Voluntary Separation
Amended: 4/15/23
Provided by: Department of Human Resources
Related Links and Resources
- Collective bargaining agreements
- Postdoctoral Scholars Handbook
- Faculty: Faculty should refer to the handbook of their primary school affiliation for guidance.
- Payroll Overpayment Policy
This policy applies to all staff, temporary staff, postdoctoral scholars, affiliates or any other members of the Tufts community, excluding those who work under faculty or postdoctoral scholar handbooks, or who are otherwise covered by a collective bargaining agreement.
Notice of separation
If you are separating from the university you should provide adequate notice of leaving, whether it is to seek or begin employment elsewhere, to retire, or to undertake a new direction. “Adequate notice” is defined largely by the role and responsibilities that you possess: exempt roles should provide at least four weeks’ notice and hourly workers should provide a minimum of two weeks’ notice. Your position resignation should be provided to your supervisor, in writing and you and your supervisor should outline a plan for creating appropriate coverage for the duties and other responsibilities of the role. There is also a Separation Checklist that is helpful for you and your supervisor during this transition, that can be obtained from your Human Resources Business Partner.
Effect of Termination on Benefits
Termination of employment for whatever reasons will impact your benefits. Your official separation date is also the final day of benefits coverage. Information about impact of separation on benefits should be reviewed prior to your ending date.
If you are intending to retire from Tufts you may want to review the information provided in “Leaving Tufts University”, which also provides information about continuing health/wellness benefits via COBRA. If you have questions, you can contact Tufts Support Services for information concerning the continuation of certain insurance benefits. The contact portal is via TSS@tufts.edu.
Retirement
No mandatory retirement age is set by the University. An employee may retire voluntarily at any time. However, you may want to plan ahead by reviewing the materials in Access Tufts, called “Considering Retirement” and contacting Tufts Support Services, Human Resources’ Benefits office or the HR Business Partner assigned to your school or division for additional information about coordination of timing involved in transitioning to federal or state-supplied health and supplemental policies, if that is your plan. For basic information, see Pre-retirement checklist.
Exit Interview
The university leadership and your department and division leaders are interested in why you are leaving the university and you are encouraged to participate in exit interviewing processes by notifying Human Resources, Faculty Affairs (for faculty) or the Postdoctoral Scholars Liaison office (for postdocs) about your decision to leave Tufts. You may also receive an invitation via email to participate in an electronic exit interview. Personal interviews are also available by request.
Vacation Pay Upon Separation
If you are a benefit-eligible staff leaving the University after having completed at least three (3) months of employment, you are entitled to payment for any unused vacation in your bank, which is included as a lump sum in your final direct deposit paycheck. Additional information for postdoctoral scholars can be found in the Postdoctoral Scholars Handbook.
Provided by Human Resources