2.13.1 PURPOSE OF PAID TIME OFF (PTO)
The purpose of Paid Time Off (PTO) is to provide employees with flexible paid time off from work that can be used for such needs as vacation, personal or family illness, doctor appointments, school, volunteerism, and other activities of the employee’s choice. The company’s goal is to reduce unscheduled absences and the need for supervisory oversight.
Studies show that employees who take vacation time show:
- Decreased stress levels
- Decreased rates of depression
- Improved productivity
- Decrease heart problems
The PTO days you accrue, effective January 1, 2020 replace all existing vacation, sick time, and personal business days that you have been allotted under prior policies. The vacation time you accrued in the past will not carry over, in excess of the PTO policy, per the company’s guidelines at the time.
2.13.2 GUIDELINES FOR PTO USE
Each full-time employee will accrue PTO weekly in hourly increments based on their length of service as defined below. PTO is added to the employee’s PTO bank when the weekly paystub is issued. PTO taken will be subtracted from the employee’s accrued time bank in four- or eight-hour increments.
Employees will start with a new PTO bank as of January 1 each year, not on their anniversary date. Employees will be allowed to use PTO in advance of monthly accrual upon approval from the Company.
Temporary employees, part-time employees (less than 30 hours per week), contract employees, and interns are not eligible to accrue PTO.
Eligibility to accrue PTO is contingent on the employee either working or utilizing accrued PTO for the entire weekly pay period. PTO is not earned in pay periods during which unpaid leave, short- or long-term disability leave, or workers’ compensation leave are taken.
Employees may use time from their PTO bank in a minimum of 4-hour increments. The time that is not covered by the PTO policy, and for which separate guidelines and policies exist, include company paid holidays, bereavement time off (except as noted in Bereavement Policy), required jury duty, and military service leave.
Employees will be granted 8 hours per calendar year to participate in volunteer activities during normal work hours. Volunteer Paid Time (VPT) will be added to your accrued time as a separate category. VPT may be used on projects and with organizations that benefit the community at large. Organizations are generally eligible if they are a charitable 501(c)(3) organization. VPT requires approval by the supervisor and 1 week notice to Human Resources. Upon approval the Employee Volunteer Statement will be provided to you. This document must be completed, signed by a representative of the organization and returned to HR to receive payment. VPT will not accumulate or carryover from year to year. VPT will not be paid out upon termination from employment.
To take PTO requires notice to the supervisor and Human Resources per the following schedule unless the PTO is used for legitimate, unexpected illness or emergencies. In all instances, PTO must be approved by the employee’s supervisor in advance.
- 1 day PTO – 1 week notice
- 2 days PTO – 2 weeks’ notice
- 3 – 4 days PTO – 3 weeks’ notice
- 5 days PTO – 4 weeks’ notice
6+ days PTO – 8 weeks’ notice
2.13.3 PAID TIME OFF (PTO) EXCEPTIONS
Employees who miss more than three consecutive unscheduled days shall be required to present a doctor’s release to the Human Resources department that permits them to return to work.
Employees will be allowed to use PTO in advance of monthly accrual upon approval by the Company. Excessive use of unaccrued PTO can result in progressive disciplinary action up to and including employment termination. This time off will be unpaid. The only possible exception to this policy must be granted by the company President.
PTO accrued prior to the start of a requested and approved unpaid leave of absence must be used to cover hours missed before the start of the unpaid leave.
Under the company’s Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) policy, all accrued PTO time is taken before the start of the unpaid FMLA time, but concurrent with the FMLA time.
Unscheduled absences, due to illnesses of four hours or more, that result in consecutive days absent from work, are considered one absence incident in relation to potential disciplinary action.
Progressive disciplinary action relative to incidents of absenteeism is administered on a rolling 12-month calendar as follows:
- One – three incidents: No disciplinary action. Supervisory coaching.
- Fourth incident: Verbal warning with a documented coaching session.
- Fifth incident: Written warning in the employee’s file
- Sixth incident: Employment termination
- An employee who receives a second written warning in a rolling 24-month time period will have his or her employment terminated.
An employee who has used all of his or her FMLA and Short-Term Disability benefits, and is still unable to return to work, will have his or her employment terminated.
Any employee who misses two consecutive days of work without notice to their supervisor may be considered to have voluntarily quit their job.
2.13.4 SPECIFIC ELIGIBILITY FOR PAID TIME OFF (PTO)
PTO is earned on the following schedule based on a 40-hour work week. PTO is prorated based on the number of hours worked on an employee’s regular schedule.
- 30 days – 5 years completed: up to 104 working hours per year, earned at a rate of 2.0 hours for each full 40-hour work week in a calendar year
- 6 – 10 years completed: up to 128 working hours per year, earned at a rate of 2.4615 hours for each full 40-hour work week in a calendar year
- 11 – 15 years completed: up to 160 working hours per year, earned at a rate of 3.077 hours for each full 40-hour work week in a calendar year
- 16 – 20 years completed: up to 176 working hours per year, earned at a rate of 3.3847 hours for each full 40-hour work week in a calendar year
- 21+ years completed: up to 192 working hours per year, earned at a rate of 3.6924 hours for each full 40-hour work week in a calendar year
Each employee may carry 40 hours of accrued PTO over into a new calendar year. The employee has the choice of taking the 40 carried over hours in the first quarter of the new year or receiving a payout of 50% of the 40 hours paid over three weeks in January (not lump sum).
In November and December if extenuating business circumstances prevent the employee from taking previously approved and scheduled PTO, this PTO may be carried over (up to 40 hours) and taken in the first quarter of the next calendar year with the approval of the supervisor and Human Resources.
Regardless of the circumstances 40 hours is the maximum PTO hours allowed to carry over.
Employees are responsible for monitoring and taking their PTO over the course of a year so that they do not lose time accrued when the current calendar year ends. PTO is subject to supervisory approval and not every employee can take accumulated time in November and December; the company must continue to serve customers.
During an employee’s 30-day Introductory period PTO will accrue but cannot be used. Exceptions can be made for PTO during the 30-day Introductory period if approved during the hiring process.
Employees are paid for the PTO they have accrued at employment end. If an employee has used PTO time not yet accrued, and employment terminates, the PTO taken is deducted from the final paycheck. Employees who give two weeks’ notice of employment termination must work the two weeks without utilizing PTO. Management may choose to make the resignation effective immediately; in this case the accrued PTO will be paid to the employee with their final pay.
Employees who are rehired within 1 year after leaving will receive credit for former time worked and accumulate current PTO for the combined time. If the lapse in employment is greater than 1 year the employee’s years of service will start as a new employee, in regard to the PTO policy.
2.13.5 ELIGIBILITY EXAMPLES
Since PTO is added to the employee bank only for the weeks with at least 40 hours “worked”, there are weeks when an employee will not earn additional PTO time. Here are a few scenarios of this happening:
- An employee isn’t feeling well and decides to leave two hours early one day. The employee works a total of 38 hours for the week. The employee will not earn any PTO time that pay week because they worked less than 40 hours.
- An employee leaves in the middle of the day for a dentist appointment and ends up working 39 hours that week. No PTO is earned for that pay week.
- An employee oversleeps and arrives 2 hours late one day. No PTO is earned for that pay week.
- An employee is injured (whether it qualifies under workers comp or short-term disability) and is off work for 2 weeks. No PTO time will be earned for those 2 weeks.
- An employee requests a day off for the funeral of an extended family member. The employee works 32 hours and has 8 hours bereavement pay. This equals 40 hours worked, and the employee will accrue PTO time.
Any scenario where you do not work enough hours to accrue time will result in 0 PTO time accrued.
If an employee takes approved PTO early in the year and ends up not working enough 40-hour weeks to bring their PTO bank back to a positive number, then the negative PTO hours will be deducted from the employees’ final paycheck of the year.
Please reach out to Ed Hartmann in HR at ehartmann@cfpsprinkler.com with any questions regarding this policy.