Unlimited vacation?

I've read about some big companies like IBM doing this and being a total success. Does anyone here have this benefit?

Give Your Employees Unlimited Vacation Days | Inc.com

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TLeTourneau

I does really depend on a few things, I think. I started with 28 days PTO including six holidays, it goes to 33 days after two years. I also have 520 hours of short term disability. If we get sick the first 16 hours comes out of PTO then we shift to short term disability. We are allowed to bank up to 1.5x our annual maximum and can sell back PTO at our normal rate.

whatthehell

Nice article. Sheesh, wish my company did that!

Zartanasaurus

Turgon wrote: »

Companies should do this anyway. We are adults. Professionals take their work responsibilities very seriously indeed, at the same time they have responsibilities at home. Just have a good HR department and a good work culture and there are no major problems.

The ratio of unprofessional to professional employees is something like 100,000:1 IMO.

Zartanasaurus

I get 12 days of vacation per year + about the same in sick leave.

cxzar20

We get unlimited sick/personal days as well as 3 weeks vacation and all Holidays off. I would never work for an employer who was a slave driver when it comes to these things.

Turgon

Some comparisons of holiday entitlement for employees around the world. Also a lively discussion.

Daily chart: The idlers | The Economist

veritas_libertas

jmritenour wrote: »

Meh, I hardly ever take vacation, so I end up being forced to use them or lose them. I don't know what I'd do if I got more than my current 2 weeks a year.

My company eliminated "use it or lose it" several years ago. I could hold on to more than 40hrs, but I always seem to end up using it...

erpadmin

veritas_libertas wrote: »

My company eliminated "use it or lose it" several years ago. I could hold on to more than 40hrs, but I always seem to end up using it...

Do you mean that you can hold on to your vacation time indefinitely? I know that for me, I can rollover a year's worth (15 days) once...but I have to use that time the following year or else I lose that.

If your job allows for vacation to be rolled over indefinitely, that's sweet. Only Comp Time and sick days get that treatment at my job....but not vacation.

tpatt100

My wife gets two weeks vacation per year but the one benefit she gets that I wish I had was forty hours of "family medical leave" which she can use an hour or two or a whole day for family medical issues. Having a two year old its nice for doctor's appointments so she doesn't have to use vacation or her own sick days. At my last job we had unlimited personal days but they kept track of it so "unlimited" was not really a rule per se. Year end bonuses reflected it which I think is fair to those who don't have kids or kids who don't get sick a lot lol.

Not sure I am sold on the right to work state idea though. Corporations swallowing up so much of the competition its getting harder for the average joe to just "get another job" if their current situation is bad. I think some companies understand the cost savings of just losing employees on a regular basis vs retaining people.

veritas_libertas

erpadmin wrote: »

Do you mean that you can hold on to your vacation time indefinitely? I know that for me, I can rollover a year's worth (15 days) once...but I have to use that time the following year or else I lose that.

If your job allows for vacation to be rolled over indefinitely, that's sweet. Only Comp Time and sick days get that treatment at my job....but not vacation.

There are some catches. Everything is thrown under time off. In other words, any sick time, holidays, etc. It still works out nicely though.

powerfool

demonfurbie wrote: »

its a right to work state by state law they do not have to give you any vacation time/sick time/pay increases

That isn't even what "Right to Work" is about. "Right to Work" simply means that unions cannot compel you to be a member or collect dues from you even if the workplace is unionized. That's it.

EDIT: For what it's worth, my state has been trying to pass RTW legislation for the past two years... I am very excited about the prospect of its passage. The opposition is spouting a bunch of FUD, claiming that it is an attack on workers... but considering that union membership is already at an all-time low, I cannot see it any other way than the opposite of that. Unions don't represent me and I hope to NEVER work in a unionized workplace... I should not be forced to become a union member because of a job that I want or pay dues to them that they are going to use to support political candidates that I don't support. That is all unions are anymore, Political Action Committees (PACs).

powerfool

I can currently accrue up to 200 hours of PTO. I am currently burning a little each month. The thing is, I never end up really using any because we have flex time and we can work from home some. So, if I am going to take a day off, I just work an hour or two (or more) from home that day... then, I work extra on other days in that pay period. It is more like an emergency fund, than anything, for me... if the job goes bye bye, I have 200 hours of pay, on top of whatever severance pay that they would give.

powerfool

demonfurbie wrote: »

here in alabama they treat ya like crap on vacation ... last i checked i get 5 days a year and no sick time

Just get a better job. It all depends on the company... and I have been able to negotiate additional PTO days at my last three employers, so I got more than company policy.

Instead of worrying about someone else taking care of you, stand up for yourself.

petedude

lordy wrote: »

I for one would love to have unlimited unpaid vacation. It would allow me to spend the winter in some sunny place and really take a time-out when you need it instead of running on empty until your next vacation.

I love the idea too, but there's a dark side: what do you have to do to "earn" that vacation? How much will you have to kill yourself so coworkers, supervisors, etc. consider you "worthy" of that time off? I can envision scenarios where I might have tons of work waiting for me upon my return, so much so I couldn't enjoy the time off. . .

tpatt100

powerfool wrote: »

That isn't even what "Right to Work" is about. "Right to Work" simply means that unions cannot compel you to be a member or collect dues from you even if the workplace is unionized. That's it.

EDIT: For what it's worth, my state has been trying to pass RTW legislation for the past two years... I am very excited about the prospect of its passage. The opposition is spouting a bunch of FUD, claiming that it is an attack on workers... but considering that union membership is already at an all-time low, I cannot see it any other way than the opposite of that. Unions don't represent me and I hope to NEVER work in a unionized workplace... I should not be forced to become a union member because of a job that I want or pay dues to them that they are going to use to support political candidates that I don't support. That is all unions are anymore, Political Action Committees (PACs).

I worked in two places with unions and I work in a RTW state and never heard of being able to turn down being a union member.

edit: nvm I'm an idiot Michigan is not RTW...

Then again at one of my jobs that was unionized we had Blue Cross for five dollars a week family plan. Never saw a benefit like that ever again.

powerfool

tpatt100 wrote: »

...Then again at one of my jobs that was unionized we had Blue Cross for five dollars a week family plan. Never saw a benefit like that ever again.

At my first job, I had Aetna PPO and I had no premiums, no co-pays, and no deductible... and it wasn't a union shop. Of course, insurance costs are going up... and it isn't because of the insurance companies... it is the providers that keep raising their prices (which has its own causes, good, bad, or indifferent).

tpatt100

powerfool wrote: »

At my first job, I had Aetna PPO and I had no premiums, no co-pays, and no deductible... and it wasn't a union shop. Of course, insurance costs are going up... and it isn't because of the insurance companies... it is the providers that keep raising their prices (which has its own causes, good, bad, or indifferent).

At my last job we worked 9 hour days and took every other Friday off. I would kill for that bennie again, made scheduling appointments so easy.

erpadmin

powerfool wrote: »

That isn't even what "Right to Work" is about. "Right to Work" simply means that unions cannot compel you to be a member or collect dues from you even if the workplace is unionized. That's it.

EDIT: For what it's worth, my state has been trying to pass RTW legislation for the past two years... I am very excited about the prospect of its passage. The opposition is spouting a bunch of FUD, claiming that it is an attack on workers... but considering that union membership is already at an all-time low, I cannot see it any other way than the opposite of that. Unions don't represent me and I hope to NEVER work in a unionized workplace... I should not be forced to become a union member because of a job that I want or pay dues to them that they are going to use to support political candidates that I don't support. That is all unions are anymore, Political Action Committees (PACs).

What the unions will never tell anyone (and why would they) is that there IS a process to not pay union dues OR agency fees. The process though is so cumbersome that most folks won't do it. You won't get to vote on a contract and you're still at the whim of what gets decided, whether you like it or not. So most people will just stick to paying union dues.

Believe it or not, not everyone who is a union member is a die hard Democrat or will vote for the candidate that the union is selling. That's why Jon Corzine is not currently a NJ governor and is in the trouble that he's in right now. Many union members did not vote for Corzine (because he implemented furloughs that took money out of the pockets of union-members), and that's why as a blue state we have a Republican governor, who is extremely anti-union and popular with the rest of NJ. In fact, Christie will probably get a second term unless there is a Democratic challenger that can appeal to both union folks and non-union folks.

demonfurbie

powerfool wrote: »

Just get a better job. It all depends on the company... and I have been able to negotiate additional PTO days at my last three employers, so I got more than company policy.

Instead of worrying about someone else taking care of you, stand up for yourself.

the issue ive been running into is that there is so much job competition when you do finally get in interview and it goes tot he offer state the company knows they can offer you a lower amount and if you dont take it they will just offer one of the other 100's of people that applied and they will take it

i had an interview a few months ago offered me 1 week (same as i currently get), i asked for 2 weeks that was the only difference in there offer, never heard back, come to find out they offered it to some one else with only 1 week vacation.

once i finish my degree ill be looking else were its hurt the job prospects not having a degree.

powerfool

demonfurbie wrote: »

the issue ive been running into is that there is so much job competition when you do finally get in interview and it goes tot he offer state the company knows they can offer you a lower amount and if you dont take it they will just offer one of the other 100's of people that applied and they will take it

i had an interview a few months ago offered me 1 week (same as i currently get), i asked for 2 weeks that was the only difference in there offer, never heard back, come to find out they offered it to some one else with only 1 week vacation.

once i finish my degree ill be looking else were its hurt the job prospects not having a degree.

Having a degree should give you a nice leg-up. Best wishes on that.