How Should I Handle Employee Concerns About Sick Days and Vacation Time Policies?

Effective Ways to Allow Paid Time Off

What's the most effective way to allow paid time off for your employees? Do you differentiate between sick and vacation? I have employees who are complaining (I've only been the HR manager here for 6 months) because they want to schedule their remaining sick/personal days off before the end of the year. There hasn't been clear direction until I came on the scene.

Our current policy states that employees may only carry over 2 days per year, and that doesn't include sick days—they may NOT be carried over. I currently have 3 employees who have not used their sick days and feel entitled to carry them over since many others used theirs throughout the year by calling in sick. Those who don't call in sick feel like they're being punished for not doing so.

Policy Change Considerations

What should I do? I want to change our policies on this all around and not have sick days, only vacation/personal. Any thoughts on this long-winded question? 

Effective Ways to Allow Paid Time Off

What's the most effective way to allow paid time off for your employees? The best way to settle on the number of days is probably earning 1 paid day off for a certain number of working days. For example, if there are 210 working days and your company policy gives an employee 10 days of paid time off, then the figures stand at 1 paid day earned every 21 working days.

Differentiating Between Sick and Vacation Days

Do you differentiate between sick and vacation? Yes, sick days are not to be taken as vacation days. I currently have 3 employees who have not used their sick days and feel entitled to carry them over since many others used theirs throughout the year by calling in sick. Sick days are meant to be carried over, no questions asked. If this is not in place, it's a major demotivating factor and will make employees call in sick just to use up the allotted sick leave.

Maybe you can talk to those who set the policies and let them know the current policies are encouraging unfavorable behavior. Perhaps they will allow you to offer Comp Time in lieu of unused Sick Time? Or maybe some incentive can be offered to those who don't use the sick time, such as a nice Christmas bonus that equates to the value of the unused sick days. Money always works for me, and then you'll be encouraging the behavior you want. Good luck.

Hi, I might have answers to a few of your queries - here you go...

Understanding Earned Leave

Earned leave is provided for a particular number of days worked in the organization. In simple words, it is earned by working in the organization. It could range anywhere between 1 earned leave for working 20 - 30 days.

If it is 1 for 20 days worked, there will be 18 earned leaves (ELs) per year; in the other case, if it is 1 EL for 30 days worked, there would be 12 ELs per year.

It is a kind of reward leave for the employee, and it does not lapse. It could be encashed (after the accumulation of 30 ELs, as in our company) or settled in full and final payment when the employee leaves the company.

Types of Paid Leaves

Apart from this, there are two other kinds of paid leaves - Casual Leave and Sick Leave. It is the company's decision on the numbers. According to industry standards, all these leaves (Earned, Casual, and Sick) could be summed up to 30 in all. The number could differ based on a lot of reasons.

The casual leave would lapse by the year-end, whereas sick leave is carried forward. The lapse of the sick leave could never be fair for the employee who has not been sick... :)

I think you could refer to some law books and get to know the "Act" which is applicable to your company. Might help.

Would be glad to clarify further if the need be...

And my uncalled two cents - HR personnel should stay away from frustrations as much as possible :) All the best...

Regards, Navneet

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Policy on Personal Time and Sick Leave

My organization does not distinguish between personal time and sick leave. A full-time employee accrues PT/SL at a rate of 4 hours per working month, or 48 hours per year. After 12 months, we use the calendar, and the remaining PT/SL rolls over, allowing the employee to accrue up to a maximum of 96 hours of PT/SL. In October, the company will automatically pay out all but 48 hours of PT/SL. This policy encourages employees not to call in sick just to use the hours and ensures there are always an adequate number of hours available for the employee to use.

Now, when an employee calls in sick, they have no choice but to use the sick leave and cannot intentionally build up their nest egg. This approach appears to work well, and our employees are satisfied. There are many different approaches to this issue, and many are equally workable. Hope you can find one that works best for your company. 

Hi! When it comes to leave policies, your first task is to look at your labor laws to understand the minimum requirements.

Next, consult with your top management to align your policies with their preferences for implementation within the organization. It is essential to ensure that your policies are well-received by key decision-makers, as their approval is crucial for successful implementation.

Once you have gathered insights from labor laws and top management, research best practices in leave policies within your industry and geographical area of operation. Utilize this information to craft comprehensive policies and procedures that govern different types of leaves effectively.

Types of Leaves

There are various types of leaves, each requiring specific guidelines and procedures for management. As a specialist in policy development, my team has extensive experience in creating leave policies for multinational corporations. Our expertise lies in tailoring policies to suit the unique needs of each client.

I recall a client whose excessive use of leaves raised questions about the balance between work and time off. If you find yourself overwhelmed despite the recommendations provided, consider engaging external consultants like us for expert assistance in policy development.

Avoid unnecessary frustration, especially during the holiday season. Investing in a well-structured leave policy can bring clarity and efficiency to your HR processes. Our team can provide you with a comprehensive leave policy package that aligns with industry best practices, ensuring a smooth implementation process.

Best wishes,

Ed Llarena, Jr.
Managing Partner
Emilla Consulting

Hi Navneet,

That was a good write-up on the Leave Policy. Just a little query: you mentioned that all leaves should sum up to 30 per year according to industrial law. Could you provide a little more information on this?

Cheers,
Jyoti

Mr. Navneet,

If it is 1 for 20 days worked, there will be 18 ELs per year. In the other case, if it is 1 EL for 30 days worked, there would be 12 ELs per year. It is a kind of reward leave for the employee and it does not lapse. It could be encashed (after accumulation of 30 ELs, as in our company) or settled in Full & Final payment (when the employee leaves the company).

You are absolutely correct, but I would like to know, if an employee accumulated 30 days EL in 2005. Please tell me how many days EL he can encash (i.e., Full Leave or 50% or any other statutory rule).

Regards,
Kanaka

Hi,

I would like to know, after the accumulation of earned leave (EL) [if the Factory Act allows 30 days and the Shops & Establishments Act allows 24 days], how many days of EL can we encash?

Urgent.

Regards,
Kanaka

Usually, every employee is supposed to get paid leave for every twenty physical working/man days. Whether paid leave and vacation leaves can be clubbed depends on the policy maker. However, most organizations do not entertain these clubbings.

Thank you.

Dear All,

I do not see any difference in cubing the type of leaves. What is more important is the misutilization of leave. If the philosophy of leave is to provide the benefit of pay while not physically present on the job, then there comes no question of paid leave, earned leave, privileged leave, sick leave, or casual leave, etc.

Leave, before being named, is leave itself, which recognizes the fact that the individual is not physically present at his/her place of posting but is getting pay for that day.

In no legislation is it defined that you cannot club types of leave. It is only our understanding of the leave policy made and implemented in an organization/establishment/industry. If a person has exhausted his pre-decided entitlement of Sick Leave and unfortunately falls sick, then if the leave balance of Earned leave or Casual leave is available and we do not allow paid leave to the individual. In this case, I do not see any point in making entitlement for one leave and denying the same in any other case at the time of its requirement.

Suppose in the above case, casual leave lapses at the end of the year, and the individual is forced to take LAP for his sickness, the whole purpose of the leave gets defeated. We should not defeat the purpose.

Flexibility is required but with complete awareness of the consequences of misutilization. We should make our people so competitive that they understand the objectives of the rules/legislation. If we take that course seriously, then no authority would like to challenge the case based on a case-to-case basis.

So finally, in my opinion, we should take care of legislation with clarity in mind for its objectives.

Anil Anand

Dear Aneesha,

Further to our discussion, I will add a few points on how to provide benefits to employees regarding leave.

1. There is no policy, to my knowledge, that allows sick leave to be carried over to the next year in many companies, and there is no regulatory act mandating this.
2. To avoid confusion, you can offer all your employees a universal leave without any distinction, so that employees are not compelled to falsely claim sick leave.
3. This type of leave can be availed by employees as and when needed with permission from their reporting authority.
4. You can allow the carry-forward of these leaves at a rate of only 13 days per year to prevent excessive accumulation.
5. By implementing this, you will motivate employees to utilize the leave benefits provided by the company.

I hope this information will be useful to you.

All the best,
Soumya Sudhindra

Leave policy is essential as it is part of employee welfare, but it is also obligatory for employers (01 day for every 20 days worked). We should create a policy that aligns with the organization's needs and benefits individuals.

Hi everyone, I am new too, not that frustrated. I just want a format where the Leave policy is mentioned, through which I can make the employees happy while ensuring the company does not perceive it as harmful to the organization. So, can anybody help me out?

Hi Smita Rane,

We are only 6 employees in a company and don't have any leaves. Leave without pay is the policy in our company. I have completed 18 months here and still I have no leaves. I would like to know the rules and regulations which a company should accept.

Thank you.