esswun
New Member
Well, first you would have to earn and save up enough Annual Leave hours. If he is a new federal employee earning only 4 hours for each 2-week pay period then it it's going to take 10 pay periods/20 weeks/5 months just to get the 40 hours for a week off.
After you calculate the date where you know he would have that much saved up, he can fill out the OPM-71 leave form months in advance with those days and his supervisor should be able to make a determination based on staffing or seniority if others have already requested those days.
It seems that with ATC, most facilities can only operate with a couple people gone at a given time, so getting the form filled out well in advance will help to lock in what you want.
In my past position I never really took a whole week off though. I just took a day or 2 here and there when I had stuff to do or just wanted a longer weekend. We had more than enough people that I could ask for the next day or 2 off and only got rejected like once or twice in 5 years. Other people would request a week off with very minimal notice as well and it was usually granted but I don't think it's going to be as flexible with ATC. I'm sure it varies greatly by facility though.
However, with the complexity of the job and the length of training and by some accounts I've read or heard of, asking for a full week off in the first year might not be the best idea. I can see a day or 2 here and there but I wouldn't think a whole week would be appreciated. You may have to postpone this year's vacation and save up for a better one the year after. I could be wrong though. Good luck!
After you calculate the date where you know he would have that much saved up, he can fill out the OPM-71 leave form months in advance with those days and his supervisor should be able to make a determination based on staffing or seniority if others have already requested those days.
It seems that with ATC, most facilities can only operate with a couple people gone at a given time, so getting the form filled out well in advance will help to lock in what you want.
In my past position I never really took a whole week off though. I just took a day or 2 here and there when I had stuff to do or just wanted a longer weekend. We had more than enough people that I could ask for the next day or 2 off and only got rejected like once or twice in 5 years. Other people would request a week off with very minimal notice as well and it was usually granted but I don't think it's going to be as flexible with ATC. I'm sure it varies greatly by facility though.
However, with the complexity of the job and the length of training and by some accounts I've read or heard of, asking for a full week off in the first year might not be the best idea. I can see a day or 2 here and there but I wouldn't think a whole week would be appreciated. You may have to postpone this year's vacation and save up for a better one the year after. I could be wrong though. Good luck!