Requirements Catalogue
Employee Leave Management — Everything ReqMind has discovered for this project so far.
Review summary
- Total findings
- 36
- Confirmed
- 0
- Needs clarification
- 0
- Unresolved contradictions
- 0
- Open questions
- 11
Needs review
What still needs a human decision — not a completeness score.
- REQ-001 — Employee submits leave request online
- REQ-002 — Manager approves or rejects leave request
- REQ-003 — HR can view all approved leave
- Q-001 — Leave types and rules not specified
- Q-002 — Approver assignment mechanism unclear
- MR-001 — No leave balance/entitlement rule defined
- MR-002 — No notification requirement defined
- BR-001 — Leave requests auto-route to direct manager
- Q-003 — No delegation/escalation rule for unavailable manager
- BR-002 — Escalation to next-level manager when direct manager unavailable
- Q-004 — Unavailability detection and escalation timing/trigger undefined
- BR-003 — Manager unavailability defined by approved leave or 2-working-day inaction
- Q-005 — Multi-level escalation chain and fallback undefined
- BR-004 — HR is final escalation fallback after skip-level manager inaction
- Q-006 — HR's role/authority when acting as final fallback approver is undefined
- BR-005 — HR acts as direct approver with manager-equivalent authority at final fallback
- BR-006 — Employee and skip-level manager notified on HR escalation
- BR-007 — Four leave types supported: annual, sick, unpaid, emergency
- BR-008 — Annual leave balance check enforced at submission
- Q-007 — Balance/entitlement rules for sick, unpaid, and emergency leave undefined
- BR-009 — Sick leave has separate entitlement and requires doctor's note
- BR-010 — Unpaid leave has no balance/entitlement check
- Q-008 — Doctor's note submission timing and enforcement for sick leave undefined
- Q-009 — Sick leave entitlement amount/limits and emergency leave rules still undefined
- BR-011 — Sick leave stays pending until doctor's note provided, uploadable at or after submission
- Q-010 — No maximum grace period defined for sick leave doctor's note submission
- BR-012 — Doctor's note grace period is 3 working days, auto-reject if not met
- BR-013 — Manager can override insufficient balance for emergency leave
- BR-014 — Emergency leave tracked separately with no deduction from annual balance, no documentation, not retroactive
- BR-015 — Emergency leave capped at 5 working days per calendar year
- BR-016 — Emergency leave requests exceeding remaining cap are rejected in full, not partially approved
- EX-001 — Exceptional override of emergency leave cap requires manager justification and HR approval
- Q-011 — Approval workflow and limits for exceptional emergency-cap override undefined
Requirements (3)
- REQ-001
Employee submits leave request online
DiscoveredMedium severityAI discovery
Employees can submit leave requests through an online system.
Evidence
- “We need an employee leave management system. Employees should submit leave requests online. Their managers approve or reject them, and HR should be able to see all approved leave.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
- REQ-002
Manager approves or rejects leave request
DiscoveredHigh severityAI discovery
The employee's manager reviews submitted leave requests and either approves or rejects them.
Evidence
- “We need an employee leave management system. Employees should submit leave requests online. Their managers approve or reject them, and HR should be able to see all approved leave.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
- REQ-003
HR can view all approved leave
DiscoveredMedium severityAI discovery
HR staff have visibility into all leave requests that have been approved across the organization.
Evidence
- “We need an employee leave management system. Employees should submit leave requests online. Their managers approve or reject them, and HR should be able to see all approved leave.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
Business Rules (16)
- BR-001
Leave requests auto-route to direct manager
DiscoveredMedium severityAI discovery
When an employee submits a leave request, it is automatically routed to the employee's direct manager for approval, based on the organization's reporting line (org chart).
Evidence
- “The request is automatically routed to the employee's direct manager based on the organization's reporting line.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
Relationships
- Clarifies Q-002 — Approver assignment mechanism unclear
- BR-002
Escalation to next-level manager when direct manager unavailable
DiscoveredMedium severityAI discovery
If the employee's direct manager is unavailable (on leave, absent, or role vacant), the leave request automatically escalates to the manager's own manager (skip-level) rather than waiting indefinitely for the direct manager's action.
Evidence
- “If the direct manager is unavailable, the request should automatically escalate to the manager's own manager. It should not wait indefinitely.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
- BR-003
Manager unavailability defined by approved leave or 2-working-day inaction
DiscoveredMedium severityAI discovery
A manager is considered unavailable for approval purposes when either (a) they are on approved leave, or (b) they have not acted on a pending leave request within 2 working days. Either condition triggers automatic escalation to the manager's own manager (skip-level).
Evidence
- “A manager is considered unavailable when they are on approved leave or when they have not acted on the request within 2 working days. In either case, the request should automatically escalate to the manager's own manager.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
- BR-004
HR is final escalation fallback after skip-level manager inaction
DiscoveredMedium severityAI discovery
After escalation to the skip-level manager, that manager receives a fresh 2-working-day window to act. If the skip-level manager is also unavailable (on approved leave) or does not act within that window, the leave request escalates to HR, which acts as the final fallback. No further automatic escalation occurs beyond HR.
Evidence
- “The skip-level manager gets a fresh 2-working-day window. If they are also unavailable or do not act within that period, the request is escalated to HR. HR is the final fallback and there is no further automatic escalation.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
- BR-005
HR acts as direct approver with manager-equivalent authority at final fallback
DiscoveredMedium severityAI discovery
When a leave request escalates to HR as the final fallback approver, HR can directly approve or reject the request with the same authority as a manager. No reassignment to another approver occurs.
Evidence
- “HR acts as the final approver and can directly approve or reject the request. When the request is escalated to HR, the employee and the skip-level manager are both notified. No reassignment or further escalation is required.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
- BR-006
Employee and skip-level manager notified on HR escalation
DiscoveredLow severityAI discovery
When a leave request escalates to HR (final fallback), both the employee and the skip-level manager are notified of the escalation.
Evidence
- “HR acts as the final approver and can directly approve or reject the request. When the request is escalated to HR, the employee and the skip-level manager are both notified. No reassignment or further escalation is required.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
Relationships
- Clarifies Q-006 — HR's role/authority when acting as final fallback approver is undefined
- BR-007
Four leave types supported: annual, sick, unpaid, emergency
DiscoveredMedium severityAI discovery
The system must support four distinct leave types: annual, sick, unpaid, and emergency leave.
Evidence
- “We have annual, sick, unpaid, and emergency leave. For annual leave, each employee has an available leave balance. The system must check the balance when the employee submits the request, and employees cannot request more annual-leave days than their available balance.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
- BR-008
Annual leave balance check enforced at submission
DiscoveredHigh severityAI discovery
Each employee has an available annual leave balance. When an employee submits an annual leave request, the system must check this balance and prevent the employee from requesting more annual-leave days than are currently available.
Evidence
- “We have annual, sick, unpaid, and emergency leave. For annual leave, each employee has an available leave balance. The system must check the balance when the employee submits the request, and employees cannot request more annual-leave days than their available balance.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
- BR-009
Sick leave has separate entitlement and requires doctor's note
DiscoveredMedium severityAI discovery
Sick leave uses its own entitlement (separate from annual leave balance) and requires the employee to provide a doctor's note when requesting it.
Evidence
- “Sick leave has a separate entitlement and requires a doctor's note. Unpaid leave does not use a leave balance. Emergency leave is a separate leave type. For now, annual leave is the only type that must be blocked when the requested days exceed the employee's available balance.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
Relationships
- BR-010
Unpaid leave has no balance/entitlement check
DiscoveredLow severityAI discovery
Unpaid leave requests are not checked against any leave balance; employees can request unpaid leave without a balance constraint.
Evidence
- “Sick leave has a separate entitlement and requires a doctor's note. Unpaid leave does not use a leave balance. Emergency leave is a separate leave type. For now, annual leave is the only type that must be blocked when the requested days exceed the employee's available balance.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
Relationships
- Clarifies Q-007 — Balance/entitlement rules for sick, unpaid, and emergency leave undefined
- BR-011
Sick leave stays pending until doctor's note provided, uploadable at or after submission
DiscoveredMedium severityAI discovery
For sick leave, the doctor's note may be uploaded either at the time of submission or afterward, but it must be provided before the request can be finally approved. Until the note is provided, the request remains in a pending state and cannot be finally approved.
Evidence
- “The doctor's note can be uploaded when the sick leave request is submitted or afterward, but it must be provided before final approval. Until the note is provided, the request remains pending and cannot be finally approved.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
- BR-012
Doctor's note grace period is 3 working days, auto-reject if not met
DiscoveredMedium severityAI discovery
The employee must provide the doctor's note for a sick leave request within 3 working days from the time the request was submitted. If the note is not provided within this period, the system automatically rejects the request and notifies the employee.
Evidence
- “The doctor's note must be provided within 3 working days from the sick leave request. If it is not provided within that period, the request is automatically rejected and the employee is notified.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
- BR-013
Manager can override insufficient balance for emergency leave
DiscoveredMedium severityAI discovery
For emergency leave requests, the manager has discretion to approve the request even when the employee does not have sufficient leave balance available, unlike annual leave where insufficient balance blocks the request.
Evidence
- “For emergency leave, the manager can approve it even when the employee does not have enough balance.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
Relationships
- BR-014
Emergency leave tracked separately with no deduction from annual balance, no documentation, not retroactive
DiscoveredMedium severityAI discovery
Emergency leave is tracked as its own separate entitlement/category and does not deduct from or affect the employee's annual leave balance, even when approved despite insufficient annual balance. No supporting documentation is required for emergency leave. Emergency leave requests cannot be submitted retroactively (i.e., not after the employee has already been absent).
Evidence
- “Emergency leave is tracked separately and does not deduct from the employee's annual-leave balance. It can be approved even when the employee has no remaining annual-leave balance. No additional documentation is required, and it cannot be requested retroactively.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
- BR-015
Emergency leave capped at 5 working days per calendar year
DiscoveredMedium severityAI discovery
Emergency leave is limited to a maximum of 5 working days per calendar year per employee. Requests that would exceed this annual cap cannot be approved, even though emergency leave otherwise allows approval despite insufficient annual leave balance.
Evidence
- “Emergency leave is limited to 5 working days per calendar year. Any request beyond that limit cannot be approved.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
Relationships
- Clarifies BR-014 — Emergency leave tracked separately with no deduction from annual balance, no documentation, not retroactive
- Related to AMB-002 — Behavior when emergency leave request exceeds remaining annual cap (partial vs full block)
- Related to BR-016 — Emergency leave requests exceeding remaining cap are rejected in full, not partially approved
- BR-016
Emergency leave requests exceeding remaining cap are rejected in full, not partially approved
DiscoveredLow severityConflict resolved
Previously contradicted by CON-001 — Manager can exceptionally approve emergency leave beyond the 5-day cap, contradicting strict rejection rule
AI discovery
If a submitted emergency leave request would exceed the employee's remaining annual 5-working-day emergency leave allowance, the entire request is rejected. Partial approval for only the remaining allowed days is not permitted.
Evidence
- “The request cannot be partially approved. If the requested emergency leave would exceed the employee's remaining 5-day annual emergency-leave allowance, the entire request must be rejected.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
Relationships
- Clarifies AMB-002 — Behavior when emergency leave request exceeds remaining annual cap (partial vs full block)
- Related to BR-015 — Emergency leave capped at 5 working days per calendar year
- Has exception EX-001 — Exceptional override of emergency leave cap requires manager justification and HR approval
Exceptions (1)
- EX-001
Exceptional override of emergency leave cap requires manager justification and HR approval
DiscoveredHigh severityAI discovery
The 5-working-day annual emergency leave cap remains the normal rule. In exceptional emergency situations, a request exceeding the remaining allowance may still be fully approved, but only if: (1) the manager approves the request, (2) the manager provides written justification, and (3) HR gives final approval. If HR approval and/or written justification are not obtained, any request exceeding the remaining 5-day allowance must be rejected in full per the standard rule.
Evidence
- “The 5-day cap is the normal rule. In exceptional emergency situations, the cap may be exceeded only if the manager approves the request and HR gives final approval. The manager must provide a written justification. Without HR approval and justification, any request exceeding the remaining 5-day allowance must be rejected.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
Missing Rules (2)
- MR-001
No leave balance/entitlement rule defined
DiscoveredHigh severityAI discovery
There is no stated rule for how leave balances or entitlements are calculated, tracked, or enforced when an employee submits a request.
Evidence
- “We need an employee leave management system. Employees should submit leave requests online. Their managers approve or reject them, and HR should be able to see all approved leave.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
Relationships
- Clarified by BR-008 — Annual leave balance check enforced at submission
- MR-002
No notification requirement defined
DiscoveredLow severityAI discovery
There is no mention of whether employees, managers, or HR are notified of leave request submissions, approvals, or rejections.
Evidence
- “We need an employee leave management system. Employees should submit leave requests online. Their managers approve or reject them, and HR should be able to see all approved leave.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
Ambiguities (2)
- AMB-001
Unclear which balance (if any) emergency leave draws from when approved over-limit
ResolvedMedium severityAI discovery
It is unclear whether emergency leave approved despite insufficient balance deducts from/overdraws the annual leave balance (resulting in a negative balance), draws from a separate emergency leave entitlement, or has no balance tracking at all.
Evidence
- “For emergency leave, the manager can approve it even when the employee does not have enough balance.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
- AMB-002
Behavior when emergency leave request exceeds remaining annual cap (partial vs full block)
ResolvedLow severityAI discovery
It is unclear whether a request that would exceed the remaining portion of the 5-working-day annual emergency leave cap is rejected in full, or whether it can be partially approved up to the remaining allowed days.
Evidence
- “Emergency leave is limited to 5 working days per calendar year. Any request beyond that limit cannot be approved.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
Contradictions (1)
- CON-001
Manager can exceptionally approve emergency leave beyond the 5-day cap, contradicting strict rejection rule
ResolvedHigh severityConflict resolved
Previously contradicted BR-016 — Emergency leave requests exceeding remaining cap are rejected in full, not partially approved
AI discovery
The stakeholder previously stated that emergency leave requests exceeding the remaining 5-working-day annual cap must be rejected in full with no exceptions (BR-016). The latest statement says managers may approve the full request beyond the cap in 'exceptional emergency situations,' which directly contradicts the strict, no-exception rejection rule.
Evidence
- “In exceptional emergency situations, the manager may approve the full emergency leave request even if it exceeds the employee's remaining 5-day annual emergency-leave allowance.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
Relationships
- Related to EX-001 — Exceptional override of emergency leave cap requires manager justification and HR approval
Open Questions (11)
- Q-001
Leave types and rules not specified
DiscoveredMedium severityAI discovery
It is unclear whether the system needs to support multiple leave types (e.g., annual, sick, unpaid) with distinct rules, balances, or approval flows.
Evidence
- “We need an employee leave management system. Employees should submit leave requests online. Their managers approve or reject them, and HR should be able to see all approved leave.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
Relationships
- Clarified by BR-007 — Four leave types supported: annual, sick, unpaid, emergency
- Q-002
Approver assignment mechanism unclear
DiscoveredMedium severityAI discovery
It is not specified how the system determines which manager is the approver for a given employee's leave request (e.g., fixed reporting line, configurable, delegation for absence).
Evidence
- “We need an employee leave management system. Employees should submit leave requests online. Their managers approve or reject them, and HR should be able to see all approved leave.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
Relationships
- Clarified by BR-001 — Leave requests auto-route to direct manager
- Q-003
No delegation/escalation rule for unavailable manager
DiscoveredMedium severityAI discovery
It is unclear what happens to a leave request if the employee's direct manager is unavailable (on leave, absent, or role vacant) — whether it escalates, waits, or can be delegated to a backup approver.
Evidence
- “The request is automatically routed to the employee's direct manager based on the organization's reporting line.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
Relationships
- Clarified by BR-002 — Escalation to next-level manager when direct manager unavailable
- Q-004
Unavailability detection and escalation timing/trigger undefined
DiscoveredMedium severityAI discovery
It is unclear how the system determines that a direct manager is 'unavailable' (e.g., manager's own approved leave record, a timeout after a set number of days with no action, or manual escalation) and what the exact time threshold or trigger is before escalation to the skip-level manager occurs.
Evidence
- “If the direct manager is unavailable, the request should automatically escalate to the manager's own manager. It should not wait indefinitely.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
Relationships
- Depends on BR-002 — Escalation to next-level manager when direct manager unavailable
- Q-005
Multi-level escalation chain and fallback undefined
DiscoveredMedium severityAI discovery
It is unclear whether the 2-working-day timeout also applies at the skip-level manager stage, whether escalation can continue further up the chain if the skip-level manager is also unavailable, and what happens if escalation reaches the top of the org chart with no available approver (e.g., HR override or approval).
Evidence
- “A manager is considered unavailable when they are on approved leave or when they have not acted on the request within 2 working days. In either case, the request should automatically escalate to the manager's own manager.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
- Q-006
HR's role/authority when acting as final fallback approver is undefined
DiscoveredMedium severityAI discovery
It is unclear whether HR, when a request escalates to them as final fallback, approves/rejects the request directly with manager-equivalent authority, reassigns it to another approver, or takes some other action. Also unclear whether affected parties (employee, escalated managers) are notified when HR-level escalation occurs.
Evidence
- “The skip-level manager gets a fresh 2-working-day window. If they are also unavailable or do not act within that period, the request is escalated to HR. HR is the final fallback and there is no further automatic escalation.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
- Q-007
Balance/entitlement rules for sick, unpaid, and emergency leave undefined
DiscoveredMedium severityAI discovery
It is unclear whether sick, unpaid, and emergency leave have balances/entitlements that are checked similarly to annual leave, whether they are unlimited, or whether they have other constraints (e.g., documentation requirements, maximum consecutive days).
Evidence
- “We have annual, sick, unpaid, and emergency leave. For annual leave, each employee has an available leave balance. The system must check the balance when the employee submits the request, and employees cannot request more annual-leave days than their available balance.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
- Q-008
Doctor's note submission timing and enforcement for sick leave undefined
DiscoveredMedium severityAI discovery
It is unclear when the doctor's note must be provided for sick leave (at submission vs. afterward) and what happens if it is not provided — e.g., request rejected, held pending, or approved provisionally.
Evidence
- “Sick leave has a separate entitlement and requires a doctor's note. Unpaid leave does not use a leave balance. Emergency leave is a separate leave type. For now, annual leave is the only type that must be blocked when the requested days exceed the employee's available balance.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
Relationships
- Related to BR-009 — Sick leave has separate entitlement and requires doctor's note
- Q-009
Sick leave entitlement amount/limits and emergency leave rules still undefined
DiscoveredMedium severityAI discovery
The size/period of the sick leave entitlement (e.g., annual cap, accrual) is not specified, and emergency leave has no stated balance, documentation, or approval rule at all — it's unclear if it's unlimited, capped, or requires special handling.
Evidence
- “Sick leave has a separate entitlement and requires a doctor's note. Unpaid leave does not use a leave balance. Emergency leave is a separate leave type. For now, annual leave is the only type that must be blocked when the requested days exceed the employee's available balance.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
- Q-010
No maximum grace period defined for sick leave doctor's note submission
DiscoveredLow severityAI discovery
It is unclear whether there is a maximum time limit for the employee to upload the doctor's note before the request auto-rejects or expires, or whether the request can remain pending indefinitely until the note is eventually provided.
Evidence
- “The doctor's note can be uploaded when the sick leave request is submitted or afterward, but it must be provided before final approval. Until the note is provided, the request remains pending and cannot be finally approved.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.
- Q-011
Approval workflow and limits for exceptional emergency-cap override undefined
DiscoveredMedium severityAI discovery
It is unclear whether the exceptional override (manager approval + written justification + HR final approval) follows the same routing/escalation and notification mechanism as standard requests, or requires a distinct workflow/form. It is also unclear whether there is any limit on the size or frequency of such overrides (e.g., maximum extra days allowed, maximum number of times per year an employee can use this exception).
Evidence
- “The 5-day cap is the normal rule. In exceptional emergency situations, the cap may be exceeded only if the manager approves the request and HR gives final approval. The manager must provide a written justification. Without HR approval and justification, any request exceeding the remaining 5-day allowance must be rejected.”
Human decision
Awaiting human review.