Unlimited PTO etiquette

[Anonymous]

It was called unlimited, but that was just marketing.

The actual rule was that you had to get anything the boss assigned finished by the boss's deadline (and that deadline might or might not be reasonable).

So that meant one really only could take PTO for maybe 2 weeks at Xmas and one week during the summer. Lots of night and weekend work to make the deadlines. If one got sick, those deadlines did not push to the right. Net net it was worse than just having 15 days of PTO.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op here - just vacation. They were really proud to tell the team that they worked through having COVID instead of taking time.

I guess I’m just old but taking time off for having a fever seems like what unlimited PTO should be used for.

I don’t want to be catty. I really just don’t know how much time I should be taking. I’m used to pretty strict caps on PTO and use it/lose it.

My husband just started a job with unlimited PTO and his plan is to roughly use as much PTO as he had in previous jobs - his last job had 4 weeks, so he won't feel bad taking 4 weeks off over the course of a year. We're well aware that companies offer unlimited PTO because it's rare for someone to take more than 4 weeks off in a year, and this way they don't have to pay out accrued PTO. I personally have a ton of accrued PTO so we plan to take two good vacations this year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m a stodgy elder Millennia. New company has “unlimited PTO.”

How much time off is actually reasonable? Expected?

Trying to MMOB but employee who started at the same time has taken 6 weeks off in a 4 month period. Non consecutive like work 2 weeks, take a week off.

I’ve taken 2 days for being sick.

Years of limited PTO makes me fearful of taking time. Clearly I’m doing it wrong. What’s the norm?

My company has unlimited PTO, but in the last few years amended the policy to say that after taking 30 days off in a year you should check in with your manager before taking additional time off. I see 30 days at the limit. We also get 11-12 federal holidays plus 3-4 additional days between Christmas and New Year. Additionally, in the US we have 10 sick days in addition to bereavement leave and 24 weeks of maternity leave for women.

This will get them a lawsuit. I'm surprised they have leave limited to one gender.

That PP is probably wrong. It's probably parental leave.

[Anonymous]

My DH has been unlimited for years. I’m a fed with 10 sick days and 26 vacation days (and 11 holidays) per year. DH takes fewer full says than I do but does more of the covering children’s appointments, leaving early to drive them to soccer etc. He sometimes makes up this time at night or on weekends. He probably takes 20 days of leave a year for vacation, a few others if our kids are sick, and hours here and there that add up to a bit more leave.

[Anonymous]

It’s great if you have a great manager. My manager is awesome and it works. I’m a good manager too and my direct reports handle it well and we all have a good understanding. Unfortunately my manager’s manager is pretty terrible but it’s never been my problem… but I see how it can be bad or good depending on who your supervisor is.

[Anonymous]

Take whatever you're used to taking in other similar roles. I would assume 25 to 30 days annually is within the realm of norm. It doesn’t matter what youre doing with the days, so get over the sick vs vacation thing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am your age and similarly skeptical of unlimited PTO. My husband’s office has it and he seems to be cool with it, but it would really stress me out. Basically, since it feels like you need to justify it all the time, it ends up feeling like zero PTO.

I wouldn’t say this as a blanket rule or anything, but since you’re having trouble adjusting, here’s what I would do: Start from what PTO you had before the rule change. Let’s say it was 15 vacation days, 3 personal days, and 6 sick days (that’s what I have now). Unlimited is supposed to be a benefit, right? So add in a few days. I always just thought of personal days as vacation days, so that’s 18. So, give yourself a couple extra, that’s 20. 6 sick days was tight some years, so let’s say 8. Then I’d track my days and take 20 vacation days and up to eight sick days a year.

This works both ways - it would both stop me from using too many days, and encourage me to take more days if I had them because in my head they’d be use it or lose it. And it’s pretty stress free because there is no way that they can reasonably make a case that you’re not working enough if you literally only take 4 extra days than you were.

Just one way to think about it!

NP here. This is how I look at it. I was at 4 weeks annual leave when we implemented unlimited PTO a few years ago. I'd be at 6 now. So, I take roughly six. We are a smaller private firm and also get all federal holidays. It's rare that I take unplanned leave. And it is expected that we communicate with our project teams about planned leave. We have no issues, though there are a few folks who don't take off what they should. But they are encouraged by their manager.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m a stodgy elder Millennia. New company has “unlimited PTO.”

How much time off is actually reasonable? Expected?

Trying to MMOB but employee who started at the same time has taken 6 weeks off in a 4 month period. Non consecutive like work 2 weeks, take a week off.

I’ve taken 2 days for being sick.

Years of limited PTO makes me fearful of taking time. Clearly I’m doing it wrong. What’s the norm?

My company has unlimited PTO, but in the last few years amended the policy to say that after taking 30 days off in a year you should check in with your manager before taking additional time off. I see 30 days at the limit. We also get 11-12 federal holidays plus 3-4 additional days between Christmas and New Year. Additionally, in the US we have 10 sick days in addition to bereavement leave and 24 weeks of maternity leave for women.

Lots of companies only give it for women. But let you use a combo of STD/LTD/Sick Days and FMLA. My wife got six months off when she gave birth this way. The man did not give birth to anything.

[Anonymous]

My kid has only had unlimited PTO since she graduated college. Only difference she takes her laptop on vacation or when she visits us. Once in a while there is ameeting that happens she cant miss or give an update. Big deal.

There is not clear line in sand between vacation day and work with unlimited.

[Anonymous]

If you're sick, take off. If you are working from home and the cold/covid is mild, working may not be that difficult. If they are going into the office and infecting others, that's obnoxious.