Casual /Unavailed casual leave, special CL, and bereavement leave rules in banks explained

Updated as per 12th BPS/9th Joint Note dated 08.03.2024

[This article elucidates a complete guide on Casual leave, Unavailed Casual leave, Special Casual leave rule and half days CL, and bereavement leave]

The officers and award staff of the bank including permanent part-time employees are eligible for 12 days of casual leave in a year with the entitlement of full pay and all allowance as if he/she was on duty. An officer or full-time/part-time employee of the bank can take a maximum of 4 days of casual leave at a time. The holidays and weekly offs Prefixing/suffixing or intervening holidays within the period of Casual Leave will not be treated as part of casual leave. (The earlier restriction for award staff employees of Maximum absence of 6 days including prefixing/suffixing holidays is now removed under 10th BPS). However, holidays except Saturdays and Sundays shall not be Prefixed or suffixed to casual leave without the prior permission of the officer granting such leave. The officers are required to get permission from higher authority if they are not available in the station on prefixing or suffixing holidays within the period of Casual Leave. Casual leave cannot be combined with other leaves like PL/SL/UCL or any other kind of leave.

A total of 2 days casual leave may be availed for half a day on 4 occasions in a year out of which 2 occasions would be in the morning and 2 occasions would be in the morning and 2 occasions in the afternoon.

Note:

 a. casual leave under this category can be availed after applying 24 hours in advance.

b. While carrying over the balance in the Casual Leave to Unavailed Casual Leave account, the fraction in the balance if any shall be ignored.

Conditions for granting CL:

The casual leave will be credited to members’ leave accounts at the beginning of a financial year. However, in the first year of service, the member earns casual leave on a pro-rata basis at the rate of one day for each completed or part of a calendar month. The leave of any kind cannot be taken as a matter of right. It may be refused by the officer granting such leave to a staff member when such leave causes inconvenience to the public or administration, and the work of the employee cannot be distributed and performed by the remaining staff or cannot be held up without inconvenience till his/her return to duty. The member who wants to go on leave shall obtain prior written or oral permission from the Branch Manager or higher authority wherever applicable. If for any genuine reason prior permission is not possible to be obtained, the employee shall at least communicate through telephone or any other quickest mode of communication to the higher authority. In any case, the leave application has to be submitted on the day the employee resumes the duty. In the case an employee overstays his/her casual leave for genuine reasons then the entire period of his/her absence can be debited to his PL account or Sick Leave if his/her absence is due to sickness supported by a Medical Certificate.

The leave of any kind cannot be taken as a matter of right. Management can refuse the leave or member may be called back to report for duty if the exigencies of service so required. If the absence is for frivolous reasons, then the Management can treat the entire period of absence including CL granted as absence without Pay.

Special Casual Leave:

Employees who donate blood to a recognized blood bank or bank-sponsored blood donation drive are eligible for special casual leave for one day on the day of blood donation, subject to the production of satisfactory documentary proof.

Un-availed Casual Leave (UCL) rules for Award staff and Bank officers

Casual leave not availed in a calendar year is convertible into unavailed casual leave (UCL) with full substantive pay except during the first year. However, UCL can be availed only on the grounds of sickness. The un-availed casual leave may be accumulated by the clerical and sub-staff for any number of years without any limit which they can utilize on medical grounds at any future time. However, CL was not availed of in the year or subsequent year lapses in the following 5 years. On and from 1.11.2020 although the availment of UCL by the officers in the following years shall continue to be permitted only on medical grounds, production of the medical certificate need not, henceforth be insisted upon in case the period of such UCL at a stretch not exceeding four days. Unavailed casual leave can also be availed in combination with any other leave except CL.

Bereavement Leave: Employees shall be granted bereavement leave on the demise of family members (Spouse, children, parents, and parents-in-law) and the number of days of such leave shall be decided by each bank at their level. The intervening holidays will form part of the leave and bereavement leave should be availed within a maximum period of 15 days of the demise. This leave will not be considered as an “active Service” for Privilege leave calculation.