By Kimberly Kafafian

 

As we enter the end of the year and many workers try to use, rather than lose, their paid time off (PTO), it’s the perfect time to address the difference between PTO and floating holidays. While both are forms of paid leave, it’s important to know the distinction between the two so you can build the right PTO policy for your organization. Below is a breakdown of both types of PTO, along with some FAQs.

What Is PTO?

PTO refers to all of the paid days off that employees can take from work, such as vacation, sick time, and personal days. Although the government does not require companies to provide PTO, this benefit has pretty much become standard among employers. The amount of PTO, however, varies as every organization sets their own PTO policies. 

There are two forms of PTO: fixed and unlimited. With fixed PTO, the employer sets the specific number of days, and the amount of PTO an employee receives is usually based on the length of time they have been with the company. For example, new hires may receive one week vacation, while a worker who has been with the company for ten years may receive four weeks.

With unlimited PTO, there is no cap on the amount of days you take off for vacation, sickness, or personal reasons. All days off come out of the same pot. In return for this generous benefit, workers are expected to keep up with their workload and not take off during busy times.

What Is a Floating Holiday?

A floating holiday is also referred to as an optional holiday. It’s a paid day off that each worker decides when to use. Providing floating holidays in addition to regular PTO is a great way to promote diversity and inclusion in the workplace as it allows you to accommodate different religions and cultures. For example, a worker may wish to use their floating holiday for days that are not typically federal holidays, such as for Kwanzaa or Good Friday. Or maybe they want to tack the floating holiday onto another paid holiday, like July 4th, to extend their time off. Perhaps they just want to use it as a personal day. The company sets the rules for floating holidays, and can include requiring specific reasons for taking the holiday, as well as blackout dates.

PTO and Floating Holiday 

In the course of helping companies develop their PTO policies, I’m often asked the following questions:

Do I need to pay employees for floating holidays they don’t use?

Whether or not an employer needs to pay for accrued floating holidays varies by state. Check with your HR team or general counsel to find out what your state requires.

Does unused PTO and floating holiday pay rollover?

Floating holidays do not roll over from one year into the next. If you don’t use them, you lose them. Whether or not an employee can rollover unused PTO hinges on the company’s policy.

Can I deny a floating holiday request?

Yes, it is up to the employer to approve PTO requests, and that includes floating holidays.

Stopping the Stigma and Increasing Support

By Kimberly Kafafian

 

If there was one good thing to come out of COVID, it was how it shone a light on mental health at work. Stress, fear, and anxiety pervaded our world. There is an epidemic of loneliness and sadness. The height of COVID served as the wake up call we needed to pay more attention to well being and how we can support it. While it did become a hot topic, especially in my world, I had hoped it would stem a much needed change in how mental health is viewed in the workplace. And though there has been some movement, there is room for more.

Recognizing how our workplaces play a significant role in our lives, in October of 2022, the U.S. Surgeon General released the Surgeon General’s Framework for Workplace Mental Health and Well-Being. The insightful 30-page resource provides a strong foundation for how organizations can build workplaces that are the engines of well being, and I encourage all leaders to refer to it as they create strategies to strengthen their own mental health initiatives.

Although the framework’s release is encouraging, and many organizations have recognized the need to do more to support their workers’ mental health in the afterlight of the pandemic, the American Psychological Association’s 2023 Work in America Survey indicates employers are not doing enough.

55% of the workers surveyed either strongly (21%) or somewhat (34%) agreed that their employer thinks their workplace environment is significantly mentally healthier than it actually is, and 43% said they were worried that telling their employer about a mental health condition would have a negative impact on them at work. The fear of discrimination is real and must be addressed.

The survey also indicates that workplace stress is still pervasive, with 77% of workers saying that they experienced work-related stress in the last month, and 57% reporting experiencing negative impacts of that stress that are sometimes related to burnout, including:

• Emotional exhaustion (31%)
• Not motivated to do their very best (26%)
• Desire to keep to yourself (25%)
• Desire to quit (23%)
• Decreased productivity (20%)
• Irritability or anger with coworkers and customers (19%)
• Feeling ineffective (18%)

The Importance of a Mentally Healthy Workforce

Mental health conditions are not just damaging to employees, they also harm the organization. Such untreated conditions cost American companies billions of dollars every year. For example, untreated depression can cost $9,000+ per employee, per year in absenteeism and lost productivity. Mental health conditions are also tied to physical ailments, such as diabetes and high blood pressure, which also result in lost work days and increased insurance costs.

Workplace stigma around mental health prevents many employees from seeking the help of co-workers or managers. They don’t want to be seen as lazy, unproductive, weak, or worse, be discriminated against. This can lead to decreased productivity and compound any mental health issues, leading to an endless cycle, as well as increased turnover.

How to Stop the Stigma and Increase Support

Create a Culture that Encourages Open Communication

Let employees know that you value their mental health and are taking steps to proactively support it. Devise initiatives that focus on the importance of well being and changing minds/behaviors around the stigma of mental health.

Offer Mental Health Resources

In addition to mental health benefits (according to the APA survey only 43% of employers do so), you can offer counseling services and support groups. Promote a better work-life balance with flexible work schedules and more paid time off.

Train Leadership

Teach managers and supervisors how to recognize signs of mental health issues, provide support, and direct employees to resources.

Develop Mental Health Policies

Outline how you focus on mental health in your workplace, support employees struggling with mental health challenges, and address mental health discrimination. It is important to note that the EEOC is coming down on companies who are discriminating against workers because they have a mental health condition. 

A mentally healthy workplace can help reduce absenteeism, bolster productivity, and increase retention, as well as attract top talent. With workplace mental health and the bottom line being so intertwined, employers need to make it a priority. The stigma and discrimination around mental health must end.

Engagement is a popular topic among business leaders right now, which is no surprise as the term is strongly tied to talent attraction and retention, productivity, creativity, and innovation. As fractional HR professionals specializing in talent management, clients often turn to us to assist them with their engagement strategy. While fostering workplace autonomy, better communication, and recognition all help to boost engagement, we advise them that one of the most important actions they can take is investing in employee growth and development.

We have all too often witnessed workers becoming frustrated when employers don’t provide or support a path toward advancement. They feel if the company doesn’t care enough to invest in them, why should they invest themselves in benefitting the company. These feelings are quite damaging to the organization, as they can lead to a negative culture, quiet quitting, and turnover – all impacting the bottom line.

Guild’s American Worker Survey revealed that workers are leaving their jobs because of lack of support in career advancement. They found that 41 percent of those who quit between April 2021 to April 2022 did so because of lack of development and advancement opportunities, and 74% said they would be “very likely” or “somewhat likely” to leave their current employer if they were offered another job with additional education and career opportunities.

Other numbers further underscore the imperative that employers focus on bolstering learning and development benefits. According to MetLife’s 2023 U.S. Employee Benefit Trends study, 35% of employees rate learning and development among the top three elements of the employee experience, with only 58% of employees saying they are satisfied with the professional growth and training opportunities offered by their employers.

The Support You Provide Employees in Advancing their Skills and Careers Matters

The statistics above indicate that focusing on career development is vital to the success and growth of your business. So how can you demonstrate to employees that you care about their professional success?

• Show interest in their career goals – listen to their aspirations and develop a strategy that helps to achieve them by defining a personalized career development path
• Offer a wide range of training, learning, and upskilling opportunities – provide the ability to help improve existing skill sets, train in other areas, pursue degrees or licenses, stay up to date on the latest industry trends, and reskill (which AI has made inevitable)
• Think beyond hard skills – soft skills are so important to improve the ability to work as part of a team, so expand your L&D offerings to include them
• Foster a mentoring environment – the advice gleaned from mentors that can be applied towards advancement is invaluable 

The return on investment and competitive advantage businesses can gain from career growth opportunities is huge. If you would like assistance with your learning and development initiatives, schedule a free consultation.

By Dan Darabaris

 

How competitive is your company’s paid leave? Do you have the right package to attract and keep the best workers? Paid time off can make a difference in recruiting and retaining top talent. Whether you offer it, and the length of it, can impact whether a candidate not only accepts a job offer, but if they even apply for the position in the first place, as well as if your workers stay with the organization for the long haul.

As an HR benefits specialist, I recommend to my clients that they assess the types of paid leave their competitors are offering, as well as ask employees the paid time off policies they would like to see implemented. This two-fold approach not only helps you remain competitive, but also identifies what matters most to your employees so you can build a happy workforce.

Below are the types of paid leave you should consider when creating, or modifying, your benefits packages.

Paid Leave Benefit Options

Vacation Time

This is probably the most popular paid time off benefit. It is up to you how you want to structure it. Typically, employees accrue vacation time based on hours worked or on a pay period basis, starting either immediately or after an introduction period.The amount of days off can increase with each year worked. Your employee handbook should include the rules around when and how employees accrue and can take vacation time, including notification periods.

Personal Days

There are times when workers need to take a day off for reasons other than vacation or being sick, such as a medical appointment, family emergency, moving, car issues, jury duty, etc. Personal days accommodate for these time off needs. They can also be used when a worker runs out of sick days. 

Sick Days

This type of paid leave benefit is for when the worker or a family member they care for are ill. Depending upon where your business or employees are located, you may be required to offer this benefit. Rules vary per state and may also include reasons other than illness, such as school events and “Safe Leave”, for victims of harassment and abuse. It’s important to check each state in which you have employees to make sure you are compliant. As of September 30, 2023, the following states have paid sick time laws: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, along with Washington D.C.. Many cities and counties have also passed their own paid sick time mandates.

Holidays

Most companies offer paid time off for specific holidays, especially Memorial Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas. I typically recommend that my clients offer paid time off for the federal holidays, which helps them remain competitive. You can also offer floating holidays, such as when a major holiday falls on a weekend, that workers can use any day during the year. 

Bereavement

To help cope with the loss of a loved one or friend, you may want to consider offering paid time off for bereavement. The amount of time given can depend on the relationship to the deceased.. 

Family Leave

Depending upon where your employees are located, you may be required to offer protected paid family leave for birth, adoption, foster care placement, or, to care for a spouse/child/parent with a health condition. As of September 30, 2023, the following states mandate a form of paid family leave: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, and Washington D.C. Some cities also have family leave requirements. These benefits are paid through a state fund that both the employee and employer contribute to, and therefore are paid directly from the state, not the employer.

Jury Duty

While workers get a stipend to be a juror, the amount is quite minimal – and not all jurisdictions pay. You may want to offer to pay your workers their regular wages while they are out for mandated jury duty. In fact, some states require you to do so. 

Voting Time

To encourage voter participation, consider offering a few hours of paid time off on election days. Workers will appreciate being able to vote during less busy hours. Most states mandate that voting time is paid, usually up to two hours.

Community Service

Many workers, particularly younger ones, want to make a difference in their communities. Offering some paid time off to perform community service could be enticing.

Unlimited PTO

Some companies are combining sick, personal and vacation days into unlimited paid time off (PTO). If you are thinking about this system, it’s important to consider how you are going to manage it. It’s important to note that while combining sick leave with other forms of PTO is easier to manage, all time then must be in compliance with the state sick leave laws. 

Whichever types of paid leave you decide to offer your workers, be sure to outline who receives them, along with the qualifications necessary for receiving and using them, in your employee handbook.

Monarch can provide an HR Compliance audit to make sure that all leave offerings are compliant on both the State and Federal levels.