Civic Engagement & Community Service Paid Time Off

At Bethel, regular staff employees are allotted 24 hours (prorated based on FTE for those less than 40 hours/week, 12 months) of paid time off (PTO) per calendar year to use during an employee’s regularly scheduled hours for civic engagement and community service. Our desire is to create a continual commitment to engage in civic responsibility and service to our community, while supporting individual efforts and passions. It is also our hope that this designated PTO will provide a means for staff to learn and grow through engagement and experiences that may be new to them.

Civic Engagement and Community Service Examples:

• Monthly after-school mentoring
• Church community service project
• Vacation Bible School volunteerism
• Cultural and ethnic celebrations (e.g. Hmong New Year, etc.)
• Peaceful protests
• Vigils, commemorative events, and community times of remembrance
• Disaster relief efforts
• Church or parachurch mission trips
• Mentoring or small group efforts for Bethel students (e.g. Woven Lives, Men’s Discipleship, etc.)
• Engaging existing partnerships through Bethel’s connection with the Frogtown/Summit neighborhood

NOTES: 

• Activities must be consistent with Bethel’s Covenant for Life Together and Affirmation of Faith.
• Time off for voting in an election is covered under a separate policy.

Procedures for Requesting Civic or Community Service PTO:

1. Civic Engagement and Community Service PTO is tracked by the supervisor and employee.
2. Employees should work with their supervisors to request time off.
3. Non-exempt employees should use the paycode "CS" to record these hours. Exempt employees do not need to record their time.
4. Civic Engagement and Community Service PTO does not rollover from year to year. 
5. Payment in lieu of Civic Engagement and Community Service PTO is prohibited.

Please contact the Office of People and Culture if you have any questions.