Personal Observance Days in 2026

Are you planning to use your Personal Observance Day (POD) in early 2026? Starting Jan. 1, you’ll notice that this leave is no longer listed as Admin Leave/POD in Workday. Instead, when you make your request, you will look for Personal Observance Day as a specific type of time off.

Note that if you have yet to use your POD in 2025, the process has not changed.

On Jan. 1, however, staff should use the following instructions to submit their POD request in Workday:

• On the Workday dashboard, Go to Menu.
• Click Absence.
• Click Request Absence.
• Click your POD Date.
• Click 1-Day Request Absence at the bottom left side of the screen.
• Click Continue.
• In the Type of Absence dropdown box, click Other Absence Types.
• Click Personal Observance Day.
• Confirm that the daily hours are accurate.
• Click Submit Request.

This time should be used for one full day, not split between multiple days. Staff are not required to disclose which personal tradition they plan to observe, only that they are scheduling time for personal observance. All staff should work with their managers to schedule time off by providing reasonable advance notice. Eligible Wake Forest staff may use one POD each calendar year per the Administrative Leave and Release Time Policy. View the 2026 Reynolda Campus Holiday Schedule for a complete list of staff holidays.

Questions? Contact benefits@wfu.edu.