How To Minimize Leave Credits Already Given?

Pls help me on this. 10 yrs ago (when I established my company) I gave memo to my employees that for every year rendered they will earn 1 day each for sick & vacation leave. Now, their leave credits ballooned to 10 days each for SL & VL for 50 employees. I know the memo was a mistake, not considering its long term effect (as I was 23 yrs old that time). Now, it is very costly on my part. How can I fix this without violating diminution of benefits?
Thank you in advance.

Hello Lorly168,

Going by your statements, looks like you do have very stable employees--else this situation wouldn't have arisen.

And, I don't think there's anything to feel bad about introducing a short-sighted policy AS LONG AS you are willing to learn & correct ALONG THE WAY. There are many companies who fail in this crucial aspect.

Coming to your query/concern, pl confirm the domain/sector your company is into--IT, Telecom, etc.

And since you are in Philippines, suggest evaluate the general Leave Policies in other similar-sized companies in the same sector. This would give you some semblance of being on-par with Industry standards & ensure your employees DON'T resist whatever changes you bring about.

As far as 'how to fix the situation', suggest FIRST consolidate the pending leave dues of each employee into a Fixed leave balance rounding-off to the nearest numeral--AS ON DATE. You could retain the Leave balance as it is or maybe pay the employees a Fixed amount for the leaves you wish to be 'abdicated/lapsed'.

THEN INTRODUCE the new Leave policy which will get into effect from a pre-determined date, which obviously you need to inform the employees in-advance.

With some fine-tuning, you should be able to get a model that will be, by & large, acceptable to all--and more importantly, that would stand from the 'long-term standard' viewpoint.

All the Best.

Rgds,

TS

Dear Ms. Lorly168,

Reminiscent of what has been explained by Mr. TS -- "THEN INTRODUCE the new Leave policy" is the next preeminent option.

Certainly you're not at the wrong side of what has been thought as policies (if any) regarding extended vacation, such as sabbaticals, and sick leaves are at the discretion of individual employers.

Regardless of the reason, it can be difficult for employees to adjust to the changes initially introduced, however, should be able to clearly explain to your staff why the procedure must change. Notify the changes in prudence -- doing so as soon as possible in order to give everyone a chance to absorb the news. If possible make sure you give them enough time to expel their queries and schedule a meeting with regards to the changes implemented.

Important:-- Make sure you attend to all the questions asked by your employees leaving no one perturbed. Stay as relaxed to the situation, if you are unable to attend any query; get back to them after a minimum time period.

I'm sure these li'l things could make a worthwhile procedure for your alterations made for the mutually beneficial association.

Dear Lorly,
In the circumstances explained by you, you can examine whether you could introduce 'Leave encashment' so that your immediate problem could be solved. This could be either compulsory or voluntary. After this you can evolve a pragmatic new leave policy, which in all probability will not be liked by employees. Regardless of the backlash you have to push thro' this reformed leave policy.
kumar.s.

Let me get this clear :
Everyone gets 2 days of leave every year ?
They have to work all through the rest of the year (or take lead without pay) ?
Does your local laws allow such a thing ? I don't think any country who is a member of ilo will allow,this.
Then when people have not used their leaves, you want to further penalise them by withdrawing the benefits ?

Lorely
First you have to understand what is the establishment?Your memo is a rediculous.Before issuing memo you didn't consult with anybody?As per your statement,every year your employees are allowed for 1 day alone.
As per FACTORIES ACT, if any one works for 240 days they are eligible for 12 days in a year.Do you know this?
For this you should be penalized.

She is not in india
She is in phillipines
Factories act does not apply
Still the number of leave granted is really funny

Hi. Thank you all for your reply. May I correct subbarao.v and saswatabanerjee. I gave them 3 days each for SL & VL or 6 days in total for EACH YEAR. Then on top of that, additional 1 day each for SL & VL or total 2 days ADDITIONAL for every year they stayed in my company. My oldest staff has been working with me for 10 years now and he has accumulated 40 days of SL. Btw, our VL is convertible to cash at the end of the year. I am trying to control this scheme as I did not anticipate its long term effect with more than 50 employees. At 23 yrs old that time, I just consulted our govt labor agency as I am solely running this business. Base on our Philippine Labor Code, it is mandatory to give MINIMUM of 5 days total leave for each year. It is company\'s discretion to give more. I have no problem with the new staff as I can just revised the policy. But my main problem is the older ones since I might step on the so called \"diminution of benefits\". I apologize if my initial post was not i

Hello Lorly168,
I think you wanted to say more--your last posting looks incomplete.
Pl post your comments & also your responses to the suggestions given on how to handle your predicament. That will enable the members to give a more focused response/solution to your situation.
Rgds,
TS

Lol
We would love to be in your place
Indian labour laws require 1 day of paid leave for every 20 days worked, meaning we give about 3 to 4 weeks of paid leave to our workers every year.
About your problem now, you can send a fresh memo withdrawing the benefits with effect from this year ( but it will be unfair to cancel what they have already accumulated). Let them use the accumulated leave over a period of time, or make a provision for the amount (keep money aside) to pay them when they want it