Encourage PTO use

Aurora IL

According to our policy, if you don't use your PTO by the end of the year it is forfeited.

We currently have an employee who has been with the company for 11 years and year after year he forfeits his PTO. We only pay out PTO in cases of termination.

Is there any way we can encourage this employee to take time off, short of forcing him?

FunHRBanker

Do you have any state laws about consecutive days off? In WI, employees who earn at least 1 week of vacation must take 5 consecutive days off.

Susan in La

You may have to "force him." Tell him he must take off so many days before a certain time (late November, for example) and if he doesn't schedule them by July 1 you will schedule them for him. Some people are afraid to take off because they fear you will realize you can get along without them. It's not good for him to never take off, and someone else needs to know his job in the event of a permanent vacation some day.

Aurora IL

His manager also suggested we "force" him to use his PTO but we weren't sure if there were any laws against that.

Rockie

I don't think there is any problem with implementing a policy that requires employees to take "x" number of days off a year. Employees who don't mind "forfeiting" vacation time is a REAL big red flag. If they were accruing and allowing leave to roll over until the next year, I can understand,but I can't comprehend any employee just accepting losing it.

If this person has a position of any authority, I'd start auditing his work. I smell a rat somewhere.

SMace

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 05-28-08 AT 06:56AM (CST)[/font][br][br]HUH???? I guess this is a state wage and hour law? Where can I find this?

edit: this reply is to FunBanker.

NaeNae55

I have an accounting background and your question raised a big red flag for me. I remember a case where a state worker received lots of kudos for never taking time off. She got all kinds of awards, etc etc. After nearly 40 years she was forced to take off a few weeks for surgery. Shortly after her release from the hospital she was arrested for theft.

Sometimes people refuse to take time off because they know if they do you will find their misdeeds. The employee I mentioned managed to steal nearly $1 million during her work years. She did it a little at a time, but it required her to be the one doing all the paperwork. That is why most audit firms will tell you to require at least one week (5 consecutive business days) off every year from everyone who has anything to do with money.

This employee's behavior is suspicious to me. If he has no place to go or no money to spend on a vacation, recommend he volunteer somewhere. Just get him out and have someone who knows what they are doing sit in on his job while he is gone.

Good luck!

Nae

cnghr

In FDIC-insured banks, there is a guideline that we operate under that says that bank employees should take ten consecutive days off per year, for exactly the reason mentioned by Nae. It's not a law, but it's a pretty firm guideline and we are periodically asked to account for who of our employees did not take ten consecutive days off in the previous year, by the FDIC examiners who do our audit.

I, too, find it suspicious when there's an employee who seems completely unwilling to take any time off. I know people whose life seems to consist of nothing but their work, but even they take time off once in a while and we don't have to force them.

FunHRBanker

FDIC auditors have never asked us for employees who did not take 10 consecutive days and we do not require it. We do require 5 consecutive days. I've always been told that 5 days is WI state law, but I'm looking to find the reg that states that.

Dutch2

Same here. The Fed's always want 10 consecutive days off, but the State is fine with only 5. So... we have gone with 5 consecutive days for several years with no problems.

stilldazed

I''m not in banking, but my sister is, and in Florida. She has worked at several banks over the years, and each bank as required at least 5 consecutive days off, and the vacationer knows that part of the purpose of the vacation is for an audit of his/her work. It's not a state law in Florida, except maybe in union/labor environments, and I'm not sure it is an industry requirement in banking. I get the idea from talking with her that it is more of a practice that has developed out of convenience. A thorough audit takes a few days, and it's generally easier if the audit encompasses consecutive days, hence a week off for the worker to accomodate the audit.

I agree that never, ever taking vacation is a red flag and may be a ploy to cover for something that your worker wishes would remain secret. I think I would counsel the worker, in a very friendly way, refer to company policy, the purpose of vacation time (R&R), the value of R&R in performance and productivity, and discuss the potential that it is your company's desire and best interest to optimize this worker's potential, which includes time away from work. I might even attempt an appeal to the practical side of the worker with the argument that the time off is essentially an unspent benefit being provided by your company that the worker is refusing to enjoy. It's like refusing money in a sense. I may even encourage partial days off as a start, a long weekend within a month, and encourage it to grow from there. In the meantime, I would definitely keep an acutely sharp eye on this worker's activities and might even schedule an after hours review of some of this worker's critical functions--desk inspection, review of emails, PC activity, etc.

best wishes,

Aurora IL

Thank you all for your help.
I have spoken to the manager and asked him to make sure the EE takes a minimum of 5 consecutive days off.

System

First time poster - please be kind
I work for a small community bank and our business insurance policy requires that each employee be off 5 working days in a row. If someone were caught embezzling and we could not prove we enforced the rule then our insurance carrier would be off the hook.

LindaS

Reply to FunHRBanker - there is no law in the state of WI regarding the requirement of taking 5 consecutive days off, although in your industry there may be some regulations to that issue but for general private employers, no such law exists.