee can immediately access their Extended Illness Bank (EIB) without first using all their PTO and other paid leave accruals and completing a 16-hour unpaid waiting period. |
| Immediate Enrollment option: | Occurs when an employee elects to enroll immediately in the PTO provisions of the MyPTO Maximization Program and receives payment for their vested PTO hours as outlined in the plan document. |
| Immediate family member: | For the purposes of the MyPTO Maximization Program, an employee’s immediate family members are limited to parent (includes biological parent or individual who acted in the capacity of a parent); spouse (includes opposite-sex or same-sex spouse); and child who is either under 18 years of age or is 18 years of age or older and is incapable of self-care (includes biological, adopted, foster, or step children, legal wards and other individuals for whom the employee acts in or acted in the capacity of a parent). |
| Institutional holidays: | Paid time off in observance of national and state holidays designated by the Texas legislature. |
| Intermittent leave: | Type of leave taken by an employee in separate blocks of time over a period. |
| Jury and witness service: | Paid leave for employees with a court order to report for jury duty or to testify in a case on behalf of UTMB or the state. |
| Leave without pay: | An absence from work without pay granted to an employee. It can also refer to unpaid, protected leave that may be granted in conjunction with the Institutional ADA Office when an employee has exhausted all available leave accruals. |
| Leave for employees certified as firefighter, emergency medical service volunteer, disaster service volunteers, amateur radio operators, and reserve law enforcement officers: | Up to five days of paid leave per fiscal year to attend volunteer firefighter or emergency medical service training schools conducted by state agencies or institutions of higher learning. Up to 10 days of paid leave per fiscal year to participate in specialized disaster relief services for the American Red Cross. Up to 10 days of paid leave each fiscal year to participate in specialized disaster relief services for the Federal Communications Commission. Up to 10 days of paid leave each fiscal year for those who hold a current amateur radio station license issued by the Federal Communications Commission to participate in specialized disaster relief services. Up to five working days of paid leave per fiscal biennium (two-year fiscal period) to attend training required for reserve law enforcement officers. |
| Leave for employees donating an organ, bone marrow, or blood: | Up to 30 days of paid leave per fiscal year to serve as an organ donor; up to five days of paid leave per fiscal year to serve as a bone marrow donor; and sufficient time to donate blood. |
| Long-term disability insurance: | Optional insurance that replaces a portion of an employee’s income for a non-work related illness/injury after a consecutive 90-day absence. |
| Military leave: | Up to 15 days of paid leave each federal fiscal year (October – September) for employees called to active duty or authorized training as a member of the state military forces or any of the reserve components of the U.S. Armed Forces. |
| Non-exempt: | Position that is paid hourly wages and is subject to FLSA laws pertaining to minimum wage and overtime pay. |
| Paid Time Off (PTO): | A bank of hours that an employee may use with supervisor approval for any personal reason that requires time away from work. |
| Paid time off grant: | The amount of PTO to which an eligible employee is entitled, generally granted as a lump sum on Jan. 1 based on FTE status and years of total state service. |
| Paid Parental Leave (PPL): | Up to four work weeks of income protection paid at 100% of an eligible employee’s pay rate allowed each rolling 12-month period for the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child; only available after PTO and other paid leave accruals have been exhausted. |
| Parental leave: | Up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave in a rolling 12-month period for the birth of a child or the adoption or foster care placement of a child; only available for employees who do not qualify for leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). |
| Pay code: | An alphabetic or a numeric identifier used within the Kronos timekeeping system to indicate the type of pay an employee receives. |
| Pay rate: | The monthly or hourly rate by which an employee’s wages are paid. |
| Personal holiday: | A type of paid time off previously granted to eligible employees that functions separately from the MyPTO Maximization Program; does not expire and is paid upon separation from UTMB. |
| Program year: | The 12-month MyPTO Maximization Program administration period beginning Jan. 1 and ending Dec. 31. |
| Reduced Paid Leave (RPL): | A benefit funded by UTMB that offers income protection paid at 50% of an eligible employee's monthly or hourly base pay rate when the employee has exhausted their accruals and needs more time away from work for a personal illness/injury, the catastrophic illness/injury of an immediate family member, or parental leave. |
| Scheduled absence: | Time off that is requested and approved prior to the absence as outlined in UTMB’s Attendance Policy. |
| Serious illness/injury: | An illness, injury, impairment, or physical or mental health condition affecting an employee or an employee’s immediate family member that requires continuing treatment by a licensed practitioner or inpatient care in a hospital, hospice, or residential medical care facility. |
| Short-term disability insurance: | Optional insurance that replaces a portion of an employee’s income for a non-work-related illness/injury after a consecutive seven-day absence. |
| State agency transfer: | An employee who transfers from one Texas state agency to another without a break in service. |
| Time off for voting: | Paid leave that allows employees a reasonable amount of time off to vote in national, state, or local elections. |
| Unscheduled absence: | Time off that is not requested and approved prior to the absence as outlined in UTMB’s Attendance Policy. |
| Unvested PTO hours: | PTO hours granted under the MyPTO Maximization Program, which launches Jan. 3, 2026. |
| Vested PTO hours: | PTO hours accrued under the current program and not used as of 11:59 p.m., Jan. 2, 2026. |
| Work hours: | The hours an employee is scheduled to work within a seven-day period. |