Eligible employees will receive 40 hours of New Jersey Earned Sick Leave (NJESL) frontloaded on January 1st of each calendar year. Employees may use up to 40 hours of NJESL time annually.

Note: Different processes and sick benefits may be available for employees who are located within states other than New Jersey.  

Our updated paid leave of absence benefits are designed to meet you in some of life’s most exciting and challenging moments, offering flexibility and peace of mind. All eligible employees will have access to three key benefits:

Note: This change does not apply to Honor System-eligible employees until December 21, 2025.

* To be eligible for supplemental leave of absence benefits, employees must be employed with RWJBarnabas Health for at least one continuous year. These changes apply to consecutive leaves of absence beginning on or after the effective dates noted above and do not apply to intermittent leaves. You must be approved for benefits through the New Jersey TDI/FLI programs (as applicable) in order to collect the supplemental benefit from RWJBarnabas Health. Employees who are located within states other than New Jersey should consult the Leave of Absence team for details on specific processes and benefits that may be available.

You have invested in your time—whether planning for a future trip, saving hours for an emergency or simply needing breathing room. We are protecting that time and making sure your transition into the new plan is smooth and transparent with minimal disruption or impact. We are honoring and protecting your time in two ways:

1. All accrued but unused paid time off earned as of December 20, 2025 will continue to be available in a “Legacy Bank”.
2. If your current time off plan gives you more time off than the new plan provides, you will continue to receive the same total annual hours of paid time off (as of July 1, 2025) for up to 5 years, via a Transitional Accrual to offset the difference.

Your accrued but unused paid time off

All time you have accrued in your current time off plan(s) but have not used as of December 20, 2025, will be preserved in new Legacy Banks:

Note: If you go on an approved short-term disability leave on or after December 21, 2025, your Legacy Banks will be used first to supplement your pay before the Paid Short-Term Disability Supplement benefit begins.

Your total annual hours of paid time off

If your current plan gives you more time off annually than the new plan provides, we have you covered. We will continue to provide you with the same total annual hours of paid time off for up to five years, via a Transitional Accrual to offset the difference. In September 2025, you will receive a personalized letter outlining any additional time you will receive, if it applies to you.

Here is how we will calculate your Transitional Accrual:

1. We will total your current annual hours of paid time off as of July 1, 2025—including vacation, PTO, sick, holiday and personal time, as applicable.
2. We will compare that total to your new projected annual hours of paid time off under the new plan (effective December 21, 2025)—including holiday, vacation and sick time.
3. If your current plan offers more paid time off than what the new system plan provides, the difference between the current and new plan will be added to your vacation accrual moving forward—for up to five years as long as the eligibility criteria is met.
4. If the new system plan offers more paid time off than you currently receive—you will simply start receiving the new system plan vacation amount beginning on December 21, 2025.

This Transitional Accrual time will be added to your biweekly “vacation” accrual, following the standard 80-hour annual carryover rule. You will continue to receive this Transitional Accrual time for up to five years—unless your employment status changes (e.g., moving to a per diem or part-time role) or you become eligible for more time off under the new system plan based on your tenure.

Example of the Transitional Accrual Calculation

The Honor System time off benefit remains a flexible option for eligible leaders—but we are changing the support we provide in a few key ways.

Celebration of Holidays

Beginning on January 1, 2026, Honor System employees will move to the same fixed holiday schedule as all other employees and will have seven (7) paid holidays: New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas. If a fixed holiday falls on a weekend, it will be observed on the nearest weekday.

Paid Leaves of Absence

There are two phases of changes to the Honor System paid leaves of absence* benefit.

For leaves of absence beginning on or after May 11, 2025, but before December 21, 2025, there are no changes to the total amount of pay that Honor System-eligible employees can receive. However, Honor System-eligible employees will need to take specific action to receive partial pay from the State of New Jersey and the remainder of pay will come from RWJBarnabas Health:

• Paid Parental Leave Supplement: Up to 20 weeks of 100% base pay for the birthing parent or up to 12 weeks of 100% base pay for the non-birthing parent, in combination with any available support through New Jersey’s Temporary Disability (TDI) and/or Family Leave Insurance (FLI) programs.
• Paid Short-Term Disability Supplement: Up to 26 weeks of income at 100% base pay, in combination with any available support through New Jersey’s Temporary Disability (TDI) program.

For leaves of absence beginning on or after December 21, 2025, Honor System employees will have the same paid leave of absence benefits as the rest of our workforce:

• Paid Parental Leave Supplement: Up to 12 weeks of 100% base pay for all parents (birthing and non-birthing), in combination with any available support through New Jersey’s Temporary Disability (TDI) and/or Family Leave Insurance (FLI) programs.
• Paid Short-Term Disability Supplement: Up to 26 weeks of income at 66 2/3% base pay, in combination with any available support through New Jersey’s Temporary Disability (TDI) program.

* To be eligible for supplemental leave of absence benefits, employees must be employed with RWJBarnabas Health for at least one continuous year. These changes apply to consecutive leaves of absence beginning on or after the effective dates noted above and do not apply to intermittent leaves. You must be approved for benefits through the New Jersey TDI/FLI programs (as applicable) in order to collect the supplemental benefit from RWJBarnabas Health. Employees who are located within states other than New Jersey should consult the Leave of Absence team for details on specific processes and benefits that may be available.

No Changes to Previously Frozen Banks

If you had accumulated unused Vacation/PTO/Holiday time during your transition to the Honor System, that time will continue to be frozen. These balances are only accessible upon resignation and cannot be used to receive additional pay during a leave of absence.

Future Promotions into the Honor System

If you are promoted into an Honor System-eligible role on or after May 11, 2025, your existing unused banks of time off will be forfeited and will not be paid out. From that point forward, you will enjoy the full flexibility of the Honor System time off benefit.