Requiring use of PTO with FMLA Leave (USA)

Response # 1: We require our employees to use any accrued PTO concurrently with FMLA leave.

Take a look at 29 CFR 825.207. This regulation outlines the manner in which paid leave can be used simultaneously as FMLA leave--i.e. notice, policy, etc.¹

 

Response # 2: Our institutional policy is that if an approved FMLA leave does not coincide with paid short-term disability leave, the employee is required to exhaust all accrued Sick Time Off and Personal Time Off, each of which will run concurrently with the FMLA leave. There was a time when, under a previous policy, concurrent use of PTO was not required, meaning that an employee could stack accrued PTO on top of the full (unpaid) FML period.²

 

Response # 3: Our policy requires use of all accrued and unused vacation time concurrently with FMLA.³

 

Response # 4:

1. Does your FMLA/medical leave policy require employees to use PTO/vacation days? YES

2. Is PTO/vacation mandated for both continuous and intermittent leaves? YES

3. How much PTO/vacation must employees use? Assuming employee is not eligible for Short Term Disability (STD) or Workers' Compensation benefits, all available PTO (sick days, personal days, vacation, floating holiday, etc.) must be used before FMLA leave is unpaid.⁴

 

Response # 5: This is not a legal response but more of a personal experience. I used FMLA along with STD when I had a child. My company, like most, limited the amount of PTO that could be carried over from year to year. My child was born in January. I returned to work in March and began to accrue vacation days again. But I also had a young baby and a toddler and needed to go to the doctor with my children or stay home with them when they were ill, etc. The end result was I had no time off for recharging, relaxing, spending time with my new family. Not too long thereafter I was completely burnt out and resented my job and my employer. It was truly miserable and very tired.

 

My recommendation would be a hybrid policy (assuming that the organization does not allow for unlimited carryover of days -- very rare these days); perhaps you require that the employee use at least one or two weeks of PTO or 1/2 the accrued PTO. I would imagine that many employees would welcome the paycheck and would choose to take the vacation days. However, if you want to retain your employees, I think having a happy workforce goes a long way. (I suggest you watch Shawn Achor's TED Talk).⁵

 

Response # 6: We do not require employees to use PTO. We give employees the choice.⁶