Years of Service Recognition FAQs

All full-time, benefits-eligible employees of the University are eligible for the Years of Service Recognition Program, including staff, faculty and technical service and remote employees. Postdoctoral researchers, part-time employees, and employees for Penn State Health and Penn College are not included in the program.

Recognition for past milestones will not be available retroactively. Penn State leaders appreciate the hard work and dedication of all employees, and we look forward to celebrating everyone through this program in the coming years. We will continue to honor and thank you for your work through an established program such as the faculty and staff achievement awards, and this new program will bring new opportunities to recognize your dedication.

The Penn State Years of Service Recognition program recognizes all full-time benefits-eligible employees for their continuous full-time years of service to the University starting from their most recent date of hire.

In accordance with HR Policy 109, employees who leave Penn State for fewer than five years, with a re-hire date of January 1, 2024 or later, can carry their previous years with Penn State forward for benefits. Employees must complete the application within the policy to receive those benefits. Once updated in Workday, the employee’s future milestone dates will be automatically calculated based on the reinstated hire date. They will not receive milestone acknowledgements for any anniversary dates missed during the break in service.

The Years of Service Recognition Program will supersede any existing unit recognition. Currently, there is no standard or centralized system for recognizing employees. This means that, while some leaders might have introduced methods to show appreciation, these practices were inconsistent and not available to everyone. This program aims to recognize employees equally across every college, campus and unit. Units who celebrate anniversaries with gatherings, presentations or other traditions are welcome to continue them, but this program will replace any gift or award policies a department currently offers for years of service.

This new Years of Service Recognition program will continue to offer the iconic Penn State chair as a gift choice for 25 years of service, with other options to choose from within the gift catalog, as well.  

Managers will receive an automated email 45 days before an employee's anniversary week. The manager and co-workers will then have 20 days to submit personal yearbook comments. Important: Managers are responsible for inviting the co-workers into this process so timely response is imperative. Any comments received after the 20 days, will be included in the digital yearbook.

Submitting materials to the yearbook is voluntary, but doing so will help to show your employee or colleague that you appreciate the work they do. The submission form will include options to submit written comments, photos and/or a video of yourself offering congratulations to personalize the anniversary gifts for the recipient. These materials will not be made public, but will be shared with the employee to celebrate their anniversary when the day arrives.

Yes, non-Penn State employees such as friends and family can also contribute well wishes, photos and videos to the yearbook.

This program does not allow employees to exchange physical gifts for monetary gifts.

Currently, it is not possible to select to opt out of either; however, we are taking all feedback under consideration and have begun to explore with our partner, OC Tanner, how the Years of Service program can align more closely with Penn State’s sustainability efforts. One idea being considered is to move to a digital Yearbook only offering, since OC Tanner does not yet have a way to offer print Yearbooks on-demand. Additionally, we are looking at how "opt out" functionality might be configured into the program.

Individuals at the incremental 5 year milestones (5-55 years) are invited to select a gift from the catalog provided. You can opt out of the gift selection simply by not placing an order.

OC Tanner has shared with us that they source award materials such as aluminum, wood, concrete and acrylic from local suppliers, which lowers their need for large volumes of inventory (reducing waste) and helps them control quality and sustainability across their supply chain. Responsible, energy-efficient manufacturing is an important part of their drive to improve sustainability across their business. They comply with all applicable environmental governing requirements as they implement ways to lower their carbon footprint and reduce waste.

The gift catalog is extensive (over 200 pages) and items in it are subject to change, so it will not be posted. For every eligible milestone year (5, 10, 15, 20, etc.), there is a wide variety of gifts to choose from, including housewares, recreational items, jewelry, clothing and more-- from brands such as Cuisinart, Coleman, Bulova, Leatherman, Cotopaxi, etc. Several gifts from each milestone year are Penn State-branded items—including the Penn State chair (available as a gift choice for the 25 year milestone).

Gifts are available for anniversaries from five to 50 years of employment. Employees are eligible for recognition for every five-year interval until they retire or depart from Penn State.

Unfortunately, IRS regulations prevent us from converting a tangible gift to a cash equivalent. While the tangible, employee achievement award is not taxable to the employee, a cash equivalent distribution would be subject to payroll taxes to the employee. Keep in mind that you do not have to redeem a gift.

You can create a rule in Outlook to manage these emails. For example, you can have them moved to a dedicated folder in your inbox, flagged, or labeled and color coded for improved visibility in your inbox. Follow the steps below or watch this short video.

1. In Outlook select the settings icon in the top right corner of your screen
2. Select "Mail" and then "Rules" from the menu.
3. Select "Add New Rule".
4. In the first box, enter the name for your rule (i.e.; Years of Service recognition requests)
5. In the "Add a Condition" box drop down menu select "From"
6. Enter the email address "appreciate@octanner.com"
7. In the "Add an Action" box drop down menu select how you'd like to handle the email.

For example - you can move it to a dedicated email folder, flag the emails, indicate importance, or color code them using the category option.