Policy Design & Administration
Policy Design and Administration is a unit within Illinois Human Resources (IHR) that establishes and implements policy and structure to enable the university’s mission and vision through compliance.
Policy Design and Administration is responsible for:
- Developing a comprehensive program of policies, including compliance review and maintenance across human resources at the University.
- Evaluating and assessing the effectiveness of current policies for relevance and advocating for continuous improvement.
- Collaborating with HR business partners and other stakeholders to deliver innovative solutions and to offer consistent policy interpretation.
New or Updated University Policies

Paid Leave for All Workers Act
The Paid Leave for All Workers Act provides up to 40 hours of paid leave per year to employees who do not currently receive vacation leave.

Employee Referral Program Policy
A program to offer a referral incentive of $600 for all eligible staff positions designated “hard-to fill” and high demand.

New Hire Sign-On Incentive Policy
A discretionary program to offer a sign-on incentive payment. All staff positions are eligible, at the discretion of the unit.
Policies Index A-Z
The A-Z index pages on the Illinois Human Resources website serve as a comprehensive list detailing various university policies. This resource provides easy access to a wide range of policies relevant to human resources within the university setting.
New or Updated University Policies
Paid Leave for all workers
Resources
Overview
The Paid Leave for All Workers Act provides up to 40 hours of paid leave per year to employees who do not currently receive vacation leave. Employees in the following employment categories at the University of Illinois System that do not already receive vacation leave are eligible for Paid Leave for All Workers leave:
- Faculty with a 9-month or 10-month appointment
- Academic Professionals with a 9-month or a 10-month appointment
- Civil Service Extra Help
- Civil Service Seasonal Extra Help
- Academic Hourly
- 9-month Post Doctoral Research Associates
Employees must be scheduled to work to request the leave. Employees cannot use more than 40 hours in an academic year.
Ineligible:
Student employees, including graduate students, are ineligible.
Employee Use:
Eligible employees are entitled to begin using this paid leave 90 days following the effective date of January 1, 2024.
Eligible University of Illinois employees will be able to request/use this beginning March 31, 2024, or earlier (for 9 and 10-month faculty).
Employees covered by a collective bargaining agreement may not be eligible. Please consult with your university Labor and Employee Relations department for more information.
Unit Guidelines
Colleges and units should track these leaves manually until further notice.
Communications
- System DDDH (1/9/2024)
- IHR message to Faculty (1/10/2024)
- IHR message to Newscast (1/10/2024)
- IHR DDDH message (1/11/2024)
- HR Newscast presentation
- HR Caucus presentation
Reports
Employee Referral Program Policy
Employee Referral Program: A program to offer a referral incentive of $600 for all eligible staff positions designated “hard-to fill” and high demand.
- University Policy
- UIUC Guidelines
- List of Eligible Jobs
- Job Aids and Resources:
- Employees Referring Applicants Job Aid
- HR Processing Aid
- Refer a Candidate Mobile Instructions
- Video Announcement (audio descriptive version)
- FAQs
New Hire Sign-On Policy
New Hire Sign-On Incentive: A discretionary program to offer a sign-on incentive payment. All staff positions are eligible, at the discretion of the unit.