The Office of Human Resources is starting the new year with a new, more convenient method of tracking vacation, sick leave and other time off. Penn State's online attendance system officially launches this week for staff employees at all University locations.

The new system gives staff employees the ability to enter time off and view vacation and sick leave balances online. In addition, non-exempt staff employees will use the system to enter hours worked. Staff employees will need to enter the ending balances from their 2005 attendance cards for an initial setup of the online system. New paper cards will not be distributed to staff employees.

The new attendance system is accessible via the Employee Self Service Information Center (ESSIC) at http://www.ohr.psu.edu/essic online. This is the same site employees use to choose health-care benefits, update personal data and access payroll information.

"The new online system completes all calculations and allows employees easier access to their attendance records and vacation balances," said Billie S. Willits, associate vice president for human resources. "By incorporating the system into the Employee Self-Service Information Center, the Office of Human Resources is working toward its goal of creating one convenient online destination for all human resources-related activities."

The Office of Human Resources launched a pilot version of the online system in June. Since then many enhancements have been added at the request of Penn State staff, supervisors and human resources representatives. Additional features are planned for this year.

Those employees who serve as supervisors also will use the online system in its supervisor mode. Some Penn State departments have opened the online system to technical service employees. Employees in technical service positions should check with their human resources representatives to determine if their unit has adopted the online system.