HR Dilemma: Do Teachers' Leave Requests Need the Principal's Signature?

Hi all, I am working at a school institution as an HR professional. Please clarify my doubts. Teachers leave requests in the mail. Do they need a signature from the principal? Please clarify.

Regards, S. Lavanya

Hi, I hope for normal planned leaves you have a leave card system in place.

Managing Unplanned Leaves

For unplanned leaves with last-minute information/request through email, you may take a printout of the email, get it signed by the Principal, and file it in the personal file of the employee.

Hi Lavanya,

Please note that all leaves need approval by the reporting managers/officers. Any leave obtained without prior approval may lead to absenteeism, which shall be considered as a loss of pay.

Approval can be recorded in the leave register, leave application, or even through email. It is advisable to obtain prior approval for planned leaves. For unplanned leaves, it is better to seek approval via phone or SMS initially and later follow up with a formal email or leave letter.

Teachers can send an email to the principal for approval, and the principal can respond via email as well, which can serve as evidence of approval.

Refer back to your school's policy on leave requests. This cannot be the first time this matter has come up.

Drafting a Leave Policy

If there is no policy, get the head of your organization to make a ruling and then assist you in drafting an overarching leave policy for the whole school.

In reality, all these policies should have been put in place when the school was first established.