Sabbaticals for non-academics

A long-time junior supervisor is applying to take a sabbatical to review for the bar examination. Unfortunately, we don’t have any such policy for sabbaticals. Please help. — White Flower

A sabbatical, a common practice in academia, is a prolonged absence from work averaging one to two years to do research, write a book, or to take up a post-graduate program in other countries, among other things.

Would this kind of leave, even without pay, redound to the benefit of organizations outside of academia? Though some narrow-minded managers might think not, it should be beneficial to the company wishing to motivate and retain hardworking, key personnel for the long haul.

This includes improving the competency of the management team.

This must be studied carefully by those in non-academic organizations as it can open the floodgates for similar requests in the future, not necessarily limited to employees reviewing for a government licensure examination, but for some other purposes.

The human resource (HR) department should take the lead in studying the matter by benchmarking with major companies to discover how and why the sabbaticals are beneficial. The obvious benefit may include employee loyalty.

Loyalty, especially coming from honest people, is an important virtue. It promotes long-term trust and professional friendship in the workplace. All this can be strengthened if you have a dynamic management development program (MDP) that includes sabbaticals for highly qualified people.

CONSIDERATIONS
All this talk about sabbaticals must be administered under a formal MDP as a component of succession planning and business continuity policy. Think carefully about it. Some of the factors to consider are:

Length of service. Years of service are an important indicator of employee loyalty. In that case, sabbatical applicants must have completed at least 10 years of uninterrupted service, with certain exceptions, as in the case of those winning free fellowships from foreign institutions, which are hard to come by.

Excellent performance. Length of service must be accompanied by above-average work performance. Seniority and merit must go hand-in-hand. In case of conflict, merit must come first, especially if the applicant has demonstrated consistent performance for at least three years preceding the proposed leave.

No violations of company policy. Sabbatical applicants must not have violated even the less serious rules, such as tardiness, over the past three years. Being in good standing is desirable everywhere. However, if tardiness is the only issue with the applicant, then management must decide based on the employee’s total value to the organization.

Without pay. Generally, all such leaves are without pay, except that an employee may use their remaining leave credits. A further exception is when the scholarship is sponsored by the organization sending junior executives to business school in the hope that they would benefit from the experience.

Age requirement. Leave applicants must not be more than 40 to 45 years old. This is to ensure that such employees have the capacity to stay for a considerable time for things like technology transfer before retirement. This requirement is imperative to prevent people who are nearing retirement to benefit from such leave.

Leave duration. It depends on the purpose. If the employee’s intention is to review and take the bar examination, then four to six months is reasonable. If it is to complete a fast-track MBA, then one year is enough. However, foreign scholarships usually last to an average of one to two years.

Employment status. An employee on sabbatical is considered an employee in good standing. However, the employee’s absence may adversely affect their seniority rights when computing retirement benefits. In the case of an employee taking the bar examination, this means a deduction of four to six months from separation or retirement pay.

Employment contract. It is necessary to have a contract that spells out the conditions and limitations of the sabbatical leave, like in case of mergers or consolidations that may adversely affect the job security of those on sabbatical. For those on company-funded scholarships, employees on leave may be subject to payment of damages before resigning.

OPEN MIND
In conclusion, management must keep an open mind in exploring the advantages of a sabbaticals. If such leave is beneficial for academia, then, how much more if it’s to be applied to non-academic settings. So, rather than tearing your hair out trying while coming to a decision, why not welcome options that could bring in new ideas that lead to success?

Don’t judge a practice just because it’s not usually done in your industry. Don’t cling to Jurassic ways of doing things. Have an open mind. The best that can happen is lucking into a eureka moment or two.

Bring Rey Elbo’s “Expanded PDCA (Plan, Do, Check, Act) Problem-solving Program” to your management team. Contact him via Facebook, LinkedIn, X or email elbonomics@gmail.com or via https://reyelbo.com